Getting ready for a 4-month stint in New Zealand was an train in touring gentle. Regardless of having Patagonia’s Black Gap mega-hauler to cram my life into, I nonetheless needed to rein in my tendency to overpack.
Gear with multi-functionality — trainers that work on the highway and the path, a pair of denims stylish sufficient for a dinner date but stretchy sufficient for high-stepping over rocks and roots — earned a spot within the go-pile, whereas single-purpose gadgets stayed dwelling in Colorado.
The waterproof, windproof, and uber-packable Patagonia Storm Racer made the lower. After testing it for 3 months in gale-force winds, sudden storms, and multiple tropical rainforest, I’m glad it did.
Little else in our closets today can save your bacon like a rain jacket can. And whereas cumbersome hardshells serve up safety that’ll outlast weeklong storms, they drag like a ship anchor when packed — and neglect about working in them. Svelte rain jackets just like the Storm Racer rebalance the scales, and when the forecast takes a flip, one of the best shell jacket is the one you’ve acquired with you.
In brief: The light-weight Patagonia Storm Racer stands as much as the weather. Stuffable into its chest pocket, the jacket is simple to tote alongside and is prepared if — or, in New Zealand, when — the climate turns bitter. It isn’t a barely-there layer like Patagonia’s long-loved Houdini, however I’d argue its increase in performance is nicely definitely worth the (minimal) weight penalty.
To see how the Storm Racer stacks as much as different rain jackets available on the market, take a look at GearJunkie’s Purchaser’s Guides for Rain Jackets and Ladies’s Rain Jackets.
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Waterproof Materials
H2No Efficiency 3L -
Waterproof Score
20,000 mm -
Breathability Score
Unpublished -
Pit Zips
No -
Match
Trim/lively -
Measurement
XXS-XL -
Pockets
One -
Weight
6.3 oz.
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Nice just-in-case layer for rain and wind -
Light-weight -
Breathable -
Stuffs down small -
Sustainable design
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Gained’t stand as much as intense rain -
Small chest pocket -
Loud shade choices
Patagonia Storm Racer Jacket: Evaluation
Designs and Options
The Storm Racer is mainly a hooded, waterproof shell with one minimal chest pocket. The H2No Efficiency Normal shell encompasses a three-layer development with a 20-denier totally recycled nylon ripstop face and 7-denier tricot backer sandwiching an interior, waterproof/breathable barrier. PFC-free DWR gives extra rain safety.
Two fundamental cinch factors — one on the nape and one on the waist — add an additional contact of dimension customizability, in addition to the choice to additional batten down the hatches if the jacket’s already-slim match isn’t slicing muster.
At simply 6.3 ounces for the ladies’s and seven.2 ounces for the lads’s, the Storm Racer can be noticeably lighter than different rain jackets that GearJunkie specialists have put by means of the wringer, a lot of which hover across the 10-ounce mark.
Wonderful (however Not Excellent) Efficiency
Stripping down the Storm Racer’s silhouette permits the jacket to be uber-packable by raincoat requirements. Your entire factor shortly and simply stuffs into its chest pocket to turn out to be a pliable wad in regards to the dimension of a mango. There’s actually no cause not to pack this jacket, particularly in a spot the place shoulder-warming sunshine will flip to Antarctic gusts and heavy rain within the span of an hour.
As a easy wind safety layer, the Storm Racer delivers ample safety whereas nonetheless respiration successfully. I’ve reached for this layer on a number of bike rides, carrying it over my skinny puffy coat as an additional protection in opposition to biting wind. I’ve additionally thrown it on over a fundamental polyester tech tee — my commonplace working uniform — after I needed a contact extra heat on dry but chilly days.
In each cases, the jacket impressed me with its breathability. No query, the Storm Racer successfully allowed my physique warmth to flee whereas nonetheless blocking the wind.
Loads of different outings offered alternatives to check out the Storm Racer’s prowess within the waterproof division. On one fast-hiking pursuit up the facet of a mountain, sunny skies shortly turned to swirling mist and pummeling wind and spitting rain as I crested a ridgeline.
Regardless of the Storm Racer’s slim match, I zipped the jacket over my t-shirt and fleece with none concern (it wasn’t too tight and didn’t impede my vary of movement), and I remained heat and dry regardless of the abrupt climate shift.
One other day, I acquired caught biking in a deluge. Water pooled inches deep within the biking lane, and my wheels whipped it each up my again and onto my chest. As soon as dwelling, my denims have been sopping, wring-them-out-like-a-towel moist from the waist down.
My face was additionally dripping, partly as a result of the tip of the hood extends solely about an inch previous my face (I would love it to be a contact longer). My higher physique, alternatively, which had been safely tucked beneath the jacket, was fully dry.
Working within the rain with the Storm Racer is a barely completely different story. I usually forgo a water-resistant layer of any kind on soggy runs. Accepting that I will likely be moist from the rain at some point of my exercise looks as if a greater different than overheating in a damp, terrarium-esque hell of my very own making.
Within the identify of analysis, nonetheless, I did put the Storm Racer by means of the paces on a drizzling, 55-degree morning and located it carried out above common. I nonetheless discovered myself sweating a bit contained in the jacket, but it surely breathed sufficient to keep away from the full-on terrarium impact. And it was good to have the waterproof safety, with out which I might have been drenched and chilly.
It’s essential to notice that whereas the H2No Efficiency waterproofing is superb, it’s not fully proof against the weather. Mountain climbing 8 miles by means of a rainforest in an unrelenting downpour proved to be a bit an excessive amount of for even this precipitation-deterring workhorse. By the point I’d completed, it had rained shut to five inches, and I used to be soaked right down to my pores and skin in every single place, even beneath the Storm Racer’s protecting layer.
In fact, so was my husband in his Fjällräven raincoat (an older model of the Keb Eco-Shell Jacket) and my son in his Antora Rain Jacket from The North Face, which signifies that little lower than a roof might have withstood that stage of wetness. I’ll give the Storm Racer a move.
Crossover Fashion — Type Of
I like twin performance any day, however relating to journey, I prioritize items that work nicely and have a look at dwelling in a number of settings. Because of its glossy silhouette and skill to crush down right into a purse-friendly dimension, the Storm Racer proves to be an awesome companion in city environments too — or at the least the lads’s model does because it is available in each blue and black, along with the virtually neon Phosphorus Inexperienced.
The ladies’s model, nonetheless, is available in solely two colours: daring Subtidal Blue (mainly turquoise) and even bolder Pimento Crimson. I like shade as a lot as the subsequent Bob Ross, however when touring by means of a metropolis, I’d want to do because the New Yorkers do and put on a black, or at the least an unassuming navy.
Is {That a} Telephone in Your Pocket?
Whereas my Google Pixel 7 does match into the Storm Racer’s entrance chest pocket, it’s not straightforward to finagle in there, and it’s even tougher to wrestle out. On the upside, the compartment’s just-big-enough dimension means my telephone stays flush in opposition to my chest even whereas working. There’s no bouncing.
Then once more, attempting to shortly seize my telephone to snap an image of some fleeting picture — a chirping fantail or a surprising cloud — was a misplaced trigger. I do know I’m being choosy right here, but when I had my druthers, the pocket could be simply half an inch or so longer to facilitate a smoother in-out transition.
Evaluating the Storm Racer to the Houdini
For those who’re out there for a light-weight working jacket, you may also be contemplating Patagonia’s long-loved Houdini. At simply 3.4 ounces, this 100% recycled nylon jacket additionally packs into its chest pocket, although it crushes down even smaller than the Storm Racer to roughly the dimensions of a kiwi.
The Houdini additionally resists gentle moisture due to a PFC-free DWR end however proves super-breathable, arguably much more so than the Storm Racer, given the lightness of the fabric.
Which jacket is best for you? That is determined by how a lot house you have got accessible, how diligently you’re counting ounces, and whether or not you’re prioritizing breathability or staying dry. For those who’re an ultra-marathoner reserving valuable house in your working vest for much-needed energy, then the Houdini might be your finest guess. Identical reply in the event you’re shaving weight in pursuit of FKT glory or hammering out a tough, tremendous sweaty exercise.
When going for a mean run, you’ll have to determine between preferring to remain dry within the rain (select the Storm Racer) or not minding a bit sweat (go together with the Houdini). Personally, I’d make this resolution on a case-by-case foundation relying on the temperature, how laborious and constantly it’s raining, and the way distant I’ll be after I’m working.
In most different cases, I’d argue the additional advantage of getting a completely waterproof layer readily available is value it. For those who’re mountaineering, biking, strolling the canine, strolling to the espresso store, or simply doing life when it’s raining (not simply misting), about to rain, chilly, or all three, wad the Storm Racer up and throw it in your pack.
For those who’re a budget-conscious shopper, the Houdini’s $109 value level will look extra palatable than the Storm Racer’s $299 pockets hit. Don’t be fooled. You’re higher off with the Patagonia Torrentshell 3L Rain Jacket ($179) as a substitute, our editors’ decide for “Greatest Worth Rain Jacket.”
Patagonia Storm Racer: The Ultimate Phrase
Everytime you’re working or mountaineering for double-digit miles, particularly once you’re at elevation, it’s all the time clever to be ready for a sudden drop within the mercury, an uptick in wind gusts, sudden precipitation, or all three. When Mom Nature lets unfastened, you desire a layer you may depend on: The Patagonia Storm Racer is simply that.
True, this shell isn’t fairly as featherweight or as squishable as Patagonia’s light-as-air jacket Houdini. And whereas the Storm Racer is actually waterproof, it would wrestle in an prolonged, unrelenting downpour. Nonetheless, the Storm Racer will likely be a staple in my backpack — and my fanny pack, purse, and sling bag as nicely — for years to return.
