Alpinestars Radon Air Jacket - review

For warmer riding Leigh was sent a new for 2011 Radon Air Jacket by Alpinestars which is one of their mesh panelled, heavily vented light textile jackets, having missed a lot of the hottest days and caught a few showery ones here is what he thought of it.

Initial Thoughts

I actually got the Radon Air jacket a few months back but due to reasons beyond my control always seemed to miss the opportunity to get it on for the really hot days, a lot of the time was down to longer journey's and the typical unpredictability of the UK summer weather - with very good reason too, on most of the days I would have worn the Radon Air it ended up throwing down with rain at some stage and on motorway journey's that would just have been uncomfortable. Having said that I have actually managed now to put a fair few mile in on this jacket and been caught out in a nice warm shower or two too, the Radon Air comes with a thin wind liner for when the temperature drops and I found this did a remarkably good job of keeping the heaviest drops away from me for just long enough of a time to dry.

Construction

When you first throw on a mesh jacket you feel a little exposed, especially when you tend to wear leather all year round, the feeling of breeze before you even get moving is an odd thing to get used to but on those silly hot days when even looking at a leather jacket brings you out in a gallon of sweat you know this jacket makes sense. I have already touched on the wind liner which works well on warmer showery days, well it's actual purpose is to reduce the wind blast on colder days too, a job that it succeeds at providing you are not asking too much of it - a chilly March morning is perhaps not recommended.

The way Alpinestars constructed the jacket is very clever though, with your main front panels being of mesh construction and the inside of your arm you would perhaps expect to feel colder than you do when getting a push on, the placement of the mesh appears to have been thought out enough to allow a stiff breeze through while still allowing your body to retain some of its natural heat. Safety has been thought about also and as with all new offerings from Alpinestars you get not only a compartment for a back protector but also chest plates are catered for too, in the jacket you are provided with foam inserts to keep costs down so bear that in mind.

Shoulder and elbow armour is Alpinestars own CE rubber kit with the shoulders being asymmetrical in design, they are substantial feeling, thick and soft but a little heavier than other brands on the market. The Radon Air Jacket has little bonus features too with the white detailing on my black and white model being reflective for additional safety and the usual zip connection for fastening to compatible trousers. Overall it is a great jacket for someone who rides on the continent or on warm, dry days but practicality in the UK is hampered simply due to the weather, in my opinion a thin outer waterproof jacket should also be offered as we do suffer too much with random outbursts of rain.