Seriously, do "mid season" jackets really exists?

Just splurged on a 260 Euro worth of MAAP jacket that supposedly should do the trick, we’ll see about that, but the main question is : does a jacket like that really exists ?
Basically it’s a windproof jacket I’m probably talking about but go ahead and find me a wind jacket with a snug,tight body fit if you can, because 99% of windproof " mid season" jackets are those packable things that once put on they wear large and mercilessly flaps in the wind. So there you have it, I find myself going back to my winter jacket wich gets unbelivably hot if the temperatures suddendly shoots from 14° C to 18°, let alone if the sun suddendly hits your back while climbing and my Garmin starts to read 20° C even if it’s early march.

I would spontaneously say, no!

For me at least the issue isn’t warmth, but rather the issue of being right between warm and cold. So for me I usually do long sleeve jersey with nothing under, but then do a vest/wind jacket over it to keep me warm for the first part/cafe etc.

Then once I get warm, I take that shell layer off.

Even in winter I wear my long sleeve jersey but just adjust the layer under it for the temperature.

I have successfully sized down in Pas Normals wind jacket, so it fits as snug as it can while also being easy to pack down.

14 to 18C I’d just go with a lightweight windproof gilet that you can take on and off, or unzip on the climbs and zip back up for the descents. I think of mid season as more like 6 to 14C where something like a Perfetto works well.

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Came here to say this, gilets are perfect for this.

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Check out Assos Fuchsröhre

I got it for 260€ and love it to wear over a warmish jersey in mid season or use it as a shell in summer

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Sounds like OP runs a fair bit colder than me because by 14deg I’d probably be in full summer kit, but if we’re talking about transitional temperatures in a subjective sense then I’d say the key for me is to find garments that focus on protection in the front panels and breathability in the rear. This also usually means they are able to stretch enough to give a snug fit and avoid flapping.

At the lightest end of things I’m a huge fan of my Rapha Pro Team Lightweight Gilet. It’s windproof in the front and fully open mesh at the back. Also packs into roughly half of a jersey pocket, which means there’s room for lightweight arm warmers too if I want a bit of extra warmth. I wear that gilet in a size smaller than my jersey to make sure it doesn’t flap around - there’s enough stretch to make it fit comfortably. I’m pretty sure the Castelli Squadra Stretch Gilet is similar and there will be loads of other brands producing one as well, but I find it a bit disappointing that more isn’t made in the descriptions about exactly which panels are windproof and which are mesh - lots of ‘breathable’ gilets only have mesh on the side panels and actually have a full windproof back, which is just too much for me.

Similar story going up the spectrum to heavier garments. Castelli Perfetto Light is this concept applied to the Gabba (Gabba front but with a much lighter back panel). This year I got the Castelli Beta ROS, which I think is an under-marketed garment. It seems to be the closest thing they’ve got to a Perfetto long sleeve that has the breathable back of the Perfetto light. Based on OP’s description this might be my recommendation to try.

One step heavier than the Beta ROS is my (older) Rapha Pro Team Training Jacket - a bit fleecier/warmer than the Beta but otherwise the same concept. I can’t tell if this has been discontinued or if it’s now called the Pro Team Winter Jacket. Again, lots of other brands will have a version of it. I think my previous was from dhb and called a ‘hybrid softshell’. Anything with the word hybrid in it will pique my interest because that usually seems to refer to this different front/back panel concept. That’s what I’d be looking for in OPs situation!

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Ok, probably I need to update the post with the crazy weather I have back here, it’s a island climate, it’s nice and warm at 18c during fall when you go out, but in a matter of 2 hours it can go down to 14 that feels like 12 with wind chill. Also, you sweat like a pig on the climbs but when you fly down and stumble upon the occasional shadow or cold air bubble it feels like a stab, even for legs.
They irony ? It’s exactly 15c as I’m typing and it feels pleasantly warm.

Castelli has a ton of jackets and uses a lot of different materials. Things can get pretty confusing when you only see the pictures and look at the actual jacket.

The Beta ROS sounds like a good option for OP. It’s thin and not backed by any insulation, but blocks the wind and will also keep you dry in the rain. It breaths extremely well and it is tight fitting, similar to a jersey. You could adjust it to a range of temps by simply changing up what base layer you have underneath. If you shop around there are some good deals on the jacket out there but here is the link to the description at Castelli.

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Thanks, this could be a very good option indeed, it has bit to much embossings but worth to have at least a look at.

I really like the LeCol aqua zero. I use it with a short sleeve base layer from upper 40s-60 F

That temperature range is well out of where I’d wear any jacket, jersey, arm warmer + packable gilet, or long sleeved roubaix fleece jersey alone in most cases. Unless I know of some horrific weather on it’s way that’s all I need.

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I would wear a gillet for those temps, but if it was more like 10-15, I really like my Ornot Microclimate Jacket. It’s great for those days when it starts chilly but then goes warm half way through the ride. It also fits tight, so it wicks well. Folds up small as well. It’s water resistant, not waterproof though.

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Different weights of softshells and gilets (sometimes waterproof ones in the UK) are ideal for the ‘mid season’.

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I would never need more than a vest / gilet along with arm warmers for that temp range….and the gilet would likely get dumped at about 15*.

I can’t imagine wearing anything substantial in those temps. :hot_face::hot_face:

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I’ve been sporting this lately for rides between 4 and 12c. Feels ideal. Really good value

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Sounds like Summer here in Scotland, though I’d guess it’s wetter here. I would never choose to wear long sleeves if it had a chance of getting that warm so my Beta RoS recommendation might be out, but everyone has different preferences. I would rather have slightly cold arms and legs at the cool end of the ride than a too-hot core at the warm end.

If it’s too warm for my Beta then, depending on the conditions, I’m using some combination of one from column A, one from column B, and one from column C as follows:

  • no/light/medium-weight summer base layer
  • race jersey / sporstwool jersey / perfetto light / gabba
  • lightweight gilet / insulated gilet / shakedry waterproof
    Plus maybe arm warmers.

I hadn’t previously mentioned the Rapha Brevet Insulated Gilet or the Shakedry. That gilet (or presumably anything with Polartec Alpha insulation) is an incredible garment and adds an unbelievable amount of warmth and wind resistance, but it has to be a pretty cold start on a summer morning for me to bring it out - it gets very hot very fast. Rapha also do a Pro-Team version which only has the insulation on the front, which I think I’d like to try but haven’t ponied up for yet. If we’re talking about genuine temperature change then those insulated gilets are my top tip for getting the biggest comfort range out of one outfit. If the temp change is more about windchill then either the lightweight gilet or the shakedry is more effective. No need to say anything about shakedry - you’ve already mentioned issues with flapping in the wind and presumably you already know all the other pros and cons.

I’m with you in preferring cold arms to a hot core. Since I’ve been using the Ornot Microclimate, I’ve pretty much eliminated the need for arm warmers as I just take it off and it folds down smaller than arm warmers do.

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That thing looks great! I wonder if there’s any kind of equivalent from a UK seller?

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That Microclimate jacket looks really interesting…I have a Gore ShakeDry now, which has been great, but can still not breathe all that well.

How is the water resistance on the Ornot?

I guess it depends if there’s a wind chill or not, For 14-18°C, if it “feels like” 10-14°C then I’d pack some thermal sleeves and add/remove as the temperature changes.