- News
- Reviews
- Bikes
- Accessories
- Accessories - misc
- Computer mounts
- Bags
- Bar ends
- Bike bags & cases
- Bottle cages
- Bottles
- Cameras
- Car racks
- Child seats
- Computers
- Glasses
- GPS units
- Helmets
- Lights - front
- Lights - rear
- Lights - sets
- Locks
- Mirrors
- Mudguards
- Racks
- Pumps & CO2 inflators
- Puncture kits
- Reflectives
- Smart watches
- Stands and racks
- Trailers
- Clothing
- Components
- Bar tape & grips
- Bottom brackets
- Brake & gear cables
- Brake & STI levers
- Brake pads & spares
- Brakes
- Cassettes & freewheels
- Chains
- Chainsets & chainrings
- Derailleurs - front
- Derailleurs - rear
- Forks
- Gear levers & shifters
- Groupsets
- Handlebars & extensions
- Headsets
- Hubs
- Inner tubes
- Pedals
- Quick releases & skewers
- Saddles
- Seatposts
- Stems
- Wheels
- Tyres
- Health, fitness and nutrition
- Tools and workshop
- Miscellaneous
- Buyers Guides
- Features
- Forum
- Recommends
- Podcast
TECH NEWS
Castelli Idro jacket - 7.jpgCastelli launches super-lightweight Idro waterproof
Castelli is launching a new Idro waterproof jacket that weighs just 123g and packs down super-small for stowage.
The idea is that it’ll go more or less unnoticed in a jersey pocket until you need proper protection from the rain
“The Gore-Tex Active technology with a new permanent beading surface is an innovative fabric construction that eliminates the textile on the outer face of the fabric, resulting in a two layer fabric that is lighter weight and doesn’t absorb moisture on the outer face,” says Castelli.
As well as being waterproof, Gore-Tex Active products are designed to be extremely breathable.
Check out our jackets reviews here.
The Idro – it translates as hydro – comes in a close cut, designed to avoid billowing, and it boasts a waterproof YKK zip, elastic bindings on the cuffs and hem, and a zipped opening at the back for ventilation and to allow you access to jersey pockets.
Castelli claims a weight of just 123g for a large size and it says that the jacket takes up half a jersey pocket when folded down. That’s seriously lightweight. The Pearl Izumi Elite WxB jacket that we reviewed recently, for comparison, was 211g.
It’s priced £230.
Mat has been in cycling media since 1996, on titles including BikeRadar, Total Bike, Total Mountain Bike, What Mountain Bike and Mountain Biking UK, and he has been editor of 220 Triathlon and Cycling Plus. Mat has been road.cc technical editor for over a decade, testing bikes, fettling the latest kit, and trying out the most up-to-the-minute clothing. He has won his category in Ironman UK 70.3 and finished on the podium in both marathons he has run. Mat is a Cambridge graduate who did a post-grad in magazine journalism, and he is a winner of the Cycling Media Award for Specialist Online Writer. Now over 50, he's riding road and gravel bikes most days for fun and fitness rather than training for competitions.
Latest Comments
- hawkinspeter 3 min 41 sec ago
Excellent - I think I'll replace my emergency tube that is a real squeeze to get into the little Topeak bottle cage bag thingy.
- don simon fbpe 7 min 41 sec ago
I'm genuinely shocked by his their reaction.
- arckuk 8 min 56 sec ago
I enjoyed this guy I captured with his hound on New Oxford Street a few years ago.
- chrisonabike 9 min 30 sec ago
That's perspective though - not a small number of americans would consider the current UK government "socialist"....
- Bungle_52 10 min 47 sec ago
I know this is a bit late but one thing that hasn't been mentioned yet is the extra wear and possible damage to the cycle lane surface due to being...
- Patrick9-32 54 min 45 sec ago
*bursts back into the room hours after the conversation has moved on*...
- notMyRealName 55 min ago
Damn, that sucks. I generally feel pretty relaxed with my bike on Avanti trains because the compartment is locked and I don't have to worry about...
- Muddy Ford 1 hour 27 min ago
They are ugly, and presumably require registration to use them. But the argument "it should be car parking instead" is absurd. Surely a camera and...
- LeadenSkies 1 hour 33 min ago
It's endemic now. Watched a skip lorry jump two reds within 100m on my commute this morning. No intention of stopping.
- cyclisto 1 hour 57 min ago
I strugle to think other as cool bikes as this. If my city was flatter and I fitter, I would drool over it....
Add new comment
5 comments
Howies Helium for me. Packs down small enough to go in a jersey pocket, keeps the rain off and the warmth in. It's not cycling specific, so no strategically-placed zips on the back, but it only cost £25 in the sale.
People of the earth, you have no clue, You still wear cagoules and tennis shoes.
£2 per gram, does it have silver woven into it?
Funnily enough i'm after a rain jacket and have been doing the rounds on google searching for one. Previously had Rapha Rain jacket which had excellent protection but looked a bit crap and then the Castelli Pocket Liner which was fantastic at keeping the rain out but hopeless packing up to keep in the back pocket and was a bit 'boil in the bag' to wear. This looks to be an option but £230 for a Cagoule is gonna hurt.
Need an upgrade from my Castelli Squadra and this looks the ticket. I could wrap myself in kitchen-roll and it'd be more waterproof/breathable/aero.
Goretex Active is a bit poor in my experience. If you roll that jacket up like he has in that picture, you'll wreck the top layer and it'll soak through. You have to treat it delicately, make sure you aren't rubbing any spots when moving or those patches will soak through.
Used Goretex Active for lightweight running and hiking jackets from Mountain Equipment before.. fine for a handful of outings then it's done for. Basically you'll be reproofing after every serious use, especially if you're rolling it up and stuffing into a pocket.
I don't bother now. As long as my jacket is windproof and I have a merino layer on then I'd rather get soaked but stay warm.
Then again, if you're not at that stage yet where you're happy to get wet, and want to try and stay dry with something lightweight.. you don't have a lot of options. GT Active is probably the most breathable out of the available tech.