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Super Speedy Summary Review

Waterproof and breathable with some superb big side pockets you can use for vents to cool down if you get hot. This jacket has all waterproof zips, a fully adjustable hood with visor and excellent high collar to keep the rain off your face. Packs up super small using its hanging strap. A good fit to size with enough room left over for any layers beneath too for the worst of outdoor conditions.

At $189 this jacket is all high end features. A great quality jacket for a reasonable price for hikers, trail runners and climbers.

You can buy the Jacket here direct from Topo for the Lowest online USA price

You can Buy the Jacket here direct from Topo for the Lowest online USA price

In Depth Review

All waterproof jackets are built from the material up. If you imagine the material as two layers, you’ve got an inner layer that needs to wick sweat away from your body and an outer layer that needs to repel rain but allow your sweat to travel through and away from you. Jackets with this type of waterproofing are normally rated for breathability and for how waterproof they are.

This jacket has a 10k rating. In the case of a 10k or 10,000 mm fabric, if you put a square tube with inner dimensions of 1” x 1” over a piece of thisfabric, you could fill it with water to a height of 10,000 mm (32.8 feet) before water would begin to leak through. So…..basically …its very waterproof !

Washing Machine bit

More than any other item of clothing you buy you MUST look after waterproof breathable jackets. We all love throwing all gear into their washers, then straight in the tumble dryer on full heat. If you do this very soon you will see that the water on the outside of the jacket no longer ‘beads’ into little spheres and instead the jacket just gets wet all over. The moment your jacket does this it is no longer breathable at all. The breathability relies on the moisture coming out through the gaps between those beads of water. If you use fabric softener you will also ruin the outer layer beading effect. This is not just this jacket, this is all jackets like this.

Its sensible if you wash this garment on low temperatures WITHOUT detergent. Its why I try pick all my technical gear in black if possible. It hides the dirt and stains. I strongly suggest using a mild soap based cleaner instead or a specialist tec gear wash such as Nik Wax tec wash. If you do this and leave the garment to hang dry you will massively increase its lifetime of breathability and water repellency. I also suggest using Nik Wax waterproof spray on it from time to time to keep the garment beading properly.

What are taped seams ?

Taped seams are also a sign of a decent waterproof jacket. By placing long strips of totally waterproof and flexible material underneath every seam inside the jacket you ensure that water cannot seep inside your jacket in the rain between the stitches where two pieces of material are joined.

Rubber Zips

The rubber zips are also a sign of a high end waterproof jacket. The pockets and main zip have a layer of rubber that meet tightly together over the top of the zip when its zipped up. This means rain cannot seep in through the zip even in driving rain. Its another sign of a high end waterproof jacket.

Happy Hands

By having a slightly too long arm this jacket gives you the flexibility to tuck your hands and possibly gloves inside the cuff to stay out of the rain and keep warmer. There is also a velcro zip round the cuff so you can make the cuff tighter to help keep the rain out.

Happy Dry Head

The hood on the Global Jacket is well thought out. Its large enough to fit a climbing helmet inside for climbers, and is adjustable at the sides with draw cord so that you can bring it in close to your head and face in extreme rain, or leave wide for better peripheral visibility in light rain. The reinforced peak keeps the bulk of the rain off your face too. I love the high collar on this and often in bad weather keep the collar up right past my nose to help keep the warmth in and the wet out.

Cool Pockets …literally

The pockets serve a number of roles. Firstly they are huge so you can slam your hands in to keep them warm, secondly they are huge so you can keep lots of stuff in them, but also you can fully open them up and use them to help you cool down if you find you get a bit warm or clammy in the rain . There is also an internal zipped breast pocket for your keys, phone or other items to keep them safe and dry.

Packs up small

This jacket packs up small. Using the red tag on the back you can pack it up to the size of a large can of soda. This means it easily packs away when you don’t need it and doesn’t take up much space in your pack. You can also hang it to dry from the red tag when its wet. The fabric beads so well that a vigorous shake is enough to usually almost completely dry it.

Fit

I’m a medium and this jacket fits true to expected size with enough extra room for 2 or 3 warmth layers for the worst of weather. In the review video I only wore one layer beneath.

Gripes

This is the bit where I normally point out what I’d change. I think I would change the direction the zips open and close on the outside pockets but that’s basically it. I’ve tested jackets that are twice the price with half the features that aren’t nearly as good as this. Some tested gear ends up in the cupboard somewhere, this is now the jacket I take with me on rainy days. There are three color choices, orange if you need rescuing a lot from the outdoors, green if you stealth camp or like to blend in and black if you get covered in dirt outdoors and rarely wash your gear ( like me).

Verdict

A superb range of features for a jacket that will keep you dry and keep the sweat away from your body in the worst of rain conditions. Well thought out design features, great build quality and a fair price. You get what you pay for with Waterproof Breathable jackets and this jacket is as good as any jacket I’ve used for twice the price. Its cut well and stylish to wear as much in town as in the woods.

You can buy the jacket here direct from Topo for the lowest online USA price

Want to Buy it ?

Appreciate the review? Use the links above to purchase through my affiliate program. You get an awesome pair of shoes at the lowest online price and I get a few bucks to help support this site and maybe even enough for a refreshing post-adventure beer! Thanks!

You can buy the jacket here direct from Topo for the lowest online USA price

Closest Contenders ?

I’m not convinced there is a better balance of quality and price for a waterproof jacket, but My Trail Co do a UL Jacket punch above their weight and I also looked at the insane glow in the dark Vollebak Jacket and dreadfully expensive and awful Ultimate Direction V2 Ultra Jacket in other reviews on my site.

Features

• Classic fit 3oz polyester with 2-way mechanical stretch and laminated grid print
• 10k waterproof rating
• Fully waterproof with taped seams
• Waterproof YKK zippers
• Structured visor hood with cord locks and aluminum cord caps
• Extended collar

• Oversized hand pockets with mesh venting
• Hidden internal zippered security pocket
• Hidden hem adjustment with pull cords in pockets
• Hook-and-loop cuff adjustment
• PackFast™ Packing Band
• Signature hang/dry loop
• Price $189

About Topo

Jedd Rose and Mark Hansen had always been interested in not only spending time outside, but also in the gear needed to get out. They found themselves wishing there was a company offering a lineup a bit more like the gear they grew up using—classic styling, functionality, durability and a clear connection with the brand behind the product. So in 2008, Jedd bought a sewing machine and began concepting, designing, and sewing packs in his Fort Collins basement, while Mark set out around Denver and the front range looking for resources and partners needed to build those designs.

They were lucky enough to find local Colorado folks that were just getting started like them and were willing to build companies together, and worked with them to produce Topo Designs’ initial offering of products, continuing to work with them to this day.