Alpinestars Revenant Gore-Tex Pro Riding Jacket Review: 3-month update

Gallery Introduction Things we like Things we didn't like Our Take Product Details

Introduction

A quick recap. The Revenant Gore-Tex Pro jacket sits at the top of the adventure riding gear hierarchy at Alpinestars. And since it employs Gore-tex, the Italian gear maker says it is waterproof come hail, rain or Mumbai monsoons. It has many pockets; its build quality is top notch; and it has a few smart solutions as well.

It can hold a hydration bladder so one doesn’t have to carry the whole hydration bag around. It gets a detachable back pocket so that one can keep their valuables on them without having to haul around the jacket or an extra bag to hold those valuables. And for ultimate protection, one can add Alpinestars airbag vest to the jacket as well.

Other bits of protection include CE Level 2 ratings for shoulder and elbow, additional layers around the forearm to improve abrasion protection, and TPU layering around the shoulder to further add to the jacket’s impact protection ratings. Overall, it scores pretty high on the protection scale.

And to find out how all this works out in the real world, we got ourselves a Triumph Tiger and went commuting, touring and battling the monsoons in it. Here’s what we came back with...

Things we like

The fit.

The fit of the Revenant with its adjustability options is first class. The bicep and triceps adjustment help give a properly secure fit for the arms; and for those who are less generous in the middle, the self adjusting straps at the waist are a boon too. But, the straps aren’t all that easy to work, especially if one has already donned the jacket. However, the cuff adjustment for the wrist is great. Easy to use and it offers precise adjustments.

Roominess.

Thanks to its airbag compatibility, the Revenant is slightly roomier than its size suggests. So, even though you might look heftier than you are in pictures when donning this jacket, at least you know you aren't skimping on comfort. Add to it the accordion panels at the back and it’s easy to move around in it.

Practicality.

The Revenant is like a well-engineered wardrobe with there being a pocket for very need. There are two chest pockets, which are great for slim items. The waist pockets are deeper and are water resistant. So, when riding in a little drizzle, one can throw in a wallet and even a phone in one of these pockets and these would be fine. Then there’s a waterproof pocket on the inside of the jacket, and it held our phone through a torrential downpour of sorts, and the phone still came out dry on the other end.

Ventilation.

The thing with most ADV jackets is that these are heavy and not the best when it comes to ventilation. This is especially true for those jackets that have water proof lining built into their skeletons. The Revenant for instance is fused with Gore-Tex.

However, with its chest and arm ventilation flaps open as well as the exhaust vents at the back, the Revenant is surprisingly airy. If you are riding at anything over 30kmph it doesn’t feel warm. Now we have only used this jacket with ambient temperatures sitting between 36-38 degrees. Will it be as comfortable in the hot dry north Indian summer? We don’t know. But for now, for what we have subjected it to, we are happy with its performance.

Water proofing.

Like we mentioned earlier, we did ride through torrential downpour donning the Revenant jacket. And even after almost an hour of riding, the waterproofing was absolute. We rode with the ventilation zips open for most part and no water seeped in. We did close them when the downpour got severe, but that did leave us a little damp; with sweat mind, not water.

Things we didn't like

Hefty haul.

The Revenant, thanks to its near bombproof material, high levels of protection, and loads of practicality, is also quite heavy. Okay, it doesn’t weigh a ton, but if you are used to mesh jackets, this Alpinestars does come across as heavy. The good news is, you can’t feel it when it’s on, be it on the bike or off it. But, hauling it around does take effort. We tried holding it like a baby, and even throwing it over our shoulders, but it’s a hefty haul, no question.

Damp armpits.

The ventilation for the armpits needed to be better on the Revenant. It does have an air vent near the biceps but it fails to push the air in that particular direction. And so after a long ride, one has to deal with warm, damp armpits. And yes that’s as unpleasant as it reads.

Bunched up elbows.

We also feel the jacket could do with slightly shorter sleeves. I know most westerners are tall blokes with long arms. But, that means the sleeves of the jacket tend to bunch up around the elbow area for us relatively shorter people. And given the thickness of the jacket material, it tends to get in the way of comfort.

Our Take

The Revenant is a great jacket. It would be ideal for riding up to the Himalayas and it works as a great tool to keep the Maharashtra monsoons at bay too. And if you go touring around the world, well, this would work for you from the Alps to the North Sea and beyond.

As far as recommending it goes, we’d say it’s good for those who want to go touring (even in India) anytime expect in the peak of summers. And let’s not forget, the Revenant is as modern, as technical, and as protective as an ADV riding jacket can get. So, even though it’s expensive, the way it’s built, I feel it will outlast all my adventure cravings, even leading into the next decade. How is that for value?

As for the next report, we will talk about how the jacket performs when off-roading.