Shield Running Jacket

This jacket is surprisingly warm for being so lightweight. The balaclava is attached to the back of the hood so if you want to use it, for me it works best if I slip it over my head before putting on the jacket. Once it’s on, it’s great added warmth! The mittens are also a thoughtful addition and can be used or not depending on the weather. The jacket did a great job in rain too, deflecting water. Can’t forget to mention the huge, deep front pockets. This a a useful purchase!

Upon receipt of this jacket, I was skeptical at how well it would handle truly cold weather. More than half of the jacket is unlined. The material is so thin, the white jacket is see through. But I wore this on a slower run on a day when wind chills were in the 20s. It held up nicely with just a thermal layer underneath. The mittens worked well too. The only complaints are the gaiter - the amount of material makes it really tight - and the underarm vents - very hard to zip up while wearing the jacket. Size wise, it fits true to size if you prefer more form fitting jackets. If you prefer baggy, size up.

For the price, I would have expected better. I’ve been searching desperately for a jacket that was breathable and protective from the elements. I miss the old fitted Nike shield jackets that zipped up to the neck and had integrated stowaway mittens that fit nice and snug - this old jacket also had two types of outer layer fabrics, a shield layer almost through out, but a then a breathable layer in the underarms and a few other areas. This new jacket is ok, it has the zippers on the underarms to try and create that breathability, but it’s design did not allow for me to catch wind of a breeze for moderate cool down. Another thing that is super flimsy I would say are the useless mittens. I love integrated mittens on a jacket, but these mittens are so large they just fall off and don’t stay put. I could easily just grab my long sleeve over my hands but this mitten is quite laughable. If only they had made it a snug fit for each jacket. For example, I ordered an XS and the mittens feel like they belong to a size large. What I did love is the look of the jacket and the hoodie because they included a slight cap like feel so you don’t get rain directly on your eyes, and you can easily tighten the fit of the hoodie. They also included the face mask neck gater. I didn’t have any issues with it falling down or the fit. If you don’t like it you can easily remove it.

I really like this jacket. It is very comfortable and does a great job blocking the wind. I was able to go out on a cold, blustery day (wind made it feel like 25 degrees) with just a mock-t thermal underneath. Only thing keeping me from giving it 5 stars is the face mask isn't really easy to get into place.