Product Review: Winter Jerseys - GroundEffect Thermos + Berglar

Ground Effect  : Thermos + Berglar

I tour in Australia in the winter quite a bit, with some long tours. It doesn't get super cold, but it can be challenging. When it hovers around 0 centigrade (32 F) and it is blowing a cold wind, and it is raining, then the effective temperature can get towards the -5C or even lower. You want good gear to keep warm and to be comfortable.

I have had the Thermos for a few years, and recently I actually wore out my old jersey and replaced it with the Berglar.

When it's extremely cold I wear a synthetic thermal, with the Thermos over that, then the Berglar. On top of that I have a Netti rain jacket that I wear even when it's not raining.

Four layers? Yes. Layers are good. When I start for the day, I will take a few kilometres to warm up. Then I will start taking off layers. On a typical cold day when I'm in motion I will finally have the thermal and the Berglar.

The Thermos is a wind blocking undergarment. It's specifically built to block cold winds. You'd expect in New Zealand that they would know a thing or two about cold, and they certainly do. It blocks the chill really well, and it's comfortable with large arm holes.

The Berglar is a jersey made from a combination of merino wool and synthetics.

What's important in  a jersey?

Weight & warmth

You don't want a bulky jersey. When I received it, I thought that there was no way that it could be warm, it was so light and thin. It looks a bit like a summer jersey. But the unique mix of fibres makes it work really well. Yes, it really is warm.

Drying time.

After you've ridden a whole day, inevitably there will be some sweat in the jersey. You don't want a wet jersey in the morning. Hanging it inside the tent, even when it is cold, it was always dry by the next morning. Foolishly I left it outside in the rain while I did some cooking, and it even recovered from that ok.

Pockets.

If anything, the pockets are a little small for my liking, but they are tough and they can handle anything that I put in them.

The groundeffect system of winter clothing works really well for me. I give them five out of five stars.

Disclaimer: even though almost everything I wear comes from GroundEffect, I don't receive any sponsorship or payments from them.




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