Darien Jacket

I am delighted with the jacket! It exemplifies the quality of construction that I expect in your products! I use your products literally from head to toe and know them to be well made, durable and with great performance in all conditions and can hardly wait to try this one out. I find that your Darien Lite jackets (i previously had one in Hi Viz) works pretty well in the heat and is dynamite is protecting me from the sun. I have a black regular weight Darien that I wear in the cold times and will be changing to the new one shortly as our temps are already getting into the 70s. Also, the BEST thing you make for hot weather is your Silk Scarf which I purchased last summer after either reading one your blogs or perhaps seeing it on a you tube video. It was literally a life saver because we had few days with highs less than 100 degrees from late June until late August. I would saturate the scarf in cold water at hourly water and fuel stops and along with saturated base layer sleeves and a skull cap I stayed reasonably cool until the next stop.

I’ve used my Darien jacket, pants, fleece liner and Kanetsu electric jacket for the last 20 years, and they are absolutely the best investment I’ve made in riding gear. Ten-hour rides in the rain, sub-freezing rides, you name it - my ‘Stich gear laughs it off.

Love that Aerostitch makes their products in the U.S. Their customer team is awesome. I ordered the Darien Jacket on a rush job with shortened sleeves 3 weeks before a trip to Patagonia in March 2023 and they delivered. The customization options are awesome unlike any in the industry. (Though if you need a motorcycle jacket altered after purchase check out RainyPass in WA. They did a great job for me on a Klim jacket.) The jacket is technically great. It definitely is water proof and wind resistant and pretty versatile. You can comfortably wear up to temps in the 70's F with the ventilation options and in low temps in the 30s. I experienced that range in Patagonia with snow, sleet and rain and the jacket was great. No need for electric warming clothes.

The fit is bulky and unflattering. It actually is just like the first product photo with the guy in the white helmet in the product images carousel so it's not like they aren't up front up about it. The pads are stiff and they also mention that too. The jacket is also very stiff and they say it will relax some with wear. After about 30 riding days the jacket still feels stiff and the fit is unflattering. Ok, first world problem and not the most important things but I find myself not always wanting to wear it because of that.

Anyways, the company is great and the jacket performs but it could use some wearability improvements.

Just wanted to drop you a line, I received my new Darian jacket yesterday and wore it on a ride last evening. It is FANTASTIC! Thank you all so much for all the help getting the size correct and your attention to making my mistake right. I've been wanting your stuff for at least 10 years and I am totally justified with my purchase's. Still waiting on the gloves. Thanks for making me a piece of "equipment" which will do nothing but extend my riding season to all year round. Again, thanks to everyone at Aerostitch.

You’ve read the reviews 100x over. The research has been done, it’s now time to buy the last “true motorcyclists” jacket you will ever need. I’ve put about 6000 miles on my Darien hi vis in the last 2.5 months. Jacket aside, some would consider this a feat of an avid motorcyclist. With the jacket, I also look the part. (Rather incognito if you ask me, as I’m also 37 and have probably been assumed to be in my 50s)(a friend my age who also wears Aerostich says we’re appropriating “boomer culture”) It’s been worn over 3 mountain ranges, lit up the Main Street of the Sturgis motorcycle rally, and has seen as much bug juice as my windscreen. I’ve recently tried the roadcrafter jacket, but the day I got the roadcrafter in the mail, I tossed and turned that very night thinking I’d be possibly hanging up my beloved Darien jacket. Not to retire of course, but the idea of even not using it for my morning commute kept me awake at night. (My girlfriend even said I’ve never spoken so passionately about her) The roadcrafter is in no way inferior, it’s just that the Darien is, in my opinion the pinnacle of true motorcycle gear. From temperatures at 11,000 feet elevation in the Rocky Mountains, to the windy, foggy coastal mornings on the PCH, the dry 100+ Fahrenheit temperatures of twenty nine palms, pre hurricane of august ‘23, then New Mexico on the I-25 between Albuquerque and Denver, this jacket has seen all that the west coast of America can throw at you and through it all, the Darien exceeds magnificently. “Do or do not, there is no try.” The Darien simply, and only just does.

I’m in the UK, my brother in Connecticut sent me my Darien as a guest ft. I think it’s good. I rode in the rain yesterday and was for the most part dry but was extremely disappointed to find that the chest pockets and the right arm pocket were full of water. Everything in there was saturated. Not good for a “waterproof “ jacket.

After researching all manufacturer's jackets ad nauseum I finally chose a Darien. I'm very happy with it and the few things I wondered about, were clearly addressed in plain rider language (both pre-purchase and in the manual). I'm 6' / 200lbs and ordered a 46 with the matching electric liner. I've now got about 2000km (1200) miles in the jacket (2/3 highway, 1/3 gravel and offroad) and have the following comments:
- have ridden in some hours-long downpours. I'm behind a 1200GS screen but that's far from Goldwing protection and I stayed perfectly dry.
- it's taken most of these 2000kms for the jacket to lose some of it's stiffness and I'd say it still has some breaking in to do.
- there's no doubting the quality of construction. Top notch!
- zippers are a little stiff but I suspect if I found the right lube that would help a lot
- I wear the collar snapped down all the time. With the collar upright it interferes a bit with my full-face helmet when looking left or right.
- have lost 2 of the collar magnets already and had to replace them. One pocket on the inside was a tad loose. I've now taped all 4 magnets into their pockets.
- on hot days I take the liner out and can get all the breeze I need (or don't)
- the electric liner works very well and I've found no need for a thermostat option. On a recent (April) 12hr ride in The Black Hills, the temps were high of 34F and low of 29F at higher elevations. With the liner on I never felt cold. Don't expect a warm fireside feel, but trust you won't get cold.
- the liner is a little bulkier once installed than it appears by itself. Without the liner I have the TF3 shoulder pads in, but with the liner in I need to remove the shoulder pads.

Last but not least, I made the trip to Duluth and got fitted right at Aerostich. It was worth the trip and I recommend doing that. Not only did I not have to make sure I got sizing right from a guide, but I wanted some modifications and so getting fitted in person removed all the anxiety out of dropping this many $$ on a jacket.

While there I found I preferred the AD-1 pants over the Darien ones and bought those. I'll review those separately.

I'm positive this jacket is actually going to get better as I use it more. Wouldn't hesitate to recommend it to anyone.

This is the jacket you want when you don’t know what to expect on your travels. Cold, hot, wet or dry, the Darien handles all weather conditions, as long as you know hot to use it properly.

I bought my yellow Darien in 2017 off of eBay. I keep a saved search on eBay for Aerostich as you can find a lot of bargains there, but you need to be careful as many eBay sellers want nearly new prices for items that are non-returnable. Know your size and what you want before bidding. That was 5+ years and many thousands of miles ago and it still works like new. I replaced some of the seam tape that was coming off (Aerostich sent it to me free of charge), washed it a few times and lubed the zippers and that’s all it’s needed.

Size 44 is what Aerostich said I needed using their sizing tool (several times). It is a bit bulky when wearing just a t-shirt, but with a wool base layer and the Aerostich liner it fits nice with ease of movement.

Cold: when it’s cold I layer with a Marino base layer, my LD Comfort shirt and Aerostich Liner. That’s for my old bikes with low amperage output. For my modern bike I use the wool or DL shirt and electric vest. This works down as cold as I want to go (low 30’s)

Hot: LD comfort LS shirt, wet the sleeves (or complete shirt). Zip up all vents and close the neck. Unzip the wrists and wear short gloves inside the sleeves so air can run up your sleeves and the evaporative cooling will keep you alive (if not comfortable) in 110+ degrees. Add water up your sleeves every 30 minutes or so.

Wet: just put on some water proof gloves and keep ridding. No need to bring a separate rain suit or stop to put it on.

Just took my first ride with my new Darien and the experience was great, as expected. This is my second Darien and I learned from the first how good they are in all temperatures. Today was 45 degrees, and in past summers I have ridden at 102 degrees and been as comfortable as is possible in that heat. Fit, pockets, utility and comfort all A+. I have found the collar a bit tall which interferes with my full-face GT Air 2 helmet, so I use the very handy collar snaps to fold the collar down on pretty much every ride, unless it is below freezing.

In my Darien jacket and AD1 pants today. It was 106° (AZ) honestly it wasn't to bad. Yes it's hot but actually cooler than my mesh was. Sleeves wide open and vents wide open the breeze up my sleeves under my arms and around the back. (On a goldwing no less) Love my stitch gear!