Darien Jacket

First things first. I’ve waited for many years before pulling the trigger on this jacket. As a bigger guy I was frustrated at the sizing of most Euro jackets. I mainly ride enduros and hare scrambles as well as commute on my 500 EXC. After deciding against the R3 due to my types of rides I ordered the Darien in slate in a sz52 reg based on The recommendations.
After being notified that it would take about 6 weeks to be delivered, we’ll it came early. When I looked at the box I thought there was no way it would be in there. Surprise number 2!
1). When I put it on it felt huge! I wear a 52 sport jacket and at first I was concerned. Well I read the directions and realized that once I put in the liner or layer this is correct.
2) I was concerned that the jacket would feel just like my many military Gortex jackets. Nope it’s way stiffer!!! The instructions say it will loosen after a few hundred miles.
3) Took it for a short ride on the Harley, it took about 5 miles to realize that this was made by riders for riders! The length of the sleeves and Collar alone are much better then off the shelf gear.
4) One of the reasons I ordered this was to share it with my 26 year old Autistic son. He got his motorcycle license and just bought his first bike to commute to work. It’s only about 5 miles from our house but I’ve been meeting him at the end of his shift till he gets used to riding in the dark. Well last night he was going to come home alone until I stepped outside into a downpour!! Grabbed the Darien jumped on my 500 and raced to meet him in a hard rain. Well after getting home safely ( his first time riding in the rain). Took off the jacket……bone dry!!
5). We’ll now I’ll have to order the pants. Just wish I could get them slate as 27 years of NAVY service and 22 years of LEO work I’m kinda done with everything being black or subdued.
In closing, yes it is not an inexpensive purchase. But believe me you get what you pay for.

I have a very well-worn, red Darien jacket that I love. I live in Bishop, California, at the edge of the Eastern Sierra Nevada and Great Basin...a land of weather extremes. I love this jacket because it is highly visible, breathable, waterproof and cut long, so it doesn't inflate while I'm riding. It is comfortable to wear in 0 degree weather and in 118 degree weather. In summer, I wear a tee-shirt under it with the vents open. In winter, I bundle up in layers. I just wish the jacket was cut for women, wider at the hips and narrower at the shoulders.

This is my second Darien, so it should be clear that I like the jacket.

My 1st was getting very well worn at about... I don't know how long. 15 years maybe. It was still waterproof, zippers still worked. Most of the Velcro had come off the inside and most of the reflective material wore off. It was a great jacket for years and countless miles on many different bikes.

I replaced it with a HiVis yellow jacket. I love the HiViz even though it is not as bright as some other vendors color. Still, I would not call it subdued. Its effing bright!

I sized myself using the guide and sent in an email. I ended up being honest about my... uh... weight and got a 48 regular. It seemed tight in the shoulders but fit perfect when sitting on the bike.

Wendy did a fine job on the shell. All the parts are on the right places!

The first differences I noticed were the tabs on the sleeve and the collar. The magnetic collar stays are great. No flapping in the wind. I thought the arm tabs were going to be a bother. I hated them on my First Gear Jaunt. I never felt like I needed them. But these seem fine and do tighten up the fit and do help keep out a cold breeze.

The first few hundred mile in this bright yellow jacket have been a little stiff. Kind of like wearing cardboard armour. It is loosening up pretty quick though. A few rainy rides and I bet it will be great.

I have only been in a very light rain so far. Completely watertight. Even after years, my old Darien was still keeping water out. It had been treated with Nikwax a few times.

Some size/fit/bike details. I'm a fat old guy. 5'8" and 230 lbs. I ride a Versys X 300. The sleeves come down far enough to cover the end of my gloves and the back of the jacket never rides up even when leaning forward behind the bikes small windscreen. All pockets are easy to get to on and off the bike. The pocket zippers close with a downward pull which is logical. Easy to close when you rode away from the gas pump and forgot to close them.

My honest opinion is the Darien is the perfect jacket. Sure, it is hella expensive compared to some, but my first one lasted a decade plus.

If you are thinking about getting one, do it.

The new Darien is a great jacket

I’ve had a Darien jacket and pants for about a year now and avoided posting a review until they had been used in a real downpour. Such a downpour occurred on our trail ride last Sunday. All I can say is that the despite the prolonged horizontal and vertical rain I remained completely dry. It was also a cold day, a few degrees above freezing, so I wore a Kanetsu liner in the jacket and a merino base layer. Despite this I’ll be using a mid-layer between these in future when the temperature gets low.

Aside from the weather protection another great thing about these jackets is their practicality, namely the array of convenient pockets. The robustness of construction is evident - if it ever wears out I’ll surely replace it with another.

For those wondering just how hot the standard Darien jacket is in the south this review is for you. I live 60 miles south of Houston Texas close to the Gulf Coast and I've used my Darien jacket for just over a year in all weather conditions. I didn't want to sacrifice the greater protection of the standard Jacket for the possible cooler experience of the Darien Light. Houston weather is killer in the summer. High 80's low 90's are standard from May through September with oppressive humidity. Remember the term is Relative Humidity. 80% humidity in Houston(basically sea level) is not the same as at higher elevation. So all those folks saying they have high humidity further north, y'all ain't got nothing on humidity on the coast. It's much worse down here. On to the review.

First off you will sweat if you're at a stand still in the summer. No matter what you're wearing. But once you get moving with the vents and wrist cuffs open you'll get the most wonder evaporative cooling effect with the jacket. You'll learn how to orient your arms to optimize the air flow. The air flows through the sleeves and out the vents. I can feel the back vent puff open as the air flows through. Up to about 92-95 degrees the air flow keeps you cooler. Above that and you're heating yourself up vs cooling yourself down. At that point I shut down the vents and make more frequent stops. A mesh jacket at that temperature would heat you up as well. You could leave the vents open and close the cuffs down at higher temps and after you're getting good and sweaty open up the cuffs and cool yourself off again with the evaporative cooling effect. With practice and cruise control you can do it on the fly. I purchased the high viz lime yellow version and let me tell you it works. Folks slow down and even pull off the road and let you by. No doubt thinking I'm some emergency response personal or they are about to get a ticket. I got a 44 and put a few pounds on since getting it. I'm probably a 46 now at least, maybe a 48. It still fits, but too many more pizzas and I'll have to go on a crash diet. My commute to work is back coastal roads at the 7-8am hour and back home 12 hours later. For the most part I miss the worst of the Texas heat. But it's still mid 80's at a minimum to work and back home. I have often wore the jacket in mid day in the Texas heat and again while moving the jacket is very manageable, not as cool as a mesh jacket but then again a mesh jacket is no where as protective as the Darien. It's a worthwhile trade off. In closing, yes the Darien Standard Jacket can be used year round, even way down south. I work in a business casual environment and I don't get so sweaty that it's a problem. You'll dry out before you know it. And when the inevitable rain events pop up on the horizon you'll be dry inside the Darien. And the looks on my workers face when I ride up in the rain is priceless. I wish I would have pulled the trigger earlier on the jacket. The Darien is a jacket that will facilitate you riding year round in all conditions. Order yourself one, you won't be disappointed.

I bought my Darien jacket and pants in 1996. They're a little worn and one of the zipper handles has been replaced with a zip tie, but they're still my go-to riding suit for commuting and multi-day rides. That's saying something because I also own three full sets of leathers and another one-piece cordura suit. The Darien is just so easy, effective and wide-ranging to use, any time of year, any temperature. Cheers! Dave

As a long time rider I have been in many situations where my gear made the difference for both good and bad.
So when shopping for a new jacket it must offer what I need and a lot of what I want.
My Darien looked great out of the box. The attention to detail and sturdy construction was clear to see and the excellent fit offers me on road performance above other products I have owned..
It is important to have the right gear and I think I made my best choice.
The peace of mind of having both what I want and what I need in a jacket really adds confidence when I ride.
Ride safe,
Ride often!

When I pulled it out of the shipping box, my first impression was, "Wow, is this ever stiff!" So, a couple of days later, I'll tell you that not only is it free-ing up, but I think it's even better than I imagined. Thank you for the custom guidance on sizing. The bottom line is that it's just so much "quieter" than my other jackets that used to have a bit of a ruffle in a good wind. Now, it just seems to be more of a hug around me. That's much less distraction I would say.

I received my new Darien jacket only two weeks ago and haven't had the chance to use it yet due to snow. Feels, looks and fits great though. Anxious to try it out...come on spring.

I previously posted a general review on the Darien. This past weekend's tour I finally got to (?) test the jacket in the rain. Weather was humid (!!), temps climbed to the mid 80s. Not a good time to be wearing Gore-Tex shell gear, but as long as I was moving I stayed on the comfortable side. I would have been more comfortable in my summer mesh jacket, but that wouldn't have worked well for Part II of the weekend weather - the thunderstorm that caught us a half hour out from our destination. With the heat I had all the vents wide open, and I wasn't about to stop and close them even for a 20 degree temperature drop and heavy rain - we're 30 minutes from our hotel. I pulled up the front zip and kept going. And stayed pretty dry actually. When I got off the bike at the hotel, to an audience of drinkers on the covered patio, I felt dry and comfortable, at least until I took off the helmet. Very pleased.

The rest of the weekend was sun, 80s, humid. I was never overheated, OK never seriously overheated, and quite comfortable as long as I kept moving. Nice.

That's the Darien. You can stay comfortable and safe in whatever weather happens over the days or weeks of your ride.