Outdoor Research Avido Jacket Review

Springtime in Utah calls for cool mornings and beat-down sunny afternoons followed by an inch of snow on your lawn the next day. It’s the good and bad about living along the Wasatch. Because of that, it’s always nice to have a variety of jackets on hand for just the right conditions for that morning trail run or mountain bike ride.

Critical to jackets for trail running or mountain biking is its ability to block the wind and its ability to breathe. On top of that, having just the right fit is also something I look for–you don’t want to have the sleeves flapping in the wind, catching on a passing branch or interfering with the fit of your hydration pack. Fortunately, Outdoor Research seems to have all of this nailed with the new Avido Jacket.

About the Outdoor Research Avido Jacket

Outdoor Research has been stepping up their outerwear line over the past few years and the all-new Mens Avido Jacket is a great example of a functional and versatile, ultralight shell. Perfect for cool springtime or autumn weather or unpredictable summer days while scaling windswept ridgelines, the Avido Jacket provides just the right amount of stretch with strategically-placed ventilation to keep you comfortable under all conditions–well, under all cool-weather conditions. DWR finish keeps you as dry as possible after sudden storms. Style is clean and simple with two front handwarmer pockets and a rear pocket to stash extra goodies.

Nothing fancy… just the basics, but the basics done right. The Outdoor Research Avido wind jacket is a solid piece of outdoor gear for mountain bikers, trail runners, peak baggers or city chillers.

More features of the OR Avido Jacket:

• Weight: 8.3 oz
• Material: Breathable stretch ripstop
• Coating: DWR to keep you dry
• Vents: Mesh vents under arms and behind shoulders
• MSRP: $79.00

Outdoor Research Avido Jacket Review

Looking over the Avido Jacket in detail reveals that this jacket isn’t just a “me too” windbreaker, but it’s a well-designed jacket that takes its style and function from OR’s stellar outerwear lineup. The fabric is stretch ripstop nylon with a DWR finish to repel water. It’s not going to keep you dry in a downpour, but occasional spring showers won’t phase this jacket.

The slight stretch of the fabric gives you just that little extra bit of comfort when you need it, thus allowing the Avido Jacket to never feel restrictive under any conditions.

Trail running in this jacket reveals its amazing breathability. The underarm vents extend over half the circumference of the underarm and down the side panel to allow free airflow from front to back. This cool airflow is noticeable and welcome while working up a sweat. The size and cut of the jacket is also spot on… not too tight and not too loose. The hem has a single drawstring that can be tightened with one hand. Again, simple and effective to maintain the right fit.

Using the Avido while mountain biking once again revealed the versatility of this jacket. This lightweight jacket fits perfectly under a hydration pack (Deuter Race EXP Air) and never felt bulky. I did notice that the zipper from the back pocket did start to dig into my skin a bit with a pack on. Maybe a smaller hydration pack wouldn’t do this, but it’s something to be aware of. The only other item I noticed is that the sleeves could be just a titch longer. Maybe 3/4″ longer would suffice.

Other details to notice on this jacket include reflective material on the back between the shoulder blades, two interior pockets, one rear pocket and two front handwarmer pockets. The pockets have some beef to them so you can carry heavy items like keys or a cell phone without feeling like they are flopping around.

I got this jacket in a size Large and it seems to fit true to size. I don’t know what’s going on between manufacturers, but a size Large can vary from tight to huge. This one seems spot on.

Good Avido

• Well-placed vents let the sweat out while keeping out the wind
• Collar height is perfect
• Super lightweight
• Functional pockets

Bad Avido

• Sleeve length is about 1″ too short
• No longer available (Spring 2009)

The Bottom Line on the Outdoor Research Avido Jacket

This jacket is just what an ultra light shell should be. It’s super versatile for trail running or mountain biking with supreme breathability. There’s no reason not to have something like this along just in case. At a mere 8.3 oz, the function to weight ratio is high. The Avido Jacket is perfect for cool weather activities or packed in your backpack just in case. I dig it.

Buy Now: Find the Latest OR Jackets from REI