Klim Forecast Jacket and Pants Review | Scottish Tested
With the threat of torrential downpours here in Southern California throughout the winter due to El Niño, I was looking forward to getting out and riding in the rain and mud and testing the Klim Forecast jacket and pants combo.
Well, as it turned out El Niño was a big El No Show in the southern half of the state, and that left me with no alternative except to pack up my bags and head to Scotland to test out the KLIM gear during the world famous Scottish Six Days Trial.
That ended up being a great decision, as the Klim Forecast jacket and pants turned out to be absolutely waterproof as advertised.
For the SSDT ride on my factory-prepped Vertigo Combat Camo Works trials bike, I wore my regular off-road riding gear and a soft-shell jacket. Over that, I wore the Klim Forecast jacket. I’m 5′ 11″ and 155 pounds, and the Klim Forecast jacket in Large was a great fit, as were the pants.
Temperatures outside were in the mid 30s Fahrenheit for the beginning of the week and warmed up towards the end of the Scottish Six Days Trial. The Klim gear offered great protection against the howling winds, rain and some sleet.
I rode through lots of water up on the infamous moors, through peat bogs, up streams, and pushed the Vertigo across some rivers that were thigh-high deep. The Klim Forecast pants kept my legs nice and dry although my Sidi Trial Zero boots did fill up. As well as all of the water I was exposed to, there was also a generous amount of mud everywhere. At the end of each day, the Forecast jacket and pants were covered in muck.
The only complaint I had was with the front zipper on the jacket. When the whole front of the jacket is covered in mud and your riding gloves are also wet and muddy, the zipper is hard to get a hold of and pull up or down. That being said, most of the time my hands were pretty cold and arthritis was becoming an issue.
I was riding with a backpack, which weighed in most days at about 15 pounds. There were no durability issues with the shoulder straps rubbing on the Forecast jacket. That’s impressive, as Klim describes the jacket as “designed for emergency rain-proof functionality on the trail.” I was using it as a primary defense against the rain, and it held up.
As I was staying in a hotel for the week, I did not wash the gear at all. Every day I put it on absolutely muddy from the previous days’ riding. At the end of the week I packed it into a trash bag, put it in my suitcase, and didn’t take it out for about a week.
When I arrived home, the Klim Forecast jacket and pants were still wet. I hosed them off in the driveway, and put them in the washing machine. After a single cycle, they came out like new!
The Klim Forecast jacket and pants are fantastic, and survived the torture test of the Scottish Six Days Trial. I highly recommend the set.
Klim Forecast Jacket and Pants Quick Facts
Klim Forecast Jacket. Black only. S-XXXL. From $200.
Klim Forecast Pants. Black only. S-XXXL, Tall M-XXL. From $200.
Bill Merritt works at Lewisport USA Racing.