The new women’s mountain bike clothing range from Nukeproof is full of technical pieces of riding kit that perform well, fit great and are subtly ‘cool’ without shouting the brand's name in your face. The Blackline women’s jersey is no different, a quick-drying, short-sleeved number that has become a staple for summer riding.
Nukeproof’s new clothing range is full of four distinct lines, Kashmir for the downhill riders, Nirvana for the enduro rider, Outland for the trail rider and Blackline as more premium trail wear. Women at the moment can only get kit in the more expensive Blackline trail range, comprising of shorts and two jersey options, short and long sleeved. It’s worth noting here that although I say this line is ‘premium’ we are still only talking £40 for a short sleeved jersey which isn’t too pricey considering the features on offer.
The Blackline women’s jersey I had on test is mostly constructed from a recycled fabric that provides UV protection and designed to wick away sweat and dry quickly which I can say that it does both very well. The rear panel of the jersey, extending under the arms, is made from a thinner mesh fabric which certainly helps keep things cool especially when wearing a pack. The dark colour of this panel also helps disguise a sweaty back!
The jersey has a loose fit with plenty of room for a back protector for bike park days, the Blackline range crosses over well into ‘park’ or ‘enduro’ wear too. It still has a feminine cut through with a nicely shaped lower back for female curves and a dropped hem to stop it riding up. Sleeves are raglan or ‘set in’ in design to prevent rubbing and elsewhere there is a mesh-lined side pocket with colour contrasting zip, big enough to fit a large phone (my iPhone 8 plus went in with room to spare).
I am a dress size 8 and wore this jersey in an XS, the kit does come up slightly bigger than other similar mountain bike gear but I would say in this case Nukeproof is true to size where other manufacturers produce clothing that sizes up on the small size, if in doubt size down here not up.
The jersey is supremely comfortable, the stretch fabric doesn’t restrict movement and I liked its looser and longer fit. The simple design, nice length of sleeve and round crew neck are straightforward and unfussy features meaning you can be left to do the important thing, ride, safe in the knowledge that your kit is up to the job. There are some subtle Nukeproof graphics to overcome if you are on a different brand of bike but I think the performance you get for the price of this jersey will help you with that! If I was being fussy, I’d rather not have large printed graphics on the chest but this is purely aesthetic and as I say, particularly fussy.
In summary, this is some great looking kit that performs impressively from the Belfast based brand. At £40 the jersey sits £5 cheaper than the Morvelo Friday jersey which we really liked earlier in the year and a tad more than the dbh trail jersey which we thought was great value but has less technical features than the Blackline jersey. The Nukeproof offering is a versatile piece that can be worn comfortably on hot days and also paired with a base layer for cooler rides making it a purchase that we are finding hard to fault.
