Product review: Hyperkewl Cooling Sport Vest
The Hyperkewl jacket is something I ran across while browsing something similar in a Rev'It catalogue years ago. Then my Kiwi coach at CSS, a few years ago, was using one of their, erm, thingies to cool his neck in the Chennai heat and the memory remained. So instead of paying Rs 6,000 on Amazon India, I snagged this one for Rs 2,000-odd on eBay the last time I was in the US.
I've been using it off and on, and it's definitely something to consider. The idea is that the jacket's quilted fabric has a chemical that you 'charge' with water by submerging it for a minute or two. And you wear the jacket underneath your riding gear after wringing out any excess water. Simple.
What happens immediately is that instead of the wet feeling, you get more of a cold feeling from the Hyperkewl which feels good and interesting. What I was not expecting was the vast difference in feel when worn with mesh. You see, it appears that the high ventilation of the mesh dries the Hyperkewl out very rapidly and then it just acts as a wind block. Not very useful. But if the gear is not well-vented, then the cool effect stays for long and feels very welcome too. Would I pay Rs 6,000 for this? Perhaps not. But it does work.
Price: Rs 6,000
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