From the creators of the world’s most technical, glass-filled jacket, comes another glass-filled jacket – also the world’s first all-black, nighttime visible jacket – the Vollebak Black Light Jacket.
For whatever reason, Vollebak decided to make a reflective jacket that is entirely black but still keeps you visible at night. The Black Light Jacket is a snowboard and ski shell, designed to be waterproof to 15,000mm, and made from a 3-layer, 2-way stretch nylon ripstop. The seams are all fully-taped for waterproofness, and the jacket was 100% waterproof in their spray tests and will absolutely keep water off you. The front pockets are waterproof and feature rubberized zipper pulls for grip in the wet.
But instead of your typical reflective strips, the Black Light Jacket features 22 reflective dots, which are each filled with 60,000 beads of black glass – yup, glass again – that reflect light right back at car headlights or whatever else. The glass is so tiny and smooth you never notice them in the fabric, and the dots blend in to the black during the day. But when light hits them at night, they light up like a Christmas tree. Sort. But instead of looking like you’re wearing a lame running vest, you look damn cool – Vollebak says like a stealth bomber. We say, like a pretty cool runner.
The jacket is also very breathable, with large pit zips for ventilation and a breathable fabric. The details are all there – ocean-style marine hood, elasticated adjustments on both sides of the hood, an elasticated hood, among others. The cut is athletic, with specially formulated shoulders and sleeves for max range of motion.
The Black Light Jacket is part a whole setup – the Black Light layering system, four pieces you wear together or alone. The fabric is produced in Italy, while the jacket is put together in Portugal. It weighs 450g.
If you’re looking for a sleek, stylish and technical way to stay both dry and visible, the Black Light will – almost paradoxically – have your back. If there’s one thing we can’t accuse Vollebak of being, it’s underwhelming.
