• The North Face Flight Series base layer
• £21.99
• The North Face

We’ve looked at stuff from The North Face’s Flight Series before – it’s all designed with low weight and moving fast in mind, and the baselayer is no exception. At 74g, the long-sleeved Flight base layer is about half the weight of TNF’s “normal” stuff. It achieves this partly by using clever Equilibrium wicking fabric and partly by not using very much of it – it’s pretty thin.

As you might expect, there’s not much in the way of features. No zippers or pockets, just a close-fitting long-sleeved crew neck base layer. It’s a good shape for riding, with a long body and sleeves so it reaches your legwear and gloves respectively without leaving any draughty gaps. Unsurprisingly it’s not quite as warm as chunkier base layers, although equally unsurprisingly it seems to get rid of sweat more effectively. On very cold days we think we’d opt for something a bit thicker, but if you’re not sure or you want to take something extra along just in case, this would be a great option. Choose from sizes between S and XXL and four colours.

Positives: Very light, good value, comfortable

Negatives: Not the warmest

Verdict

This is a perfectly good baselayer, but if low pack size and weight isn’t an issue for you (and if you’re only riding for one day at a time, it probably isn’t) then there are warmer options. The Flight gives away surprisingly little in performance, though.

Performance: 4/5
Value: 4/5
Overall: 4/5