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The Castelli Cycling Mitica is a women’s jersey like jacket that is built for harder riders with high intensity in mind. It keeps sweat at bay whilst using Gore Windstopper X-Mid fabric to keep out the chill. Cool styling and subtle features put this jersey’s performance rating up there with the best and if you are working particularly hard in the cold this one might be for you.  

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The Mitca jacket is made from various materials, a windproof X-Mid fabric from Gore on the front and for the most of the arms, stretchy fleece backed material at the rear and in the underarms and thinner printed windstopper over the upper shoulders both front and back. The lower hem uses the same wide strip as the women’s Trasparente jersey but this offering has a silicone strip to hold it in place when working hard.

Speaking of the Trasparente jersey, in comparison the Mitica jacket offers a higher windproof rating but is comparatively just as light and breathable as the brand's jersey. The fit is very similar and the weight of the two makes them impossible to tell apart just based on weight.

Castelli says the Mitica is designed for riders working hard in winter or for those riding through spring and autumn. It’s called a jacket but we are hard pressed to tell the difference when wearing it compared to the Trasparente, not to say this isn’t a jacket (or indeed that the Trasparante isn’t a jersey) rather both blurr the line between jacket performance and jersey fit.

The features that push the Mitica to a more performance orientated jacket are the lower collar height, the silicone strip on the rear hem and the lack of storm flap for draught exclusion at the front zip.

There are some other neat features that show great attention to detail including the asymmetrical pockets at the rear, the left hand pocket is lower than the right to easy access. The photos don’t show this very well but the left side is about an inch lower than the right to help you get to food stored in it more easily. I'd like to see a zippered pocket somewhere in order to store small valuables but its only a small moan. The sleeves are shaped so the cuff is longer over the back of the hand making sure there is a good overlap between sleeve and glove.

The jacket is slim in its fit, I’m a size 8-10 usually and wore the women’s Medium for a 35” chest and 28” waist, the medium fitting well but technically a size larger than I usually wear. Style wise, the Mitica moves Castelli forward into a world of less ‘euro’ and more ‘urban chic’ this colourway is bright enough to help you be seen on the road without being garish.

I wore the Mitica with both just a base layer and a base and jersey when it was properly cold and found it regulated my body temperature well. It’s breathable, perspiration exiting from the rear panel, it fends off water well and it is unrestrictive to wear.

I do have to tell you I did have to have two of these jersey's, the first had some stitching that had been missed leaving a hole under the arm. Just check the stitching carefully on purchase, Saddleback, the UK distributor will replace any damaged garments with a receipt, Castelli gear carries a 2 year warranty and I'm told the level of customer service is high.

I used the Mitica for longer road and gravel rides where rain was not forecast and found it to perform well, it’s rated for the same temperatures as the previously reviewed Trasparente and at only £10 more, truth be told there’s not a whole lot to choose between them. If you value a higher windstopper rating and are likely to be working up a sweat in the cold then the Mitica will make a good training partner, just check the stitching on purchase. 

• www.saddleback.co.uk

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