Gore is set to discontinue production and manufacturing of its highly popular Gore-Tex Shakedry material, according to reports.
Gore released the Shakedry material in 2016 to much fanfare and it has proved a highly popular and desirable option for cycling and running jackets since. In fact, Gore-Tex Shakedry garments even come with a ‘guaranteed to keep you dry’ promise.
The construction of the material, which eschews a face fabric and instead puts the waterproof membrane on the outside – means water simply beads up and runs off rather than soaking in. As the name suggests, a few quick shakes will remove the majority of all water from the outside of the jacket.
In a report from road.cc, the brand says, “Gore-Tex Shakedry is and will remain a central part of GoreWear product offering to serve the needs of endurance athletes in all weather conditions. Unfortunately, the Gore-Tex Shakedry technology is no longer offered by Gore Fabrics due to ongoing supply challenges, but we are excited about the Gore-Tex Shakedry technology and therefore did invest into our inventory position last year to ensure we can offer it until the current inventory runs out.”
What this could mean for cyclists
Our understanding of the above statement is that once stocks of Shakedry products are gone, they will be gone for good, but that GoreWear – the brand’s in-house consumer-facing brand of cycling clothing – has stockpiled the fabric to ensure it is able to continue serving its customers.
The result of this is that competitor brands’ Shakedry products will almost certainly be phased out of production. In fact, this has already begun. While researching for our recent guide to the best waterproof cycling jacketswe were unable to get samples of certain competitor products.
“We’ve always had supply issues with the fabric,” explained a representative of 7 Mesh – makers of the Oro Shakedry jacket. “The Oro is going to be discontinued after this next shipment.”
Meanwhile, Castelli’s UK distributor Saddleback explained that “From AW22, Castelli aren’t using Shakedry as the material is no longer available to 3rd parties.” With that said, Castelli looks to already have a similar alternative available; the ‘Slider Pro‘ jacket is made using a material it describes as “two-layer ultralight 50 g/m2 waterproof breathable fabric with PFC-free external microporous polyurethane membrane.”
If you have been considering investing in a Gore-Tex Shakedry jacket, you may want to secure one before stocks run out. We doubt that such a popular material would be discontinued without at least a plan for its replacement. We don’t currently know what this will be, but we’ll be keeping our ears to the ground for news and updates.
If your hunt has already begun for a Shakedry jacket we do have a Rapha one included in our Rapha Black Friday deals hub. You can also see all of our other deals on our main Black Friday bike deals page.
