Simply finding a category for the Sports Cloak is difficult enough, it's such a unique product. Visually it's almost a cloak and almost a very long jacket.....but with very short sleeves. It's also large, very large.

Having accepted that it's not likely to be the garment of choice for a post-walk visit to the pub it's actually a very functional product with a wider range of uses than you'd first think. The main purpose of the Sports Cloak is for changing by the water following a swim, but it's equally functional in anything from post fell run to changing after a caving trip. Sizes are extremely generous with a choice of just two sizes, small/medium or large/extra large, but this does leave plenty of room to manoeuvre yourself out of running/swimming/caving wear. By plenty of room I mean room for at least one more person!

Thick, warm, pile inner with zipped pocket and mid height drawcord

The Sports Cloak's main feature is the sumptuous fleece inner which lines both the body and the hood. The cloak reaches down to around knee height in a small medium for a person of 5ft 8 with a drawcord at half height. The zip pulls are fitted with very large loops, making them easy to use even with cold, wet, hands and the hood pulls in tight with a drawcord. Pockets are almost everywhere with 2 large, fully lined, hand-warmer pockets at the front joined by a vertical chest pocket and small rectangular, Velcro-flapped, pocket on the lower right. Inside there's a further zipped pocket for essentials. The arms, which only reach midway down the upper arm, can be semi-closed using press studs.

External chest pocket and main zip, which has an internal storm flap to protect against wind

Short arms can be semi-closed using press studs

In practice the Sports Cloak proved far more functional than expected. The outer is more than capable of shrugging off light rain and proved very wind resistant. The fleece inner is immediately warming and comfortable and with big, chunky, zips it's very quick to put on. While designed for water-side changing in many ways the biggest issue is that once on you're going to take some major persuasion to either change or take it off in favour of a set of clean, but cold, clothes. Once on it very soon takes on the properties of a duvet on a cold morning. Technically it's designed for post open water swim or triathlon but it definitely has potential outside this very niche market, having proved itself in post caving and overnight fishing scenarios while on test as well as the obvious potential for trail runners. Priced at £69.95 it's very competitive with other post-race dry-robe solutions and if you can get over the initial visual impressions it makes a surprisingly versatile addition to a multi-sport wardrobe.