Salomon Bonatti WP Jacket
Size: Large
Face Fabric: Climapro SB Ripstop 2.5 Layer
Waterproofing: 10k
Breathability: 10k
Stated Features:
- Active fit
- Skin fit hood
- Reflective logo front and back
Stated Weight (in a size Medium): 210 grams
Blister’s Measured Weight (Size Large): 201 grams
MSRP: $150
Reviewer: 6’, 170 lbs.
Test Locations: Driggs & Moscow, ID; Teton Pass, Teton Canyon, & Grand Teton National Park, WY
Test Duration: 10 days
Intro
When we were surveying the landscape of summer running and hiking raincoats, the Bonatti WP jacket caught our eye.
Salomon says about the Bonatti that its “lightweight motion fit and minimalist details in this complete breathable protection that packs into its own chest pocket. The Bonatti jacket is essential equipment to bring when running in the mountains.”
It’s not Salomon’s top-of-the-line running jacket — that distinction goes to the $275 S-Lab Hybrid jacket that is aimed directly at the “I run farther than most people drive in a week” crowd.
But at $150, the Bonatti looked like an affordable, versatile option for runs and hikes that have the potential to get stormy.
Fit
At 6’, 170 lbs, I pretty much always wear a size Large, and the Large Bonatti WP fits me well. It’s a touch shorter in the body than the (very good) Strafe Scout Jacket, but the sleeves are a little longer and slimmer. Overall, it has what I would call a good active fit.
The tail drops a little, and has an elastic portion that, along with the elasticized cuffs, did a good job keeping the hem, or sleeves from riding up when running.
The hood fits snugly to the head. I can wear it with a hat underneath, but it’s not as roomy as the Scout’s hood, and there is no way I would try to stick a bike helmet underneath it.
Pockets & Features
Salomon makes it clear that the Bonatti is a minimalist jacket without any extra bells and whistles. However, what few features the Bonatti WP does have are practical. It only has one pocket — a chest pocket that the jacket can stuff into. It’s made of mesh, and it is big enough for a phone and wallet. It has a port to run headphones inside the jacket, and the jacket stuffs into it easily.
The sleeves and hem both are secured with elastic. While that means they’re impossible to cinch down, it also means the jacket packs down very easily — I never noticed any bulk while running in the jacket, and they did a fine job keeping everything secure.
The elastic that secures the hood performed equally well, I never felt like the hood was too big or loose on my head, and that can mostly be attributed to the “Skin Fit Hood.”
The Skin Fit Hood is basically just an extra strip of elastic mesh fabric sewn to the inside of the hood, just inside the brim. It cups your head like the front third of a very light beanie.
I was surprised the first time I put the jacket on; that extra fabric in the hood cups the front of your head and makes the hood very much more secure. It’s a simple solution to a problem I’ve struggled with on other running jackets — when the wind picks up or I’m running super fast (who am I kidding, I don’t ever run that fast), most hoods have a tendency to blow off of my head. It’s annoying.
That happens even more regularly when the jacket isn’t zipped all the way up. I regularly run in the rain without my jacket all the way zipped up, since I’m generally sweating up a storm. So I open it a little ways to breathe, and my beard interferes with the collar of some jackets. Thus I run into the hood-blowing-off problem pretty often.
But I’ve never had this problem with the Bonatti. The Skin Fit Hood does such a good job keeping the hood on that I can run into the wind with the jacket half unzipped with no repercussions. The hood is by far my favorite feature of this jacket.
Packability
The Bonatti WP packs down very small. It’s about the same size as the Strafe Scout when they’re both packed down all the way, and I never hesitate to throw it in my pack.
At 201 grams, it’s just a touch heavier than the Scout (173 g), but for me, 30 g doesn’t matter that much. I could either shave or use the bathroom before my run and cut more weight than that.
NEXT: Performance, Comparisons, Etc.