Klim Covert Balaclava - High Risk Red

The Covert Balaclava in Hi-Vis looks the part, but the colour is basically just for show - once your helmet and jacket are on, none of it is visible, so it ends up being more of a stylistic touch than anything practical. The real issue for me is the bulk. It sits a little high around the head and neck, which makes it feel thicker than it needs to be, and I’ve found myself reaching for thinner options instead. A touch less material would make it far more comfortable under a properly fitting helmet.

The mouth and nose opening is also oddly shaped. It’s too large if you want to keep your nose exposed but your mouth covered, yet somehow too small to comfortably expose both nose and mouth. You end up with the edge of the hole sitting right across your lips, which is irritating on longer rides. It’s not a bad balaclava in terms of quality, but the fit and opening design let it down, and I’ve not been wearing it nearly as much as I expected to.

Disappointing from Klim.

I needed a new balaclava to replace my old Oxford one and thought I would have a look at what the upper end of the market has to offer. Well I have to say as much as I normally really Klim gear, I'm not really impressed with this balaclava. It is good quality, but as it's more than three times the price of an equivalent Oxford item, I was hoping for a bit more tbh. Dont even know what I was expecting a £50 balaclava to do but certainly more than a £14.99 one. One really annoying point for me personally is, while the majority of it is made of a thin fleece type fabric, there is a strip of silk type material running down the rear of it which leaves about an inch square of uninsulated neck which when I rode to work recently in 3 degree temps I really noticed. Other than that it's decent enough, just doesn't feel to me any more premium than the cheaper offerings.