First Ride: Akta Trail Vest and Riding Apparel

Launched in 2022, Akta is a small, rider-driven apparel and protection company out of Vancouver, British Colombia. The founders had previously worked for other brands in the industry, but they wanted to strike out on their own and pursue the traditional upstart vision of “gear they would really want to ride in themselves”. We’ve had the opportunity to sample some of Akta’s apparel before with good results, so when they introduced their latest offering - the “Trail Vest" - we were keen to check it out as well. Here are our findings!

Akta Trail Vest Highlights

Netplus® 100% recycled nylon is made from post-consumer discarded fishing nets
Bluesign® certified fabric
GRS Certified fabric
20k/20K waterproof and moisture permeability rating
Self packing left chest pocket with frame attachment system
Back venting panel
Two-way waterproof center front zipper
MSRP: $118 USD

Akta Trail Pant Highlights

D3O® ZERO™ recycled impact foam lines the right pocket for added phone protection
PFC free DWR treatment to repel light rain and mud
Partially elasticated waistband plus silicone prints for a secure fit
Laser perforated inner leg and back of knee for increased ventilation
Double layered crotch gusset
Ratchet closure for fine tuning your fit
Patterned using 3D software for the perfect on bike articulation
MSRP: $130 USD

Akta Trail Jersey Long Sleeve Highlights

Bluesign® approved recycled polyester fabric
GRS certified fabric
Anti-microbial treatment
Moisture wicking, quick drying
Ride position-specific engineered patterning
Camera/ eyewear wipe at hem
MSRP: $53 USD

Akta Trail Glove Highlights

Bluesign® approved 4-way stretch recycled nylon fabric at back of hand
Bluesign® approved AX Suede palm material offers durability and breathability with 36% recycled content
GRS certified fabrics
Double stitched seams throughout for increased durability
Stretch compression Lycra cuff for a secure fit
Smart phone connectivity print added to index finger and thumb
MSRP: $25 USD

Initial Impressions

If you looked through the product highlights section above, you probably noticed a trend with regards to product naming at Akta. This stuff is clearly made for “trail riding”, which is a very broad mandate in today’s world. In short, consider it gear for all kinds of mountain biking, only stopping short of full-on park or race abuse (not to say that you couldn’t hit the park or race in this, just saying that it might not be robust enough for that kind of treatment on the regular). The other aspect that stands out to us among the highlights is the pricing – it’s not terribly expensive for premium riding gear, which is refreshing to see.

Starting off with the main novelty item here, the Trail Vest is a waterproof and breathable garment meant to keep your core warm and dry without you having to resort to wearing a full rain jacket with sleeves. This might seem like a somewhat odd piece of equipment, but if you ride in occasionally drizzly or rapidly changing weather, you may well find that a full rain jacket is just a bit too warm and not really necessary for the amount of precipitation you're dealing with.

The Trail Vest is made from a 20k/20k waterproof and breathable fabric designed to keep water out while letting moisture evaporate from the inside (Akta uses recycled fabrics and materials in all of their products, BTW). The cuts are all precise, and the seals are stitched and bonded to keep the entire garment waterproof. There is one chest pocket that can also be used to pack the whole vest into – it even provides a handy little elastic strap and hook that lets you strap it to your frame (or hip pack or belt…). The collar has soft patches in two areas, the back of the neck as well as the section under the chin. There is a large flap on the back panel to allow for extra ventilation, which is equipped with an internal mesh panel to keep any debris or bugs out, while a waterproof, two-way zipper handles the front opening. All in all, that’s a pretty nice feature list for $118 USD.

The Trail Pant is made from a fairly stretchy yet robust fabric, cut into an athletic but not overly tight shape. It is not meant to be waterproof, but it does feature a light DWR coating to keep moisture at bay for a while. There’s a zippered fly and a ratcheted strap for adjusting the pant at the waist, aided by two elastic sections that can expand or contract as needed. There are laser-cut ventilation holes in several key areas to help with breathability.

The main party trick of the Trail Pant (as well as the Trail Short) is a D3O-padded phone pocket on the right thigh. It’s big enough to hold even an oversized phone, with a D3O pad placed on the outside to help protect your phone in case of a crash.

The Trail Jersey is made from a really soft and very stretchy fabric, with different cuts and fabric patterns placed in different areas for a “ride-optimized” fit. There are not a lot of extra features, but you do get some pretty classy, rubberized graphics on one arm, and a soft sunglass wipe inside the lower hem.

The Trail Glove is pretty much your typical, modern MTB glove, with a soft, suede-like palm area and a stretchy back panel. It features a slip-on design and touch panel enhancements on the thumb and index finger for the phone fiends.

On The Trail

All of the items we tested are well put together, the stitching is uniform and all the bonds are clean and precise. Everything runs true to size, and the sizing charts provided were very accurate for us – our tester (yours truly) is usually a size L in pretty much every contemporary apparel brand, and that worked out well for the Akta items reviewed here as well. For reference, Johan is 6'0" (1m84), and weighs about 190lbs (87kgs), give or take.

Much as the Trail Vest might make you wonder what it’s for at first glance – a rain vest that leaves your arms exposed to the moisture – it really makes good sense on the bike. On a day when the occasional rain shower comes along, but the overall temperature remains fairly mild, a rain jacket will quickly turn stuffy whilst this rain vest keeps you in perfect operating condition while you exert yourself. It’s also an awesome windbreaker for your core. The fit is great, and the vest makes itself forgotten in action. It packs down into its own pocket and can be easily stowed away when you don’t need to wear it (the elastic strap for attaching it to the frame is a nice touch). Combine it with a long-sleeve jersey for autumn days and add a base layer if you really need to stay warm.

The Trail Pant is super comfortable in action, and the cut is perfectly optimized for riding a bike. The lower leg tapers in to avoid any risk of drivetrain snagging, and there is room around the knee area for knee guards. The phone is held in place without bouncing around, and there’s enough room in the other pocket for storing a few more essentials as well. We have thankfully not had to test the D3O protection over the phone pocket, but judging by the design alone we’d say it has a good chance of being useful should you happen to land on it.

The Trail Jersey is very comfortable, we love the soft and stretchy fabric as well as the cut and look of the garment in general. It does a good job of wicking away moisture without getting too clingy, even if you sweat a lot.

To conclude with the gloves, the design is nothing out of the ordinary but the execution is of very high level. The fabrics and materials chosen work well, with a rather minimalistic feel on the grips. Most importantly, the stitching is smooth and uniform, without any of that awkward fingertip bulkiness that we sometimes observe with other gloves.

What’s The Bottom Line?

We often say that the world doesn’t really need yet another apparel brand at this point, but at the same time, there’s always room for good ideas and good execution – Akta brings all of that to the table for sure. Everything we’ve tested here is very well made, and highly functional on the bike. The all-new Trail Vest is a great example of thinking a bit outside of the box, an item which has you slightly perplexed at first glance but then makes perfect sense in action. If you frequently ride in variable conditions and you find a traditional rain jacket to be a bit too much, give this one a spin, it’s a great tool for elevating your layering game. The rest of the Akta catalog earns our seal of approval as well – highly recommended!

More information at: aktamtb.com.

About The Reviewer

Johan Hjord - Age: 52 // Years Riding MTB: 20 // Weight: 190-pounds (87 kg) // Height: 6'0" (1.84m)

Johan loves bikes, which strangely doesn’t make him any better at riding them. After many years spent practicing falling off cliffs with his snowboard, he took up mountain biking in 2005. Ever since, he’s mostly been riding bikes with too much suspension travel to cover up his many flaws as a rider. His 200-pound body weight coupled with unique skill for poor line choice and clumsy landings make him an expert on durability - if parts survive Johan, they’re pretty much okay for anybody. Johan rides flat pedals with a riding style that he describes as "none" (when in actuality he rips!). Having found most trail features to be not to his liking, Johan uses much of his spare time building his own. Johan’s other accomplishments include surviving this far and helping keep the Vital Media Machine’s stoke dial firmly on 11.

Photos by Johan Hjord