Review
Leatt MTB HydraDri 5.0 Mono Suit
“You look like Ned Flanders in a ski suit.”
“Is that a onesie? Aw! It’s so cute!”
“Nice fartbag!”
That’s what I heard from “friends” the first time they saw me in Leatt’s newest “mono suit.” I would have launched the same accusations – and they have a point. A one-piece garment isn’t an every day item for wet weather riding, or any recreational activity. Of course there are skin suits for various types of racing and full suits are useful when visiting the Space Station. Powder skiers like fancy onesies to keep the snow out when it’s being blown around by the helicopter, but in mountain biking, these are as rare as titanium duallies, or carbon dirt jumpers.
Call it a onesie, or even a fartbag, if you must, but this is pretty serious and effective outerwear that has some real advantages over two pieces doing the same job. There are some liabilities that come with the territory, that go beyond fielding your buddies’ comments. It’s much tougher, for example, to blame that eye-watering fart on your dog, or your buddy, when it’s coming out your neck hole.
The rear view is the onesiest.
Materials
Leatt uses what it’s calling Hydra-Dri Max, which they suggest is 30k mm waterproof 30k breathable, which is comparable to high end products from Gore, Polartec and eVent. Many companies have gone away from these designations but it’s better than nothing if you are trying to compare garments from one another. I don’t believe there is any central certification for this sort of labelling so we’re taking companies’ words for it. So far I haven’t had any complaints for either breathability or waterproofing and I’ve finished some very soggy rides completely dry on the inside, aside from normal perspiration.
The garment is bluesign approved which means there are no forever chemicals used, either in materials or coatings, but it goes further than that. To be bluesign approved factories must reduce water, energy, emissions and waste water toxicity. They must also adhere to high labour and safety standards. bluesign does on-site audits to ensure all of these standards are adhered to.
Me realizing the reinforced “deflection fabric” that feels a little like kevlar, runs all the way from your crotch down to your knees, where it wraps around but omits the crook of your knee for comfort.
The elbows, knees, inner thighs and ass are protected with what Leatt calls deflextion fabric. There fabric is continuous from your lower back, down your thighs and then it almost completely surrounds your knees, and extends down your shins som. It feels a little like kevlar to me and it seems very sturdy. It tested the knee area, and the shin, by launching my self about six feet down into a storm-swollen ditch, landing on my right lower leg. Not only was the fabric unharmed, unlike my flesh, I didn’t even get wet.
There is a soft insert at the back of the neck and the internal feel of the fabric is quite pleasant, almost like brushed cotton, keeping you dry without getting clammy. Another element that improves comfort is the stretch, defined as “4 way”, which is quite unusual for a 3-layer material.
I have found the waist cinches to be optional and I prefer to leave them loose and let the suspenders keep things in place.
When the cuff zippers are closed they keep the wet out but you can still wear them with the zipper undone. The suit comes off easily once the zipper is open.
Fit and Suspension
There are some design considerations for a suit like this that aren’t necessarily needed for a conventional jacket and pants arrangement. It’s comparatively easy to make that system work for a range of heights, but that doesn’t work well for a mono-suit. The solution is supporting the suit internally with suspenders that attach from the waist and hang over your shoulders, just like a set of ski pants. This keeps the waist where it should be even if the suit is a little longer than you are, as was the case with me. Once you set the suspenders to the correct length for you, that’s it; they will be ready for you the next time you are out for a ride, or a spacewalk.
We received one of these a few years ago but it was comically too big for me. This one is a medium and it fits pretty true to size. If it was tailored just for me, the only change I would make would be to shorten the upper section a little so the front of the suit didn’t bulge out, making me look like I have a bigger belly than I have. It’s perfectly comfortable though so I’m not rushing out to get it altered.
There are cinches at the wrist to keep the old and wet out and zippers down at the cuffs, which can be kept open or closed depending on your preference. The suit slips off easily once the zippers are opened.
The hood works great and stays put both up and down. While it’s down it has a magnet that mates with one on the upper back of the jacket and it never moves. It comes with an adhesive magnet you can mount to your helmet but I haven’t mounted it yet.
Suspenders exposed. They keep things together well and are never noticeable when I’m riding.
I have ridden in the suit five or six times and I haven’t yet had to re-adjust the suspenders.
Ventilation
One of my favourite things about the suit is the way it allows perspiration to disperse, assuming you aren’t wearing a pack or a bum bag, which is my preferred deployment. Normally the waistline of your pants keeps the sweat from your nether regions contained below the belt, while here there is vertical circulation. Your upper half has less advantage of course because it’s not open like the bottom of a jacket often is.
There are good ventilation options built in however. You can fully unzip the top of the suit thanks to a snap that keeps the two halves of the jacket attached and well-aligned, and a 2-way zipper that also acts as your fly. Leatt calls this feature the ClimbVent Connector. Down below there are long zips at your thighs that have a mesh envelope to keep the crud out and there are large upper body vents at the side, below your armpits, which are easier to reach than pit vents. Finally, if you have the jacket fully zipped and the hood up, there are breathing vents at the top of the collar.
There is a fine mesh screen in the leg vents to keep the detritus out.
The most effective vent is to open the top of the suit and keep it secured with this handy snap.
The side vents open wide and are easily reached.
If you have your hood up and collar fully zipped, the laser-cut vents deal with your heavy breathing. The hood has a magnet that mates with one on the back of the jacket to keep it stable when not in use and there is an included adhesive magnet for your helmet as well, which I haven’t used because it has stayed in place so well, and I’m reluctant to commit to a helmet. I’ll have more to say about Leatt’s new eyewear models down the road, but these are the first photochromic glasses I’ve been able to wear on North Shore trails without them being too dark. Above they are in full dark mode.
Storage
Leatt’s website says there are six pockets in the 5.0 Mono-Suit, but I’ve only found four. There is one on each thigh, a Napoleon pocket on the left breast, and a relatively generous pocket on the left arm that I haven’t found a use for yet. There is a neoprene pocket within the chest pocket for your phone, that could bring it to five, but it doesn’t fit my iPhone 15 Pro (not a Max) in its silicone case. Actually it can fit, but only if I have two hands to get it into position, which isn’t possible while I’m wearing the suit. Fortunately it fits fine in the right thigh pocket.
The right thigh pocket works out to be the right place for my phone. There are silicone grippers in the left thigh pocket.
This is me trying unsuccessfully to fit my phone into the neoprene sleeve in the Napoleon pocket I can stuff my phone in when I’m not wearing the suit because I can use two hands, but when I’m wearing it and have only one stuffing hand available, it’s too much of a struggle. The sleeve might work better for eyewear. The left hand thigh pocket has silicone grippers to stop things from sliding around.
There is a handy tethered goggle wipe in the chest pocket as well.
On The Bike
I really like the loose feeling I get wearing this. It seems to help me feel free and agile on the bike. It feels like there are fewer things to fiddle with as well. There is not jacket to slide up or pants to slip down and of course coverage is excellent. It’s a little less convenient if you need to stop for a slash, and if you’ve got more serious business to do, you don’t have a jacket to keep on to keep you dry, but those aren’t deal breakers.
I’m not sure if I ride better wearing this suit when it’s cool and wet, but I feel better. This was shot on lower Roach on Cypress. I thought this section was going to be clearcut in January but it will actually live on for a couple of years before paving and development reduces it to stumps, debris and dirt piles. It’s one of my favourite sections so the reprieve is a huge relief.
The biggest downside to using a single garment rather than two is that there isn’t much else you can use this for in terms of athletics or day to day stuff like dog walking. It would make a great ski or snowboard suit but the cuffs won’t go over your boots. It would work for snowshoeing though. A use I have found for it is working on my car when the weather is shitty. Outside of summer months I can lie on my wet driveway comfortably and deal with things I’d otherwise put off until a rare dry day.
This suit been a pleasant surprise. I had no idea if I’d like wearing it or not but it’s been great. Both waterproofing and venting have been excellent, but dress carefully underneath if you are going for a heavy ride on a pedal bike. While there are excellent venting options, overall it seems a little warmer than a similar jacket and pants combo.
Leatt Mono Suit MTB HydraDri 5.0 700 CAD / 505 USD / 500 EUR
Do some mountain bikers find rear pockets useful? I’m not a fan. There are no hand pockets in the Leatt Hydra Dri 6.0 jacket, but there is a useful chest pocket.
Leatt Hydra Dri 6.0 Jacket
This jacket and the mono-suit are different beasts. This is a very lightweight waterproof jacket with an emphasis on breathability. Where the suit is 30k/30k, this is 15k for waterproofing and 70k for breathability. I haven’t gotten wet over a two hour ride, but that lower number means it might not do as well if you are out for four hour ride and getting pelted.
The size medium fit me just right.
The colour match between pants and jacket could be better.
The hood shares the adjustments and the magnetic tether of the Mono Suit.
Another difference is that this has two pockets; one in the back, and a generous chest pocket with silicone grippers that fits a phone very well. As a mountain biker I don’t find a rear pocket very useful. I’d much prefer at least one front slash pocket to keep things like keys or a multi-tool close at hand, but this pocket is also a stash for your jacket when not in use. This is a proper compression stash as well and it takes a little work to squeeze everything in there but that’s better than having a larger burrito to pack. Once it’s in there you can strap it to your bike somewhere. It’s a little too wide for your top tube however and I couldn’t find a place where it make sense for me, except maybe the handlebars on a climb.
I called this a burrito (the jacket stuffed in the rear pocket) but it’s shaped more like a sandwich, which means it doesn’t store on your top tube well if you are pedalling, or descending. There may be a better place to store it on some bikes, but I couldn’t find a good spot on mine.
The jacket strikes a nice balance between minimalist and full featured, with elbows protected using the same deflection fabric as the mono suit, wrist cinches, soft fabric at the front of the collar where it comes in contact with your face when fully closed, and the same magnetic system for the hood as the mono suit.
I feel good wearing this jacket and it’s done the job admirably, but I would probably default to something that performs similarly but with hand pockets for stashing extras.
Leatt Hydra Dri 6.0 Jacket 530 CAD / 373 USD / 360 EUR
These pants, despite being a horrible match for this jacket, are every bit as good as the mono suit in terms of materials, fit and construction. Like everything else I’m wearing, these are a size medium.
Leatt Hydra Dri 5.0 Pants
If these pants look a lot like the bottom of the mono suit, that’s only because they are identical. At least from the outside they are. The only significant difference, aside from having the top half amputated, is that these have a phone sleeve in the right thigh pocket, and a pocket at the small of your back.
The material has the same properties, they fit very well, and work out great in the saddle. If you don’t want to look like two people shopping independently at Goodwill chose your clothing, you’ll want to select your jacket carefully. Personally I don’t mind too much but if I did, I’d stick with black, or go full matchy match with the Hydra Dri 5.0 jacket which, you guessed it, is a dead ringer for the top of the mono suit.
Leatt Hydra Dri 5.0 Pants 370 CAD / 263 USD / 249.00 EUR
These are warm and well made gloves but they lack the bar feel and dexterity I seek for winter mountain biking gloves. They would be fine for road riding, gravel or mellow XC however.
Leatt MTB 2.0 SubZero Gloves
Winter gloves for mountain biking are a tough nut to crack. If you make them warm, you often sacrifice sensitivity and control, which is something many of us are reluctant to do. If it gets really cold, well below freezing, I’ll wear whatever works to keep riding, but if I can tough it out, I’ll default to the warmest gloves I have that have a good bar feel.
The gloves seem to be waterproof, well made and they are nice and warm. If you are less fussy about bar feel, and finger dexterity, they may be fine for. And TBF, I am very fussy about these factors. Maybe they’ll break in and improve with time, and if they do I’ll be back with a re-assessment.
When it gets really cold, and dexterity and control make way for frost bite prevention, these may do the trick.
For me, these don’t make that cut. The padding is a little too thick in the palms and between the fingers for me. When it gets bitterly cold, I’ll use them to prevent frostbite, but there will be days when I’d rather suffer cold digits than feel like I’m compromising riding performance. This is particularly critical for regular riders like me, who need all the help we can get. I
don’t yet have a price for these but I’ll update ASAP.
Height – 6’/183cm (mostly legs)
Weight – 165lbs/75kg
Inseam – 37″/94cm. (turns out I hadn’t measured correctly previously)
Ape Index – 0.986
Age – 58
Trail I’ve been stoked on lately – Sam’s Dad’s Trail
Bar Width – 760mm
Preferred Reach – 485-500mm