Materials and Construction

Burton’s AK Cyclic Jacket and pants are made of 2-Layer GORE-TEX, which has an effective waterproof rating of above 28,000—essentially meaning it’s never going to let moisture in. It’s also highly breathable. Our tester wore this combo on several baking hot spring splitboarding missions last winter, and rarely had to remove the jacket.

Of course, as a shell jacket and pants, if the temperature drops, you’ll need to layer up under this combo, but that means its flexible enough to ride in almost any situation. Burton’s build quality is rightly well-renowned, and their returns process, should anything happen to go wrong, is as slick as you’d expect from a company their size. The materials used in the making of this jacket are all Bluesign approved too—meaning they’re manufactured to independently vetted social and environmental standards.

“When it comes to investing in snowboarding’s grassroots, no other company comes close”

Fit and Features

As a snowboard-only brand, Burton’s fits tend to come in on the baggy side, and the AK range is no exception. Our tester, who wears a Large for many brands, often opts for medium when it comes to Burton kit. The pants here are conventional belted ones rather than bib pants, but they’re easily adjustable, and the interface between the powder skirt and the pants means you’re unlikely to ever get snow down them.

In terms of features, the jacket has it all—mesh lined armpit vents, zippered hand-warmer pockets, chest pockets, and a bicep pass pocket for easy access. Inside there’s a zippered pocket for your smartphone with a thermal lining that will stop the battery draining if it’s really cold. All the zips and seams are fully taped. The pants feature anti-scuff cuffs, plus a plethora of zippered pockets for keeping all your stuff safe—from rear pockets to microfleece-lined hand warmer pockets to a cargo pocket with an interior tool sleeve. Whatever you carry into the backcountry, Burton have thought of a place to put it.

“It’s designed to tackle big mountains, like the kind their team riders Ben Ferguson or Zoi Sadowski-Synnott might encounter in Alaska”

Roundup

Although designed primarily for backcountry riding, the fit and look of this combo make it great for cruising round resorts too. Our tester used this as his go-to jacket and pants last winter for almost all conditions—when it was cold, he could easily layer up beneath the baggy design, and when he got warm and sweaty on splitboard missions, the shell jacket packed down small enough to strap onto a regular-sized backpack.

The pants are similarly versatile, and while some riders will prefer bibs, straight pants have the advantage of not adding an extra layer of GORE-TEX between your chest and your jacket, making the combo as a whole more breathable. The price, while hardly cheap, is relatively modest, given the high spec and the features on offer.

Pros:

• A great looking, fully featured jacket that will handle any conditions, and will suit any kind of rider. Burton have selected great materials and put them together brilliantly

Cons:

• While the 2-Layer GORE-TEX used here is high spec, if you’re going to spend all your time splitboarding you might want to look at 3-Layer options

Buy the Burton AK Cyclic Jacket: £440 at Blue Tomato UK 

Buy the Burton AK Cyclic Jacket: €490 at Blue Tomato EU 

Buy the Burton AK Cyclic Pants: £465 at Blue Tomato UK 

Buy the Burton AK Cyclic Pants: €520 at Blue Tomato EU