This lightweight running and immediately reminded me of cycling caps, which are tight fitting and deliberately designed with small peaks to prevent them being blown off the wearer’s head by the wind while people are pedalling. I’m guessing Buff’s starting concept was broadly the same for this 5-Panel Air Cap, which can be pulled tight with a bungee and toggle at the back, and features a conspicuously small peak – a design with pros and cons, as we’ll see below. The other feature that immediately grabs the eye is the mesh material used across the head – the airy element referenced in the name – which also scores both negative and positive points.

Although minimalist and extremely lightweight, this is a well-made cap, with four panels of synthetic mesh securely stitched together to cover the head, a small but reliably rigid and relatively wide peak (which I assume counts as the fifth panel), an integrated sweatband and a smart cord-and-toggle fastening system at the back. This cap has a unisex, one-size-fits-all design (which works thanks to the lace-style fastening system). About a third of the total material used is recycled.

I’ve been putting the 5-Panel Air Cap to the test, to see how it compares to the on the market. I have been testing the 5-Panel Air Cap from Buff while running and rambling around the exposed coastal paths, beaches and hilltops of Dorset and Devon in southern England, in increasingly bright and sunny conditions, and with temperatures stea.