i have been bike commuting year round in Portland Or. for the last 16 years. A $300 raincoat sounds insane to me. Just get a decent shell and layer underneath it. Waterproof gloves at Costco for about $15. My jacket and pants are both Columbia Sportswear and together were under $80. I prefer to wear my rain jacket hood under my helmet unless it is not raining hard and then I just leave it hanging out the back .

Well, it depends on where you live and how often you ride in the rain. Does someone in San Diego or Phoenix need an expensive rain coat? Probably not. I live in Portland, OR and commute on my bike every day. Between Oct 1st, 2016 and April 30th, 2017 we had 145 rainy days (http://www.oregonlive.com/weather/index.ssf/2017/04/portland_metro_wednesday_weath_58.html), so you bet I have a $300 raincoat – and so do most people around here – not just for bike riding, just for being outside

Lights are another thing altogether because you use them every day. I own about $100 worth of very effective lights and, despite being thoroughly convinced that these are absolutely necessary for my safety, it was a hard sell. But $100-500 for a piece of plastic to keep me dry the few days a year I would commute in the rain? Are these guys delusional? I have a $6 Coleman emergency poncho that serves me just fine on those days!