Assos’s latest bibshorts deliver luxury in a high-performance package.
Words Sam Challis Photography Lizzie Crab
The launch of new cycling clothing rarely generates the same level of interest as techier, higher-profile products such as bikes. There are exceptions, though, like when Assos, the first cycling apparel brand to use Lycra and the inventor of the bibshort, updates its top-of-the-line design. The Equipe RS Schtradivari S11 bibshorts, to give them their full name, are a big departure from the Equipe RSR S9 Targa design they replace.
According to Assos they are the result of two years and almost 200,000km of testing with the Tudor Pro Cycling team. Understandably, then, they use Assos’s race fit, which is more second skin-like (and less forgiving on body shape) than the brand’s more endurance-focused products.
As ever from the Swiss brand, quirky feature names abound. Case in point is one of the short’s main updates, a switch to a new main material called Type.911. This is more elastic, compressive and lighter than materials used previously, so has triggered several secondary updates to the shorts’ fit.
They now feature ‘crankio Tec’ sections over the hip flexor area, shaped to reduce wrinkling in the pedal stroke. The distinctive ‘rollBar’ feature on the last shorts – where the bibstraps at the rear inserted at multiple points down the back of the shorts for stability – is gone too, as the new fabric doesn’t need the support. This will be welcomed by many, as it made for a controversial look.
A new top sheet, said to be softer, more durable and odour-resistant, bumps Assos’s unique three-layer chamois from its S9 generation to S11, meaning it retains several idiosyncratic features. It is fixed into the shorts only at the front and rear – dubbed ‘goldenGate 2.0’ – which allows the insert to move independently from the rest of the shorts. Elsewhere, perforations on a super-light panel at the front – ‘kraterCooler’ – and further channeling – ‘whirlKrater’ – are included in the pursuit of improved ventilation.
Take the talk and walk the walk
While I’ll never not be amazed by the ludicrous terminology Assos uses, I have to admit the brand’s technology does the job. You’d think the detached pad would move more under you, but the opposite is true. The goldenGate 2.0 feature helps the pad conform and cling to the body, while the rest of the shorts move with the pedal stroke, resulting in a feeling of comfortable stability with no bunching. The super-light kraterCooler section of the insert, together with the neat contouring of the shorts’ main panels, complements the support of the pad by shaping the shorts around the rider with anatomical precision.
Even the peripheral details are well considered. The ‘INject’ leg grippers – sucker-like dots – only coat the rear half of the shorts’ hems, and work to fix the shorts in place despite allowing frictionless movement of the fronts against the thighs as they move through the pedal stroke. When combined with Assos’s typically excellent manufacturing quality, the resulting shorts are at once racy but luxurious, pared-back but robust. The asking price is high, but if ever there was a piece of high-performance apparel to stand the test of time, these bibshorts would be it.
Model: Assos Equipe RS Schtradivari S11
Weight: 176g (large)
Price: $420
Sizes available: XS, S, M, L, XL, XXL
Lengths available: Standard, Long (+3cm)
Colours available: Black
Contact: assos.com/aupartially
