We travelled west recently to Saddleback, UK distributor of several well-known cycling brands, including Bont and Castelli. Here’s the new season kit from both.
Castelli San Remo Thermosuit
The San Remo Thermosuit is a garment derived from the team’s association with the Garmin-Sharp WorldTour team. This is the winter incarnation of Castelli’s one piece, Speedsuit concept (summer and cyclo-cross version also available). Think of it as an all-day skin suit, one with pockets and a discreet opening for comfort breaks. The absence of shoulder straps offers are claimed to offer weight saving and comfort benefits over a traditional bib tights/jersey combination.
The Thermosuit unites the Surpasso tight, Castelli’s best seller, with its Trasparente jersey. The rear of the tights and jersey are made from Thermoflex fabric, one with hollow core fibres with claims for warmth and moisture management we’re keen to test. The front of the jersey is essentially the Transparante jacket, made from Windstopper X-lite fabric. The collar flips up at the very top to keep heat inside and the wind off your throat, a feature this year on all Castelli jackets.
It costs £250, not cheap at a first glance, but perhaps a saving on the cost of a separate bib tight and jacket. Expect to see it in the shops within the next couple of weeks. There’s one colour option: black, with detailing in the fluorescent yellow that was everywhere at Eurobike and even on the Nike Volt shoes of Mo Farah and co at the Olympics.
Castelli Espresso Due jacket
The £230 Espressso Due jacket is one made from honeycombe-structured X-Fast fabric with numerous hidden channels for ventilation. One is positioned each side of the garment, just off the chest, to channel air across the back, which is constructed from a mesh panel intended to be sufficiently light to avoid pressing directly against the skin. A full length zip is secured with a cam lock (a feature on all Castelli jackets this winter) to prevent the zip from sliding down further than required when riding. A hidden channel is included to route a phone or headphone cable. Unusually for Castelli, who, in common with most Italian manufacturers cut their garments on the small side, the fit of the Espressso Due is more “relaxed”. It comes in black with red detailing and is intended for temperatures from zero to 12 degrees centigrade.
Castelli Mortirolo Due jacket
The £175 Mortirolo jacket returns this winter in a new colour scheme, the ubiquitous fluorescent yellow, in a camouflage print (traditional red, black, and white colourways remain in the line). The chest panel and the front of the arm is made from Windstopper X-Fast, while the rear of the jacket is made from the soft, Roubaix-style Thermoflex fabric. It has a full length zip, three rear pockets, and two side vents to channel air across the rider’s back. The Mortirolo was Castelli’s best seller last year when conditions remained mild and a jacket and base layer were sufficient for most of the winter.
Bont
Team GB’s Olympic success was shared by Bont, who supplied all but two of the team. Bradley Wiggins is a long-term wearer. He rides in the flagship Zero model, whose lace-up closure fits his track background. Additional retention is offered by the Velcro-fastening to the panel that covers the laces.
Bont have updated offerings across the three pillars of their range: the £125 A3, the A2 at £175, and the flagship Vaypor, which costs £250. All share fundamental design principles (the price points are justified by the use of different materials to yield weight savings). Each model, for example, has a heat moldable carbon sole, and all have the signature broad toe box, which Bont claim most accurately mimics the shape of the foot (the theory: remove sock, apply pressure, watch foot expand). The heel cup on all is claimed to be sufficiently well fitting to hold the shoe to the foot even with the closure undone. The flagship Vaypor has a carbon sole that extends into the leather upper in a monocoque design. The upper is vented and the sole has drainage channel. It weighs 240 grams.
