One of the fundamental goals of all X-Bionic’s clothing is sweat management. There are a number of fancy-sounding features, one of the most prominent being the 3D Bionic Sphere System. In short, rather than totally removing all moisture, it’s designed to leave a layer of residual sweat on the skin. Small enough, in fact, that the body doesn’t register it as damp. According to X-Bionic, we can only perceive sweat once it begins to bead and roll down the body, so by trapping that thin layer of moisture and then removing excess sweat – in ‘SweatTraps’ – before it builds up, you won’t have to deal with that uncomfortable damp feeling than comes hand in hand with riding hard. These SweatTraps are under the arms, too, and go to work removing sweat there. The Energizer also doubles up as an insulating layer, helping to cool you by removing excess sweat while you’re working hard, and trapping warm air while you’re recovering so you don’t cool down too much. On the new kit, they’ve increased the size of the Sphere System panels by 50 per cent, meaning even more effective sweat reduction and temperature regulation.

If you’re wondering what the different coloured sections on the elbows are, they’re yet another feature, this one being called ExpansionRibs. This is another insulation feature, and X-Bionic say that the ribbed elbows keep heat in better than conventional sleeves, as well as expanding and contracting with arm movement, rather than being pulled tight and loosening. The ribs also store heat, which isn’t lost as you move your arms around, helping to keep your arms warm.

But how well do these features work? Well, it’s very difficult to quantify, but from a purely subjective viewpoint this is definitely the best sweat-managing base layer I’ve ever used. Not only does it do that effectively, it actually keeps you feeling dry. In multiple multi-hour rides I didn’t once have that horrible, damp, sweaty feeling no matter how hard I was working. Other fast-wicking materials reach a point where they simply can’t cope, but I haven’t been able to push this base layer past that point yet, which is really rather impressive. Using this on rides around and just below ten degrees, with only X-Bionic’s ‘The Trick’ long-sleeved jersey as an outer layer, I was very surprised how warm I managed to stay. Obviously it depends on what you have as outer layers, but I’d be happy using this all through winter as, even outside of the thermal qualities, the way it keeps you dry is worth the price alone.

Speaking of style, it’s the look that’ll probably prove the most divisive part of X-Bionic’s kit. The great thing with the base layer is that it’s almost always underneath, so it doesn’t really matter, but the outer layers have a similar aesthetic and one that – especially in the case of the bib tights – may well polarise opinion. And that might be part of the trouble X-Bionic have when trying to sell their kit. Although it works superbly well, if you’re dropping serious money on kit there’s a stylistic expectation as well as a functional one and that might be the one area in which it falls down (though styling is subjective – ed.)

Conclusion

It’s easy to write off a lot of X-Bionic’s tech as marketing nonsense until you’ve tried the clothing. But once you’ve ridden in it, you’ll realise it’s legit. The Energizer MK2 –despite its, erm, quirky name – is honestly the best base layer I’ve ever used, and something that I’ll be happy to ride in all through the autumn and winter. If you don’t fancy the long sleeves, there’s a short sleeved version as well, and also a sleeveless ‘light’ version for when it’s hot.

Pros

– Keeps you amazingly dry and manages sweat very impressively
– Regulates body temperature very well
– Excellent fit and compressive qualities mean it’s highly comfortable

Cons

– Doesn’t come cheap