Earlier this year, we told you how dhb’s latest range has seen the company move up the cycle clothing food chain, and the Aeron Pro bib shorts are wholly representative of that.
dhb, Wiggle’s in-house clothing brand, have forged their reputation on affordable clothing, although these shorts will set you back £74.99. But they’re still fantastic value for money. That’s the key point; you’re getting plenty of bang for your buck.
The shorts are manufactured using a Field Sensor 249g fabric from Italy which, because it’s fine woven, feels great and is hard-wearing, too. A crash on wet roads last month is testament to that; the shorts survived without a scratch, but peel back the Lyrca and there was plenty of road rash beneath. Anyway, the fabric is made up of a 69% nylon, 16% polyester and 15% elastane mix, which also provides plenty of stretch.
The shorts have an anatomical fit, meaning they might feel a little small when you pull on your regular size, but, once on the bike, suit the hunched-over position of a cyclist perfectly.
Up top, the mesh braces are constructed with a carbon fibre fabric. Yep, carbon fibre. Apparently, that helps to regulate body temperature and reduce stress on the body when compared to conventional fabrics. Its hard to say for sure without heading into the lab but, importantly, the braces are comfortable and secure.
At the other end, the Tour Air chamois is CyTech’s top-of-the-range pad and it performs at such, with 10mm of padding ideal for long days in the saddle, while the channelled design helps aid air flow.
Meanwhile, dhb have opted to ditch conventional silicon grippers on the legs in favour of silicon dashes which keep the shorts locked on with little trouble. The white elastic band on the bottom of each leg offers further support.
And on the white band, that’s a design feature which is very much in-vogue on high-end shorts and adds to the ‘pro’ look. As the whole, the black and white contrast looks superb on the bike, is easy to match with a jersey and the dhb branding is subtle, with a small logo on the leg and lower back. All in all, a superb pair of bib shorts for the money.
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