Last but certainly not least, it’s time we brought you our favourite items of clothing, shoes and accessories from Eurobike.
Castelli
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Castelli was really excited to show us its new range of winter wet weather gear. Castelli has put together a full rain outfit that consists of the Tempesta (Italian for storm) waterproof jacket, overshorts and leg warmers. It’s all covered in a reflective material and is designed for long miles in the pouring rain. One of our favourite touches was the magnetic latch on the drawstring cuff.
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Castelli also showed us an update to the Gabba called the Perfetto. The new Perfetto is made from a thinner Windstopper material on the main body, so it's better suited for when it’s damp but perhaps a little warmer. There was a rather depressing suggestion that it would be perfect for the British summer.
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Finally we were introduced to the new Mondiale short. The Mondiale uses the same pad as the top end Body Paint short but uses a heavyweight lycra for a more supportive fit. The heavier lycra also means that Castelli are unable to sublimate any patterns onto the material, so it only comes in black - shame...
Contact: Castelli cycling
Giro
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As well as unveiling its new Chrono range (full range here– first ride review here) Giro also updated some of its shoes and accessories to go with the new kit. We really liked the new Empire ACC shoes that now come in a reflective option. The interesting thing is that the reflectivity is in the material, rather than just a stuck on finish, so doesn’t rub off and it carries on working even if you scuff the material.
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Giro also showed us the Foray helmet, which is basically a cheaper version of the Synthe. You can see the same design cues and style as the Synthe, it’s just made from less exotic materials. The Foray is available in two versions: one with a MIPS liner and one without.
Contact: Giro
Pearl Izumi
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The Pearl Izumi 2016 collection is more of a gentle refinement than any enormous changes but we think some of their top end kit, which has been designed in conjunction with the BMC pro team, is really interesting. The Pro Speed jersey has a cut that tapers in across the chest to help the arms stay in an aero tuck and the very material the sleeves are made from is claimed to be slippery to give a few more aero gains.
Contact: Pearl Izumi
Primal
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Primal has totally redesigned and rebranded for its new 2016 range. Primal said its been working with some fashion trend forecasters lately and its got some really exciting new designs to come a little later. A look around Eurobike certainly suggested it is on to something with the dot-matrix camo pattern.
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The other highlight was its packable jacket, which looks like a great back up jacket if the weather suddenly turns. The material is thin and light, but still weatherproof so it will keep all but the worst of conditions at bay. Better still, the jacket folds up into its own pocket in a matter of seconds – when folded up there is an elastic strap to wrap around your arm - although there was a suggestion this may be swapped to a Velcro strap to attach it under a saddle.
Contact: Primal Europe
Pro
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As a subsidiary of Shimano, you’d think that Pro would be fitted OEM to almost every bike available but that’s not the case. It’s because of this that perhaps Pro doesn’t get quite as much after market attention as it deserves. The top end Pro carbon kit is amongst the lightest and stiffest available, and its revamped mid-range PLT kit looks great.
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They also had a range of new bar tapes including this LizardSkin-esque tacky finish tape. UK pricing and availability has yet to be confirmed.
Contact: Pro Bike Gear
Santini
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Santini was really keen to show us the work its been putting into its latest pads. The latest Santini C3 chamois pads are made from three different thicknesses and weights of foam but, unlike many other manufacturers, the edges of the different thicknesses are tapered so that you don’t get a big step from one thickness to another. They’ve also added a new anti-bacterial layer to the top of the pad, so Santini recommends avoiding using chamois cream.
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Carbon fibre is infiltrating every element of bicycle construction and it’s even managed to sneak into clothing too. The Photon range from Santini utilizes carbon fibres in the areas under the arms, allowing them to thin out the material and increase the cooling capacity without decreasing the material strength. For all out aero capabilities they opted for a ¾ arm on the jersey and it said it’s had great feedback from the Lotto-Jumbo riders who used the Photon range at this years Tour de France.
Contact: Santini SMS
Shimano
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A few new models from Shimano along with a really nice range simplification. To help simplify the shoes in customers’ minds, they’re recommending pedals and groupset levels to identify where the item is placed in the range. For instance Shimano recommends the new RP9 shoes be paired with the Ultegra 6800 groupset and pedals. It’s particularly helpful at the lower end range where there are numerous non-series pedals. The RP9 shoes are very similar to the R321 but with a less technical upper and a more flexible sole. They also come in a rather dashing white.
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Shimano also had the new W884 women’s shoe to match the men’s R321. The shoe is much the same, but it's built from a women's last, and comes in a little cheaper. Rumour has it that the men's shoe will drop down to match the women's shoe for price.
Contact: Shimano
Sportful
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The big changes from Sportful come in its Fiandre range. The Fiandre Extreme Neoshell jacket is a totally new model to the range with a new water shedding finish and externally taped seams. The zip has also been upgraded and the entire jacket has a soft internal liner so it can be worn next to the skin. If you opt for a long sleeve base layer, Sportful claim you can wear the jacket quite comfortably to 5c.
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The Fiandre NoRain bib tights have also been updated. The first big change is the flap placed over the rear of the seat pad to protect you from rear wheel spray. It works in a similar fashion to a long tail flap on a jacket but they claim it doesn’t get caught up on the saddle as easily. There is also a double thickness material on the shin that keeps the worst of the spray from penetrating onto the material that is in contact with the skin.
Contact: Sportful