Premium clothing manufacturer Assos has launched a dirtspecific clothing line that incorporates some unique features.
Swiss clothing manufacturer Assos have been around since 1976. They started
out making pioneering carbon fibre frames before moving onto making shorts. In
fact they claim to be the company that invented tight fitting lycra bike
shorts.
Over the years Assos have made quite a name for themselves. Within road
circles they are sometimes referred to as ‘the shorts company’ and their
top-shelf shorts are widely regarded to be the ultimate strides for slaying the
tarmac. The other thing Assos is known for is its five star gold inlaid pricing.
Their kit comes at a premium; they are the Rolex, the Leica, the Maserati of cycling
clothing.
Assos has its roots firmly set in road cycling, and although their kit
has been worn off-road with great success by the Swiss national team, they’ve
never made a mountain bike specific range – until now that is. After getting
involved with the South African Cape Epic event, Assos decided to produce some
offroad inspired summer kit; the Rally jersey and shorts.
I went along to the Assos HQ in Switzerland to attend the launch of
their all-new T.Rally shorts. There was little prerelease info available, but
being Assos we guessed that they would not be baggies and that they would be
expensive – we were correct on both fronts and these bib-knicks will sell for around
$445.
DESIGN DETAILS
We’re told that Assos did not want to rush into the mountain bike
market. Apparently these garments took some three years of testing and tweaking
with around 80 different incarnations before they were released. This
demonstrates the sort of attention to detail behind the Assos product and in part
explains their pricing.
The T.Rally is clearly different to your run of the mill cycling short.
They have a relatively low-cut waistline combined with some heavyweight
bib-straps – worn without a jersey they could pass for lycra lederhosen. The
low cut is said to support in the lower abdomen whilst allowing better airflow
and greater freedom to move than your more traditional high-cut bib knicks.
Unique to the MTB shorts, they come with two hip pads that slip into the
internal hip pockets.
Pick these shorts up and you can immediately feel the quality; they are
real heavyweights with thick materials and industrial strength stitching.
Inside is a smooth and adequately padded insert. Interestingly the pad is not
fully stitched in place – according to Assos this allows air flow between
layers and keeps the pad up against your body.
Size wise they seemed to be on the small side. I typically wear an XL
in most brands but would choose an XXL in the T.Rally. The fit is clearly tailored
towards the XC racer rather than someone who sports an eight-pack like myself. For
me the ‘hipster’ style cut was snug and supportive before cutting loose just
above the waist. While this felt a little strange to me, I can’t see it posing any
issues for someone with a trimmer bod. The bib straps worked well and didn’t
cause any chaffing but some form of adjustment for differing torso lengths
would have been a worthwhile addition.
HITTING THE DIRT
Once on the trail there’s no quibbling with the quality and below the
waist comfort offered by the T.Rally; they are silky smooth
and made for all day riding. It’s also very clear that they are made to
last with robust fabrics and solid stitching. As for the polyurethane foam hip
pads, they were unobtrusive enough and should offer a bit of added protection.
While that’s great, we also feel that the rider who’s interested in added protection
is more likely to be wearing baggy shorts. At least the T.Rally now offers some
discrete protection for the XC crowd and those who prefer to wear straight
lycra, although thought of potentially crashing and burning these shorts makes
the price even harder to swallow.
There’s no hiding from the fact that $445 is a heck of a lot to pay for
a pair of shorts but if you’re an Assos fan and can splash the cash, these are quality
strides that should deliver many years of comfortable riding.
