Castelli

An upgrade on my older bibshorts as part of a long-overdue Spring refresh. The chamois is excellent--one of the best I've used--with plenty of padding for longer rides. The side pockets are nice--particularly in cooler temps when I just have more stuff to carry in my jersey. I went with a size up from Castelli's recommended size based on online advice and in retrospect, I probably could have just stuck to the size chart. But it's not a bad fit by any means and overall, the fit is decent and I'm happy with my purchase.

When on sale the Competizione 2 Bibshorts are an excellent value that come in a variety of colors with different Castelli accent logo combinations. I have multiple versions of the Black, Green and Blue. I actually find the KISS Air2 seat pad more comfortable than the Progetto X2 Air Seamless seat pad that is found on the more expensive models. I tend to chalf more with the Progretto pad vs the KISS Air2. Overall I am very happy with the various Competizione variants as they are cost effective and meet my needs. I find the quality overall is good as the shorts last well with only logos occasionally pealing off. I am 5' 10", 180 lbs and wear XXL. I am a daily rider that typically rides about 25 miles during the week and 40 miles on weekends.

I've heard/read that aero socks are the best bang-for-your-buck aero upgrade you can make, and these are among the more affordable options (among big brands), so decided to give them a try. Have worn them for a couple races (short TT and a duathlon), and they stayed in place and were comfortable. If they saved me watts, it wasn't a lot, but every little bit helps, right? The main positive is that I didn't notice them at all during the races, which is a good thing for clothing.

Compression is light, so if you need firmer support you may want to look elsewhere. The foot portion is also pretty thin, which is great for warmer weather but it makes me worry about long-term durability, so I'm going to limit how often I use these.

These are a bit taller than average and very similar in build to the Silca Aero Socks. Castelli's aero grooves are smoother and hard to notice. Only concern is that the fabric around toes started to pill after couple of uses; stil a bit more resistant that other models on their range. Would be a better value option if they fix this. Would recommend nevertheless; nice to show up on a enthusiastic-pace coffee ride with these taller, mint-looking, single-digit-watt-saving socks.