Hirzl Grippp gloves

You'll never in a gazillion years guess the main selling point of these Grippp gloves.

Oh, okay, you did guess: they're grippy. Well, that's rained on my parade, hasn't it?

The funny thing is, it's not marketing nonsense. These are remarkably grippy whether your handlebar is dry or wet.

The palms are leather - kangaroo leather, to be precise - and they're very supple. Hirzl reckon they put the leather through 'an elaborate tanning process' and give it a 'special treatment'. They're short on details - that stuff is given out on a 'need to know' basis, apparently - but they say their technology gives the gloves up to three times more grip in dry conditions, and up to five times more when it's wet.

Now, I'm not going to be drawn on a figure - we don't have a gripometer here at road.cc - but these gloves don't slip. Soak the palms and drench your bar tape or grips and they stay put. In terms of grippiness, they deliver. Hirzl actually developed their technology for golf. I don't know a lot about golf, admittedly, but I guess it would be bad news all round if your bat slipped out of your hands mid-swing.

The Grippp gloves offer a modest amount of padding. There's low profile gel over the heel of your hand on the little finger side, and a little more at the base of your fingers. I found that there was enough protection over the ulnar nerve to stop my fingers going numb although I prefer more palm cushioning for extra comfort on longer rides. Horses for courses.

The backs are a lightweight and breathable synthetic fabric, a Velcro closure holds them securely in place, and you get a large towelling wipe on each thumb. Removing the gloves at the end of your ride is easy thanks to little pockets on the ends of two of the fingers. You stick the fingertips of your other hand in there and drag them off - simple.

The Grippps are still looking good after several weeks of regular use, the only slight deterioration being some pulled threads where the hook section of the Velcro has caught on the fabric that surrounds it once I've taken the gloves off. Of course, I could be more careful and stick the other half of the Velcro back in place to keep the hooks covered but the chances of me remembering to do that after a long ride are somewhere between remote and non-existent. You might be less of an idiot.

These gloves are available in a full finger version for £44.99 (test coming soon), and will be available in white and red options too from the spring.

Verdict

Supple and very grippy gloves, well made with slimline padding