Sportful has become a really popular clothing brand in the UK in recent years thanks to its commitment to developing clothing that is adept at tackling our unpredictable and changeable weather, as well as a line of pro cycling influenced clothing and keen prices and sharp styles.
In the video above we’ve taken a look at some of the key highlights of the Italian company’s autumn and winter line, with new Fiandre, BodyFit and Super Giara clothing.
– 23 of the best winter cycling jackets
– Winter cycle clothing on a budget – how to kit yourself out without breaking the bank
– Buyer’s guide to the best waterproof cycling clothing
Fiandre – Ready for any weather
Sportful’s Fiandre clothing has become very popular with UK cyclists. It’s well suited to meeting the demands of horrible weather that is unpredictable and constantly changing.
The Strato Jacket (£155) is all about versatility. Sometimes it can be difficult to know what to wear, the Strato aims to make life easier. It’s essentially a gilet and jersey in one.
It combines a NoRain long sleeve jersey with an integrated Gore-Tex Windstopper front panel. That means it provides good protection from the cold and light rain on your torso, but let’s heat escape from the sleeves.
You can open up vents for extra cooling. The collar is nice and tall, there are three rear pockets and a choice of colours. A neat double cuff design increases comfort and a seal around the wrist.
The Fiandre Pro jacket (£210) is brand new. It shows the company’s commitment to developing clothing for the pro teams it sponsors, but which benefits us all with highly advanced clothing tested by the most demanding cyclists.
It uses Polartec’s Neoshell fabric, which is waterproof, highly breathable and stretchy. In other words, it offers the protection of a hardshell jacket but is comfy like a softshell. This jacket aims to find a balance between weatherproofing, breathability and comfort.
There are fully taped seams on the inside to stop water leaking in, reflective details and three external pockets. It’s offered with long sleeves or short sleeves, which you can pair with arm warmers, giving added flexibility.
The Fiandre Pro Jacket Short Sleeve (£190) is ideal for warmer conditions paired with arm warmers, or for racing in horrible conditions.
Fiandre NoRain Team Bib Tights (£110) are the perfect partner for either jacket. If you want to stay warm and dry in most typical winter riding conditions, these are a good pick.
They’re made from a fabric called NoRain which repels water helping to keep you drier than normal tights, and there’s thermal insulation for colder days – they suggest down to about 5 degrees.
Inside is comfortable BodyFit Pro padded insert, mesh bib straps, reflective details and ankle zips. Sportful has paid close attention to the seams, minimising them as much as possible and using careful placement to maximise comfort.
For accessorising your outfit, Sportful makes a good line of gloves and warmers. The Fiandre Light Glove (£85) is a lightweight softshell glove with taped seams to keep the leaks out, while a neoprene cuff seals against the wrist. The synthetic palm has generous silicone details for extra grip on the bars in adverse conditions.
The Sotto Zero Glove (£55) is designed for extreme weather. It’s made with a 60g PrimaLoft Silver insulation and partnered with a softshell for warmth and water resistance. The palm is made from Clarino with thin padding, and details include a nose wipe, velcro closure and reflective details.
BodyFit Pro -Good enough for the pros, good enough for you
The BodyFit range has been designed for the pros and tested at the highest level, and you can buy it, just without the sponsor logos.
The BodyFit Pro Jacket (£165) is a brand new three-layer thermal jacket. The outer layer keeps the wind and rain out, the middle layer is insulation, and the inner layer is mesh.
It’s the detachment of layers that makes it unique, something we’ve seen on previous more expensive Sportful jackets. The result is a warmer, more breathable and lighter piece of winter kit.
It’s designed to give more protection where you need it most, so on the torso, shoulders and upper arms, and lighter and more breathable on the lower arms and around the back.
A stretchy waistband with a silicone band keeps it snug, there is a full-length YKK Vislon zipper and a nice tall collar.
The BodyFit Pro Thermal Jersey (£90) is a classic long sleeve jersey ideal for a wide range of conditions. It has been designed with WorldTour riders and uses a ThermoDrytex Plus material on the shoulders and sleeves for warmth, with stretch adding comfort. The core is made from a TDTxp material to give even more insulation where it’s needed most.
The BodyFit Pro Bib Tights (£125) are the choice of the pros for early season training rides. They use a thick thermal fabric in key areas to keep the cold at bay, with a lighter fabric in other areas to prevent overheating.
To help you stand out on the road there are large reflective leg bands. The bib straps are wide and elastic for comfort, and a generously padded TC Pro padded insert provides long-distance comfort in the saddle.
SuperGiara – For the road less travelled
Part of the company’s growing commitment to gravel, adventure and bikepacking riding, the SuperGiara brings all the company’s experience to a good looking collection of clothing for gravel riding.
This SuperGiara Thermal Jersey (£110) takes a warm thermal jersey and adds a windproof barrier to the front. It’s only partially attached, so the two layers are separate for more comfort and breathability.
It also gets lots of reflective details, three pockets with a larger middle pocket, and a grippy waistband
The SuperGiara Bib Tights (£135) are interesting. They have two mesh rear pockets and one mesh side pocket on the leg. Ideal for carrying extra food, clothing or spares on long adventure rides.
The tights also have a thermal stretch fabric on the top half and a lighter fabric on the lower legs, and double thickness over the knees. The padded insert has been designed to side the demands of gravel riding -it’s shorter, lighter and faster drying.
Watch out for full reviews coming soon. More info at www.sportful.com
11 thoughts on “Sportful’s new autumn/winter clothing – First Look”
It gets a little tiresome
It gets a little tiresome seeing all this expensive kit being pushed all the time – it’s almost as if road.cc is writing advertorial for its real customers. Aldi are selling waterproof cycling gloves for £5.99 and for all I know they are every bit as good as some of the stuff here. Of course we’ll never know because you don’t stoop to reviewing stuff that cheap.
Sriracha wrote:
I can confirm they are as good as the larger brands, luckily I’ve used the Assos, Castelli, Endura and Aldi ones. All have the same pro’s and con’s with the Aldi pair being the ones I return to now as they are a fifth of the price
Sriracha wrote:
Apart from all these Aldi reviews and articles? https://road.cc/tags/aldi We like Aldi kit
David Arthur @davearthur
None of those (ok, I’ve yet to read them all, but on a quick perusal) is a review. They are just a rehash of the Aldi blurb, an editorialised press release, eg:
“Lastly, there’s this smart Crane Hooded Cycling Jacket, which looks ideal for keeping you warm on the bike (and probably off it too as it’s pretty stylish). It costs £24.99 and has some nice details like an integrated hood and zipped vents on the chest.”
“Looks ideal”, etc. Yes, but is it? Marks out of 10? How does it compare with the branded stuff. I can read the Aldi leaflet for myself.
Sriracha wrote:
I suggest you look at the link again. There are several reviews there. We’ll also be testing more of their clothing going ahead. We like Aldi clothing, as I said before, and we certainly have nothing against it, despite how you clearly feel
David Arthur @davearthur
It gets a little tiresome seeing all this expensive kit being pushed all the time – it’s almost as if road.cc is writing advertorial for its real customers. Aldi are selling waterproof cycling gloves for £5.99 and for all I know they are every bit as good as some of the stuff here. Of course we’ll never know because you don’t stoop to reviewing stuff that cheap.
— David Arthur @davearthur Apart from all these Aldi reviews and articles? https://road.cc/tags/aldi We like Aldi kit— Sriracha None of those (ok, I’ve yet to read them all, but on a quick perusal) is a review. They are just a rehash of the Aldi blurb, eg: “Lastly, there’s this smart Crane Hooded Cycling Jacket, which looks ideal for keeping you warm on the bike (and probably off it too as it’s pretty stylish). It costs £24.99 and has some nice details like an integrated hood and zipped vents on the chest.” “Looks ideal”, etc. Yes, but is it? Marks out of 10? How does it compare with the branded stuff. I can read the Aldi leaflet for myself.— David Arthur @davearthur I suggest you look at the link again. There are several reviews there. We’ll also be testing more of their clothing going ahead. We like Aldi clothing, as I said before, and we certainly have nothing against it, despite how you clearly feel— Sriracha
Indeed, you are correct, mea culpa. I did find 9 actual reviews of Aldi stuff in there, so thank you for that. Had to reach back to [b]2016[/b] to find them however. Aldi is still trading.
Since they basically keep recycling the same old articles (Aldi, that is) it would be nice if they appeared in the group tests or roundup reviews. I think it helps keep some of the other prices in context, even if one does not always go for the Aldi stuff.
‘The Fiandre Pro jacket (£210
‘The Fiandre Pro jacket (£210) is brand new.’ Brand new? From the description it sounds exactly like the Fiandre Extreme Neoshell jackets I’ve had for a couple of years. Both the long sleeve and shortsleeve are THE best winter jackets I have although the NeoShell/ NoRain combo armwarmers that accompany the shortsleeve Neoshell jacket are not as good as the Neoshell long sleeves on the LS version.
This must be some new usage
This must be some new usage of the term “keen prices” with which I am not yet familiar …
It’s such a shame that when
It’s such a shame that when they revised the Reflex Gilet, Sportful removed the vented mesh down the sides. I had a red one and I absolutely loved it. It seemed to work really well, even in warm weather, and being both bright red and covered in reflective tape was truly a good day and night garment that stood out from all the other black or daylgo yellow offerings from the competition.
I lost it on a ride across the downs and the replacement, whilst still being an excellent cut, lacks the mesh, so really doesn’t breathe as well.
They’re still available, not quite as good as they were, but at around £40, they’re a bargain.
The prices seem quite normal
The prices seem quite normal to me but appreciate the sentiment raised in Sriracha’s first post.
I’ve got about a dozen pairs
I’ve got about a dozen pairs of winter gloves from many brands – and the Aldi ones get most of the use. Some branded gloves dont even have reflectives on. For gloves you’ll be using in dark winters and limited daylight ? Weird decision.
I’m still staying with my shakedry jacket for the rainy days though. Brilliant piece of kit.