Cycling Shorts

We aim to deliver a high-quality Bib Short to the market that really gives performance and a comfort advantage but to remain as competitively priced.
We make our shorts to fit cyclists who are middle weight for their height category – no crazy small sizing here with odd proportions.

We don’t mess around. Nothing but the best highly compressive hard-wearing Lycra® fabrics used here. Shorts get a pounding so you require fabrics which will last and give you the desired fit and support you need.
• Contoured to Ride Position
• Italian Fabric– Strong & Compressive
• 3D Chamois Pad -Multi Density Foams and ProtectiveGel layer Construction
• Breathable – Fabrics and Chamois Pad
• Flat Aero Leg Grippers
• Made in Italy – Strong Compressive Fabrics
• Rear Pocket – For Phone or Race Radio
• Reflective Black – Side Tabs
• Flat- Lock Seam Construction
• UVA and UVB sun protection

Features & Benefits

Contoured to Ride Position – We have developed a contoured multi-panelled Bib short over many years using a vast amount of interactions and with a broad range of dedicated riders to optimise the cut of the short.

The Bib Short has been tailored to be at its most comfortable fit while in the ride position because that’s how you ride. The Big Ring Bib Short is made for going fast and holding that firm aero position, spinning the pedals pumping out the watts.

If you hang the short bib straps over the top of your hands simulating a rider’s shoulders width you will see it hangs open in the shape of a seated-rider spinning the pedals. Not a bad achievement considering how flexible the material is.

The Bib strap material is heavily meshed and is highly elastic. This improves breathability and adds to the multi-fit capability of the Bib Short. The bib is also shaped to be lower at the front to provide more comfort and more breathability. We also run a thicker single strap at the rear of the bib which sits more comfortably between the shoulder blades and centrally keeps better tension on the chamois placement. This also allows for great location of the race radio pocket.

Italian Fabric – Strong & Compressive – Bib shorts get really hammered. They are the number one contact point for anchoring and dispersing all your energy into the bike so a strong fabric that will not prematurely thin out and wear is really important. Compression will improve the fit and feel of the shorts but also reduce muscle deflection improving endurance. The fabric we use is milled in Italy and is highly engineered. It is tested to very strict international standards for quality control before it enters our factory. If any of the following criteria’s don’t come up to the advertised high specifications we don’t use it – specific Mass/Weight, Density, Thickness, Elasticity, Dimensional Stability, Pilling Resistance, Abrasion Resistance, Snagging resistance, UV Resistance, Air Permeability – QUALITY COMES WITH SUBSTANCE.

3D Multi Density Chamois Pad

• Multiple Density’s Foams in a  progressive layer up
• 17mm thick at the Sit-Bone location
• Final GEL Layer in sit bone location
• Shaped and tapered side wings
• Centred cut-away’s reduces bulk and lessens the chance of inner leg chafing
• Anatomically shaped
• Compartmentalised zones of padding
• Top Cover & Base Cover fused together for structurally superior construction
• Weld lines to facilitate Anatomically correct fit around the body
• Breathable Materials

At the heart of a great Bib Short is the Chamois Pad. Most of the chamois pads used in Bicycle Shorts generally fall well short of what we would call satisfactory, let alone having good or great comfort. We have developed a GREAT 3D Chamois Pad with our technical partners that measures 17mm thick at the sit-bone location before being compressed. We use different densities of foam in a progressive layer-up and a final GEL Layer to ensure that you get a lasting layer of protection that will not impact out. (Read more below if you want to know the detail of how it all works – Chamois Detail)

Chamois Detail – Why it delivers premium comfort

A good chamois pad will give you small layer of controlled micro suspension. When you sit into our chamois pad with all your weight you will actually be suspended by the pad, meaning that you will still have a little bit of the pad that is not fully compressed out. So when you hit a bump on the road the pad still has some give reducing the force of the impact and you will get the desired feel of floating above the pedals as the pad works with you. Sounds simple but most pads on the market don’t come close to achieving this.

Our Big Ring Kit One Chamois Pad has is made with breathable antibacterial materials. Part of the construction design is to stamp in weld lines into the pad for breathability, controlled shaping and compartmentalising different zones of foam density. The thickness of the foams and GEL insert are also shaped to suit that particular area of fitment and weight-loading from the rider. This is done to achieve a more protective seamless melding with body and the cut of the bib short. Breathability is important as it will help reduce and manage moisture keeping your skin dryer which reduces the chances of chafing.

The pad centrally has cut-away’s on the left and the right crotch area to reduce bulk, freeing up leg movement and reducing inner leg chafing. Shaped and tapered side wings are integrated into the shape of the chamois pad to further enhance protection. The Chamois fabric extends well beyond padded areas to keep stitching away from sensitive contact areas.

The different progressively layered foam density and final GEL layer are sandwiched between the top cover and the strong rear backing cover which are then fused together to form one complete unit that has significantly more structural integrity. It should be noted that most chamois pads on the market are not constructed this way because it’s EXPENSIVE. This construction method bonds all the chamois components together as one collectively anatomically engineered shock absorbing pad with substantially improved long-term performance and wear characteristics.  The chamois Pad is the main contact area where you anchor your body and is the platform where you pedal out the watts to the rear wheel – it has to be strong and it has to work well.

The interface between a Road Racing Saddle and the Bib Short is vital to overall comfort of the rider. Road Racing Saddles are typically very firm and pretty flat. Take a look at the Pro Peloton and you will not see any saddles that you could call thick, soft, wide or suspended. In fact, a lot of the pro-riders are on lightweight super firm full carbon saddles with almost zero padding. The Kit-One Chamois pad had to prove itself even when used with this sort of full carbon saddle.

It should be understood the saddle’s job is to provide a nice solid platform to work from. One that works well with the machine above it – that being you! If it is too wide it will just cause chafing and if too soft it will also cause chafing.

A soft wobbly foundation to work from would not make it easy to maintain a smooth even pedalling cadence and every side movement and up down movement would be amplified by the rider above. For those who have tried soft saddles have found they don’t work and consequently don’t work on a road bike.

The Chamois pad is a very important interface between the rider and the saddle. The soft sandwich of the Chamois material between you and the saddle gives you protection and micro suspension. The excess pad that squashes out the sides and around your contact points is also beneficial, as it provides essential Edge Support to either side of your sit bones and other contact points. This helps keep you centred and comfortable on the saddle making it easier to focus on smooth even cadence when spinning the pedals.

At first The Big Ring Kit-One Chamois pad may feel a little thicker than other cycling-shorts you may have owned but like all quality products it has wear in period before it settles into your shape. This makes a nice change from some chamois that are wearing out for day one, it will take 3-5 rides before this chamois really hits its peak performance.

Chamois Creams are compatible with the pad but you might find that you may not need them with this short. Generally riders have said even after 5 hours this short was offering great levels of comfort.

Micro Capillary Channels- Breathable Fabric  – The Breathability of material is paramount to the overall performance of the Cycling Shorts. Cycling is a unique sport as the intensity of a workout achieved by a physically fit cyclist is huge. Just like a high performance car we benefit from extra cooling so as your core temperature goes up – performance goes down rapidly. At 35km plus your biggest obstacle is the AIR you are pushing through. Aero is important! But the cooling effect of the Air you are pushing through is often forgotten about and is one of the reasons why riders can push so hard on the pedals (we are well cooled) compared to say a runner pounding their body and only going 12km. The more effective a Cycling Short material is at moisture wicking and breathing in the right areas the faster you will go!  Even the Chamois pad has breathable consideration. The dryer your chamois pad is the less likely you are to develop wear and sore spots from extended day after day rides.

Flat Aero Leg Gripper – The Flat Leg Gripper is more Aero and spreads the grip tension over a larger area than traditional silicon grippers. The inside surface treatment of the Flat gripper is textured, the texture combined with a little more tension than the shorts leg material holds the legs comfortably in place. The end result is no irritation and less digging in than traditional grippers and it wears much better long term. (Note: Some Full Graphic shorts have integrated grippers to enhance the design)

Rear Pocket – Phone or Race Radio – A extra pocket that is higher in the middle of the lower back (part of the rear bib stirrup design) can be very handy for a race radio or a phone if you take calls while riding or listen to music. In this location it gives a much shorter direct path to your ear piece with less movement.

Reflective BlackSide Tabs – LED lights are crazy bright these days but every little bit helps especially if lighting equipment fails. The Reflective black tabs are barely noticeable in the day time but shine a light at night and they seriously light up. This is solid manufactured material not a cheap reflective ink that may deteriorate and fall off. A nice little add-on that will make your ride safer every time.

Flat-Lock SeamConstruction – These Flat-Lock 4 stitch seams are seriously strong and smooth, when coupled with our contoured to ride-position design they give shape and strength to the Bib Short.

UVA and UVBSun Protection – Decent rides are 2-3 hours on average that is significant time to be exposed UVA and UVB sunlight. The sunlight that reaches us is made up of two types of harmful rays: Long wave ultraviolet A (UVA) and short wave ultraviolet B (UVB). UVA rays penetrate deep into the dermis, the skin’s thickest layer. Being unprotected leads to premature skin ageing and even suppression of the immune system. UVB burns the outer layer of your skin and can play key role in skin cancer. Riding in the hours between 10:00am and 4:00pm are the peak hours of exposure.

Temperature Range – The Big Ring Bib Short is ideal for 15°- 37° Degrees Celsius temperature range, layer with appropriate products for colder conditions for improved thermal control.

Outer Layers are required for colder conditions. Legwarmers for conditions  0°- 14°degrees Celsius are recommended. For temperatures below 7° degrees Celsius we recommend cycling booties and full length thermal cycling bib shorts. This is rough guide as everyone has unique needs but just remember layering gives you options.