ashmei Men’s Cycle Bib Short

The ashmei Men's Cycle bib shorts are impressive, with excellent compression, decent water repellency and a very comfortable chamois, and although they're expensive they are still cheaper than some rivals.

• Pros: Excellent chamois, water repellency, compression
• Cons: Expensive

ashmei has been making a real name for itself over the past few years and, having tested its first bib shorts a few years ago, I was excited to give these latest ones a spin.

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The first thing you notice about these bib shorts is the material used. It's unlike almost any other I have worn in the past. The way I would describe it when holding it in the hand is similar to the outer material on a high-quality tent. It's a 53% polyamide, 47% elastane mix and has less stretch than most bib shorts but does have strong compression.

This compression takes a few minutes to get used to; initially I thought that perhaps I had sized them incorrectly, but in reality, once I got going I quickly began to realise their benefits. As you can imagine, to get this kind of compression you need strong stitching – something that is the case throughout the five panels that make up the bottom half of these bibs. This is a larger number than most modern bib shorts have, but presumably necessary because the material lacks stretch.

Unlike many bib shorts, these do not have silicone gripper at the bottom of the legs as the material and fit simply mean you don't need them. Throughout the review period, regardless of how sweaty I got and how far I rode, these stayed in place perfectly with no riding up whatsoever.

Comfort comes from an impressive multi-density chamois developed in conjunction with Passoni. I found that I could wear these for hours without any loss of comfort. One thing I found particularly interesting was that I could definitely feel more through the chamois than other high-end bibs, but it was never to the extent that it became uncomfortable. It allowed me to get more of a feel of the road without discomfort, which was a real bonus.

At the top of the bib shorts, ashmei has used a thick mesh that leads to elastic straps. This design allows the back to be a slightly different shape to other bib shorts, with a thinner central element that definitely helps in keeping you cooler, as less of your back is covered.

The straps have a lot of stretch in them, which allows them to sit comfortably on the shoulders. They are also wide enough to not twist, which is always a nice touch.

Another key element of these bib shorts is that they are water repellent and windproof. To be honest, I didn't have too much opportunity to test this out in the review period, but I did take them out in a couple of short, sharp showers and they performed well, keeping the water out completely for the 10 minutes or so of downpour.

In terms of wind resistance I certainly noticed this on some descents, though I couldn't test how well they keep out truly cold air. From the limited testing I could do I'm confident they would work well in worse conditions.

Wicking is relatively good, though they're not as effective as specific hot weather bibs at moving moisture away from the body (I was testing these during the 38 degree heatwave). They are still surprisingly effective given the water repellency and windproof nature of the fabric.

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At £178 they are expensive, but arguably a fair price when you consider their innovative material and high performance, and they're still cheaper than some of the best known high-end brands. You could compare them to the Pearl Izumi Pro bib shorts that Stu looked at recently, which are about a tenner more but don't offer the same level of wind and water protection, and an obvious comparison would be Rapha's Pro Team Shadow bib shorts, which are £82 more – and I wouldn't want to wear those in a heatwave.

Overall, I really like these bib shorts. They offer a strong performance, impressive compression, and decent protection against the weather. They aren't cheap, but you are unlikely to find anything that offers this kind of performance in terms of comfort, compression and weather protection for much below this price.

Verdict

An innovative and well-made pair of bib shorts that keep out the elements while maintaining an impressive performance