Both the shorts and the jersey use new D30 technology (a supple rubber-like material that hardens on sudden impacts). With a tight and unrestrictive fit, the jersey uses an off-centre zip to avoid bunching, and there’s a single popper on the neck for closure.
The material is stretchy, comfortable and robust, although the trade off is that it’s fairly hot when you’re wearing it.
D30 padding covers the shoulders and elbows and offers great protection against minor and medium impacts. Sharp objects will still penetrate, and the pads themselves could conform to your body better, but this shirt has enough protection for most riders.
It bridges the gap perfectly between the full-on armoured jackets and basic elbow pads.
The shorts are a fantastic piece of kit, with a synthetic chamois and D30 padding on the thigh, hip and coccyx areas, which make them highly useable for both XC and DH.
The performance of the D30 material is impressive – it really does disperse impacts, but we can’t help but observe that both items are over-priced by a very large margin… Doddy
Jersey £200, Shorts £165