Castelli Body Paint bib short (Castelli)

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Castelli claim to have revolutionised the humble bib short with their latest Body Paint model.

The name comes from the fact that the seat, crotch and legs are made from a single piece of fabric. This eliminates seams and, according to the Italian company, "covers the bottom of the rider's body as if it was painted on".

The Italian company claim this will "help harness the rider's muscle output potential and blood flow in the capillaries, getting oxygen to the muscles".

The shorts have been in development since January 2006 and Castelli say they have had to "revolutionise fabric construction, completely rethink patterns and fit, and re-engineer details like the bib straps and logo applications".

The key features are:

• Shorts portion is made from a single piece of engineered Power Stretch Lycra fabric with integrated Giro++ leg grippers that have been designed not to overly constrict blood flow.
• Shoulders straps curve from the outside of your hips and around your chest rather than rising vertically from the waist. This is designed to make the shorts feel less restrictive and cooler in warm conditions. They're made of seamless Giro++ elastic fabric.
• Light mesh fabric on back for breathability.
• Progetto X2 seat pad combines a soft, stretchy, seamless, bacteriostatic layer next to your skin to prevent chafing – Castelli say it's "the softest thing to touch your private parts since you got out of diapers" – with a variable thickness cushioning layer.

Castelli say: "When we started working on Body Paint in January 2006, we set out to build a short with all the components integrated into a product that is clean and simple, with the goal to make it practically disappear. The Body Paint bib short is designed to synchronise with your body’s movement on the bike. It is anatomically tailored and made out of only four pieces of material."

The shorts are due to be launched at the Eurobike show in September and are likely to hit shop shelves in Spring 2010.

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