Sportful Luna bib tights review

With winter clothing often coming with eye watering prices, we’re always really impressed with kit that delivers and comes with an affordable price tag. The Sportful Luna bib tights totally nailed the women’s specific thermal and comfortable kit option for a modest £80.

They became early winter go to pair, and proved great winter kit on a budget is possible which is why they made our 2018 Editor's Choice cut.

Its often true that when it comes to winter clothing you really do get what you pay for, and it can often feel that unless you're in the market to buy the Assos Habu LaaLaLai_S7 bib tights at £230 a pop, you're going to spend the winter frozen. So when the £80 Sportful Luna bib tights landed on my desk, I was keen to see what they were capable of.

Construction

Made from Thermodrytex Plus, a nylon/Lycra mix, the Sportful Luna bib tights claim to have a high level of stretch while a thermal fleece inner layer should provide good level of warmth to the rider.

The Sportful Luna bib tights come with the gratingly named 'Princess pad'. It's technically a level below the top-of-the-line Infinity pad, featured in Sportful Fiandre NoRain women's bib tights but, borrowing many of the latter's design features, Sportful says it offers great protection in all the right places.

>>>10 worst winter kit mistakes and how to avoid them.

Other than a mesh bib upper, there's nothing else to report on the design and construction of the Sportful Luna bib tights.

The Ride

Pulling the Sportful Luna bib tights on, immediately I was struck by how lightweight they felt: at 242g losing the bells and whistles of highly technical fabrics and constructions does have its benefits. The low-profile fabric was as stretchy as Sportful promised, without losing its density. This allowed the full tight to cling to me, giving a great athletic fit.

Out riding in around 7°C the tights did a perfect job of keeping my legs warm enough. I was going pretty slowly at times too, making me think that if you were pressing on a bit they could easily be warm enough down to a few degrees colder.

Talking of pressing on, the chamois would also be perfect for riders looking for something more akin to a slimline race pad, and although it was perfectly comfortable for a slowish winter ride, its minimal padding made it feel really flexible – ideal for getting in and out the saddle.

All in all, I really liked the fit. I've never really got my head around winter racing in longs, opting for shorts and legs, but the Sportful Luna bib tights really give a viable winter race wear alternative.

Value

In summary I was really impressed with the Sportful Luna bib tights, demonstrating that you can keep warm on a bike with out taking out a second mortgage. There are minimal technical aspects, but that's probably why I liked these £80 bib tights so much.