Reviews

Altura Peloton Night Vision bib tights – review

Impressive cold weather protection but let down by fit

The Altura Peloton Night Vision bib tights are warm, windproof and competitively priced bib tights – but the fit is a little off the mark and prevents an otherwise well thought out piece of winter kit from excelling.

Out of the packet the Peloton Night Vision bib tights look to put forward an impressive winter clothing solution. They’re based on the regular Peloton bib tights, made from a windproof and thermal fabric but combined with Altura’s NV360° reflectivity technology – basically reflective patches placed around the tights in a bid to offer 360 degree visibility. There’s also a comfortable ProGel chamois.

However, I had initial concerns when I first tried them on, with the fit around the thighs and groin a little odd. It’s not baggy, but the fabric feels as though it hasn’t been cut to wrap around the skin and sit close to the body.

The tights have plenty of reflective detailing

About 20 miles into my first ride, after repeatedly twisting and pulling the tights around to get some sort of comfortable fit, I gave up. Despite being warm, and performing totally as they are intended in terms of fabric, there just isn’t enough stretch in the windproof material, along with narrow panels which twist around the thighs.

After several shorter commutes, where the fit wouldn’t be as distracting as on a longer ride, I found the actual performance to be really good – there is enough windproof fabric in the right areas to provide additional cold weather protection over regular tights, and the fleecy fabric is warm and breathable, keeping you toasty but not too sweaty.

I’d like to have seen ankle loops for a closer fit between shoe and tight and eliminate any potential cold spots but I know that not all riders like ankle loops.

Moving up the tights, the top half of the bibs are well shaped, with wide shoulder straps made from a light, perforated fabric which allows effective heat and moisture transfer. The Roubaix fabric doesn’t continue from the legs up to the kidneys but the fabric is still windproof so it hold a fair amount of warmth in.

The ProGel chamois is well designed and comfortable

The NightVision technology comprises reflective patches on the thighs, and the top and bottom of the rear of the legs, and they’re well placed to improve visibility while remaining relatively subtle. Even so, I’d see no harm in making them even bigger to add even more punch in the visibility stakes.

Conclusion

These have the potential to be a great set of tights, providing excellent winter protection and improved visibility ideal for commuting or night riding, but the flip side is that the fabric and cut mean the fit isn’t as good as it could be and won’t work for everyone.