Castelli

Mondiale Bib Shorts - Women's

Castelli sought to create an impossibly light, impeccably cut bib short with long-ride resilience to add to its women's line, and the result is its new Mondiale Women's Bib Shorts. Crafted with a blend of highly functional materials and all of the clean style that Castelli is known for, the Mondiale Bib Shorts now occupy the highest tier of Castelli's venerable women's bib line.

One of Castelli's goals when designing the Mondiales was to introduce shorts that riders would forget they had on during a ride. While we'd agree with Castelli in admitting that this is still an ongoing goal, the Mondiales get very close. Featuring a brand new proprietary Castelli fabric, Cinquanta, the shorts achieve an incredibly contoured fit due to the fabric's 50% Lycra composition while still retaining next-to-skin softness and avoiding restriction.

Castelli takes advantage of Cinquanta's high rebound properties by reducing the panel count, deviating from the traditional eight-panel construction to allow for fewer seams and further improve the anatomical fit. Seamless, reinforced side panels on each leg provide more support to the hardworking muscles on the outsides of the hips, especially the IT bands. In addition to being a well-deserving place for added support, this ultralight, form-fitting extra layer also creates a clean, slimming silhouette that integrates beautifully with Castelli's inclusion of a more subtle version of its classic logo.

Castelli adds its top-end Progetto X2 Air Donna chamois to the Mondiale, readying the shorts for long, slow base mile rides and hill repeats alike. The luxurious Progetto X2 features multi-density foam in a strategic topography that's supportive without making you feel like you're sitting on a throw pillow, and it's been anatomically shaped to ensure the chamois moves with you as you pedal. The insert is covered with a micro-denier, four-way stretch, bacteriostatic layer to facilitate airflow and reduce the likelihood of chafing and irritation

We've seen bib strap construction improving every season, moving far away from bulky mesh and ill-fitting silhouettes. With the Mondiale, Castelli adds an impossibly light bonded bib, complete with laser-cut ventilation holes on the back for breathability in a tailored, lie-flat design. The included SnapLock fastener allows for quick, mid-ride nature breaks, and the bonded construction of the bottom leg hems — complete with silicone grip — equips the Mondiale to follow your every move in the saddle without any bunching or slipping.