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review

MAAP Team Bib Short 2.0 Navy

7
£173.03

VERDICT:

7
10
New pad design and hems make these shorts very comfortable, but you pay a high price for them
Weight: 
0g
Contact: 

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Australian company MAAP's Team 2.0 bib shorts provide good performance, with a comfortable chamois that is excellent for long rides and smart styling that's a bit different to other shorts out there. They are a good rival to other high-end bib shorts, but at this price you do have the pick of many established premium clothing brands.

  • Pros: Very comfortable pad, leg openings stretchy but secure, colour options!
  • Cons: Quite expensive

I reviewed MAAP's Blaze Team shorts last year and while I was impressed with them in many ways, I found the highly compressive Lycra hem openings just too restrictive, ruining what I thought was a really good product otherwise. Boy were they tight around my legs – and there isn't much muscle on me to speak of.

> Buy these online here

These Team 2.0 shorts have a revised hem design. A pre-dyed, dual-layer, bonded hem with laser cut edges offers more stretch and the fit is much better. It's secure without needing silicone tape or elastic bands; these shorts aren't for budging. The pre-dying treatment of the hem material also means the colour doesn't change as the fabric stretches.

MAAP Team 2.0 bib shorts - side.jpg
MAAP Team 2.0 bib shorts - cuff gripper.jpg

MAAP hasn't just designed new hems, it's also developed a new padded insert. Apparently, it's the result of a quest to better reflect modern saddle designs and bike positions. In short, it's a very good pad, which provided all the comfort I could wish for on longer rides.

MAAP Team 2.0 bib shorts - pad.jpg

MAAP roped in Ken Ballhause, a sports scientist and founder of Adaptive Human Performance, to inform the design direction of the new pad based on a study of the changing trends of rider positions, fit and saddle designs. You can read a lot more about the development in this blog article. To summarise, the goal was to provide additional support without adding unnecessary bulk, through dual-density padding and putting more padding where it's needed most, in particular in the front third where the cyclist's load is concentrated.

MAAP Team 2.0 bib shorts.jpg

Meanwhile, the actual shape of the chamois is intended to closely mirror the silhouette of a saddle, which MAAP reckons better moulds to your movements while riding. Over the top of the padding, the part that contacts your skin is a soft touch microfibre lining that is luxuriously comfortable. No need for chamois cream with these shorts!

MAAP Team 2.0 bib shorts - back.jpg

Holding the hem and padded insert in place is an Italian 'four-way stretch' fabric. The fabric feels premium and the stitching is all nicely placed to avoid discomfort. They lean towards the 'boy that's snug' end of the compression scale, which means they provide good support and hold everything in nicely. It's an indicator of the high-performance rider that MAAP clearly has in mind with these shorts.

The legs are longer than many shorts, as is the fashion these days. Personally I'm not a fan and prefer shorter shorts, but each to their own.

MAAP Team 2.0 bib shorts - cuff.jpg

There's a good amount of stretch at the front for easy nature breaks, and the bib straps are wide and flat and sit comfortably over the shoulders.

MAAP Team 2.0 bib shorts - straps front.jpg

Out on the road and after some very long rides, I can confirm these shorts are very comfortable. The chamois fits nicely, is well shaped and the padding is ample for keeping you nicely cushioned without being too bulky. It's as comfortable as any pad I've used in other similarly priced shorts.

> Buyer's Guide: 18 of the best cycling bib shorts

MAAP is punching high with the price, but the performance is what I would expect for it. They compare well with the £150 Ale R-EV1 Master shorts and Rapha's £195 Pro Team II shorts, but you don't need me to tell you that there are lots of much more affordable designs that offer similar levels of performance, even from the like of Assos, with its £100 T.MilleShorts_s7 shorts.

Verdict

New pad design and hems make these shorts very comfortable, but you pay a high price for them

road.cc test report

Make and model: MAAP Team Bib Short 2.0 Navy

Size tested: Medium

Tell us what the product is for

MAAP says, "Applying years of dedicated road testing and lab-based performance analysis, the newly introduced Team Bib Short 2.0 combines our signature fit and advanced fabrics with an ergonomically engineered chamois for greater comfort and performance during maximum level efforts across a wide spectrum of riding.

"Reflecting modern day saddle technology, our enhanced Team Bib Short 2.0 chamois padding and silhouette is custom engineered to reduce pressure at key saddle contact points for greater comfort and performance."

Tell us some more about the technical aspects of the product?

MAAP lists these features:

Signature fit developed by MAAP

Highly compressive main body fabric

Moisture wicking material

Market leading multi density, ergonomic fit endurance pad

Matt fabric for a modern look and feel

Bonded hem for a secure fit

Flat lock stitching

Angular brace straps

Pre-dyed bib brace mesh and hem gripper

Rate the product for quality of construction:
 
7/10
Rate the product for performance:
 
7/10
Rate the product for durability:
 
7/10
Rate the product for fit:
 
7/10
Rate the product for sizing:
 
7/10
Rate the product for weight:
 
7/10
Rate the product for comfort:
 
8/10
Rate the product for value:
 
5/10

They're not the most expensive bib shorts, but you can almost certainly save a lot without compromising comfort if you want.

How easy is the product to care for? How did it respond to being washed?

No problems in a regular wash cycle.

Tell us how the product performed overall when used for its designed purpose

Provide good comfort for short and long rides, well suited to demanding performance and racing cyclists.

Tell us what you particularly liked about the product

Comfortable chamois and I love the navy blue colour – black shorts are SO boring.

Tell us what you particularly disliked about the product

The revised hem design has addressed my main issue with the previous version of these shorts.

Did you enjoy using the product? Yes

Would you consider buying the product? Yes

Would you recommend the product to a friend? Yes

Use this box to explain your overall score

MAAP might not have the pedigree of more well-known clothing brands but it has clearly invested a lot in developing a high-end performance bib short that meets the expectations set by the high price.

Overall rating: 7/10

About the tester

Age: 31  Height: 180cm  Weight: 67kg

I usually ride:   My best bike is:

I've been riding for: 10-20 years  I ride: Every day  I would class myself as: Expert

I regularly do the following types of riding: road racing, time trialling, cyclo-cross, commuting, touring, mountain biking

David worked on the road.cc tech team from 2012-2020. Previously he was editor of Bikemagic.com and before that staff writer at RCUK. He's a seasoned cyclist of all disciplines, from road to mountain biking, touring to cyclo-cross, he only wishes he had time to ride them all. He's mildly competitive, though he'll never admit it, and is a frequent road racer but is too lazy to do really well. He currently resides in the Cotswolds, and you can now find him over on his own YouTube channel David Arthur - Just Ride Bikes

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3 comments

Avatar
StraelGuy | 6 years ago
0 likes

They look like they were designed by a couple of 5 year olds let loose with a 1990's desk top publishing program...

Avatar
Curly | 6 years ago
0 likes

Way To expensive! look a bit baggy around the bib.

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Yorky-M | 6 years ago
0 likes

"Tell us what you particularly liked about the product :

Comfortable chamois and I love the navy blue colour – black shorts are SO boring."

 

 

Never bored wearing mine.

 

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