Words and Photography James Ion
Rule 28 is not your typical clothing brand, there are no coffee stop jerseys or endurance kits, they deal in speed, and speed only. Born in 2017 when three university friends got together to produce the first aero socks which were quickly snapped up by the daddy of aero gains Dan Bingham and his HUUB Wattbike track team, leading to the socks selling out even before they were officially on sale.
It is safe to say the company started fast and has been going faster ever since. Every new product idea starts with the question
“Is it faster?”
Now this is all well and good in the worlds of track and road cycling where aero gains can mean the difference between world championship medals and second place.
But we ride GRVL, and that means, constant change of pace, terrain, and all sorts of surprises, surely aero gains are not going to have the same effect? Which is why I was sceptical when I got the chance to test the Gravel Suit
I was sent the black version and a pair of their Aero-ish socks. As per usual, full disclosure, this is not a paid-for promotion or endorsement. Rule 28 sent me the kit to test without bias and so this review is my honest opinion.
So sceptical as I was, I tried the kit with an open mind and even came up with a completely unscientific way to test the suit (more details on that below).
First impressions out of the box were good, the kit feels fast, if that is a thing. It felt smooth and the ribbed section along the arms gave it an almost blue tint rather than the black colour shown online. It went on easy too, the bib section has quite a high waist and the upper jersey zips up easily. Despite its aero fit, it was quite flattering even for my not-so-pro-level figure!
One of the things that is also very cool with the suit is the pocket on the back for a water bladder. Now Rule 28 is not the first to come up with this idea, Castelli got there first, but it is still a cool feature and helps maintain the aero gains. Basically, you slip a bladder into the pocket and feed the tube to the two straps on the front, thus eliminating the need for a backpack. On the back are also some spacious pockets and even race number sleeves. The suit does not come with a bladder and can take up to 3 litres, luckily I have a Hydration backpack so was able to use the bladder from that.
The socks were also good quality, fit tight and held in place, and were never uncomfortable, everything you want from a sock really.
Overall first impressions were good, but “Is it FASTER?”
So how was I going to test this suit? Well as I don't have a wind tunnel in my back garden I was going to have to be creative, and to be honest a wind tunnel can only show so much, we want real-world results!
So I came up with a plan.
I would ride a short TT in a ‘normal’ cycling kit with a Hydration Backpack and then again with the Gravel Suit.
The course was 8km out and back which included tarmac, a fire road, a dirt track, fine gravel and a towpath - not bad for just 8km!
The plan was simple, ride fast and see if there was any difference, will a suit that costs 305,95€ be worth it?
So the day arrived, no wind, no rain, overcast and not too hot, perfect testing weather.
TEST PROTOCOL:
Warm Up: Ride to start easy pace, then ride the 8km Course at an easy pace.
Start: From a standing start, press the lap button.
Course: Ride as hard as I can for the full distance
Finish: Press the lap button when coming back over the Start/Finish line.
Cool Down: ride easy back home.
RESULTS:
NORMAL
15:09
216W
31 Km/H
GRAVEL SUIT
15:03
216W
31.8 Km/H
*Please note the times and speed are rounded to the next whole number
On the face of it, the results don't show much difference, but let's extrapolate (I even sound scientific now!) - The course was only 8km, with the Gravel Suit I was 5 seconds faster so not a massive difference, but still it is faster. If this was an hour-long effort it would mean I would be around 20 seconds faster, which is a big difference for an hour, the power I produced is not world tour level but it is also lower than I normally would have, but equally it is what I could maintain over a longer period so if we saved 20 seconds each hour, then over the course of three hours we save a minute. What is super interesting is that I maintained the same power over the same distance but went faster in the Gravel Suit!
So according to my ‘super-scientific’ test the Gravel Suit does indeed make you faster!
However it is not just about speed when it comes to cycling clothes, comfort is also a high priority, especially on long GRVL rides. In addition to the TT, I also took it out for a 100km ride and it held up very nicely over the normal test course.
In terms of comfort then, the suit performed great, the chamois is very comfortable and with the tight fit, everything stayed in place. It also looks really cool which always adds a few extra Watts. The bladder pocket worked a lot better than expected, even with the bladder full it stayed rock solid with no movement.
Now it would be amiss not to mention the price - this is not a cheap suit, but then it is a high-end product. However, when you consider what a pair of bibs and a jersey can cost you would still be paying the same amount if not more, when purchasing a ‘high-end’ cycling kit.
But is it worth it? Rule 28 makes no bones about who their kit is for, it is about performance and it is for those looking for that last edge, that last few % that can make the difference between winning and losing. If this is you, then the suit is something you should consider for your next race, it will make you faster! But if you are riding for fun or just starting then it is better to concentrate on yourself before focusing on tech to make you faster.
overall score: 4
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At GRVL Magazine every product is put through its paces on our test course - 100 km ride, Interval Session and Gentle Spin to see how the products perform in different situations. The reviews are conducted by real-world riders who look for things that they want in a product. All reviewers offer an unbiased opinion based on their experiences with the products that are backed up by facts, however, reviews are by their very nature subjective and not definitive and should be seen as a guide only.
What the GRVL Magazine scores mean
Good scores are more common than bad, because, fortunately, good products are more common than bad.
Exceptional 5/5
Very Good 4/5
Good 3/5
Average 2/5
Poor 1/5
Appalling 0/5
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