Review: Castelli Sanremo, All Out Speed Trisuits
It has been some time since we looked at the wares from Italian apparel maker Castelli, and that's a shame. Castelli has been making some of the finest cycling and triathlon apparel in the business for years, and their dedication to excellence has never faltered in our books. We wanted to catch up with what they're doing for 2019, especially at the high end of their apparel lines. So we got in touch and asked them to send the best of the best of what they make. This article will highlight three of their elite suits: the Short Distance (sleeveless) suit, the Sanremo SS (short sleeve) suit, and the $270 All Out Speed suit. Each of these suits is unique, and has its own strengths and weaknesses. There will not be a simple "this is the suit to get" answer at the end of this. The Castelli line is more refined than that, with nuance and flavor. The reader will be rewarded by taking a careful look at each offering before making a decision.
The first thing to know about Castelli suits is that they have a definitive "race" fit. Meaning, they fit slimmer than many other suits of the same category and size name. That is, a Medium in Castelli suits will fit tighter, snugger, and smaller than a Medium in most other brands. Is that a good thing, or a bad thing? The answer is: maybe. If you are a very lean athlete who struggles to find a good, slim-fitting suit, this may be your go-to brand. If you are a larger athlete who feels like the existing size runs are a bit too snug, you might want to size up. For what it's worth, I've been the author and model for every apparel review on this site. We've reviewed quite a lot of different suits to date, and although I am almost always a perfect Medium in tri suits, Castelli fits me extra-snug. Just know yourself and your fit, and purchase accordingly.
Castelli offers a few different color ways in each suit we reviewed, and some of them are quite similar. So we opted for a color in each suit that would easily distinguish it from its brothers. The Short Distance Suit is white, the Sanremo Suit is orange, and the All Out Speed Suit is black. We are going to look at them in that order. They range from $170 to $230 to $270 in price, respectively. Will the most expensive suit prove worth the premium? Let's take a look.
