S9 marks the future of race-tuned comfort, built on an entirely new platform that’s been re-engineered from the ground up. With years of testing and feedback from riders at the highest level of the sport, we continue to see the most advanced insert technology being only as good as the framework that supports it. Consider the hard cornering, in-to-out-of-saddle pedaling, and hours of body repositioning that greatly impact your shorts and the way its insert functions, and ultimately the comfort both are able to provide.
To address these points, we employed A-Lock Engineering, our new bracing system comprising proprietary textiles and technologies working together to stabilize the shorts and secure the insert in place. The S9 generation incorporates just two panels, with a primary “butterfly” panel fully wrapping the legs and converging in the rear to form our new ergoBox structure. This design effectively frames the insert in place and provides you with an ultra-comfortable wrap on your legs using our Type.441 textile, developed specifically for compressive hold and silky comfort. From here we added our unique rollBar, which mimics a race car’s anti-sway bar by using the bib straps to stabilize the insert as your weight transfers from left to right while cornering. Each strap is sewn into the seam directly above the insert, ensuring it’s under pre-loaded tension at all times.
The bib straps have also been redesigned using calibrated stretch throughout, with the rear section using a single section of elastic material—folded over on itself—forming an A-frame in the back. It delivers limited vertical stretch in order to add further stability. In the front, the straps are made of a more flexible material, with an antibacterial carbon weave, to wick moisture and lay flat.
We also focused on a single insert platform—evolved from our proven Equipe Evo—giving us the freedom to reassess what is most crucial to a streamlined, race-spec insert. We reduced the overall footprint to shed additional weight, employed superAir microShock foam with 3D waffle, incorporated our kraterCooler system to increase airflow up front, and took additional measures to anchor the insert at the rear with our patented horizontal stabilizer. The result? Signature ASSOS comfort, stabilized.