Velocio Women’s Radiator SL Base Layer

The Velocio Women's Radiator SL Base Layer is designed for warm and hot weather use, to wick moisture (and therefore heat) away from the skin for more effective temperature control. It's comfortable and stretchy, with offset seams, but it's actually quite warm when worn over a sports bra and under a jersey.

The concept behind a baselayer like Velocio's Radiator is that in hot weather, a thin technical layer worn under a summer-weight jersey can improve the movement of moisture away from the skin, allowing it to evaporate more quickly and effectively from the fabric of the jersey. On changeable, breezy days, it can also add just a little to next-to-body insulation for those times when a gilet would be too much, but a lightweight jersey just too little.

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The Radiator SL is extremely comfortable to wear. The knitted-feeling Polartec Delta mesh fabric, made from a polyester/Tencel/Lycra mix is soft, stretchy and contours to the body nicely. I found there was plenty of length in the torso, too, so this should accommodate even moderately tall women, and the stretch fabric means it should fit comfortably on most body shapes.

Off-set seams at the shoulder area and no labels mean that there are no rubbing problems under bib short straps, and the neckline is high enough to preserve modesty no matter how low your front zip goes.

The fabric does a great job of moving moisture away from the skin, to help maintain a steady temperature, but I did find this was slightly undermined by the top being an extra layer. Few women can get away with wearing a singlet like this as their only undergarment and so it will always likely be paired up with a sports bra or crop top as well; this fundamentally undermines the effectiveness of the top's purpose and instead creates an additional layer which traps heat rather than getting rid of it.

Out on the bike on even only moderately warm UK summer days it felt warmer than just the jersey on its own. This does mean that the usefulness of such a layer as a warm (or even hot) weather baselayer is more limited – BUT it does make the top a useful addition to a cycling wardrobe for slightly chillier or breezier days. For that purpose, I'd reach for it time and time again, for breathability, moisture wicking and a bit of extra warmth.

Price-wise, it's looking expensive when compared with the likes of the Morvelo Cols Women's Short Sleeve Baselayer and Mavic's Hot Ride Sleeveless Tee, both £35 at rrp, but if you consider it more as a year-round option than just a hot weather garment, then it's perhaps more versatile, and better value than it first seems.

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It's comfortable, well made and wicks moisture effectively and quickly, so if you're looking for a three or four-season technical baselayer then it's money well spent. For purely summer use, it struggles somewhat with being doubled up with a sports bra.

Verdict

Effective and comfortable baselayer, but warm for its intended hot weather purpose, and expensive