Q36.5 Brand Highlight

Q36.5 is a cycling apparel brand that isn’t satisfied with just producing clothing where the only thing that changes season-to-season are the colourways. Q36.5 clothing is always performance first, driven by results and steered by science, leading to some of the most technologically advanced clothing the industry has ever seen.

Luigi Bergamo, as the CEO and head of R&D at Q36.5, is who drives the brand constantly forward, striving to bring innovation and technology to every garment that comes out of the lab.

Working closely with top atheletes like Tom Pidcock, Fred Wright and Quinten Hermans enables direct feedback from some of the most extreme conditions to further development.

Q36.5 has their headquarters in Bolzano, Italy, right on the doorstep of the Dolomites. This area provides the ideal setting to perform some real-world testing to back up and develop the work done in the lab.

The name Q36.5 embodies the brand’s goals perfectly, highlighting their unified goal of achieving the best performance by having their clothing work in synergy with the athlete’s body.

The “Q” stands for the Latin term for research, Quaerere, which is at the heart of everything they do. Countless hours are spent developing, recording, and furthering performance to produce garments that actually improve your speed.

The “36.5” element of the name reflects the optimal temperature of the human body, 36.5°C. Every garment in their lineup is designed to keep your body temperature regulated in order to provide as many marginal gains as possible.

Of course, as with all high-end cycling wear, the Q36.5 pro cycling team has been critical to the development of these ranges, providing endless feedback directly from the peleton to the lab.

The innovation doesn’t just stop at the advanced thermoregulation properties of their clothing, however. Q36.5 bib shorts get the full “Q Lab” R&D treatment, as it is well known that a rider that is comfortable can perform at their best for longer. The technologies that can be found in these garments include a Lumbar Support System, Gradual Compression, and their Super Moulded Chamois.

Perhaps the greatest achievement recently has been in Q36.5’s UNIQUE bib shorts that won the Red Dot Design Award for being produce entirely from a single woven garment, which helps to make these the first ergogenic cycling bib shorts of their kind.

The fabrics and materials used throughout the Q36.5 clothing range are completely proprietary and developed in-house, in collaboration with the best textile manufacturers in Italy. It is these fabrics that enable the garments to regulate temperature and offer the gradual compression that enhances performance.

These fabrics are then engineered into pieces of the best possible quality by expert Italian craftsmen drawing on years of experience.

Another thing that separates Q36 5 clothing from other brands is their approach to sustainability. All garments in their line-up are handcrafted in Italy, often with up to 100% recycled fabrics in a bid to cut down on waste and focus on building a clothing range that is less harmful to the environment. All Q36 5 clothing is made within 350km of their headquarters in Bolzano, which also reduces transportation requirements and so helps to lower emissions.

Like all high-end cycling clothing manufacturers, Q36.5 rely on feedback from their pro athletes to be able to iterate and perfect their bib shorts and cycling jersey ranges. The garments worn by the Pinarello Q36 5 pro cycling team are the same that are available to buy, so you can rest assured that you really are getting the best of the best.

The Dottore and Gregarius ranges are the choice of pro riders such as Tom Pidcock, Fred Wright, Quinten Hermans, and legendary sprinter Sam Bennett, so with Q36.5 you know you’re riding in company.