As a gear editor who refuses to wear leggings unless there’s snow on the ground, I’ve tested countless pairs of running shorts in my time. In fact, black cycling shorts specifically could well be my specialist subject, should I ever appear on Mastermind – and there’s one pair in particular that have had me in a chokehold even since I first tried them: Soar’s Marathon Speed Shorts.
Now, I’m not going to pretend that these come cheap – the black pair will set you back a cool £135. But they are top of the class in every single way. That starts with an ultra-lightweight, minimised construction for a barely there feeling, storage for up to six gels and a sweat-wicking ability like nothing I’ve seen before. Seriously, I wore these to run my PB at the Berlin Marathon last September and I swear that they didn’t get so much as damp.
I assumed that Soar had peaked – how could running apparel possibly get more advanced than this? But now, the premium brand, launched by former fashion designer Tim Soar, has dropped a new collaboration with Rheon, unlocking a new level of muscle support and recovery.
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For those who aren’t familiar, Rheon is a cutting-edge technology that is designed to help direct more energy into performance. It essentially ‘supercharges’ your sports garments and, when placed around key muscle groups, hardens to block wasted energy.
At the 2024 Olympic Games, Adidas partnered with Rheon to support Team GB athletes. I also got a chance to try the Techfit Control Bra and, let me tell you, the result was downright freaky. As someone who usually wears high-support bras, I honestly didn’t think that Rheon’s compression-style garment was going to cut it. But that technology worked some strange magic when I got moving – and it somehow held me securely in place.
Fast-forward a year and Rheon and Soar’s Marathon Speed Shorts collaboration has officially launched, having debuted at Paris Fashion Week in January. Combining Soar’s advanced fabrics and precision design with Rheon’s energy-absorbing polymer technology, they provide targeted impact absorption to ensure that you stay focused and primed for peak performance.
In particular, the technology works by controlling oscillation in the large muscle groups of the upper leg, helping to save energy and absorb impact over miles of pounding the pavements. For elite or semi-elite athletes, this could prove pretty game-changing this spring marathon season – that’s if you’ve got a spare £200 to hand.
The half tights are available in both men’s and women’s from soarrunning.com.
