Hoop putting the gear through its paces at the Ironman. | Photo: Shan Moore
Throughout the 2011 season Nate Kanney was consistently decked out in a ton of various colorways of Scott Sports riding gear. It was cool to see a brand make such a commitment to an off-road rider, hooking up Nate literally from head to toe. I had tried Scott gear a few seasons ago when it first came out, and was impressed but their 2011 line looked even better and I was fortunate enough to get my hands on a set of their 2012 450 Combustion line the week leading up to the Ironman GNCC. I raced the Industry class at the Ironman in the gear and since then have ridden in it enough to feel comfortable writing a full on review on the set.
From left to right: Race, Mosaic, Combustion
Looks
Scott’s 450 line of gear is their premiere lineup, and it comes in three designs ranging from mild to wild: Race, Mosaic, and Combustion. This is a pretty cool concept because as at its core, all three designs are constructed with the same premium materials so you don’t have to sacrifice quality to find a design and colorway that fits your style. The Race design is a pretty classic moto look suitable for anyone, Mosaic steps it up a bit in the graphics range but isn’t too crazy, and combustion features a pretty wild design that I really dig, and the yellow/black/red colorway definitely looked sick with my Suzuki.
Jersey
The Scott 450 jersey has a nice fit, I got a size Large and it was roomy enough without being ridiculous. The thing I noticed the most with the jersey was its arms, they’re called “articulated” which I think means they’re pre-bent at the elbows and they fit pretty nicely. The arms are almost paneled in a way with a stretchy lycra fabric that fits pretty snug but not too crazy. The “tail” of the jersey is printed with a silicone grip pattern to help keep it tucked in throughout the race. The sidepanels are mesh so there’s good airflow to keep you cool even on a hot day.
Pants
The 450 pants are what you’d expect from a premium line of pants—from the leather knees to the ratcheting buckle and Velcro side adjustment straps. There’s been a trend lately in motocross pants for the knees to be ridiculously large to “accommodate” knee braces and they end up being too baggy. Now, trust me, I have pretty large quads and calves, (I use the last 
adjustment on Sidi Crossfire boots to get them closed) so I appreciate a large knee opening. The 450 pants in my mind are the perfect size through the knees and quads—big enough to find my tree trunks and braces inside, but not reminiscent of some LBZ over the boot deals. There’s a 4-way mesh stretch upper knee part that allows the pants to accommodate large braces and legs, but also keep the pants snug, oh, and let some airflow through. My only complaint—if you can call it that—with the pants is you need to buckle them a bit tighter than you’d think to keep them from gradually slipping down in a long race. I made sure to keep the Velcro tabs on the sides tight and that definitely helped.
Gloves
If you’re a fan of the super minimal, strapless gloves that are the rage these days (Deft, Novik) you probably won’t like the Scott 450 gloves. But, if you’re like me and have sissy hands (hey, I spend 10 hours a day at a computer!) and need a substantial glove for races longer than 15 minutes and like to be able to adjust the tightness of the glove on your wrist, they’ll be right up your alley. The Clarino leather palms are substantial enough to provide protection from gnarly blisters, but not thick enough to hinder your feel of the grips and levers. I have what I would consider normal size hands (that was hard to admit to!) and wrists, and I felt like the thumb initially was a bit hard to bend and the wrists didn’t strap super tight, but once I got to riding neither of these things were a problem. As with most gloves, I’d recommend you hit up your local dealer and try a few sizes on to see what is right for you.
Summary
To put it simply, the Scott 450 gear line is what you’d expect from a brand’s premium line—top quality materials, very good fit, good looks, and long lasting quality. We’re lucky enough to live in a time with an incredible amount of really good options for gear and Scott’s 450 line is as good as any gear I’ve worn.
