Nike’s All Conditions Racing Dept. finally dropped its much-anticipated and most interesting innovation to date. It’s not a shoe or a bag, but a groundbreaking performance apparel, the Nike ACG Radical Airflow. Built for extreme conditions, particularly in trail running, it features hundreds of oversized cone-shaped holes and cutouts for better cooling power than DriFit.
Calling it a shirt would be incorrect, as it boasts a unique silhouette that blends style and function. It’s a cropped sweater with an exaggerated oversized mesh design. There are holes across the arms and torso, which Nike calls airducts, and large cut-outs in the arm bends and underarms.
The holes and cutouts are by design; the latter improve mobility, and the former provide breathability and moisture control. The Nike ACG Radical Airflow is physics-driven, adapting the Bernoulli principle and the Venturi effect into its design. As air moves through a narrowed opening, it speeds up and pressure drops. The holes accelerate airflow into the skin to aid with cool down.
“We found that a funnel-shaped construction of larger to smaller gradient holes, uniformly placed, would best ‘funnel’ and accelerate air to the skin,” explained Jahan Behbahany, a senior director in Nike’s apparel innovation department.
As a result, according to Nike’s testing, the garment absorbs and retains 50% less sweat than the brand’s trusted DriFit, and 25% less resistant to sweat evaporation. The body cools itself during intense physical activity through sweat, and these airducts help keep the body cool and dry. Additionally, Nike said the ACG Radical Airflow has “hydrophilic chemistry” activated by water to enhance its cooling power.
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Images courtesy of Nike
