Recently in Clothing Category

The big headline is Rapha for Women at last!

Obviously my first response is to make a list of the things I want.

The lightweight jersey in light blue would be nice if I'm doing the Etape this year (of course this means the moment I get one it'll be hellish weather).

It's got something of a classic Bianchi team jersey vibe going on and not being white gives it a bit more usability in my book.

I need a new gilet and I'm quite tempted by the new white one. Although I do really like the contrast stripe of the old one which feels a little bolder than the piping.

The full preview shows plenty of things that I WANT and expansion in the range that look interesting.

The city riding stuff is nice enough but doesn't turn my cranks. Perhaps I'm a bit binary about having bike mode and town mode. I like what they're doing but it doesn't grab me for riding around town. That said the pocket t-shirt may turn out to be an opportune purchase at some point.

Would love to hear what you guys think of the new stuff. Any standout items, any duffers?

On the women's stuff, I'd really love to hear what women who cycle think of it. Grit & Glimmer have got a first look with an American perspective I guess, but what about women cycling in the UK?

For me the three items are the core of any good cycling collection and the decision to go with normal shorts, not bibs is well thought out given the likely audience and type of event they'll be riding.

(Photo by Lucy @ Imperial RT who organises the Winter Series)

See that rain? I've not ridden in anything quite so torrential in ages. Or so cold.

On the plus side my white Mavic Razors are not as muddy as they were and look almost white. It's not that I'm too lazy to clean them at home, it's just I've not found a way of doing it without making the sort of mess that gets small children sent to bed without their supper.

The conditions presented an attire question: Wear a rain jacket, gilet or no waterproof? In the end I went with none of the above and stuck with a baselayer and midweight jersey.

I've come to the conclusion that I'm the sort of rider who heats up a lot and sweats it out so when racing in winter I need to find a balance so I don't end up soggy and cold. But mainly the issue is ending up cold.

The baselayer is one of the best I have found anywhere. It's by Falke and has been good enough to keep me feeling comfortable down to -20 in at Kicking Horse. I think it's their Athletic Warm long sleeve.

Men, ask your most trusted female friends and they'll probably roll their eyes in despair that you've only just discovered Falke. I got mine in TK Maxx (Hammersmith and High Street Kensington) ridiculously cheap. Good fortune as I've found them harder to track down elsewhere.

I've never felt damp or overheated in the baselayer and the fit is such that I barely notice it. Not feeling the garment when you're wearing it is always a hallmark of good quality gear for me.

Back to the race.

On the right day I quite like racing in the rain. I can handle my bike pretty well by my reckoning and so cornering in the wet doesn't terrify me. Plus there's a bit more respite when it's wet.

The key tip for riding well in the wet is tyre pressure. I ran my Vittoria Open Pav´e; s at between 85 and 95 PSI which sounds low but gives a very smooth and predictable ride, the latter being key in the wet. The Open Pav´e; just looks right on a bike in the wet which is equally important.

I've been riding my Ridley Crossbow all winter and I've been using it for everything. It copes pretty well with racing as it does cyclocross and commuting. I like that in a winter bike. Biggest gear is 46/12 and at no point at Hillingdon did I feel undergeared for the level.

I spent most of the race trying to sit in the middle of the bunch and I think I did so better than my previous race. Still need to concentrate on not drifting backwards too easily.

There were a few digs but nothing that ever looked like sticking, so it was more a case of staying out of trouble and avoiding the splits that occur in the wet when riders aren't confident through corners.

I stayed up near the front when it started to get a bit lively in the final few laps. Still a few places too far back to be useful and wasted too much energy trying to move up for the sprint.

When it came I was about 15 back but already on my limit so sat up down the back straight. There's no point in burying yourself when you're badly positioned and in no danger of getting a point.

For a different perspective on the race try James Curry or The Cycling Lawyer, Martin Porter, both of whom I race with fairly regularly at the moment and who were in the bunch as well.

Wearing lycra to ride your bike makes you weird. The truth is that the vast majority of people who ride bikes do so without pseudo-scientific technical fabrics or specialist footwear.

This occurred to me while reading something Mark at iBikeLondon has written about Boris Johnson's consultation with the bike industry: City's cyclists should have their say (and Mayor Boris should listen)

In it he says:

"I firmly believe that we need to take the 'other' out of cycling and rehabilitate it as an everyday and ordinary activity in people's lives again. If you want mass cycling rates, the masses need to be able to associate with cycling. I'd probably start with the inequality in cycling rates between men and women and be asking why aren't more women cycling?"

The final point about rates of women cycling is a huge issue. British Cycling are running a survey about it: Have Your Say- Why are fewer women cycling? If you are a woman who has a view on why you or your friends don't cycle I urge you to complete this survey.

He goes on to cite Carlton Reid's article Forget blokes, it's women we want to get on bikes:

"... not all cycling women want to be Audrey Hepburn with a basket-on-the-front, pearlised-pink Dutch bike. But there's no escaping that this sector is the one that produces the best photographs for promoting cycling to a mainstream audience. Forget helmets, Lycra and speed; non-cyclists find all that a big turn-off. "

In that perspective it's no surprise that the Tweed Ride movement is gaining momentum. The estimable Tweed CC should be your first port of call for all such matters.

The important thing to remember is not the dressing up bit but that the ethos is about wearing what were once considered everyday materials and clothes to ride your bike. The notion that you should be able to ride your bike to work without needing to transport your wardrobe with you should be celebrated and embraced as far as possible.

I admit to wearing specialist shoes on my ride to work but that's largely because normal shoes would be uncomfortable on my SPD pedals. I probably don't need to wear them and it's habit as much as anything.

I also wear my Rapha Classic Softshell most days but would much rather wear something I can go to lunch in as well as ride to work in. It's not the worst looking jacket but it's still clearly a cycling one.

I've had it about four years now, picked it up in one of the early sample sales at Velorution, can't imagine that happening these days. Velorution probably have as good a selection of clothing for cycling that isn't cycling clothing as anywhere in London.

I probably would like some of the stuff that Swrve (US)/Swrve (UK) (same company it seems, just different UK/US setups) or Outlier do. But from the outside they still have the look of "cycle-specific" clothing, or rather everyday clothing sold as cycling specific.

What's wrong with riding your bike in whatever you happen to be wearing?

It seems to be good enough for our European friends, even when riding the Tour of Flanders sportive. I saw more than a few people in their everyday garb. I even got passed by a bloke in a trenchcoat on a town bike on one stretch of cobbles. Yes, you read that right.

See, even such hallowed terrain can be ridden as if you're off to get the papers and a pint of milk. Come to think of it, he probably was.

Women have the little black dress. Very few women have just the one.

This should tell the predominately male cycling population something. Sadly, far too many choose to ignore a simple truth: black is the most stylish of colours.

Rapha understand this, that's why their classic jersey is black. So did Henry Ford.

For nearly a hundred years cycling seems to have survived with shorts only really available in black. Some would argue this was out of necessity and lack of other viable options in the fabrics available. I'd argue that it was because it works and looks good.

You think Eddy Merckx and Jacques Anquetil wore black shorts for no good reason?

Or Gino Bartali and Fausto Coppi?

The latter had jerseys handmade from silk for him by Castelli. If he'd wanted shorts other than black he would have had them.

Take any cycling jersey you own and pair it with any shorts you like. It will always look better with a plain black short.

The World Champion's jersey has always looked better with black shorts. That's not a matter of opinion, that's a matter of fact.

And the same goes for any of the famous jerseys. The trend for shorts matching leaders jerseys started in the 1990s and has never been as cool as some riders and fans would have you believe.

For every Mario Cippolini resplendent in head-to-toe white and rainbow, there's a multitude of Michael Rasmussen looking like a jaundiced famine victim at Le Tour...

(Note Alberto Contador sensibly opting out of white shorts with the Best Young Rider jersey. Remember: you win the jersey not the shorts and matching socks.)

Or like a smallpox outbreak on a bike...

So to recap: If you are serious about looking good on the bike, get some black shorts.

You may also be interested in reading Roadcycling UK's Cycling Style Guidance Notes by Richard Hallett

I am reliably told that nude and flesh tones are the most happening colours in fashion this season.

My friend Lance Woodman pointed me in the direction of this fashion hate crime.

I hereby declare the competition for the worst professional kit of 2010 OVAH!

Did the designer accidentally pick up a copy of Elle rather than GQ when putting this number together? Or did the poor soul get handed a list of permitted colours and despair before getting the job done as quickly as possible and invoicing extra for loss of dignity.

See these guys?

Those are the faces of men who know they've dodged the bullet by not having to wear the team kit for at least the first six months of the year.

The only question that comes to mind, apart from the Peter-Alleneque "WHY?" is

"Which came first, the kit or the bike?"

Ultimately it doesn't matter because what we do know is that metallic colours do not translate into lycra without the use of sequins. Come to think of it, if it had been sequined jersey I would have applauded the iconoclasm.

I had been preparing myself to dissect the relative merits of the new BMC kit over on Bianchista but frankly whether or not the red shorts work is neither here nor there. They are wrong but does it even matter now?