Club Kit

[Keith]

[quote="Alan M"]I like to express my individuality - I wear it when I feel like it but like others I don't suppose I would buy yellow kit as a first preference. Why do you ask - do you feel there should be a dress code?

[jon avery]

[quote="Alan M"]I like to express my individuality - I wear it when I feel like it but like others I don't suppose I would buy yellow kit as a first preference. Why do you ask - do you feel there should be a dress code?

[Dombo]

[quote="Keith"]
Recently Jon was leading a club run and encountered another local club. He said we looked like a bunch of gypsies and was asked what club we were members of.

[Maria David]

I've accumulated lots of cycle kit over the years. Quite simply, I like to vary what I wear. When it's the racing season and I'm racing regularly I prefer to save my club kit for races so that I am sure I have neat and clean get-up for the race. If I wore the same kit for racing, training and rides it would be worn out in no time - and I'd rather spend money on various colours of kit, than on multiple pieces of kit that are the same design/colour. Of course, if I were being sponsored/paid to wear the same kit at all times that would be a different matter!

[Jon C C on a Bianchi]

As you know, I always wear club kit - CRs, TTs, Sportives and informal rides - loud and proud!

As Keith says it seems to be the norm now not to wear our club kit - so I guess I'm trying to express my individuality and not follow the crowd!

[quote="Keith"][quote="Alan M"]I like to express my individuality - I wear it when I feel like it but like others I don't suppose I would buy yellow kit as a first preference. Why do you ask - do you feel there should be a dress code?

[John G]

I love the ACC kit! (the NEW kit) .... I have even worn it here in Colombia!

I'm flying the flag all over the world! Let it be known!

Check out the pic's!

This pic after completing the climb of Las Palmas, Medellin, Colombia

[img]http://sphotos-h.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-prn1/532514_10151342473221070_857050125_n.jpg[/img]

This pic from another epic ride in Medellin with Grupo Ciclista Mariela's

(check out there blog: http://ciclismomariela.blogspot.com )

[img]http://sphotos-f.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc6/282863_421391631266031_855661861_n.jpg[/img]

Video of Mariela club member that drinks 1 litre of milk and 5 "bocadillos" (energy packed combination of guava pulp and sugar which is cooked slowly until it becomes thick enough to form into a block) after completing a massive mountain climb!

[youtubewww]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iQP-75lbZ7I[/youtubewww]

HIGHLY RECOMMEND MEDELLIN AS A CYCLING HOLIDAY DESTINATION! .... as a holiday destination in general too! The views are AWESOME

Happy New Year to all ACC members!

Johnno

PS BTW that is Alan M's bike I'm riding! ... Thanks Alan

[Keith]

Thanks everyone for the feedback, like I said I'm simply interested.

FWIW here's some of my thoughts.

I'm against compulsion to wear club kit, but very pro a club environment where members want to wear club kit, and choose to do so.

I too think it looks good to have kit matching my bike when riding alone or a different group, but I also think it looks even better when riders wear matching kit.

Individuality? I have no idea as to how wearing a club jersey would reduce my individuality. To me what it says is that I'm happy to be seen to be a member of a cycling club.

Yellow? I don't think our kit looks the best out there, but I'm still happy enough to wear it despite this when riding with the club.

Quality / fit? I don't think the new Santini kit is good enough quality. Perhaps I was spoilt by the very nice prototype jerseys that were initially sourced.

Too expensive? I don't think "full ACC kit" is necessary. A jersey is what counts. (Shorts "should" be black.) Here's a daft idea. Your first year's membership fee gets you £20 redeemable against an ACC jersey in Butlers. This would additionally apply as a one-off offer to all existing members. A membership list behind the till, plus they punch a hole in your membership card.

[Alan M]

[quote="John G"]I love the ACC kit! (the NEW kit) .... I have even worn it here in Colombia!

I'm flying the flag all over the world! Let it be known!

Check out the pic's!

This pic after completing the climb of Las Palmas, Medellin, Colombia

[img]http://sphotos-h.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-prn1/532514_10151342473221070_857050125_n.jpg[/img]

This pic from another epic ride in Medellin with Grupo Ciclista Mariela's

(check out there blog: http://ciclismomariela.blogspot.com )

[img]http://sphotos-f.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc6/282863_421391631266031_855661861_n.jpg[/img]

Video of Mariela club member that drinks 1 litre of milk and 5 "bocadillos" (energy packed combination of guava pulp and sugar which is cooked slowly until it becomes thick enough to form into a block) after completing a massive mountain climb!

[youtubewww]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iQP-75lbZ7I[/youtubewww]

HIGHLY RECOMMEND MEDELLIN AS A CYCLING HOLIDAY DESTINATION! .... as a holiday destination in general too! The views are AWESOME

Happy New Year to all ACC members!

Johnno

PS BTW that is Alan M's bike I'm riding! ... Thanks Alan

[Snoop Doug]

[quote="Phil the Pie"]Redhill have had a big youth drive going for a while. That might also be bringing in parents. I think they actually moved the start point of their CR too!

[Alan M]

back on the subject of club kit I will suggest the idea of a 'uniform day' ie specific day when everybody who has it wears club kit - leaving in 2 groups, fast and slow with incognitos taking the back route via Chipstead Valley

[quote="Snoop Doug"][quote="Phil the Pie"]Redhill have had a big youth drive going for a while. That might also be bringing in parents. I think they actually moved the start point of their CR too!

[quote="Dombo"][quote="Snoop Doug"][quote="Phil the Pie"]Redhill have had a big youth drive going for a while. That might also be bringing in parents. I think they actually moved the start point of their CR too!

[Alan M]

and back on the subject of club kit .......

[Marek]

Quality is my main reason. I managed to get my hands on the first batch and then wrote it all off on my first ride coming down a mountain in Wales. Easy come easy go. The kit seemed to be very good quality but didn't get much of an opportunity to see how it would last or what the feel of the Chamois was like after 100 miles (think I managed 70 miles before hitting the deck). I have a couple of the old Santini jerseys which I would wear if I managed to get myself into some kind of form for racing, and I would wear it if I was doing a UK sportive in the warm. The old Santini shorts were awful, I wrote those off ages ago in a race, but was thankful as the chamois was appalling and there is no way I could do any serious riding with those shorts.

When I am riding overseas then I would probably just wear a team jersey of good quality, I absolutely love the Castelli Body Paint bib shorts they are awesome in hot weather and for very long rides. Also the tops are very good as well, I have a Garmin one and a Castelli branded one and I really don't actually like to wear much else.

I think if the quality was up to the initial Le Col standard or top of the range type stuff then people would pay the money and stump up the cash and would then wear it. As I always tell people, the more you spend on something the more likely you are to use it. Colour scheme of the new jerseys I think looks very smart and modern and not really an issue. There are not many people out there that buy a bike the same colour as their club jerseys, well not as far as I am aware. Keith, have you just bought a yellow and black bike?

Cheers

Marek....