The best bike packing kit of 2020

Is all of this just road kit with more pockets? Maybe. But just think where those extras might take you.

Three years after they first were raced, prototyped and developed to death, cargo bibs were introduced to cycling. They were marketed to explore-types and gravel grinders, but universally appealing to anyone who ever wanted something closer-at-hand during a ride - something purpose-built for multi-day efforts.

“The reaction was pretty mixed when they first launched,” recalls Rapha designer Thomas Perren, one of the minds behind the cargos. “Lots of people thought they were strange, but two years later, now they understand what we were trying to do.”

While not a market-first when released, they were certainly a first in the way cargo bibs are conceived today, and though hardly essential, endurance (or gravel kit) has since become a mainstay in the world of cycling kit, iterated in many forms by many kit cos. Morphing from simple banana transport to comical necessity, so much can be stuffed, ground and accomplished in “bike pack” and “gravel” kit; as a genre, it has become undeniably utilitarian and handsome looking, too.

If you’re in the market, what follows are 5 of the best “endurance” releases we’ve ridden in so far in 2020 - feature-rich designs soon to become a mainstays (we think) in much of cycling kit going forward.

Castelli’s Unlimited Bibshorts and Jersey

If you’re still reading and wondering WTF is bike packing kit, you’re not alone. I spent the better part of two years mocking the need for different kit for rougher roads or harder rides only to be recently converted. By and large, “explore/gravel/endurance” kit mimics that of road though there are subtle differences, both in engineered durability and aesthetic.

“We approached our gravel collection as we would with any product: by trying to identify how the needs are different for a particular use,” explains Steve Chapin from Castelli on the challenges of conceiving unique-looking and feeling kit in a slightly-different-than-road cycling segment. “There is a good bit of overlap between the needs of a road cyclist and gravel cyclist: similar performance characteristics, comfort and breathability - everything still holds.”

Despite its challenges, chapeau to Castelli - they didn’t miss a beat with their “Unlimited” issue this summer, picking up on the subtleties - marketing included - required to execute inspiring clothing that just happens to have “gravel” written on the tag. Both the bibs and jersey in the Unlimited releases feature reinforced fabric and added pockets, are beautifully understated in muted colours and can withstand “ride, shower-with-kit, ride, repeat” use cycles, which they were subjected to for the writing of this article.

Two mesh rear pockets on the bibs are perfect for tubes, food and tools, while Castelli has stitched up the side pockets just so to ensure everything stays in its right place on the must-have cargos. Laser-cut sleeves and bibshort edges are considered and well-executed finishing touches. (Also digging the VG 5 short and tech polo for après ride meals.)

Utility bibs and Gravel Jersey: Isadore

Extra-long, mildly compressive sleeves and zippered pockets add a little bit of differentiation to Isadore’s gravel jersey. Being able to secure essentials: definitely a nice touch on rough roads.

Isadore kit is so consistently well-executed that it has become rather predictable for its high quality. You’ll find no difference with the Gravel Jersey in Rio Red (pictured). The Merino slim-cut jersey breathes panache - the red is electric, the fit, trim and the comfort perfect for when in the saddle pedalling. Across temperatures, the jersey excels: wear it open with the snap sternum strap to let some air in or zipped up when the weather turns. The three zippered pockets are good open, used traditionally, and perfect zipped up when the road gets gritty or the weather gets wet.

For this article, we also had the chance to ride in Isadore’s Utility bibs - their extra-long-day ride-as-hard-as-you-want shorts adaptable across a range of temperatures. While they might lack the requisite cargo for which inclusion in this article should be required, their compression, durability, fabric (made with Schoeller) and use of an innovative, TMF Cycling pad, which eliminates pressure from a rider’s sensitive bits, make these something exceptional - which in the world of kit - is tough to pull off. Designed by ex-pro Martin Velits for the hardest rides. Well done, sir.

Rapha’s Cargo Bibshorts

The above image is not me wandering the Swiss countryside spec’d head to toe in resplendent Rapha kit, but we’d be remiss, when writing about growth in gravel to not make specific mention of the bibshorts that solidified its emergence.

Gravel-specific clothing might have been a thing prior to the 2018 release of the Rapha cargos, but it definitively was afterwards. Every bit as comfortable as their classic bibs and borrowing a bit of the enhanced fit from their other, racier collections, these feature mesh bibs with cargo pockets on the sides and a stiff elastic up top, capable of carrying food, a phone and then some on your next epic securely. Ride with your jersey empty by stuffing the rest of your ride essentials in the two lower-back mesh pockets. If you’re prone to riding in t-shirts or button down shirt sleeves, these are the bibs for you. As technical and performance driven as they are stylish. Fast-drying in hotel rooms, too.

Cascada Mountain Shirt

Though we weren’t able to get a sample of this shirt prior to writing, the snaps, material and buffalo check pattern in Old Gold has made this shirt catch our eye more than once. Straight hem on the front and with a longer and rounded cut on the back to offer extra lower back coverage while pedalling.

Seven Mesh MK3 cargo bibs

I don’t know if these are technically gravel shorts, but who cares. At 214 grams, the new MK3 cargo bibs are one of the best and most functional for day-in, day-out use.

The high-density elastane weave is compressive without being tight and offer the kind of support you want on long, hard rides. Three stash pockets in the rear store food or tubes. A new performance chamois from industry titan Elastic Interface is pressure-free and seems to be getting more comfortable with each use. (You can read the full review of 7mesh’s kit here.)

Here’s to long rides, people. Whatever you’re wearing.

Setting a high watermark for everything that comes next: 7mesh review

New releases from BC-based 7mesh feature materials typically reserved for high-altitude mountaineering and snow sports gear, borrowing from the backgrounds of several of its founders and current employees (former Arc’teryx staffers). With select notable exceptions, the kit is almost without equal; alpine-grade, exceptional across conditions and a genuine unicorn in a crowded wood.

We connected with the company’s European general manager to discuss a world beyond colour blocks and font tweaks - the one which 7mesh inhabits: true originality.

On the road to growth: uniquely executed designs have sales close to doubling every year.

“The initial idea was to create alpine-grade stuff that protects against the elements, not just lycra with big logos and high prices,” explains John Zopfi, the company’s European GM, recently over Zoom. “I think it’s important when you design something that you’re adding something to the market, not just being a copycat or building something that’s already there. On the functionality and fit side, there’s lots of innovation still possible in cycling.”

You needn’t look further than the company’s do-everything gilet for an example of what Zopfi believes is 7mesh’s hallmark. A feature-rich vest with GORE Infinium paneling that cuts wind, keeps in warmth, and has stretch fabric in the back to allow heat escape and back pockets to be loaded. Rear zippers provide venting and are easy-to-access (string toggles, too. A touch normally seen on snow jackets. Extremely practical.). It is cut slim (medium; 185cms, 73 kgs) with taped seams and at a meagre 93 grams, is a lightweight packable worth carrying and worn when needed. In light rain it beaded water and trapped heat brilliantly.

The Ashlu Merino Jersey Sustainable. Stink-free. Comfortable AF. If you’ve debated a merino jersey until know, this is the one. Rather than stitch the bottom and top of the jersey pockets to the merino directly, 7mesh stitched a separate, structured panel of pockets to the jersey (see first image); not only is it durable and harmonious with the lightweight 150 weave, it maintains the jersey’s integrity, giving it heavy duty carrying capacity without unnecessary pulling or stretching. It also adds a pretty cool gradient dimension borne from function. Two additional secure pockets on the left (oversized) and right. Perfectly suited to any kind of riding. (Size down for a snug, tapered fit.)

MK3 Cargo bib short At 214 grams, the new MK3 cargo bibs might not be the lightest bibs we’ve ridden in lately; they are however one of the best and most functional. The high-density elastane weave is similar to other cherished bibs from Ashmei, Q36 and others. It is compressive without being tight and offer the kind of support you want on long rides.

Three stash pockets in the rear store food or tubes; the cargo pockets are useful but need a more elasticized strip at the top to ensure what’s put in (particularly an oversized mobile) stays in. A new performance chamois from industry titan Elastic Interface is pressure-free and seems to be getting more comfortable with each use. Great silicon grips on the legs keep everything where it should be. I loved this short.

We never wanted to be the biggest kit maker, just the best

7mesh’s Skyline Jersey and the already widely reviewed Oro Jacket were still unboxed at the time of writing this review, however anything that comes in its own wash sack is immediately recognizable for being well-conceived. I almost look forward to being caught out in the rain to try it out.

As more people continue to recognize the quality coming out of Squamish, and as cycling’s more adventurous side more broadly explored, interest in 7mesh will deepen, and rightfully so. There is a meticulousness that is clearly being applied here; every item we tried seemed to be widening cycling apparel’s ultra high-end while at the same time being incredibly functional. They clearly excel at working with finicky, high-functioning materials, cut and sold in sizes to accommodate body types and ride styles.

Undeniably other heavyweights helped create and pave the road they are going down, but 7mesh intends broaden it, motivated by a specific, product-focused vision of what cycling apparel could (should?) look like.

Pedaling ovals makes you a more efficient rider, says absoluteBLACK’s chief scientist

Several years ago, Borut Fonda, a doctor and biomechanics researcher, decided to leave academia, having had enough of the inherent bureaucracy that then plagued his professorial life. He got what some of his scientific peers would describe as an offer of lifetime: the chance to focus on cycling, biomechanics and drive train efficiency full-time in industry, free of the persistent pressures to publish and scour for grants.

A former pro mountain biker, the offer came courtesy of absoluteBLACK the London and Poland-based designer and manufacturer of aftermarket oval chainrings to be their chief research scientist. The company had existing research to support the supposed supremacy of oval rings; his work would further substantiate their claims and focus on building a smoother pedal stroke with better bike parts.

What is a smoother pedal stroke? Does that mean more power? More efficiency? How do you quantify smoothness? Is that enough reason to swap rings?

The benefits of going oval, says Fonda, are beyond marginal - a five to nine percent decrease in energy consumption (greater metabolic efficiency) over a 200km ride. While you can’t expect a 30 watt increase in FTP by using them, Fonda boils it down like this: “metabolic efficiency is something you can’t fake. Even a one percent savings - at the professional level - can mean the difference between winning a stage race and not finishing it.” With such a massive savings at stake, we got a set of AB’s ovals to see what the fuss was about. Turns out the claims about efficiency are hard to dispute.

Several pro teams have formed informal relationship with Absolute Black and their Science Lab to improve their pedaling efficiency. Photo by Martin Paldan | GripGrab.

The great ring debate: are ovals better?

While no UCI pro teams currently race in AB’s rings, a number of pros work with the company’s fit lab, looking for efficiencies in their pedaling styles. Anecdotal feedback and Strava times, says Fonda, suggest AB rings are different from their asymmetric predecessors and a step beyond pedalling on round rings. “When someone who could potentially win a three-week stage race says they see a noticeable jump in their times on ovals, that’s another level of feedback,” he says.

Pedalling ovals won’t give you a higher FTP. What ovals do give is enhanced use of human physiology, says Fonda. While previous asymmetric rings (Shimano introduced their Biospace rings in 1983; Rotor’s QRings came roughly a decade later) took force away from the knee during a pedal stroke, AB’s innovation is to distribute pedalling force across the entire leg - hip to heel - and to maximize peak power with shapes and shifting. (Several smaller brands have since emulated this approach.)

So interesting are these rings, they appear to have reignited a debate (in our minds, anyway) as to whether or not pedaling ovals is actually advantageous. Theoretically better suited to most people’s power profiles, pedalling ovals amounts to spending less calories to turn out the same watts. If you’ve seen them up close, you’ll have seen how the ring spends more time where power is generated (as the crank rotates from 10 to 3) and less time in drivetrain “dead zones.”

The major benefit of ovals, says Fonda, is that you engage your entire leg to pedal - hip, knee, ankle and calf - the snout to tail of pedalling. (My hips were sore AF for two weeks after I started using the rings - so greater engagement confirmed.) Saying they are “better” may be entirely subjective and possibly influenced by your existing bike fit. But there are noticeable differences.

Ovals are better: ride conclusions

Absolute Black is a small company that’s smart enough to fund big ideas and their rings are growing more popular. During lockdown, sales have actually grown online (they are currently selling over one million pieces a year). Pros are anxious to race them (it’s rumoured they will supply rings to several teams in 2021).

WIth AB’s ovals, the cranks just seem to turn over easier - a purely anecdotal conclusion but an undeniable one all the same. If an aftermarket part can actually leave you with a little more gas in the legs, which these do, I’m all in. Since the rings were installed (see bike above) there is undeniably a broader muscular engagement and greater ease with cadence. As for faster times, that’s hard to qualify without doing some A/B testing against comparable round rings. I’m less fussed with that, and more focused on an ability to ride further and fresher, which ovals offer hands down.

At 170 euros for a set of premium rings, AB has cracked the cost conundrum that some critics have slapped on oval rings. They are inexpensive, awesome and an upgrade that shouldn’t be ignored.

Design icons: how a Swedish cycling co. made safety cool

It’s January when I connect with POC - a brand that has seemingly sat at the front of cycling safety for decades, though they’ve only been in the road market since 2014. We’ve met once or twice in past - at the Rouleur Classic in London, at Eurobike in Friedrichshafen - but with kernels of COVID coming and the make-up of the 2020 season soon-to-be altered, this conversation feels a bit different.

Seven years ago, when POC announced a three-year partnership to become the official helmet and eyewear supplier of Cannondale-Garmin, few would have predicted that the Swedish company with a strong mission and divisive designs would enjoy such a meteoric ascent, evolving into purveyors of a modern design aesthetic that is so immediately recognizable. More than 40 international awards later and a strong showing on club rides and in races however tells a different story.

“We were never design-led, but most look at our helmets and make that assumption,” explains Damian Phillips, global head communications. “Interestingly the style that has defined us has come from an exploration of boundaries. We take a lot of time to ensure there’s a clear Scandinavian aesthetic in our product, but we never start at this point.”

The best example of POC’s rather simple mission is perhaps the helmet that made them famous - the Octal. It was their first for road, and it was envisaged to be lightweight, vented and safe. The mushroom shape - a characteristic many still can’t wrap their heads around - came from an engineering objective to be both light (200 grams in M) and to save lives. It won awards and would soon enable POC to grow.

This of course was never POC’s objective - to be a leader in cycling apparel and certainly not a harbinger for style. POC’s founder, Stefan Ytterborn, had sons, both ski racers, whose skills and speed were quickly outgrowing available protection. He decided he would build a company that could keep up, starting with helmets, spinal impact protection and wrist guards designed for snow sports. Several alpine athletes would latch on to the concept. After a fall, they would send used helmets to POC which they then researched in partnership with academia. Over time this would form the basis of what would become the POC Lab - a scientific forum that brought together experts from a range of disciplines and medicine - going on to inform both the company’s engineering and design processes. In 2009 and out of the POC Lab, POC would help bring MIPS to market for the first time, starting what is still an ongoing debate in road riding: what makes a helmet safe?

“The Octal was the first we released to meet the challenges of the uncompromising world of the pro peloton, followed quickly by the Cerebel and more recently, the Ventral SPIN,” explains Jonas Sjögren, POC’s CEO. Adds Phillips: “we never went into these projects saying we want to change the way people think, but we are always looking for a different way to innovate. Almost accidentally, this has shaped many people’s opinions about safety.”

Partnerships over the years accelerated POC’s place in the peloton. The Octal was well-regarded with pros. Out of their relationship with EF Education Pro Cycling, the company soon rode towards several design KOMs like the Ventral. Ideas continued trickling into POC’s engineers, nurturing a culture that balanced the needs of enhanced safety alongside growing risk. During it all, innovation continued.

Working with Exeger in Sweden, today POC is working with different foils to power helmet lights; a dome with endless energy. In partnership with Volvo, the car maker, they developed the world’s first crash test between cars and bike helmets; they have also just released medical info chips built into their Ventral Air Spin NFC; a helmet that speaks for cyclists when they’ve had an accident and can’t to it themselves.

POC has transitioned into an essential partner for several brands, chosen for their safety, performance and yes, their styling.

The company is tight-lipped about other announcements to come in 2020 and beyond, and like many in cycling, are still waiting to see when some normalcy to the season will return - if it does at all. Regardless, their story has bread a culture of innovation will which continue, driven by an internal desire to not just meet safety standards but to set them.

PART 1: Focus on the slice

The Giro Empire started as a one-off aero-shoe designed for Taylor Phinney to help him win the prologue at the 2012 Giro d’Italia, emulating the look of Nike’s mercurial soccer cleats, which Phinney loved as a kid. After winning that year’s prologue, he crashed in a road stage and destroyed his Giro Factor road shoes. Phinney wore the Empires after that, including on the podium after a stage, where his bloody ankle was photographed with the silver and neon green lace-ups. An icon was born. Why am I thinking about shoes lying in hospital bed in Zurich? More on that in a minute. First, let’s start with Andy Stumpf.

I don’t know Stumpf; I don’t think he even rides a bike. While in ICU last week though I listened to him on Rogan talk about SEAL training. Zwifting for hours seems soft by comparison. Being a SEAL takes you to the brink. The queen-stage is a five-day exam on two hours sleep. At this very moment I can only liken that to pulling a catheter out — twice — in a couple hours. I am sure there are better cycling analogies to apply here, but such is life currently.

The updated Empires caught my eye in September at Eurobike. At my request, Giro generously sent a pair and granted me interviews to supplement a larger product feature (which will follow in Part II). While other parts of life have recently taken over - COVID, worsening health, a spinal tumour - I haven’t been able to ride much. That will soon change; many now find themselves in this boat and I wonder how many are focusing on the pie - Twitter, news, survivalism Reddit’s, kids, freelancing (an undigestible and acidic slurry) - versus the slice - family, cycling and health (a critical holy trinity)?

Without cycling I wouldn’t have noticed something was wrong with my spine. I wouldn’t have pushed for a MRI. I wouldn’t have been reminded to slow down, focus on what matters, exert energy on things I can control and disregard the things I cannot. The slice.

The Empires are undoubtedly a design icon of modern cycling, rubbing shoulders with the Gabba, the Octal and a couple others. The above pic caught my eye several times while lying in hospital because of how much I can’t wait to ride in them and get back to things I can control. Cycling takes on a new, different dimension when you can’t do it. That’s recently been underscored, as has the generosity of people who support and read HNH - the slice I can soon focus on again; a piece of a much larger pie.

Next week I’ll start riding the updated Empires. Until then, iconic images continue to keep me motivated to focus on what’s important. Things that make me feel and think. Weather this storm similarly and you’ll probably be OK, too.