Bet on Cycling

Alberto Contador's bike for the final stage of the 2010 Tour de France.

Editor’s Note: VeloNews tech editor Nick Legan is a former ProTour mechanic who most recently wrenched for Team RadioShack at the 2010 Tour de France and elsewhere. His column appears here every Friday. You can submit questions to Nick at asknick@competitorgroup.com, and be sure to check out Nick’s previous columns.Q.Nick,
As of late, I’ve noticed that whenever a rider gets into a tour jersey, be it yellow, green or polka-dot, he usually shows up to the line the next day with a matching bike, shorts, helmet, and other accessories to celebrate the occasion.

I was wondering where these products come from. Do teams with CG riders bring a “just in case” yellow bike and helmet. If so, does that put a lot of pressure on riders knowing that it’s in the truck? What happens to unused yellow bike for a rider who never takes the jersey? The practice seems a little presumptuous.
— Tim Shanahan

A.Tim,
Mario Cipollini can be credited with introducing bikes and helmets to match a grand tour jersey. It wasn’t uncommon for his team to bring yellow and green bikes and accessories to the Tour. He also changed into tailored suits for the podium, arrived in a horse-drawn chariot to a stage wearing a toga, and won more stages of the Giro d’Italia than anyone thought possible.

Amazingly, in Cipo’s time the UCI assessed a fine for each clothing “violation.” Cipollini had enough forethought to include a clause in his contract that required his team to pay all his UCI fines. It was money well spent, though. He was larger than life and his sponsors loved it.

That’s also why teams and their sponsors continue to build special bikes for jersey wearers. Before a grand tour, the team and its sponsor organize the special goods. Just as you say, the team predicts who will wear a jersey and orders up the corresponding frame and helmet sizes.

At the Tour this year, we (RadioShack) were parked next to Saxo Bank in the Tour’s opening week. The night after the prologue, mechanics were busy building up Cancellara’s yellow bike for the following day. In the truck the mechanics also had Andy Schleck’s Luxembourg national champion bike, a Specialized promo bike covered in contestants’ names that Andy rode, as well as a yellow frame for Andy. We happened to share hotels the night after Andy took the yellow jersey. Sure enough, another late night for his mechanics.

King Mario resplendent in the 1998 Tour de France. World champ Johan Museeuw is to his right.

I’m not sure how these items affect a rider’s psychological state. On some teams, the bikes are a surprise; they simply appear on the appropriate day for the rider. Many teams are superstitious about items like this. I was. It’s bad luck to build the bike before the jersey is won (it’s also a waste of work if your team never manages to grab a jersey…).

Often, the bike will go to the rider. Sometimes it will go on display at the bicycle manufacturer’s office. I’ve heard of them being auctioned for charity as well. If the frame goes unused, it’s up to the manufacturer or team to decide where it goes.

Is it presumptuous? Yes, a bit. Is it more work for the sponsors and mechanics? Absolutely. Is it worth it? Of course. There is nothing more resplendent than the leader of cycling’s greatest race aboard a custom yellow bicycle.

A.
Nick, what are your experiences with riders switching equipment as they move across teams? Are some riders loyal to one groupset or seat or tire? Or is it just business? I was always curious how riders such as Ullrich or Pantani reacted when their teams switched from Campagnolo to Shimano.
— Adam Rodkey

Q.Adam,
I’ve never heard big grumblings from riders about groupset changes. This is part of the job of a professional cyclist. It is, as you say, “just business.” I’m sure some of them have a favorite but it’s not a pro’s job to comment. He or she is paid to like something.

In truth, they are all good. Campagnolo, Shimano and SRAM all produce great components. There are differences in use and setup, but in reality even these differences are small. The cycling industry loves to debate, to draw lines in the sand. And riders love to proudly proclaim their undying devotion to a brand. To each his own, I say. But, I’ve had just as much fun riding Shimano 105 as I have pedaling around on a Super Record-equipped bicycle.

Pros often have stronger feelings regarding saddles. Miguel Indurain was religious about his Selle Italia Turbo saddle. He carried it on his person wherever he travelled. When Selle Italia asked him to try their newest model, he opened a briefcase he’d taken to the meeting. Inside was his well-worn Turbo saddle. He firmly denied their request. Of course, as a multiple Tour de France champion, he could.

For the most part though, a professional must learn to adapt to changes. Sponsors are almost always happy to accommodate whenever they can, sending new saddles to try, for instance, if an athlete is having issues.

Pros put in a lot of miles. So in terms of timeframe, it takes them a shorter period of time to adapt to changes on their bikes. They also have access to their sponsors’ product lines. In most cases, a pro can make himself comfortable using sponsor-correct equipment.

Q.Nick,
I was wondering how it works on a team if an individual athlete has a different sponsor than the rest of the team? For example when Contador finished last year’s Tour, I believe that Specialized made a deal to make sure that HE would remain a Specialized-sponsored rider. What would have happened if Saxo Bank then changed their sponsorship to Trek before Riis was able to sign him?

I know that in the past (90’s and earlier) that riders could get away with using someone’s frame or part and just slap a different sticker on said frame or part. But with bikes and parts getting more recognizable these days this is pretty difficult if not impossible to do. Thank you for your time.
— Nick Hand

A.Nick,
I, of course, haven’t seen Contador’s contract with Specialized. But I feel fairly certain that it was written so that whatever team Contador raced for would ride Specialized. Essentially, Specialized made a contract to provide cash and material to the team of Contador’s choice and then pay him a hefty fee.

None of these sponsorship deals occur in a vacuum. You have to step back and look at the broader picture. As a successful grand tour winner, Contador has huge influence within his team. When a team is looking to sign Contador, or a rider of similar stature, they must also bring his favored lieutenants, his soigneur, his mechanic and so on. His deal with Specialized is probably what made his move to Saxo Bank possible. Specialized likely offered to pay most of his salary. Saxo Bank then gets its new general classification rider and his entourage and guarantees itself a good bike manufacturer.

Specialized and Trek are probably the only two manufacturers with pockets deep enough to make large contributions to a professional team’s overall budget. This is big business.

Not many fans realize that the bicycle manufacturers have so much influence on professional teams. In fact, it’s usually they who decide which component groupset a given team rides. They will strike a deal for OEM parts with Campagnolo, Shimano or SRAM on their consumer bikes and that’s how team parts are chosen, as part of that deal.

There are, as always, exceptions. Team CSC in 2006 bought Shimano Dura-Ace parts from money it received from its other sponsors, FSA, Speeplay, Zipp, etc. Garmin has an exceptionally lucrative deal with Mavic and that supersedes the rest of its component selection concerns.

Q.Nick,
What is the best soap you’ve found to clean bikes with? I’ve just recently started using Simple Green because I’ve seen others use it, and it seems to work well at getting a lot of the dirt and grime off the bike. The fact that it is also biodegradable also just makes me feel better when I’m outside washing my bike and the runoff is going into the street. Your thoughts?
— Scott Orton

A.Scott,
I’ve always found that Dawn dish soap did the best job cleaning bikes. It cuts grease and helps rinse off any residual degreaser when washing. As a mechanic on the road, it’s also easy to find throughout the U.S. But, as you mention, it’s probably not the best product for the environment.

I worked with a bike shop mechanic who loved using car wash soap on bikes. It didn’t work quite as well on grease, but it also didn’t leave residue streaks on the paint. That saved some polishing time.

Simple Green does work well for washing bikes, but I do not like it as a degreaser. If you like the results you’re getting from it, stick with it. It’s cheap and readily available.

I was personally sponsored by Finish Line for several years and I still have a strong affinity for their bright pink liquid Super Bike Wash. Finish Line would send it in gallon jugs and I would mix it with water in my wash bucket. It worked well, smelled like bubble gum (maybe it was just the color of the stuff) and is non-toxic. Finish Line’s web site says that 60 percent of its base oils biodegrade in 28 days.

Give it a shot after you finish your Simple Green and let me know which you prefer.
— Nick

Alberto Contador and allegations leveled by Floyd Landis against Lance Armstrong and other top North American pros headlined another busy season on the doping front in 2010 that also saw the biological passport program come under fire from some who say it too subjective to be used as a stand-alone tool to impose bans.

There were plenty of doping cases to keep the cynics happy throughout 2010 — including outrageous claims leveled against Fabian Cancellara that he used a motorized bike to pull off the Flanders-Roubaix double — but none garnered as much attention as Contador and his insistence that steaks brought to France from Spain for a rest-day feast prompted him to test positive for traces of clenbuterol.

Plenty of eyes rolled at that argument, but Contador’s legal team says they have strong evidence to back their claims that food contamination is possible to trigger a positive. Others suggested that the clenbuterol entered Contador’s system through a blood transfusion that included traces of the drug from an earlier doping cycle, something Contador strongly denies.

Despite assurances by the UCI that there would be a speedy conclusion to the Contador case, it’s nearly 2011 and there’s still no decision from a four-member disciplinary panel at the Spanish cycling federation. A ruling could come by mid-January, but a challenge to the Court of Arbitration for Sport is highly likely, meaning that the case could remain unresolved by July’s Tour de France.

In May, Landis made headlines around the world when he accused seven-time Tour champion Armstrong and other members of his former U.S. Postal Service team of organized doping, charges that Armstrong and team officials vehemently deny.

Landis, who tested positive for synthetic testosterone and was later disqualified from his 2006 Tour de France victory, went public in May in a series of detailed e-mails outlining alleged doping practices. He backed up those claims in a series of high-profile media interviews, with Nightline and the Wall Street Journal, saying that he was weary of living with the lie that he didn’t dope.

Landis’s allegations helped fuel an investigation by Food and Drug Administration investigator Jeff Novitzky into alleged doping practices at the former U.S. Postal Service team. This story is far from over and will likely dominate the coming year if federal indictments are handed down.

The UCI’s biological passport continued to make waves in another major story in 2010.

Testing data collected during the ground-breaking program, introduced in 2008 to track biological markers in individual riders over time, has been an effective weapon against dopers when it’s used for target testing of suspicious athletes. There’s still quite a bit of contention, however, when it’s used as a mechanism to impose racing bans and that question really come into focus in 2010.

The early part of the year saw confirmation of bans to Francesco De Bonis, Pietro Caucchioli and Riccardo Serrano, who were part of the first wave of passport bans in 2009 for abnormal levels.

In May, the UCI announced that Franco Pellizotti, Jesus Rosendo and Tadej Valjavec returned irregular blood values and were provisionally banned. All three were eventually cleared by their respective national cycling federations for what they called a lack of clear evidence. The UCI has yet to decide if it will appeal those cases.

Defenders of the program say bans are only issued in clear cases of manipulation, but detractors say the data is are too subjective and that riders should only be banned when there’s a positive doping case.

Some of the other top doping stories in 2010 included:

• Alejandro Valverde was finally banned for links dating back to the 2006 Operación Puerto doping scandal, something he continues to deny. Italian officials banned him from racing in Italy after they matched blood taken during controls in the 2008 Tour de France to blood bags confiscated during OP police raids that were laced with EPO and later DNA-matched to Valverde. On May 31, WADA and the UCI won a case before the Court of Arbitration for Sport to extend that ban worldwide, meaning that Valverde is sidelined for two years starting from January 1, 2010. All 2010 results up to the court decision were also nullified. A defiant Valverde said in an interview this month with Meta2Mil in Spain he will come back: “They stopped from me from racing when I was No. 1 in the world and when I come back, I will be it again.”

• Chinese rider Li Fuyu of RadioShack tested positive for clenbuterol during the Dwars door Vlaanderen on March 23. The 32-year-old was later banned for two years despite his claims that he tested positive due to eating tainted meat, an argument that few paid much attention to until Contador’s case erupted in late August. In another clebuterol case, Alessandro Colo of Italy was given a reduced, one-year ban after testing positive during the Tour of Mexico.

• Despite increased testing and a reliable detection method, EPO remains a drug of choice in large part because it’s one of the most reliable and most effective performance-enhancing doping products out there. There were nearly a dozen EPO cases in 2010, including three-time world mountain bike champion Marga Fullana and David García, who was caught during the Vuelta a España. Others to get nabbed included Thomas Frei during the Giro di Trentino while Mickael Larpe and Roy Sentjens were both caught in out-of-competition controls. Gabriele Bosisio was banned for two years from a test conducted in 2009 while Niklas Axelsson tested positive for a second time and banned for life.

• Polish brothers Pawel and Kacper Szczepaniak, who roared to silver and bronze in the U23 race at the 2010 cyclo-cross world championships in Tabor, Czech Republic, tested positive for EPO. Pawel later admitted that the brothers naively believed they were taking vitamins and said they were driven to dope to pull their family out of poverty in Poland, where their father drives a bus for $300 a month. “My life is destroyed,” Pawel told Het Laatste Nieuws in Belgium. “I stopped my school studies because I couldn’t combine it with top-level competition … where can I find work? You can’t believe how much guilt I feel — against my family, but especially against Kacper. Now he’s a wreck. He almost doesn’t eat, he sleeps all day, sitting on the sofa and staring in front of him.”

• Hydroxyethyl starches made headlines in 2010 when Oscar Sevilla and Vuelta runner-up Ezequiel Mosquera both tested positive in separate incidents for the banned blood expander allegedly used as a masking agent for EPO as well as a mechanism to allow blood to better transport oxygen. Sevilla, who was also linked to Operación Puerto, has been provisionally suspended while Mosquera’s status remains in limbo and remains registered to race with Vacansoleil in 2011.

• Rui Costa — who made headlines of a different kind in July when he got into finish-line fisticuffs with Carlos Barredo in stage 6 at the Tour de France — tested positive with his brother, Mario, for methylhexanamine during the Portuguese national championships in June. The Costa brothers claim that the drug entered their system from a tainted dietary product.

Johan Bruyneel won’t be behind the wheel at RadioShack this spring after the Belgian sport director lost an appeal over his two-month ban imposed by the UCI for the “jersey-gate” stink up at last year’s Tour de France.

RadioShack insisted on wearing the jersey on the podium. The UCI insisted on issuing a fine.

The Court of Arbitration for Sport dismissed Bruyneel’s appeal filed December 16 against the UCI’s decision to ban Bruyneel in February and March after RadioShack riders wore unauthorized jerseys at the final stage of the 2010 Tour de France.

Bruyneel had asked that the ban be served in January and February instead of in February and March, meaning that the Belgian will miss out on early season races such as Paris-Nice and Milan-San Remo.

Due to the loss of the appeal, he will still be able to work during next month’s Tour Down Under, which will be Lance Armstrong’s final international race appearance.

The UCI announced the ban, along with a 10,000 Swiss franc-fine, in October following a conflict during the final stage of the 2010 Tour over unauthorized jerseys that the RadioShack riders wanted to wear on the largely ceremonial final stage concluding on the Champs-Elysées.

RadioShack riders appeared at the start of the final stage wearing black jerseys emblazoned with the number “28,” a reference to the 28 million people worldwide who are facing cancer. Aware of the original intent of the jersey switch UCI officials have vowed to donate the proceeds from Bruyneel’s fine to a Swiss-based cancer charity.

Race organizers insisted that the team revert to its approved jerseys, but the squad later donned the “28” jerseys on the final podium to receive trophies for the best-team category.

The Province: Hesjedal makes year-end list

Garmin’s Ryder Hesjedal earned accolades from his hometown paper when he appeared on a year-end list of the top athletes hailing from British Columbia.

Geelong Advertiser: Porte excited about new season

Break-out star Richie Porte sees the glass as half-full following the departure of many top riders for the new Luxembourg team of the Schleck brothers. Porte says he’ll see more opportunities at Saxo Bank in 2011 as a result. “While it was sad to lose so many good guys and some were good mates of mine it’s really thrown me a lot of opportunities that I wouldn’t have got 12 months ago,” Porte said. “I’m lucky that I’ve got such a good team and they’ve given me a really nice race program and allowed me to pick what I wanted to do.”

Toronto Star: Contador makes ‘behaving badly’ list

Alberto Contador and his clenbuterol positive made a year-end list of “athletes behaving badly” published by the Toronto Star.

SBS: Davis targets MSR

Allan Davis speaks about his upcoming season as he prepares to debut at the Tour Down Under, with the spring classics, and Milan-San Remo in particular, an important early season goal for the newly crowned Commonwealth Games champion. “I think I’m very capable of winning Milan-San Remo. That’ll be on top of the agenda and hopefully I go one better than the second I got in 2007,” he told SBS.

El Pais: Trainer linked to doping track stars

Spanish trainer Manuel Pascua has reportedly confessed to training and doping several top Spanish track and field stars, El Pais reported Thursday. Pascua reportedly confessed to Spain’s Guardia Civil that he coached and helped facilitate a doping program for several big names within Spanish athletics. Spanish authorities raided Pascua’s house in early December and found an alleged doping calendar marked with an ‘X’ to signify dates and times of alleged doping practices. “Each page corresponds to the planning of doping for every type of event in athletics, directed to the athletes that he trained,” read a Guardia Civil report obtained by El Pais. Pascua later denied the accusations before a judge in a court appearance Thursday.

Every so often you come across a must-have piece of equipment, the kind you immediately incorporate into every ride possible. And for me, 2010 was a better year than most in this department. So much so that I felt compelled to share it in a top-10 list — not a comprehensive list of the greatest products of 2010, but rather the products that I came across and used to the greatest satisfaction.

Now entering my 16th year as a cyclist, and my tenth working for VeloNews, I’ll be the first to admit there aren’t a lot of things I need to round out my gear inventory. “Need” is a relative term, of course, but I’ve got a bike for nearly every task, and I’ve practically amassed enough cycling shoes, helmets and gloves to keep my accessories fresh for a week’s worth of training.

That said, I’m still exposed to plenty of the new test product that comes through the doors of VeloNews offices. And just like everyone else, I’m guilty of the pre- group ride fashion scan, when riding buddies casually check out each other’s latest duds. Besides, old gear wears out, and needs to be replaced right?

As the managing editor of VeloNews magazine, focusing on races and riders, I’m no tech writer — we have Nick Legan, Caley Fretz and Lennard Zinn to handle that. But I am a regular cyclist and an occasional racer, and I travel regularly, usually with riding gear in tow.

(And though I wouldn’t call myself frugal, others might; I’m not a big spender, and I tend to not recommend items I view as overly priced.)

So take this for what it is, a list of recommendations for the common, non-techie rider. If you’re looking for something in any of these categories, you’d be doing yourself a service by considering these products.

•••

10. OGIO Metro Backpack
($70, www.ogio.com)

OGIO Metro Backpack

Anyone who has ever owned an OGIO product can tell you how well they are both designed and constructed. The Utah-based bag maker cranks out innovative lines of duffels and packs for outdoor activities ranging from golf, moto, BMX, skate, snow, and surf, as well as luggage and backpacks for everyday use. At the end of 2009 employees of Competitor Group Inc., which owns VeloNews, were given CGI-branded OGIO Metro backpacks. After years of using messenger bags left me imbalanced and with neck pain, a professional-grade backpack was a welcome change. And after a year of use I can say I’ve been nothing but satisfied with the Metro. At 2,200 cubic inches, it’s large enough to hold all of my day-to-day items, and the durable nylon has kept it looking like new. Some elements, though fairly standard, are well executed, such as like the fleece-lined audio and digital-media pockets and the sternum strap. One of my favorite features, however, is the back-panel side-entry padded laptop pocket, which means I never have to fish for my 15-inch MacBook Pro laptop in airport security lines. It also means the back panel always retains a flat shape against my back, no matter the shape of the contents of the center storage area.

9. “Chasing Legends” DVD Set

Chasing Legends

($35, www.chasinglegends.com)
Whether you’ve already seen it up on the big screen or not, “Chasing Legends” is worth owning on DVD. The documentary, produced by Ken Bell and directed by Jason Berry, focuses on the HTC-Columbia team of Mark Cavendish and George Hincapie during the 2009 Tour de France, however it’s really a study of the sport and its biggest event — the riders, the fans, the majesty and the passion that surround Le Tour. Though “Chasing Legends” may not be a perfect, it’s damn close; of the films that have attempted to capture the essence of professional road cycling, it’s one of the best, and it deserves a place in your cycling library. The two-disc set includes a DVD of bonus features, outtakes, and behind the scenes footage that delves deeper into today’s pro peloton.

8. “T.V. sucks — ride your bike” T-shirt

T.V. sucks — ride your bike

($30, www.alchemistthreadworks.com)
I picked this up for $20 from Alchemist Thread Works at a local Boulder, Colorado, cyclocross race this fall, and because I believe in its message, I wear it proudly. Alchemist has several cool t-shirts in its line, including a “More Cowbell” shirt any ’cross fan can appreciate. The online price for these tees is $30, which is a lot to ask for a t-shirt, even if it is made with 100-percent organic cotton and printed with phthalate-free inks, whatever that means. But if you’re the type of cyclist that boycotts the boob tube and sometimes feels compelled to wear a message across your chest, this might just need to find a home in your wardrobe.  (Note: these run large, so if you’re in-between sizes, I suggest going with the smaller size.)

7. Gorge Delights JustFruit Bars
($20 for a box of 24, www.gorgedelights.com)
I discovered these tasty little treats in June at the Mt. Hood Cycling Classic, where the Washington-based company Gorge Delights was one of the event’s sponsors. And as much as it might be hard to get excited about another energy bar, it would be hard not to love JustFruit bars. Made of 100-percent Northwest-grown organic fruit, each bar contains two whole pears or apples, with varieties flavored with other fruits such as blueberry, strawberry, raspberry, cherry and cranberry. By dipping the fruit in a calcium and vitamin C mixture — which prevents oxidation and keeps the fruit from turning brown — each bar has a shelf life of up to two years without the use of additives or preservatives. The fact that Gorge Delights supports a regional stage race is one reason to consider buying JustFruit bars; the fact that the bars taste great and are all natural is an even better reason.

6. Giro Ionos Matte Black/Red Helmet

Giro Ionos Matte Black/Red Helmet

($235, www.giro.com)
I have to admit a little bias in falling in love with this helmet. First off, I spent the 1990s in Santa Cruz, California, home to Giro Sport Design, and I knew and rode with several of the folks involved with the company during its pre-Lance Armstrong era. I’ve worn Giro helmets through the years, and each and every time, a size medium goes from the box and strapped to my melon with virtually no adjustments. For my head, the fit is so dialed that Giro’s new Roc Loc 5 fit system — which uses a ratcheting, micro-adjustable dial — is almost wasted. But what sold me on this lid was the matte black/red color scheme. Not only am I sucker for matte black, but black, red and white are VeloNews colors and match the team kit perfectly. (Hey, I said I was a little biased.) There’s no question $235 is a chunk of change to pay, even to wear the same helmet Lance wore this year. If you can, look around for 2010 model, which are on closeout for closer to $175 as the 2011 product replaces them.

5. Da Kine Split Roller LG Suitcase
($175, www.dakine.com/travel-bags)

Da Kine Split Roller LG Suitcase

In terms of travel, my luggage situation during 2010 was a departure from years past (pun intended.) The 5,800-cubic inch OGIO Terminal suitcase I’d used since 2006 finally expired; though the bombproof outer material was still in great shape, the zipper slowly self-destructed. I was disappointed when OGIO declined to honor the bag’s lifetime warranty, claiming it was intended to cover the lifetime of the product — not my lifetime — and only against defects in materials and workmanship. I saw the zipper’s malfunction as a defect in material, however OGIO saw it as “normal wear and tear.” And though I was offered half off of MSRP towards a new Terminal, in this case $125, I turned it down on principle. Estimates to replace the zipper amounted to nearly the same cost as a discounted replacement bag, and though it pained me to discard an otherwise perfectly good bag, that’s what I ultimately did.

I took the new Thule Crossover 87-Liter Rolling Duffel with me to the Tour de France and used it throughout the fall, with mixed reviews. It’s a sharp-looking bag, but at 3,418 cubic inches, not really large enough to consistently handle my travel needs, which often requires space for a helmet pod, cycling shoes/pedals and clothing, a camera bag, street clothing and toiletries. Also, over the span of a handful of flights, the exterior of the Thule bag was torn several times, perhaps distinguishing itself as the soft-shell duffel it is, rather than a bulletproof suitcase. (This might have been caused by a few instances of overly aggressive baggage handling, however the exterior of my OGIO fared better over four years than the Thule did in four months.) With a $300 price tag — and given Thule’s sterling reputation for making durable car-mounting systems — I expected the Crossover to be more resilient. In the future it may serve as a race bag, to be thrown in the car, rather than an air travel bag.

To finish off the year I ordered a Da Kine Split Roller LG suitcase. Though not as rugged as the OGIO, nor, in my opinion, as stylish as the Thule, at 6,000 cubic inches the Split Roller is large enough to handle all of my gear, rugged enough to withstand disgruntled baggage handlers, and its surfer-style plaid material has enough flair to stand out both on the baggage carousel and in the corner of the hotel room. At $175 it’s competitively priced — $75 less than the OGIO and $125 less than the Thule — and I’m happy to have the space I need, and a zipper that I can put my faith in. Whether or not it can outlast the four years the OGIO was in heavy rotation remains to be seen. One online review I came across claimed that after four years of “fairly light use” (two to three long trips per year), the bottom seam gave out, and Da Kine declined to repair it as part of the bag’s lifetime warranty, citing “normal wear and tear.” Sounds familiar.

4. Rapha Winter Hat

Rapha Winter Hat

($50, www.rapha.cc/winter-hat)
Hardly a new product, Rapha’s winter hat is an item I’ve lusted for, but never owned, until 2010. And now that I have one, I can only ask for a moment of silence, in honor of cold Colorado winters spent wasted riding without the perfect cycling hat. It offers the warmth of a skullcap, the shade of a cycling cap and the optional ear protection of a headband. I love the style, the functionality, and because it’s Rapha, the classic, retro style and immaculate quality. Made in Italy from stretch Sportwool, the winter hat offers a balanced level of insulation — not too heavy, not too light. It fits nicely under a helmet, and if needed, the ribbed ear guard folds up for extra breathability. If you live in a warm climate, you won’t have much use for a garment like this, but if you live and ride in areas where staying warm is paramount, this hat — along with the right pair of gloves — might just be the single most important piece of gear you can own.

3. Beaker Concepts SpeedFold Riding Wallet

SpeedFold Riding Wallet

($18, www.beakerconcepts.com)
For all those out there still stuffing plastic baggies into their jersey pocket full of money, credit cards, I.D., lip balm, etc. — there’s hope for you. Riding wallets have come a long way, and if you’ve never used a riding wallet, you should. Beyond the minimal space they occupy in your jersey, riding wallets keep things organized and protected. For years I’ve used the Jimi wallet ($16, www.thejimi.com), a small, slim plastic shell that folds out into a money clip. I’d still recommend the Jimi, but this year a friend turned me on to the SpeedFold, and for a few reasons, it’s replacing my Jimi. For starters, it’s bigger —just big enough to stuff an iPhone inside — but not so big that it takes over a jersey pocket. Secondly, it’s made of ballistic nylon, and though it has a zipper, it feels nearly indestructible. Inside there’s a coin pocket, space for business cards, and a clear outer pocket for ID. Blackburn has a similar product to the SpeedFold, the VIP Zip Wallet, which retails for $20 and is more oriented toward the iPhone crowd, with a headphone port and clear cover for screen access while still zipped shut.

2. Ryders Drill Photochromic Sunglasses

Ryders Drill Photochromic Sunglasses

($90, www.ryderseyewear.com)
I like the understated style of Ryder’s Drill frame (in black, though it comes in a variety of colors), but what impressed me with these glasses were its combination photocromic/polarized lenses, meaning they not only cut down on glare, but they also darken on exposure to ultraviolet radiation. While out riding, a friend and I briefly swapped glasses, and I was amazed by the clarity of the Ryder lenses; it was like comparing the difference between an analog and high-definition TV set, and I didn’t want to give them back. The fact that the Drill fits my face perfectly and uses an anti-slip nose pad and temple tips was an added bonus. My black-framed pair came with a gray shatterproof, polycarbonate lens and two sets of spare lenses, clear and brown, that are not photochromic, as well as a nicely designed zipper case to keep the whole package protected. You can spend more on sunglasses, and if you’re intent on wearing what the top pros wear, you’ll have to. But before you do, you owe it to yourself to try a pair of Ryders photocromic lenses.

P.R.O Ultrasoft Shell jacket

1. Pearl Izumi P.R.O Ultrasoft Shell jacket
($160, www.pearlizumi.com)
There’s nothing about Pearl’s P.R.O. Ultrasoft Shell jacket that’s wrong; in other words, everything about it is right.  It has a perfect, slim tailored cut (not too loose, not to snug), perfect weight (neither light nor heavy) and perfect design (stylish enough to wear to dinner, sporty enough to wear to a cyclocross race.) I love the asymmetrical cuffs, the plush faux fur interior, the oversize metal zippers and the minimalist use of logos; I appreciate that there’s nothing on this jacket that screams “cyclist.” (That’s what the Alchemist Thread Works t-shirt is for.)

A few months back I attended a congratulations party for Tayor Phinney in Boulder, Colorado, and spotted Pearl Izumi president Juergen Eckmann sporting the P.R.O Ultrasoft Shell; that’s a testament, considering he can choose from anything in Pearl’s line. Simply put, in 2010 this was my go-to jacket for all but the warmest summer months. At $160 it’s not an impulse buy, but it’s worth every penny. Perhaps the best compliment I can give is this — I’ve considered buying a second jacket, to keep as a spare for the day Pearl stops producing this model.