jdotconnor

Just got back into cycling a few months ago. To not make a huge investment in something I may not continue with, I bought a jersey/bib kit off amazon I knew to be fake Castelli. It's pretty obvious and I knew it when I bought them. I know this only helps the people that make the fake stuff but now I'm ready to invest in some nicer stuff.

The jersey was pretty bad. You can see the obvious bunching at the bottom like a pair of sweatpants as well as the biceps that caused pressure. Although it's mostly white it didn't really wick moisture at all and got kinda heavy the more you sweat. It also was fairly thick with poor ventilation. It stained very easily and didn't clean well. One thing I also noticed is the zipper was on the wrong side. No idea why. Every time I put it on I reach for the wrong side.

The shorts are much better. Again with little experience I can't really remark on the chamois. It did have fairly nice mesh straps though I wish the had a lower back opening like some I have seen as I'm looking for quality bibs. Rubbery material was on the legs to keep them from riding up. There is no sign of seams separating after ~ 500 miles but, having just moving to Charlotte from Phoenix, the sun did fade certain panels made from different materials.


I had some pedals I got right when I bought my new bike with points at performance bike that didn't work so I returned them. I recived the store credit points back so I got one of their ultra jerseys. After wearing it on Saturday for a 17 mile (28K) ride I can already see where the fake jersey lacked even compared to this mid-entry level jersey.



I was somewhat hesitant to get black. Coming from the world of competitive soccer when I was younger and golf I have always hated darker colors in the sun. Even with the advances in Dri-fit, Under Armour and all lightweight "technical" fabrics. Living in AZ you learn to love white shirts and no dark colors even though I like navy and black. I was suprised how cool it was even in 90+ degrees Fahrenheit (32*C). The elastic pinching at the arms and waist is gone With the "elasticized" hems that Have silicone to grip. Comfort is greatly improved with better material, venting and hems.

Questions:

Regarding cycling fashion faux pas

I've never been a fan of directly Coping pro athletes. I never wore tiger woods Nike clothes or Rickie Fowler bright colors. Also never wore a Chelsea or Barcalona jersey to a pick up game of soccer. But I do like the way a matched kit looks as smug as it may seem to some. Also I like it when the shorts have something more then just black even though some seem to be against this unless your getting stuff for free or even paid to wear it. Do people with unmatched kits generally like to stick to certain colors? Do you prefer to match your bike colors with your kit?

These may seem like dumb questions but if I'm dropping some coin on quality stuff I might as well be comfortable physically and not embarrassed wearing a orange jersey, bibs with green, a royal blue helmet and a black bike with blue accents.

rpenmanparker 

If you are a normal human being and the jersey fits you horribly, it is the real thing Castelli or at least it might as well be. I don't have a classic cyclist physique, but I am not terribly overweight either. Say I have a BMI of around 26 or 27. I have tried on Castelli on several occasions and always found them to have a completely bizarre shape. Compared to other brands they are at least two sizes too small. When I get up to a size that I can wear without danger of asphyxiation, there is so much extra fabric in some places that it just looks stupid. The common explanation that the jerseys are intended to fit the rider when they are on the bike in an aerodynamic position just doesn't wash with me. They are just too extreme.


The zipper on the wrong side suggests you got a jersey intended for the opposite sex.

rms13

Your question is way too long. But I'll say I bought a couple of fake kits from China. Bib shorts fell apart after 2-3 months of riding. Jerseys are still going after a couple of years but obviously not as high quality as other stuff I've bought. I have some cheaper bibs from Performance and some Primal that I got on a 50% off sale and those were well worth paying an extra $30 for because they have already lasted 4x as long

Fly2High

I think in Europe or some parts of the world, a men's article of clothing has the zipper on the opposite side as the US.

Gladius

Real Castelli has the zipper on the "wrong" side. Real Castelli is very small - I get a Large in most brands, in Castelli I have to get an XXL.

I like some of the team reproduction kits (e.g., BMC), but living and riding near Boulder you actually see real pros on the road here and so I don't like wearing the kits.

rpenmanparker 

Good thinking. It is important to know your place and not get above it. Being disapproved of is a horrible feeling.

I, on the other hand just say, "**** 'em if they can't take a joke."

Gladius

Good thing I only care about what people on the road think, and not jackwagon trolls on internet forums.

rpenmanparker 

Ouch! Speaking of not being able to take a joke.... But what did you expect when you admit to caring what some doofus you don't even know might think about what you are wearing?

I suppose the winner of the TdF autographs all those yellow jerseys so all the past winners can wear them, not for fans. Some of every dollar you spend on a team kit goes toward team expenses which include salaries for the riders. You'd better believe they are happy to see you wearing their stuff.

Athens80

Apparently I'm bizarrely shaped. The best-fitting jersey I have is a Castelli.

himespau 

I've heard some of the fake stuff comes from the same factories and uses the same fabric and other stuff obviously does not. It'd be nice be able to tell which was which.

rpenmanparker 

No, I'm sure they are made to fit Froome and such. Perhaps that describes you too.

cleansheet

All my Louis Garneau shirts and other tops have zippers on the 'wrong' or 'female' side. Damn French Canadians.

Dan333SP

Truth. It's one of those bizarre bike forum fallacies that real pros will be offended if they happen to see an amateur wearing team kit. Why would they care at all? It's not like a fat guy in a Sky kit is disrespecting the profession, he's just a fan, and no one is mistaking him for a real pro anyway.

alathIN

If someone from the BMC team saw you wearing their kit, they should thank you for buying into the licensing that supports their paychecks.

By analogy, if you're walking downtown wearing a Peyton Manning Broncos jersey, and he started giving you a hard time, I'd say that reflects poorly on him, not on you.

indyfabz

Yep. Back in '95 I bought a commemorative jersey when I did a tour built around the Giro. Confused me for a bit.

rpenmanparker 

Good to know. Truth be told, I never unzip a jersey all the way so I wouldn't really know. I just unzip it half way and pull it over my head.

seymour1910

Agreed. IME, across the board pro athletes usually really like when they see someone wearing their merchandise. If you watch American football or attend the games you will generally see players give the ball to the person wearing their jersey. My son got a big shout out from Cam Newton because he was wearing the Cam Newton Under Armour cleats at a football camp.

Like Dan333 said, a lot of the silly things you read on BF just don't apply outside BF.

MattFoley

I think it's less about a particular pro team seeing you wear the kit, than it is about other people mistaking you for or assuming you are a pro (particularly relevant in Boulder) and all the pitfalls that might entail.

cleansheet

I gladly wear my one team kit that I got at a Fondo where it was handed out by the team/bike co. sponsoring the event. Don't suppose they mind.

And I am clearly not mistaken for one of them.

Now the guy i saw in Saratoga State Park wearing the Sky kit yesterday, that may have been Richie Porte, or his Asian twin.

Drew Eckhardt 

500 miles can be just 2 weeks once you work up to decent training volume.

Black shorts and white helmets are timeless. They also match every jersey.

I ride an unpainted grey titanium frame with parts that are either clear coated carbon fiber or shiny silver anodized aluminum, black and white saddle, and black bar tape. I usually ride rims that are an inoffensive anthracite gray during the day but retro-reflective at night. That works with all clothing.

FWIW, you can often get last-year's models, custom program size samples, and team left overs for 50-75% off which isn't out-of-line with knock-off pricing.

That makes your wallet hurt less when you're buying to cover six days of riding clothes plus extra for cooler weather and perhaps faster rides.

I did that after loosing all my middle age spread and being forced to buy new clothes. I ended up with more Louis Garneau size samples than I can count and a few random team left overs (United Healthcare Voler thermal jersey, Holowesko Hincapie aero jersey) but did not go broke.

Drew Eckhardt 

Castelli doesn't fit me at pro-peloton size, shape, and body fat (although my genes weren't kind in the power department) - while made for cyclists up top the belly is oversize for people who eat too much gelato. Same height and weight as Contador according to my annual physical last week

There's no apparent logic behind their sizing.

Dan333SP

What pitfalls are those? The average non-cycling fan would say, "Hey, are you a pro?" and you'd say "No, I just like this team." and they'd go about their day without another thought.

The average cycling fan would know you are not a pro unless you really look the part (aka shiny smooth legs rippling with muscles, .5% body fat, exceptionally nice training bike, possible team car following you). In the highly unlikely case that you do look the part, they'd maybe ask if you're the real deal, you'd say no, and then they'd go about their day without another thought to the matter.

Basically... who cares? I could watch pickup soccer games from my then-girlfriend's balcony in Miami when I lived there. Half the people on the field would show up in Real Madrid or Barca gear, and no one gave them ***** for not actually being on the team but wearing it to a soccer game anyway. I have a hard time grasping why people are so self-conscious about everything involving their appearance when riding bikes.

rmfnla

Unless it is really his jersey...

Shuffleman

I have no problem buying generic things or saving money by going that route. Buying fakes though is simply wrong. It is stealing so I would never knowingly do that. It does not matter what factory it is made in. There is no proper justification for stealing.
I have never understood why anybody would want to wear the jersey of another person. I do recognize that others in all sports do like it though. It is a very subjective thing. I would think that a pro would love seeing his jersey though as it is his imprint in the world. As for the pitfalls, I am not sure what they are. I doubt that many people actually know who riders are or even care. The sport is way outside of the mainstream of public awareness.

Gladius

The fact that you keep overanalyzing my opinion on this apparently means you care about what I think and worry about. That's odd to me for someone who professes not to care.

I'm not talking about what Taylor thinks when he rides past me. I'm talking about the people who say "what a d-bag, he's wearing a BMC kit, probably thinks he's trying to fool people." Like the guy who actually came up to me when I was wearing my old System U jacket - "Huh, you probably can't even name anyone on the System U team."