Something Different From Summit Different
Posted October 12, 2011
Any Colour You Like…As Long As It’s Pink
Pink. Here’s a historical factoid for you: it used to be considered a man’s colour. Pale blue was more suitable for girls, being gentle and calming. Pink was seen as aggressive and in-your-face, and would therefore inflame the delicate sensibilities of us meek little women.
I know this. Now you know this. It still doesn’t make me wild to wear the usual black-and-pink or grey-and-pink sportswear commonly on offer for women. I suppose I could opt for a multicoloured branded jersey but I don’t see why I should pay for advertising a company.
And let’s talk about choice. Go to Wiggle, click on “jerseys and tops”, and tell me why there are 309 in the ladies and 485 in the mens. And on a number of other sites I’ve visited, the categories are “jerseys”, “shorts”, “gloves”…and “ladies”, because the range is so small they just lump the few token pink things into one category.
Summit Different
So it was with delight that I saw the cycling jerseys on offer at Summit Different. Let me be honest: I have never worn a proper, made-for-the-task cycling jersey before. My bottom instructed me to invest in some padded shorts, and of course I have a neon rainjacket – but the zippy, huggy, lairy jersey? No. Mostly the prices have put me off. How different can it possibly be to my lovely, scabby, well-worn supermarket t-shirt?
Maybe all that choice was a bad thing. At first I found myself wanting to go for the black-and-pink tattoo-style one. I must be conditioned to go for pink now! I shook myself and ended up, after much agonising, with “Mwahaha” – a strident yellow top with grinning cartoon face and “mwahaha” emblazoned on the back in red.
The Test Ride
I had planned on going on a long, hilly test ride at the weekend. That was until the car had a strop and I was faced with an unexpected 18-mile cycle to work. So I can tell you that at 6.30am on a late September day, this jersey was warm enough to get me going without needing a jacket over the top. Once I had battled over Oswaldtwistle Moor, I had certainly heated up somewhat. At this point the jersey revealed why it was a little more expensive than a cotton t-shirt. Unlike a cotton t-shirt, a product which likes sweat so much it gathers it all up and hangs onto it, the jersey kept me feeling cool. Being dry as I slogged and wheezed up a hill was an unfamiliar sensation. But I liked it.
I ordered a size 12, which was a good fit – if anything I could have gone for a 10, as it was well-cut, but with a 12 I could wear compression clothing underneath, if I get the urge.
Once at work I had to bundle all my gear into a bag out of the way, and when I came to change back into it for the ride home, I found my socks still unpleasantly damp but the jersey was a pleasure to put back on. It didn’t smell, either, even after spending 9 hours in a crumbled ball.
The ride home was a little different. I scooted through the city to get the train part-way home, and this is where I started to attract attention. Any cyclist will be used to being shouted at – we’ve probably all had the “your tyre’s flat! Ahahaha made you look!” and variants on that theme. (PLEASE tell me you’ve all had that, and it’s not just me being persecuted.) It was rush hour and I stopped at some lights, behind a bus. I wasn’t sure if the bus was pulling in left after the lights, so I hung back. Whereupon two louts on bikes zoomed up behind me screaming “Mwahahahahaha!” and lurched up the side of the bus, out in front of it, through the red light and away.
Please don’t think I’m implying these jerseys cause bad behaviour in neds. They were neds anyway.
But you have to be aware that if you chose a jersey because it’s striking and eye-catching, you are going to catch people’s eyes – and you don’t get to choose who sees you.
I also got waved at and pipped by some white van drivers. I don’t usually get a lot of that.
I waved back, of course.
The Practicalities
The jersey has three pockets on the back, useful for my train ticket, but no zippable pocket. There aren’t any washing instructions but the Summit Different team were very helpful and returned my emails speedily: just wash as normal. So I threw it in with my shorts and some other bits and pieces, and it came out like new – in fact it felt almost dry as I pegged it out.
It’s good quality and well-stitched. I took some getting used to the higher neckline at the front, but I think all jerseys look like this. It has a lower cut back which meant I wasn’t flashing the cars behind – to their relief.
These jerseys are made by SprintDesign® in Australia, and this is the first time they’ve been available in the UK – so you can be pretty sure you won’t commit the fashion faux pas of turning up at a sportive in the same top as 150 other people.
Overall I was impressed with the jersey, and more than impressed with what Summit Different offers. The only problem is, which one do I choose next?
More Info
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Top picture via drifsHave you perused our store lately?
