Cyclist
In The Drops: Snug Velocio jacket, speedy Apidura Aero Bags, Ass Savers merch, Castelli’s WorldTour aero jersey and The Holdovers
Last year, I was charged with the graveyard In The Drops slot on 27th December. Luckily, it will be Ewan Wilson limbering up for his big fat drop on Boxing Day this year. For now, it’s been left to me to cover the early December doldrums, which I am absolutely fine with.
First things first, the new issue of the magazine #170, is in the shops now. If you don’t already, there’s no time like the present to subscribe.
We’re in the thick of the will-they-won’t-they season right now. The pro riders, pro teams, and the races we will be watching next year are all sheathed by a thin fog of speculation-inducing distance. Write it and they will come, or so Ewan says. Wilson wonders whether cycling will be more Battle Royale or Harlem Globetrotters next year and scores each team for their transfer window so far. Robyn compiles the big headlines from the cycling world in Pro Log and speculates on how you beat a problem like Pogačar.
Our UK climbs series continues with Rosedale Chimney, a road I accidentally cycled down before I knew what was happening and certainly didn’t turn around to see what I’d missed. Further afield, chief web whip Will Strickson rolled his office chair up Passo Rolle in the Dolomites and brought his bike too. Turns out, it’s pretty big.
In tech, we’ve shared some bits from the magazine, including our review of some of the most bemedalled road shoes of the decade, Nimbl’s Ultimate Glides (spoiler: they’re good), and J.Laverack’s partially 3D printed titanium superbike, the J.Ack III AM64.
We’ve also updated our buyer’s guides for arm warmers, packable rain jackets, leg warmers and mudguards. Let’s see what treats have shown up at Cyclist HQ over the past few days and move into the drops.
Velocio Alpha Air Jacket
Did you know that Velocio is owned by groupset manufacturer SRAM? As part of its drive to collect lots of other brands in horizontally connected parts of the cycling industry Velocio was acquired in 2022. That, however, hasn’t affected Velocio’s drive to produce high-performance kit with a focus on sustainability.
The Alpha Air Jacket is designed to keep riders warm down to seriously tough temperatures (there’s a lot of snow on the product page.) Obviously, this is done without using PFAS materials.
To provide warmth, Velocio uses Polartec Alpha Insulation on the front and sleeves of the garment. It’s non-bulky and light so you don’t really feel the added padding when it’s on. There is jersey-weight fleece across the back and underarms to provide a thicker layer of heat retention but it also offers some rain protection too in the form of a DWR coating.
Velocio has added a two-way zipper to make extra ventilation easy to employ on the fly, while also adding reinforced pockets that the brand says won’t sag when loaded up.
There is a notably generous spread of sizes, going from XS up to 4XL, so there really will be a fit for everyone.
- Buy now from Velocio (£190)
Apidura Aero Bags
It’s happy days for ultra cyclists. Luggage now officially makes you faster. On the coattails of releases like Canyon’s Aero LOAD system – a frame bag that makes the Grail gravel bike faster – and Trek’s RSL Aero bottle – which saves watts when loaded into the accompanying cage – carrying extra stuff is no longer slow, bulky and lame. It’s fast, svelte and cool.
Enter luggage fat cat Apidura and its new Aero System. It’s a pair of frame and top tube bags that Apidura says makes bikes faster, regardless of whether they’ve actually got anything in them. The frame bag has a tucked away zipper but the top tube bag is zipless, closing firm with some weighted seams.
This is yet another rip tide in the groundswell of development around gravel riding and racing. For anyone who thought gravel was staying happily in the plaid shirt, ripped jeans and IPA-fetishising world of ultra-chiller Mitch Docker, then think again. The phrase ‘marginal gains’ even makes an appearance in the Apidura spiel. Jesus, Mary and Joseph – the zombies of Team Sky are coming for your sandals Lachlan Morton.
Apidura claims that the system can save an average of five watts at race speeds. Unfortunately, that means 36kmh and above, which constitutes about 4% of my gravel riding speed, some of which is when I get on the train and forget to turn off my Wahoo. There’s a whole lot more info in the white paper here, but one thing’s for sure: even if you don’t ride fast enough for it to grease you up, it’s still luggage innit.
The bags themselves track with my experience of Apidura products: hard-wearing and well designed. In fact, I finally handed down my old Apidura seat post bag after over five years of use. It still seemed absolutely fine. These bags are made from Hexagrid, a rigid, scratchy material that is translucent up close, incredibly light and both PFAs and PFC free. It’s all super simple to attach via Velcro and rubber bands and you can get a read on what size you need for your frame from Apidura’s website. It’s good, basically.
- Buy now from Apidura (£188)
Ass savers merch
The Ass Savers back-of-the-napkin genesis story must be a quick one. What shall we call our low faff portable mudguard – the Saver of Asses or just Ass Savers?
There are fewer things less glamorous or more useful than a mudguard, but I was particularly drawn to the low profile and close tyre contact that the Win Wing 2 Road Stealth enables. Attachment is so simple even an absolute dunce would struggle to mess it up, and you can just wiggle it up and down your seat stays to lock in the desired position. This model weighs just 64g is suitable for tyres up to 35mm. There are gravel and MTB versions available too.
I prefer not to attach proper mudguards to review bikes, so the Ass Saver is ideal. I can pop it off my town bike and onto the review bike if the conditions indicate it’s going to be necessary. I went for the black version so that it matches the largest number of frame colours but the Swedish designers cater to the wild and wacky.
The packet includes frame-protecting stickers and some cable ties that make it trickier for an opportunist to pinch your precious arse protection.
Ass Savers also sent over one of its Papersky Nara caps that adds some serious structural integrity to the ordinarily feeble cycling cap. Coming all the way from Japan, the Pig Snout Camp Cap from Velo Spica is made by Keisuke Kawashima, a guy who is worth checking out. Complete with rear drawstring and a classy blend of breathable, high-quality materials, these caps really are a cut above.
The Bits N’Peaces cap is designed by Jody Barton for Ass Savers and combines loud aesthetics with a nice message under the peak. No prizes for guessing what it might be. Jody also designs prints for Ass Saver mudguards, tote bags and bidons.
- More info at Ass Savers
Castelli Aero Race 8S Jersey
It’s annoying that we have to haul our bodies with us when we want to go cycling, because they sure as hell slow things down. That’s the conclusion Castelli has also come to, claiming that a cyclist’s body accounts for 80% of drag.
Ipso facto: the Italian brand’s Aero Race 8S jersey aims to slicken up the body as much as possible. Using Computational Fluid Dynamics to mimic the behaviour of airflow at speed, Castelli has arranged the seams of the jersey to produce the smallest amount of drag. This is jersey worn by the Soudal-QuickStep team in WorldTour races so you will literally be decked out like the pros in this one.
The ribbed shoulder fabric will feel familiar to riders accustomed to wearing aero jerseys. Castelli says it saves 6% in its CdA (coefficient of drag area) measurements versus the outgoing jersey, while comfort has been prioritised elsewhere.
The body fabric is incredibly thin, feeling barely there in most places. This contributes to an overall weight of 129g. You’ll need to think carefully about your sizing, as this Castelli kit fits very differently to the non-aero kit. For example, I am a Large in their new AirCore jersey but the XL here was just about the right size for me. I might have even handled a 2XL.
- Buy now from Saddleback (£169)
What we’re into this week: The Holdovers and Paul Giamatti
In this era of the AI content slop and Hallmark Christmas films, finding something both Christmassy and decent to watch feels like an option that’s no longer represented on human Venn diagrams. Obviously, you’ve got your stone cold classics like The Muppet Christmas Carol (a benchmark of modern cinema that transcends its genre pigeonhole), Die Hard, The Snowman, Home Alone, Elf, Little Women, Catch Me If You Can and Bridget Jones – (come at me genre police) – but beyond that the streaming services are a plentiful buffet of tepid offal you’d reluctantly serve to a dog.
Normally the prime offender, Netflix has for once come up with the goods, paying to add The Holdovers to its roster, featuring Oscar-winning Paul Giamatti of Sideways fame.
Are you looking for a dour-faced down-on-his-luck misanthrope with a penchant for know-it-all-isms and hatred of entitled children for your film about a posh boys’ boarding school in 70s America? Look no further.
Here’s the setup. A few unfortunate children have been abandoned by their parents for the winter break, and one unlucky teacher – Mr Hunham, of course – has to look after them. (Not only is Classics teacher Hunham reviled by his students for his general demeanour, relentless boozing and medically diagnosed fish odour, but his fellow teachers think he’s a pain too.)
Along for the ride is grieving school cafeteria manager Mary Cook, whose son, formerly a student at the school, has recently died in the Vietnam War. Sure, it’s a tried and tested formula, not unlike Shrek or Ice Age: unlikely trio of nemeses go on quest and sort of start to get on, a bit.
As well as the asphyxiatingly tight script – hold tight for the cusses exchanged between the school children – it becomes gradually more moving as the film winds on. Plus, it was shot on some kind of real-film adjacent technology, so it feels like you’re watching some hybrid of Groundhog Day and Twin Peaks.
I’ve already said too much. It’s phenomenal. I’ve watched it twice this week and I’ll definitely go again once I’m back at the parents’ yard. Take a bow Paul and the gang.
The post In The Drops: Snug Velocio jacket, speedy Apidura Aero Bags, Ass Savers merch, Castelli’s WorldTour aero jersey and The Holdovers appeared first on Cyclist.