While I still kit up (to a lesser or greater extent) for bigger rides, I converged biking and daily wear about a dozen years ago. Search and State and Mission Workshop on the kit end and brands like Outlier and Swrve along with Icebreaker and the original Ibex provided daily wear options that performed well on a bike. Outlier generally leaning a bit more to the office friendly and fashion end and Swrve with more gussets and articulation leans to the all day on a bike side. Added bonus is that both companies work with interesting high performance fabrics with Outlier having that at its core and Swrve generally doing special runs via their blk_label line. Both companies also originally had all of their production in NYC and SF respectively and I try and support small businesses with sound ethics where I can. Speaking of that, Kitsbow would be another mention as I really liked their wool Icon shirts, but they have recently gone under.
Fashions change, style endures. Keep wearing those skinny jeans and high boots if you like them. Whatever gear makes a bike most accessible to you is the good stuff. -Justus Mpls, MN On Saturday, September 9, 2023 at 9:44:06 AM UTC-5 Tom Goodmann wrote: > I empathize, Leah. Not being one for beausage in any area of life, I am > okay with wear and character on boots, but not with chain grease on pants. > You might try various ankle straps; those with velcro seem to have limited > effectiveness, as your experience suggest, and wear out over time. But > there are many others out there that may be more effective, either with an > extended strap mechanism or with a clip design (as seen in old British > films). I'm sure you can find a design that will have you rockin' the 90s > grease-free! > > Tom (who commuted to campus by bike for years, mostly grease-free) > > On Saturday, September 9, 2023 at 10:13:39 AM UTC-4 Bicycle Belle Ding > Ding! wrote: > >> This might be a thread most of the guys scroll right on past. But where >> are my RivSisters? Are you here for this? Can we talk about fashion on the >> bike? >> >> The 90s styles have come back this fall, and since the late 90s was my >> era, I am in raptures over here. Cargo pants and wide leg jeans are back, >> and better. High-waisted (instead of low-slung) and in every fabric you >> could dream up. I have thrown myself whole-heartedly onto this band wagon. >> I have a super wide leg denim trouser, a relaxed cargo pant in green, a >> charcoal cargo pant in straight leg, and a black corduroy wide leg trouser. >> >> But. Don’t we all know that the absolute zenith for bike style was the >> era of the skinny jean with tall boots? Skinny jeans tucked into tall >> riding boots never got caught in any drivetrains. You never, ever worried >> about getting grease on your pants legs in the skinny jean era. >> >> Yesterday I decided to cycle to downtown and meet my husband for lunch. I >> really wanted to wear my new pants but did some hand-wringing over getting >> them dirty. I remembered the reflective ankle strap buried in my Saddlesack >> for such a time as this, slapped it on and rode off. But those straps work >> better in theory than in real life because by the time I got home, >> well…here’s a photo. >> >> I thought about this. I don’t want to only dress for the bike. I want to >> have some cultural relevance and not be stuck in outdated clothes (ironic, >> since I’m trying to wear 90s, here) just because they are good for biking. >> My bike gives me freedom, not limits. My husband says, “You’re just going >> to have a grease spot on your pants. Accept it. It’s cute.” >> >> My other concern is my boots. The spikes on my Spank Oozy pedals will >> mark up the toe of my Red Wing and Frye boots when I use the toe to move >> the pedal to 2:00. I buy shoes that are meant to last, and it does pain me >> that these are getting chewed up. But, I think I’ve decided to accept the >> damage to expensive boots, too. If I don’t, I’ll be stuck in Keens and >> sneakers year-round. >> >> And then I wondered about all of you. Do you only dress for your bike? Do >> you wear what you want? Do you even care? >> >> Meanwhile, I did order more ankle straps, figuring more is more. While >> I’m not too distressed about my army green pants getting greasy, I might >> feel differently if the pants were a lighter color. >> >> Leah >> > -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "RBW Owners Bunch" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to rbw-owners-bunch+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. To view this discussion on the web visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/rbw-owners-bunch/4ad0b155-cb5f-4011-803f-d3c29d3efb5an%40googlegroups.com.
