The Tenn Outdoors Espresso jersey – made from real coffee!

“It’s actually made of coffee…”

Out of all the new kit vying for our attention at Eurobike, some less desirable than others, Tenn Outdoors made us really perk up. Despite not being actual roasted Colombian beans, their riding gear got our hearts racing. (That’s enough caffeine-related gags – Ed.)

The Espresso jersey is intended as an all-day riding top, so to put it through its paces we went racing downhill in it. Not quite the same thing, but a downhill day’s mix of gassing through technical singletrack like a sweaty nutter and sitting around is a good test of the comfort of a jersey. If it dries slowly, you get cold and if it’s going to get stinky you sure know about it by the end of the day.

Not a downhill top by any means, but perfect testing for odour capabilities (Photo MRF Media)

By this point you are probably wondering what we’re going on about with the coffee, so stick the kettle on and let’s get down to it.

The S.Café® fabric comes from an eco-friendly background. S Café say that 7.6 million tons of the good stuff are produced each year, and the majority of the waste goes to landfill. By incorporating waste coffee into the fabric, they extend the use of the bean, and the coffee fibres absorb odour indefinitely.

Waste coffee grounds are incorporated into the fibres during production, and as your sweat passes through the fabric smells are ‘sucked’ into the pores. To anyone who’s been foolish enough to store ground coffee in the fridge, this makes sense – the coffee ends up tasting of the other fridge contents.

Here’s S.Café’s explanatory video on the fabric’s pong-removing and other properties:

And it certainly seems to work. The jersey is comfortable on the bike, and after a day’s enthusiastic thrashing it doesn’t pong too much.

The Espresso jersey uses S.Café fabric on the front and back, with side panels made of a more standard polyester. Under the hem there’s the welcome addition of a sunglass friendly cloth.

Just at the bottom of the jersey there’s a cloth for getting moisture of your specs

Our size medium sample fitted well, but perhaps could’ve been slightly more fitted and the long arms did feel a bit loose. This top would be great as a 3/4 design and I spent most of the day with the sleeves pulled up.

At the end of a rather humid, damp day of constant pedalling we felt dry and the material had done its job of wicking away the sweat – it would only be better if it actually smelt of coffee!

Verdict

A great buy for your riding closet and at £39.99 we were also pleasantly surprised on the value.

Pros

Eco-friendly material
Reduces post-ride pong
Light feel
Great value

Cons

An overall closer fit would be welcome

More information: Tenn Outdoors Espresso jersey
Sizes: Men’s S – 3XL; Women’s 8-18
Options: Short-sleeve version (£37.99); women’s version; also in brown.
Price:  £39.99

Made from Fox’s Aircool fabric, the Tech short-sleeved jersey is airy, loose-fitting and comfortable.

The Fox Tech jersey is made from a lightweight Aircool fabric that gives the jersey the ability to really cope well when it’s hot or if you’re riding hard enough to generate a lot of heat yourself. It’s a breezy top, make no mistake, and took to wearing a thin short sleeve base layer underneath on cooler days.

If worn next to the skin when it’s warm enough, the fabric moves moisture quickly away from the skin to the surface where it can evaporate away, leaving you dry. There’s a few mesh panels which contribute to the jersey’s ability to keep your temperature regulated.

This is understated by Fox standards of design. We approve.

Fit is very relaxed, but even so we found our medium size sample on the generous side. There’s more than enough space to squeeze some body armour under, so if you’re planning on hitting the uplift as well as doing some trail riding, it’s a versatile top. Multiple panels give it a good shape, it hangs well off the shoulders and is comfortable around the arms.

This is one of Fox’s more understated designs with a reasonably subtle style, compared to some of the more outlandishly motocross-inspired tops in their range. Other colours include black or white, but we think the red is the pick.

Mesh panels boost cooling

Verdict

A stylish jersey with a very relaxed fit and great sweat wicking properties, and a late-summer bargain if you shop around a bit.

Pros

Looks great
Good fit
Aircool fabric

Cons

Some may find the fit too relaxed

More information: Fox Tech MTB SS jersey

Price:£45

A closer look at the Aircool fabric

A classic jersey that does everything you want a jersey to do.

We’re generally fond of Endura products because they’re full of clever details, and great value for money. That’s definitely the case with the Endura  Hummvee jersey.

You get a textured fabric that wicks sweat quickly away from the skin so you stay cool and dry. The fabric is fairly chunky which made it ideal on the cooler summer days, and is handy when you’re riding into the setting sun as the temperature drops.

There are three large pockets around the back . The middle one has an extra zipped pocket built into it that’s ideal for safely storing your keys.

A small piece of soft material on the inside of the hem makes for a handy glasses wipe.

The textured fabric wicks sweat quickly away and has enough volume that it turns into a decent insulator if you slip a jacket over it to trap the air.

In a design touch that shows you that Endura clothing is designed by people who actually ride bikes, the shoulders have silicone patches, designed to keep the straps of your hydration pack in place, which also helps stop them wearing the fabric away.

When it gets all too hot, a long zip lets you scoop in tons of cooling air on the climbs, and when fully zipped up a small ‘zip garage’ in the collar prevents chaffing.

The fit of the Hummvee is best described as loose and baggy. The side panels have a stretchy hem to give the jersey a bit of added flexibility when you’re riding. It’s one of the baggier jerseys we’ve tested in a while so bear that in mind if you prefer yours a bit closer fitting. I’m usually a jersey size medium, so that’s what we asked for – I could probably have worn a small.

Three large pockets and a smaller zipped valuables pocket, ideal when you want to leave the hydration pack at home

The Hummvee jersey goes well with the Singletrack II baggy shorts we reviewed recently.

Verdict

An understated and somewhat classical-looking jersey that gets the job done at a great price. Top marks to Endura.

Pros

Packed with features
Loose fit
Hard-wearing shoulders
Great wicking fabric

Cons

Nothing really

Price: £34.99
Options: Available in grey, green, red or white; sizes S, M, L, XL, XXL
Info from the source:  Endura Hummvee page

The official word

Here’s what Endura has to say about the Hummvee

The official word

Rapid-wick textured fabric
Contrast mesh panels underarm/side/back neck
Long reflective CF zipper with snap-down puller
Triple rear pockets
Rear zipped reflective pocket with media port
Microfibre glasses wipe integrated into side seam
Silicone back pack gripper shoulder prints
Available In Sizes: S, M, L, XL, XXL

POC Trail Tee £45

POC, a Swedish company, are reasonably new to the mountain bike world, arriving from the winter sports protective gear market.

They crossed over into mountain biking a couple of years ago with some really cool and unique looking garments, helmets and body armour. Now they’re catering for those who want light and relaxed fitting trail and cross-country riding wear.

The Trail Tee is brand new, and joins the Trail shorts we tested recently. It’s their first offering for those trail and cross-country riders who want lightweight but loose-fitting clothing with the style POC have become well known for.

The comfort of this jersey really surprised me. I thought it would be warm in the hot weather, but that just wasn’t the case. The fabric, enthused with Polygiene, a treatment that helps prevent odours from building up, breathes exceedingly well even during harder riding efforts. The fabric also dries out reasonably quickly, to the point we never really experienced that horrible sweaty back feeling with a hydration pack you get with some jerseys.

You can also get away with wearing it off the bike too, and we’ve taken to wearing it in the office and other places away from the bike, it doesn’t look out of place (we don’t think so anyway, others may disagree).

Wondering what POC stands for? It’s Piece Of Cake. Obviously…

Verdict

For those who want a cool looking lightweight trail riding jersey, look no further.

www.pocsports.com
www.2pure.co.uk

Intrepid Apparel is a relatively new rider owned UK-based clothing company that we first saw at the Cycle Show last year, where they impressed us with a range of boldly designed jackets, shorts and jerseys.

We’ve been testing the Classic Race jersey (£59). It’s cut from a thick fabric that is a good companion for the cool temperature of recent weeks. Getting a shift on reveals the fabric is breathable; I didn’t get overly hot in it, when paired with a short sleeve base layer underneath.

It’s nicely designed with contrast flat-locked stitching, with the seam around the neck taped so it’s comfortable next to the skin. Around the back there’s one zipped pocket and there’s a neat zipped pocket on the left arm, just below the elbow – I’ve not found a use for it yet but I can see it being useful in the Alps for storing a lift pass, when you need it conveniently to hand.

While the jersey impresses, it’s the Campaign baggy shorts (£85) we’ve been really blown away with. They’re cut from a heavier fabric making them perfect for harder hitting riding, downhill or aggressive call-it-what-you-want aggro riding. Basically they’re going to put up a fight in a crash and walk away laughing.

Thing is I usually prefer baggy shorts made from lightweight fabric, but the Campaign shorts surprised me. They’re not actually that heavy when riding and they’re shaped just right that there’s no hindrance when pedalling. Still, if it’s a speed ride you’re setting out on, the Campaign’s are best swapped for something a little lighter, but for all other riding, they hit the spot.

They’ve been particularly useful in the colder and wetter conditions of recent, with the generous length providing some coverage over the knee joints, and extra warmth around the hips.

I love the mad green colour, a departure from the more sombre grey, brown and black shorts that dominate my wardrobe. They have proved tricky to keep clean; after one muddy ride recently, they had to go through the washing machine twice before the mud splatter up the back of the shorts was removed.

They’re packed with cool little design touches and features. There’s two zipped cargo pockets plus two angled pockets for somewhere to put your hands when kicking around in the car park waiting for your mates to sort themselves out. The fly is zipped with a double button closure, and there’s two waist adjusting ratchets.

I just love the chunky oversized plastic zips and ratchets that give the shorts a distinctive look, plus the little logo toggles attached to the zip pullers.

Verdict

Worn together the jersey and shorts make a great combination. Uniquely stylish with a bold and refreshingly colour palette and reassuringly chunky design features that lend themselves perfectly to mountain biking. We’re nothing but impressed.

www.intrepidapparel.co.uk

OK, so this probably isn’t the time of year to be writing about bib shorts and short sleeve jerseys, but just because it’s cold out doesn’t mean people stop needing them. For the past month I’ve been some new clobber from the latest brand in the business, Ride clothing, and have been thoroughly impressed.

They brand is the brainchild of a few people with years of experience working in the cycle industry, and decided to put their collective knowledge into producing a nice range of cycle clothing, with the aim of offering high performance value for money garments.

They’re based near the South Downs so have ideal riding right on their doorstep for testing the clothing. It’s all designed in the UK and manufactured to high standards in Italy. And we’re pleased to report that the fit, often an issue, is just right: the bib shorts and jersey give a really good fit on this tester’s medium sized body.

BDS Men’s Jersey

The BDS Men’s Jersey uses a Meryl Performance fabric. It’s very stretchy, which ensures it fits like a second skin. It’s well shaped around the shoulders, arms and waist, comfort is good.

The fabric is also antibacterial and, when you’re getting a sweat on, it manages to do a very good job of pulling moisture away from the skin and filtering it through to the next layer to deal with, or the air if you’re not wearing anything over the top.

Considering the low price tag of just £39.99, it’s packed with the kind of features you wouldn’t normally expect at this price. French seams increase its durability and the full length zipper is a cam-lock design. Under the arms live mesh panels for improving ventilation in this sweaty hot spot. The sleeves are a little longer than we prefer, but the stretchy material does allow a range of adjustment.

Three rear pockets embrace all manner of baggage, but we found the stretchy material made it tricky to access the pockets while on the move, and also experienced a little too much sag with loaded pockets – best to put most of the stuff in your hydration pack and keep the pockets empty then. A small zipped pocket is ideal for your car keys or, with its waterproof lining, a mobile phone.

Forza Italia Bib Short

Next up, the Forza Italia Bib Shorts use a six panel design to ensure a good fit around the body. A similar stretchy fabric to that used on the jersey is employed to good effect, meaning these bib shorts fit as well and comfortably as any more expensive offerings.

The chamois is a comfortably shaped foam design with cutaway areas to relieve pressure. On the first ride with these shorts, I put in a five hour stint over the South Downs Way, and I’m happy to report that comfort was incredible (especially considering the low price and the competition they’re up against). They’re easily the most comfortable of the many budget priced shorts I’ve tested.

Flat-lock stitching features throughout, another sign that no corners have been cut, and the leg grippers do the job they’re designed to with little complaint of discomfort. And best of all, at £26.99 you’ll still have plenty of change left over.

Verdict

We have been really impressed with RIDE Clothing. Not only do they represent great value for money, they’re fantastically well made and fit really nicely.

Available now from www.ridebosh.com