Swedish-based POC have only been in the bike business for a few years but have made impressive inroads, with a distinctive styling, bold colours and interesting technological features.
For 2012 they’ve added some new trail clothing to their range, and updated the knee and elbow pads. We’ve just received some of it for testing, here’s a first look.
Trail Tee – £45
The ‘Light Green’ colour of this trail jersey is certainly going to get you noticed on the trail, but don’t worry, other more practical and conservative colours are available! It’s a loose fitting t-shirt made from 100% high quality cotton, which is soft and smooth to the touch. Fit is t-shirt causal, with a generous fit that is a perfect for those who don’t want anything ‘fitted’.
It’s been treated with Polygiene, a treatment that helps prevent odours from building up meaning even when you get a sweat on, it won’t pong. Five sizes available from XS to XL and three colours.
Trail shorts – £75
Lightweight shorts with just the minimum of features are the favoured short of choice here at Bikemagic, and these Trail shorts from POC fit the bill perfectly. These are the company’s lightest short, and are made from a very thin fabric that is designed to be tough and durable.
Subtle branding with just one large POC logo down the leg, a couple of pockets ideally placed for tyre kicking in the car park before a ride, and a zipped one lower down the leg. Belt loops around the waist for tailoring the fit and a zipped fly complete the details.
Joint VPD 2.0 Knee pads – £110
It’s increasingly common for trail riders to wear knee pads on some of the rougher trails around the country, and are no longer purely the reserve of death defying downhill racers. Lightweight and comfortable pads for all-day riding have grown then in popularity, and these are the latest from POC that fit that mould.
They use a Visco-Elastic Polymer Dough (VPD), a shock absorbing polyurethane foam that is soft and comfortable during normal use, but under an impact it stiffens up soaking p the energy of the crash. It’s clever stuff and goes a long way to making these pads especially comfortable for riding, while still offering the crash protection that traditional hard shell pads offer, but without their restriction on pedalling.
The pads come in two lengths, long and short; we’ve got the short ones to try out. The VPD armour is contained inside a Kevlar reinforced stretch fabric with a contoured and stretchy back panel. It’s pre-shaped to fit around the knee comfortably; slipping them on in the office reveals a very satisfactory fit. There’s a Velcro strap at the very top and an optional strap located about halfway down. And to prevent them ponging too badly on all-day rides, a polygiene anti-odour treatment should keep them, if not smelling nice, smelling acceptable.
Joint VPD Elbow pads – £85
Following along the same lines as the knee pads are the Joint VPD Elbow pads. There’s nothing more annoying than elbow pads constantly slipping down the arms, and this has been the focus with the fit said to keep them securely in place. Again a polygiene anti-odour treatment should keep them smelling fresh.
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