New Kit

Christmas is an expensive time of year and I wholly accept I am privileged to be able to enjoy the gift of giving to family and friends when so many others maybe struggling. With that in mind I consciously don’t send out cards, I give to charity instead. I used to make a one-off donation but now I tend to sponsor friends who do a charity event or challenge throughout the year. The ones that pop up on Facebook with a Just Giving page or something. I’m a sucker for someone making an effort to do something nice or taking themselves out of their comfort zone. I’ve given a few quid away this year and all well deserved, so well done to them.

I also like buying stuff for the reasons others do. Occasionally I will splash out on myself and I’ve done it again. I usually research my purchases well but recently I’ve just gone fuck it and pressed the button on impulse. It will be no surprise it’s cycling kit so let’s have a look at what I’ve spunked my hard-earned wonga on!

Galibier is a cycling apparel brand based in Northern Ireland. I’ve bought loads of their kit over the years. I think I’m on Mistral jacket #4 or #5 alone. It’s a small outfit with a relatively small selection of kit but they ship it all over the world. Great quality and exceptional value. Some of it is a bit eclectic and not to my taste but the basic jackets, jerseys, gloves etc and, in particular, the shorts are superb.

I was lying in bed one morning, bored just doom-scrolling and popped on the website and found this jacket in the sale in my size. Orange and grey are my new favourite colours because they go with my bike. I think Orange is also a sophisticated, posh Hi-Viz. Much better than yellow isn’t it? It took me 0.02secs to add it to the basket and press go.

It’s a unique thing because if you look carefully you’ll see it has two zips. Inside the basic jacket it has a fleecy kind of zip up gilet sown into the body which acts as an extra layer. If I get too hot I can simply undo it. 3/4 of the zip is covered by a velcro flap with a magnet at the top to keep it flat and flush too which is a nice touch.

It’s bright, its warm, it’s a good fit and I bagged it for £77 delivered. Awesome sauce.

It’s a bit of a cliché but it is true. Buy cheap, you get cheap. The last few years I’ve bought cheap helmets from Planet-X. For the money (circa £25 or less) they are great value and it has allowed me to own a few simultaneously too. However there are compromises with the fit which is where the money on more expensive helmets probably sits. Recently the ratchets have begun to play up and fall apart plus the straps never sit flush with the side of your head so I decided to just get a decent helmet again.

The last ‘really-good’ helmet I owned was a Kask Mojito. It was really nice. Great fit, low profile on my noggin, great ratchet, nice straps. Another cliché. If it ain’t broken don’t try to fix it. So true, so I just dialled up Kask again on the interweb and found a nice neutral grey-black Mojito3 for £75 delivered from Merlin Cycles. No need to look at anything else. Impulse overcame me again and it was the quickest helmet purchase ever seen.

It arrived today. The design has changed a little but you can just tell the difference in the quality of fit when I popped it on my head. I’m very happy with it.

Time for a clear out now.

Adios.