The case for specialist kit



This is the big question, dividing the lycra-clad and the lycra averse. For many, cycling gear is a triumph of practicality over style. Lucinda Greasley, a production editor at a fashion magazine, wears black Ronhill leggings, lined with fleece, which keep her warm all winter, and a red waterproof jacket. “I don’t even like walking into the newsagent wearing my gear,” she says. “I get changed very quickly, and only in sight of other cyclists.” There are only two pieces of kit she would wear on and off-road: brightly coloured Saucony trainers and a roomy Herschel rucksack. A matching rain cover is next on her shopping list.

Civil servant Luke Dealtry agrees that day-to-day clothes won’t cut it. “The ride through London is hectic enough without worrying about comfort – or about replacing suits because I’ve caught my trouser leg on my chain,” he says. “As a mechanical activity, there’s lots of stretching, chafing and rubbing, which means the stitching and shape on your normal skinny jeans or trousers doesn’t last long. So you have a bit of a trade off.” His solution? H&M shorts, waterproofs and Uniqlo hoodies then changing into a suit at work.

The case against specialist kit



Perhaps this debate hinges on how fast you cycle. E Tautz tailor – and master of all things dapper, Patrick Grant – rides at a sedate pace on a huge Pashley Roadster. In his hour commute from Marylebone to Wapping he wears “Tautz jeans or chinos in a denim or heavy cotton drill and a navy t-shirt or past its best pale blue or blue and white striped shirt, and a sturdy shoe or boot. A blouson or a jumper for the winter.”

Laura Bailey on her bicycle Photograph: Laura Bailey/Photograph: Laura Bailey

Laura Bailey - a model and writer – is similarly stylish when cycling. “I tend to feel at my best on my bike, and don’t really believe in special cycling gear. Some of my favourite things - Chanel trainers, Prada check trousers, and skinny Rag & Bone layers, under a Nike hoodie and a duffle-coat - lend themselves well to London riding.” Her only likely modifications will be a sensible change of shoes and a pink fluro Stella Kids mac – in the largest size – in case of rain.

Malcolm Mackenzie, editor of We Love Pop magazine, goes slowly, too, on an old green Elswick from the 1970s and is defiantly lycra-free (“I’m too thin. It would look comical.”) Instead, he says: “Shirts, ties and jackets are fine – I just make sure that everything isn’t to tight-fitting.” His Levi’s Commuter 508 regular tapered water tesistant trousers are a good halfway house. The specialist men’s cycling range, which launches a women’s range in the spring, features fluro turn ups, subtly reinforced bottoms and water resistance. “But I basically bought them because they were a nice fit,” he says. Liz Thody, a fashion stylist, has a trick when she is wearing a skirt to work: she puts on cycling shorts underneath, hitches the skirt up for movement if necessary, then takes the shorts off on arrival.

Fancy footwear?

Now here’s a conundrum. Surely nice shoes are only going to get wrecked by mud-splatter and bashing into pedals? The answer, suggests Dealtry, is Converse trainers: “because getting them scuffed is half the point.” Mackenzie has an even more bold trick: “I wear Tesco carrier bags over my brogues when it rains – sometimes they get caught in my spokes, but they keep my shoes dry. I keep a special stash for this specific purpose. I get some funny looks, especially when I’m plodding to my bike with plastic bags on my feet, but it’s a quick and cheap solution.” Plastic bags, sure, but none of the cyclists owned up to the use of overshoes.

The best brands

Rapha is the dream for most stylish cyclists, while Gore, Endura jackets, Muji macs, Stella for Adidas and Dhb get honourable mentions, too. “I’ve just bought a pair of black Rapha winter gloves,” says Dealtry. “Nearly all other options have hi-viz branding and look like they’re for cyclists. These don’t. I wanted something I could wear with my suit or with my Acne coat if necessary. They’re really expensive, but they should last three years.”

Designer and tailor Patrick Grant with his bicycle STARWORKS GROUP Photograph: STARWORKS GROUP

Helmets

The consensus is that full-cover styles are the most flattering: “I wear a black helmet, a bit like old style motorbike helmets,” says Thody. “I really loathe the racing style helmets with the gaps.” For Bailey, it’s a grey helmet by Bern. Grant, on the other hand, goes helmet free in town (“I’m sure I should but I’ve just never been in the habit”) as did Dealtry, until his father sent him a black Giro helmet for Christmas, with the note: “We do worry about you.” “It doesn’t look great on me,” he says “but I seem to have the sort of shaped head where everything looks ridiculous”. But how to protect the barnet? Says Thody: “I wear a Cos cashmere beanie, which protects my hair, then put my helmet on top. It takes about 15 minutes for hair to settle back on arrival at my destination but it doesn’t mean every day is a bad hair day.” So that’s one thing sorted.