Another day another ride it’s nice to be able to say that, especially this time of year. Yesterday I went out for a little over an hour. The second day of riding is always a little harder then the first, but I think the third is even worse. I hope to experience that today but it isn’t looking so good at this point. I got to play with the power tap a little more bit I seemed to be having more fun watching the grade read out on my HAC 4. I still think I need more rides in to really get a feel for it and to start using the power tap more.
The exciting part of the ride today was I got to wear my new Louis Garneau shorts. The Air Gel Bib. I’ve been thinking about carrying more Garneau products in the store. I like to test and try out some of the products before I bring in the product. This bib short has a wealth of features; Lycra Power, Power Mesh, Crabyon air gel chamois and Alveo. It also has a music or communications pocket on the upper part of the bid. I was most intrigued to try out the air gel chamois. About a year ago the sales rep brought around his sales manager who was very instrumental in the design of the chamois using the Crabyon material. His passion for the product was hard to miss and immediately I wanted to try this out. It just took me a little longer then I thought it would. The Crabyon material that it is constructed from is out of the medical field, where it is commonly used in the treatment of burn victims.
The Craybyon is said to have moisture keeping properties which I believe as well as to inhibit bacterial growth, accelerates wound healing, permits slow and steady release of chamois lotion along with lifetime anti-bacterial properties. All of this information was taken from one of the tags.
While I was riding I found the shorts to be very comfortable and not overly hot either. Although it wasn’t a super hot day, so we will have to see how they feel as the summer heats up. Interestingly I didn’t have that clammy feeling when I took them off, which leads me to believe that the Power Mesh was doing it’s job. The Power Mesh is designed to be super breathable and add to your comfort. As the season progresses we will see how these shorts hold up to the abrasions and the washings.
A new trend in cycling shorts is to cut the lycra so it grips your muscles tighter or compresses them. It is said to increase the performance of the muscles by assisting blood flow to them. On long rides it is said to add ten to twenty percent better resistance to fatigue. Maybe this led to an easier day two on the bike then I thought I was in for but I can’t say for sure. I plan on testing out some other shorts that have the same properties of compression and I’ll let you know.
As I get more miles into these I’ll update my thoughts on these.
Have a great day and get out and ride!
