Bespoke Blog
The Bespoke 1500: Week 2
Serves me right for getting cocky and saying 500km in a week is no big deal! I should have added the caveat 'as long as you stay healthy'...
Alas the Scott family has not, and it started with my littlest one throwing up and then passed to my wife. Now the average middle-aged cyclist might be reasonably selfish at times, but even I know my limits - riding for 3 hours in the rain whilst my bed-ridden wife looks after three terrors will simply not fly.
So the end of week 2 (and start of week 3) was a non starter; the end result being only 4 rides (3 on road and 1 gravel) and less than 400km done.
A big Week 3 is needed!
However Week 2 was certainly not a write-off, and was mainly a Pas Normal test-fest, and I got to spend some quality miles on some great kit:
This Week's Kit Tested:
PNS Defend Bibshorts
I love autumn/winter bib shorts. They are my 'thing'.
Whenever I wear full winter tights they never feel right, straps dig in, and the whole thing feels constricting. Whereas winter shorts and leg warmers are perfect, and without leg warmers you can then wear these well into Spring.
The Defend are similar feeling to the Q36.5 Wolf; and are made from waterproof and wind-repellent material. The main attraction is the superb pad and great race cut. You simply put them on and forget about them which is all you can ask for really.
Buy them online
PNS Heavy Base Layer
An absolute peach of a bit of kit. Base layers make the man, and they don't come much better than this.
It uses the very clever Polartech powerwool; which is wool next to your skin but a synthetic material on the outside to wick away sweat. Most impressively if never got smelly!
I liked it so much I bought a second one to wear as a base layer around the house!!
Read more and buy online
PNS Winter Sock
There is something wonderfully Christmassy about getting new socks!
These PNS ones were just the ticket. I was a little surprised how big they were; I am a UK 11 and chose L/XL and they feel every so slightly baggy. Not an issue, but definitely looser than equivalent Assos styles.
Warmth-wise these were great around 5°C, but whenever it got colder than that I turned to my "extreme" Assos Bonka socks instead. So these aren't ideal for the very coldest of winter days, but because of that are probably more versatile for typical UK conditions leading through to Spring.
Buy online in a choice of colours
Will the weather hold, will the winter bugs pass? Stay tuned for Week 3...
The Bespoke 1500
Barry decides to ride 1500 km in all conditions this December; all in the name of product testing. It rains, a lot.
Read more