Ride on

   
Here we go again!
Lululemon in action, once more with yet more items on their "commuter" line called Ride on.
You can view the whole spring collection here.

I have a lot of negative comments about most of these items so I will abstain... Or almost!

- I see no point in riding pants/shorts/crops of any kind, with the specific exception of protective rain pants, which they do not offer (and even these I don't wear, even under the heaviest of rains).
Regular pants do very fine.

- Same with the vest and blazer.

 

 

 - Somebody needs to explain to me the difference between this cycle yoga bag and a regular yoga bag.

- I could not stop laughing at this bag below, marketed to ladies, yet for which a top tube is required for it not to slide down and sit on the front wheel... Well yeah cause they seem to see no use for fenders. Let's hope this girl never rides in the rain.

Somehow, the Lululemon "designer" do not seem to think this bag should attach to the handle bar. See the "attachment system" below, i.e. more than basic.

- I'll skip the mitts, because, man, who does not already have some...

More interesting and useful are the rain jacket and the Henley top.

When it rains, you need to wear something on top to avoid getting drenched. Just like when you're walking around with that umbrella and that trench coat on.

Now, why couldn't you wear said trench coat on your bike? Good question. All I can think of is the lack of stretching ability in the coat fabric making it uncomfortable and tacky. Plus, the lack of venting means you end up soaked in your own sweat. That's my experience.

What is Lululemon offering?

A fancily designed but very expensive two-way stretch, breathable, water-resistant rain jacket. 

The price? 298 $ CA. Yeah right...

And I like the old design better.

As for the Henley

As a person who sweats *a lot* in the armpits, the moisture wicking, breathable fabric is welcome.

Plus the special armpit venting system looks interesting.

 But 88$ CA? Jeez.

I'll wait until it goes on sale.

Bottom line, the only item I whole heartedly support is the bike bell. There are still people biking around with no bell (as well as no lights, no fenders, no brakes etc.).

So cute and so useful! People, get a bell, any brand but get it!!

Specialized-Lululemon women team

  
Humm...
Don't know what to think of this... Check it out!

Notoriously not a big fan of road cycling, I find this interesting nonetheless. For a while now, I have been trying to understand what Lululemon see in this new venture. Are they really trying to attract female cyclists to their brand? Or what else?

Anyone who has ever stepped into a Lululemon store knows how big of a stretch this is: it is a master split to perform.

Yep, I agree, cycling is on the rise... Yet their last two attempts at targeting the cycling community were major flops. This is how I got my Batwoman kit almost half price, remember? And this, in spite of the fact that a great deal of yoginis and yogis do cycle around (here in Montreal).

So...? 

Lululemon is a very "girly" brand. Ok, not girly in a pinky marshmallow way. In a "inspirational", fulfillment seeking, self-realisation, lovey-huggey kumbaya way. It is very "Yin" despite all the achievement talk.

Road cycling and all, that's very "Yang". Yeah, I know they host running clinics and man! Hot yoga is *NOT* all that "Yin"...

Still, something is off. They can't even attract men as a market: the male line is incredibly anemic and has been so for years, despite several attempts to spice it up. Their previous "commuter" lines were fiascos, contrary to their recent ballet line which sold like hot dogs. And now we are to believe they are into road cycling... Female road cycling... Are they really that many, seriously? More than the troves of dance ladies desperately waiting for Lululemon to actually launch a stable and permanent line of basics? Pllllease!! We (almost) see as much Lulu as Sansha in dance studios nowadays... All yoga and running gear...
And assuming they really are enough road cycling ladies, do they need yet another cycling brand, what with all the Pearl Izumi et all already on the market? Why should Lululemon hop into a battle for a market that is foreign while turning its back on a captive one? Go figure!!!
Maybe they are assuming their cycling venture will turn out to be similar to their running venture?

Anyways...

Well, good luck to them. Hope it works out...

Tadam! Meet Batwoman

     
     

   
Ha ha ha!
I am such a weirdo!

Last week, as I was both browsing the latest online edition of Momentum Magazine and noodling around on their website, I came upon an article about how Lululemon had being putting a commuter line ("see me ride") on trial for this fall.
Big shock: I was not aware of this even though I am perpetually lurking around. So I went to the website: rien, nada... some biking leggings... nothing transcendent. Next, I rushed to the nearest store only to find a 198 $ CA price tag on the "see me ride" poncho as well as even more obscene prices on the pants. And that was before the 15% sales taxes.

What a scandal! 198 $ CA is, in my opinion, way too much for what boils down to a fancy trench coat made in Bangladesh! I understand that locally made products require a sales price that allow the seller to make a living but come on!

Funny though, once back home, the "see me ride" items are nowhere to be found on the website. I then started browsing the net and oh boy, were people cruel with this line! Yet they were right: the entire line effectively ended up in the "we made too much" section, i.e. translation: it went on sale because nobody bought it as they found it too expensive and completely hideous.

Then all the sudden, the new sales price was (kinda) more aligned with I am willing to cough up... I dropped by the store again to properly try and evaluate the items. Turns out the poncho was quite to my liking.

I gave it some time and dug the issue a bit.
I am one of those who rides through the stormy summer rains without a care. However, spring and fall have been a whole different ball game, with half-assed solutions: outdoorsy water resistant pants and jacket that make you sweat so bad you might as well have biked in the rain!

A little Internet research turned lots of these:

i.e. glorified garbage bags.
I also found lots of  extremely expensive stuff, such as Madame de Pé and the like. Very good looking but, heu, non merci!

So finally I decided to adopt the bat-winged cycling poncho that I find very nice, comfy and airy: I tend to sweat buckets at the armpits. I hated being all tightened up clothes so the wide wings are awesome. Big hood to put all my hair. I hate bright colours, especially on my bike: cycling ninjitsu all the way! Lights are supposed to be bright. If someone can't see them, their licence should be suspended, period.

One step further into cycling accessories whoredom!