Future Trends Gear Guide (& Giveaway)
04. Apr, 2011 
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The future trends in clothing and fabrics are constantly making improvements that will really affect our lives. Science is bringing new technologies to the clothing we wear as outdoor athletes and cyclists that can make us safer, warmer, and keep us smelling better than ever before. We had the chance to check out these great products and technologies while at the 2011 Outdoor Retailer show. We even brought a few items back with us to give away to our readers (see our giveaway below!)
This is a group of runners who are 500 feet away. How many can you see?
The Science of Being Seen
One of the most important technologies coming out is an improvement in reflective materials. Being visible to cars can mean the difference between life and a casualty. Most cyclists know enough to have a rear and front light on their bike when riding in low-light conditions, but the addition of reflective materials on their clothing can make them even more visible. Runners often try to fit their training time into a hectic day by running at dawn or dusk and many think wearing white will help them be seen. In the beam of a car’s headlight, reflective material can be seen at much greater distances than a white shirt, giving drivers more time to react.
This is that same group of runners as seen from 100 feet away. How many do you see now? It's a great example of how 3M's reflectivity increases visibility at a distance.
3M Scotchlite Reflective material uses retroflection technology. Just like the eyes of cats or deer, it is especially designed to return light directly back to its original source. 3M products feature retroflection through the use of glass bead and prismatic technologies. 3M is working with clothing makers to develop active wear meeting 360 Enhanced Visibility requirements, so the clothing is visible from all angles: front, back and sideways. The research goes into making the product as effective as possible and putting it in the right places on the clothing and in the right amounts to increase visibility.
We are hoping cycling clothing manufacturers will incorporate this new technology in great-looking jackets and vests. To know if a product has 3M’s new technology, look for the 360°Enhanced Visibility hangtag on apparel. Which brands are using it in some of their products? Check out this list.
Keeping Your Head Warm
We love the venting on our helmets to keep us cool when the weather is warm, but when it’s cold outside, the cold wind that blows over and through the helmet vents can give a cyclist something even worse than an “ice-cream headache.” The windburn on the ears can cause pain even an hour or more after a cold ride. Chaos makes great-looking hats for skiers, but they also make great under-the-helmet skull caps which offer a great combination of technology: moisture wicking to keep you dry, a double layer of Dri-Release fleece to cover your ears, and form-fitting comfort.
Paula and I tested some skull caps from Chaos which we found to be perfect for the early spring and late autumn rides with temperatures in the high 40’s and well into the 50’s. The Mistral Vapor cap has some mesh on the top which makes it more breathable and more similar to a headband, yet so much more comfortable than a headband. The Adrenaline Combo Skully is made of Dri-Release Wool and provides great cold-weather comfort without uncomfortable weight or thickness.
Using Your High Tech Stuff
Picture this: it’s cold outside, really cold and your cell phone rings. You can pull off your gloves or be tricky like some guys I know and use your nose or tongue to turn on the I-Phone in the cold. But you don’t have to do that! Clothing is adapting to our love for our technology. 180s has been making gloves with Tec-Touch so you can play MP-3 devices, use your cell phone, and program your GPS or bike computer with the gloves on. The Tec-touch is a special conducive material on the thumb and forefinger which allows the wearer to manipulate their technology. 180′s also has mitten-to-glove style with a mitten hood which can be pulled back to access the gloves.
We’ve reviewed the 180’s gloves before and we highly recommend them. They work especially great for runners but can also be worn over your fingerless bike gloves for added warmth. 180’s also makes ear warmers that will accommodate ear buds. They work very well for runners, but their use for cyclists is limited in my opinion. I discovered they are fine for ear covering at when riding at slower speeds, but faster speeds will have wind whistling coldly into your ears.
Stay Odor-Free
Another future trend we appreciate is smelling great even after a hard bike ride! Agion Active is a cutting edge technology designed to take the stink out of your sweaty clothing. Agion Active has made some shirts for testing out their fabric yourself.
Agion uses silver in their fabric to control bacteria on the surface of clothing. Both microbial-based odors and odors which are absorbed and wicked away from the skin are eliminated. It isn’t merely a fabric treatment that eventually washes out, the Agion technology stays in the fabric for the complete life of the clothing. It’s a naturally based, environmentally-friendly treatment and is a great fit for performance clothing. I’d love to see it used in bike commuter-type clothing, especially jackets, which tend to absorb and take in lots of sweat during a ride. Look for Agion as a co-branded product: made by several different clothing manufacturers, yet with a hang-tag that reveals the textile has the Agion technology for odor absorption.
If you wish to try the Agion Active shirts yourself, they are offering some to testers. (Yes, I have tested an Agion Active shirt and really noticed the difference between that shirt and another after a similar workout. )
Cool Gear Giveaway:
Chaos and 180s have contributed some great products to use for those chilly rides and runs. This is an especially good giveaway because we will have FOUR winners.
* 
The Chaos Mistral Vapor cap (shown at left)
* Chaos Dri-Release Wool Adrenaline Combo Skully & Adrenaline Heater Gloves
* 180s Ultralight Gloves for Women(pink) (features zippered wrist pockets) as well as tech-touch + Exolite Ear Warmers (Gloves are shown above)
* 180s Ultralight CRG Glove for Women in black + Exolite Ear Warmers
(ear warmers are shown below right)
HOW TO ENTER THIS GIVEAWAY:
To be entered in the contest for these great products, simply tell us about what new technologies you are grateful for or what you would like to see in the near future. Please use a real first name. We can mail to addresses within the US or Canada. This contest will go from now until April 18th (tax day!) We will then choose FOUR winners!
I am grateful for the technology used to my carbon bike frame so light and awesome! I also like the technology used to create clothes that keep you dry in rainy weather (I live in Seattle). Technology that I am looking forward to? Any. I am a technology dork.
I ride at night quite a bit so I love the 3M reflective material on my clothes. I think it would be cool if they used that same 3M technology in bike frames to make them reflective and more visable at night.
What I’d like to see in the near future is a helmet with a traffic SAFE audio system embedded in it near the ears. Ideally, this system would allow you to wirelessly connect to your ipod to listen to tunes at a slightly louder (but still safe decimbel) level when no traffic around, and would mute entirely in heavey traffic and would reduce in volume with a short warning like “car back” when no traffic has passed for several minutes and a car is now approaching. The system should not be an earplug system; it should be a speaker system that does not obstruct the ears. Obviously the helmet would have to have a special kind of noise/motion sensor that was car-specific. Is that a big enough challenge? LOL! Anyways, that’s my dream! I love my tunes when I ride but I want to be safe too.
I am grateful for all the amazing information I can find online. Everything from free training programs, to nutrition programs!
As for newer and better technologies, I am constantly grateful for the advent of carbon fibers and reflective materials. I have a all carbon road bike and I’ve added reflective tape to it in key areas, thus allowing me to stay out a little longer, reach a little deeper, and chase that final mile home in the setting Spring sun.
I like being seen at night with new reflective materials and being able to use my Ipod without having to take gloves off.
3M has some amazing products, including life saving materials in the hospital. I have seen MANY, MANY 3M products changing and saving lives it is awesome to see their products being used in biking and outdoor clothing items. I love it!
iPod with gloves, for SURE. Having to take off gloves to answer phone or *check map for directions* is a real pain on the bike when it’s cold!
I love how technology has changed cycling clothing. It’s fun to look great and know you will be warm/cool and comfortable!
I am grateful for so much technology in apparel from polyester microfibers which wick,dry, don’t absorb odors & regulate body temps when worn close to the body, to gore-tex that acts like armor in blocking wind & rain while in a lightweight material. I love anything that works as reflectivity, in keeping me safe in the early am or late pm hours when outdoors. What I wish for is more cool fashion in my performance apparel in broader ranges of sizes for all the body types that women come in – tall, slim for us long limbed gals to the things that a plus sized gal would be sporting.
I’m grateful for all the technological changes in today’s bikes that allow me to feel like I’m flying when I ride, taking me back to the days when I was in grade school and rode my blue Murray coaster all over town. Now special cycling gear, like cycling shoes, windproof tights and jacket, and helmets, keep me safe and comfortable and wanting to come back for more.
I’m grateful for neoprene fabric, to keep the cold winter wind off my skin. I do wish the fabric would came in other colors. I mostly find black. I have not tried Agion clothing. Clothing that helps with odor that is a great new find.
As a bike commuter in Texas, I’m very interested in the anti-stink technologies that are up and coming. It’s pretty much impossible to ride to work from March onward without arriving drenched in sweat and we have no shower facilities where I work, so every little bit of comfort is important!
Am most interested in the new technologies with eco-friendly and recycled fibers and technologies that reduce the amount of material, enery, and water waste during manufacturing.
Where to begin about all the technologies I love! I love my Smart Wool socks. My toes would always get cold no matter how thick of socks I wore. But when I bought my Smart Wool phD socks my feet stayed warm and dry for pretty much the entire ride! (Sidenote of other loves: Love the safety accessories for riding at night – lights, reflectors and my RoadID)
I am exceedingly grateful for padded shorts and anything reflective. The best time to ride in Texas is when the sun is NOT pounding down on you so being seen is important. Plus my family and I will be cycling the atlantic coast this fall and want to be seen by traffic for certain. WHat I’d like to see is more plus size clothing, not all of us cyclists are skinny. Even my size 6 teenager wears a large womens due to the fact that most jerseys are too short. LONGER clothing would be nice.
I think the tech-touch gloves are really neat, But a future cycling technology that I would love to see is a helmet with headphones built in.
Thanks, Katie
katiebuggirl219@gmail.com
I love the idea of clothing that wicks sweat and odor away from skin. It’s already getting into the 90s in my neck of the woods and there’s nothing worse than arriving at your destination wet and smelly!
What I would love to see in the future (this isn’t really high tech, but I would still love it!) is a helmet with a cut-out for a ponytail. I get tired of having to wear my hair in the same low ponytails or buns every time I ride. It would just be a nice thing for women who ride daily to have more options for their hair!
irishdancer2459 (@) yahoo (.) com
Cathey,
we found a ponytail helmet at Target. My 18yr old loves it!
Thank you so much Tabatha! I had no idea they made that! I’m excited to go look!
I love the wicking materials that are seamless. Chafing from seams is the worst. I also like the newer materials that are being made for pool triathlons where you don’t wear a wet suit but want something quickdrying yet slightly padded for the bike and you can run in. I love the prior suggestions of adding reflection to bike frames, that way you already have some reflectiveness when you are riding.
Love, love, love the technology of the reflective gear.
WHO WON???? Winners were selected April 18th, right? You should post winners first names and what they won. YOu are missing your marketing opportunity here!
Don’t forget about the kids.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/ibnjeans/