Spring is slowing  in coming on the west and it is time for a welcome wardrobe change! Here’s a few great looks for spring cycling whether you are a casual cyclist or a century rider. Whether you prefer to be comfortable, stylish or both–you can rock some great styles while on two wheels!

Stephanie, a mother of two, prefers casual riding and puts together a great look featuring the Breezy Beach Skirt in Batik from Carve Designs (above).  This go-anywhere skirt brings a beach-loving look  to the city! (MSRP: $58 Available from their website or at REI stores nationwide.)

Just because you can keep up with the guys, doesn’t mean you have to dress like them! Skirt Sports has bike skirts in addition to their well-known collection of running skirts. Clara is wearing the Cruiser Bike Girl skirt (in black vinyl print, MSRP: $85) It has cycling compression shorts undereneath this cute skirt with Italian women’s specific mid-weight chamois, and two side pockets to carry your bike tools or CO2 cartridges. It’s paired with the high-performance, sleeveless Sexy Back Tank (in pink crush, MSRP: $65) which can be seen peeking under the jacket. It has a built-in shelf bra with enough support for cups A-C.  Not only does it have the requisite rear pocket, but it has a “Cleavage Alley Pocket” right inside the shelf bra to store small necessities. (Available from their website, various bike shops, or at REI stores nationwide.)

On a cool spring morning, Clara is also wearing the appropriately named Women’s Warm-Up Jacket by Specialized. The polyester/lyra blend is soft and comfortable. The jacket has a high collar and a hood as well as hand pockets. It is the perfect jacket to keep a cyclist warm just before the ride or race begins. (MSRP: $100)

Rainy days don’t need to stop your ride. For iffy spring spring weather, a great jacket which is water resistant, wind-proof, breathable, and featherweight is a wardrobe necessity.  The Novara Stowable Jacket in ”Sunbeam” yellow has enough color to be seen on a dark and cloudy day and . With sunshine one minute and threatening clouds the next, having a jacket stashed in a jersey pocket or wedge pack will let you be ready for just about anything. Novara’s jacket can be stuffed into its own right rear pocket and stowed in your jersey pocket for ready access. 

The casual outdoor-sy look of Kuhl clothing looks great on the bike and feels comfortable as well! Katherine is wearing the Splash Skirt which is designed to allow for freedom of movement. The skirt wicks away moisture and dries quickly, so you can take a misty rain shower and seat sweat and still look great. The Bailey Short-Sleeved tee has some shirring at the chest and a pattern of wildflowers on the side of the shirt for a pretty look. She also waers’s Kuhl’s “Euro-Style” Stargazer Hoodie, a mid-weight jacket that is great to slip on for cool mornings. (Kuhl clothing is available at select bike shops, REI and on its own website.)

Rachel is wearing Mika Rose's Ashley dress in plum. The jacket is her own, and the pannier bag in the basket is from Basil Bags.

As the Copenhagen Cycle Chic site  has shown, women can bike in just about any type of clothing provided the bike is equipped with fenders, a  step-through frame and a chain guard. A skirt guard would make it even better.

 The possible exceptions are pencil skirts, very short dresses or skirts, and on a breezy day, a full skirt that may become unmanagable with a headwind. (Here’s a few on how to ride a bike while wearing skirts.) With a little practice, high heels and dress boots can be worn while pedaling smoothly down the street, or wear other shoes and keep your nice heels in the basket to change into upon arrival.

Rachel is wearing a soft, comfortable and elegant looking dress from a local designer here named Mika Rose. This plum-colored dress is called the Ashley and is available on their website and in boutique shops such as Whimsy. (MSRP: $45.)

The Cycle and Style Show was held on Friday, May 14th, 2010 at the Gallivan Center in Salt Lake City.  As Cycle and Style has always tried to show, there isn’t just one type of bike or clothes to wear on the bicycle for everyone. We love it all: road bikes, mountain bikes, cruisers, commuting bikes and bikes with step-through frames so a girl can wear a dress or skit and ride her bike. It was a family-friendly event with children, teens, men and women in the crowd and on the “stage.” It was a fun way to show how great people can look on and off the bike!

Marissa was outfitted in Specialized's PRO Rbx Short & Cosa Sleeveless Jersey. (Bike: Specialized Ruby.) Photo courtesy of Elizabeth Macias.

It was a great chance to show off the 2010 lines of road and mountain bike clothing from Pearl Izumi, Specialized, Bontrager, Oakley and Smartwool. Other clothes were from Carve Designs, Outlier, Kuhl, and Whimsy as well as great accessory-clothing items from Dohm-Icebox and bags from Reclaimed Wreckage (bags made from recycled bike tire tubes) and Glitch Bags. Check out our video of the event below. Thanks to the photographers whose represented photos are on this page, on our Facebook page and in thestill shots at the end of the video. (Check out the clip at the end;  our 20-minute show was edited down to an 8-minute video.)

A big THANK YOU to our sponsors: UTA Bike Bonanza, Salt Lake County Bicycle Advisory Committee, Pearl Izumi Factory Outlet, Bingham Cyclery and Salt Lake City Bicycle Co.!

Lauren wore the paddler short and rash guard from Carve Designs and rode the Trek Zara (photo by Daniel Bean.)

Megan wore a beautiful dress from Whimsy and rode the Globe Vienna. (Photo courtesy of Stan Orlob.)

Cycle and Style Show 2010 from Beth Runkle on Vimeo.