Back at Interbike we took a look at both the new Gennix A1 aero road bike from Louis Garneau and a few pieces of clothing from their new high-vis Reclaim the Road (RTR) clothing and accessories lines for 2016. But a few weeks before our trip to Vegas we met with Garneau’s new brand manager to look through their huge clothing catalog and pick out a few interesting highlights. What we ended up looking at were some light and open mesh jerseys for the peak of summer, new MIPS helmets, and simple high performance shoes. LG covers both road and mountain riders quite well, so come past the break with us for a closer look, pricing, and availability…
We saw a lot of new MIPS equipped helmets at the trade shows, so it wasn’t a big surprise to find one more. But Garneau’s new $230 Hero MIPS stood out a bit as a fairly low profile offering, where the MIPS liner didn’t really look to interfere with the ventilation, which is an obvious problem when companies try to add a secondary structural plastic liner inside of helmets already trying to move air across the head.
The Hero gets its RTR designation from subtle reflectivity. On this white helmet, the lower band of the white plastic shell is super reflective when hit by headlights. A black helmet gets the same treatment. From a tech perspective the helmet gets a new Spiderlock 4D dial that easily adjusts both vertical and horizontal fit around one rotating mechanism (with two dials.) The Hero MIPS will be available in January 2016. Without MIPS the Hero and a women’s Shine variant will also be available with the same design and tech.
Part of Garneau’s summer Course line-up are these Course Superleggera 2 jerseys for both men and women. The $160 jerseys caught our eye with how unbelievably transparent they are. Even in an era where mesh fabrics are more common, these are downright see-through, so don’t forget the sunscreen. Unsurprisingly the design of the jerseys is all about hot weather, excellent ventilation, and unparalleled wicking. The men’s version gets a CB Mondo upper fabric, which is a bit more covering and the very open Kite Mesh around the stomach and in the pockets. The rear hem also gets the laser-cut gripper at the top of the post for a secure hold but good air and moisture flow.
The women’s version of the same jersey use the CB Mondo fabric to cover the torso for a bit more modesty, but uses a wicking Microsens Mesh for the side panels, and a totally transparent Lightsens Mesh for the shoulders and upper back. Both jerseys get ColdBlack treatment, full-length zippers, 3 angled rear pockets, and reflective accents and are available now.
On the road Louis Garneau has taken a lot of the tech from their top-level Course Air Lite road shoe and put it into the new simpler, more affordable Titanium with three low-profile velcro straps. At $300 the new shoe uses the same ultra light Course-level high modulus X-Lite carbon sole with titanium reinforcement and open ventilation.
The vented synthetic upper uses thermo-bonded construction to eliminate pressure points, and has an anti-slip heel. The shoe has a replaceable heel tread block, and comes with interchangeable Coolmax Cool Stuff and Hot Stuff adjustable arch insoles to expand comfort in all seasons. The new Titaniums will be available from late this November.
Again on the MIPS helmet trend the new Louis Garneau Raid offers great coverage and a really affordable $100 price for mountain bikers. The trail helmet gets excellent protection of the back of the head, plus a respectable ventilation layout combined with the trademark yellow plastic liner. Available in January as well it share the same Spiderlock 4D retention as the Hero.
The new $80 men’s Maple Lane jersey is a fast drying loose fit trail riding top intended for hot weather riding. It combines a high-wicking Drytex main fabric with mesh side and underarm panels for max breathability, and a more durable fabric at the shoulders to hold up to hydration packs. Tech wise it has a permanent Nano-Silver treatment to keep plastic jersey smell at bay, uses a full-length zip, and gets a single zippered rear pocket that is internally divided for better load balance. The Maple Lane will be available this December.
The $80 Stream Techfit shorts carry over from this summer, but LG sees them as one of their premier shorts and like to color match them with their range of trail jerseys due to their versatility. The shorts use a stretchy abrasion resistant fabric for a close but functional fit. They combine 3 zip pockets, an elastic fit, and a snap loop system that connects with Garneau’s liner shorts and inner bibs.
On the mountain shoe side, the new Garneau Graphite XC shoes at $300 continue the simplification trend of the Titanium. They offer the same full carbon sole of the Boa-equipped T-Flex 2LS, with three simpler and lower profile velcro straps (even saving a bit of weight over the more expensive shoe in the process.) Also incorporating T-Flex tech, the Graphite gets flexibility in the toe area of the sole for better trail and cyclocross running, without affecting pedaling stiffness. A special one-way anti-slip spandex is used to line the back of the shoe to prevent heel lift. The shoes also include a Coolmax Hot Stuff vented insole with adjustable arch support.
Taking the simple trend into town the $95 Nickel and women’s Opal get a perforated synthetic upper and standard laces. The shoes get subtle reflectivity on the heel, SPD compatibility, and come with both accent color and black laces. The men’s versions come in black, brown, and tan, with the women’s in black, dark gray, and a plum purple. The Nickels will be available this November, with the Graphites in December.
