Telegraph-Road is a newly established brand from London that makes performance cycling wear. The company claims to fill the space between ‘the team’ and ‘the technical’ and, while I’m not sure exactly what that means, after riding one of their new jerseys for several hundred miles through the nascent British ‘summer’, I’m impressed.
First up, the fit: it’s a perfect, and predictable, fit, running true to size, with good shoulder room and enough taper to the waist for an athletic feel without getting too tight. Many manufacturers seem to forget that they’re designing clothes for cyclists – ie, skinnier-than your-average chaps – but this is just right. Comfortable and streamlined on the bike, not like a sausage skin off it.
Secondly, it has some high-end features, without a high-end price. The silicone gripper to stop the rear hem riding up is effective and classy and the bite panel (to help with zip-manouevring on the go) is as you’d expect.
The jersey material is soft and not too artificial, but sweat-wicking and quick-drying. I cycled through sun and heavy showers, and it kept me comfortable in both. Back pockets are well thought out and secure, but not huge, so don’t expect to pack a ton of stuff in them. The middle pocket is divided in two, to securely hold a pump; I managed to squeeze tyre levers in, too, an inner tube into the other. There’s also a small zipped compartment for valuables.
Looks-wise, the jerseys keep it simple, in the manner of other classically styled road brands, and have a nice branded patch on the sleeve. They’re predominantly white, to reflect the sun, and any design is pleasingly minimal.
I bought the Fireflies Tour shirt, which has been released in limited numbers to commemorate the 10th anniversary of the charity ride over the Alps from Geneva to Cannes because: a) as a Firefly myself, it’s got my name on (with all the other people ever to ride – I’m just under the left armpit) and b) because Telegraph-Road is donating £20 of the £45 price to Leuka, the charity supported by the Fireflies that pays for research into leukaemia. (Check out videos of the Fireflies Ride, including an awesome blizzard last week, here)
But, after riding with it for a couple of weekends it’s become a firm favourite, and I’ll definitely be buying another one from their range as soon as I can justify it to my bank balance!
There are several London stockists, or you can buy direct from the website.
Click ‘more’ for a few more pictures.
