Road Cycling Clothing

TWC’s 10 Favourite Team Kits for 2016

It's that time of year again - here are the kits we look forward to seeing racing around all season

The off-season is well and truly over, dust has been shaken from the legs (most of it falling in the desert at the Tour of Qatar) and the pro and domestic peloton is ready to rumble.

We all know that there’s more to a good team than good kit – but it’s not a bad place to start. This year we’ve seen some truly stunning sets of kit unveiled – and we’re sure we’re seeing a slight departure from the traditional approach of ‘stripes and sponsors’ that has generally been the theme of the peloton in the past.

We’ve also noticed some domestic teams coming up with even more outlandish and stylish designs that we genuinely believe make a real statement – that there’s no reason we can’t be kickass cyclists whilst still carrying bags of style.

Without further ado – here are our top ten favourite kits…

Canyon//SRAM

The team born of the remains of Velocio-SRAM unveiled their new kit to open mouths at the end of December last year. We spent time with the team about a week or so before and had to keep our pictures to ourselves until the embargo was lifted, and man, was it hard!

The kit, designed by Rapha, is complemented by Canyon bikes with matching paint jobs. Both Canyon and Rapha will be using rider feedback to develop their ranges – and with a roster including former World Time Trial and Road Race Champ, Lisa Brennauer, as well as Tour of Qatar winner Trixi Worrack, German National Time Trial Champion Mieke Kröger, and the Team Time Trial machines of Velocio-SRAM – how could they go wrong?

Boels Dolmans

Home to National and World Champion, Lizzie Armitstead, Boels Dolmans have always had a strong and bright kit – and this year is no exception. We visited them for their team presentation last month and it’s clear that the sponsors are absolutely dedicated to ensuring the team continue to dominate the World Tour scene.

Of course, Armitstead sports her World Champion stripes – though we doubt she minds swapping even the most beautiful kit for the rainbow jersey in this Olympic year.

Alé–Cipollini–Galassia

Well, you couldn’t miss this team in a crowd, could you?! The clothing brand Alé produce some extremely high end kit with a lot of attention paid to detail and technical fabrics. We’re also told a high percentage of the HQ employees are female, something that’s demonstrated in the equality in offering of their kit across the genders.

Liv Plantur

Liv are one of our favourite bike and clothing brands, having branched out of the parent brand Giant to put a real focus on women’s specific product. The Liv Plantur kit is striking and we love the matching colours on the Envie bikes they ride.

Wiggle High5

Not much has changed on team Wiggle’s kit except the second sponsor, which became High5 for 2016. The kit is now made by Champion Systems, as opposed to previous suppliers dhb, but replica kit will be available from the Wiggle own brand.

The team have already seen signs of early success, with Dani King claiming the climbers jersey at the Tour Down Under and a stage win for Chloe Hosking at the Tour of Qatar.

Image: Jarrod Partridge for Wiggle High5

Drops Cycling

Drops Cycling are a brand new UCI registered team for this year. Their aspiration is the be the “most professional Women’s amateur team in the world” and they aim to provide a viable alternative to British Cycling’s Academy system that will help riders reach their potential.

The team are sponsored by Trek, and are partnered with Prendas Ciclismo who provide race kit. We love the pinstripe design, which pays homage to the headline sponsors printing business, without being too overt.

Cannondale Girls

When we talked about teams breaking the mould and combining performance with bags of style, we were pretty much talking about this set-up. The cross-discipline team is UK based and made up entirely of amateur riders, hoping to shine on the road, in cyclocross and mountain bike. We don’t think cycling has seen pop-art inspired kit before, and we certainly think it’s time it did!

eliteVelo Kalas

Now in their second season, the domestic team continue to compete under the name of their title sponsors – Elite Velo Cycling Coaching, and Kalas sportswear. The squad has grown to ten riders for 2016, and still has a strong base in the South West.

The team’s 2016 aims include targeting the national Women’s Team Series as well as other national road events and regional races – and they’ll be doing it in style with their eye catching bright green, white and black combo.

Richard Fox Photography - richardfoxphotography.com

Velociposse

This domestic, women’s only track team burst on to the scene last year, and we were excited to catch up with them soon after they showed their colours to the world. The kick ass squad, headed up by Jess May, are all about inclusivity, and having an amazing time on the boards, as well as turning their hands to cyclocross and road racing along the way.

Matrix Pro Cycling

We’ve yet to see this kit on the backs of the riders, but we know from last year that the gear will look as amazing on as it does in the first images of the designs released on Facebook.

Matrix turned pro last year, but they won’t be attacking the UCI Women’s World Tour this year, instead sticking to the European scene to help them make the most of available funding.

Of course, there are plenty more amazing kits out there – these are just our favourites. Ogling something we’ve not mentioned? Let us know in the comments…