[yuvaraman]

Hi David,

That is a personal choice :). Castelli do make great products - undoubtedly.

However, we are a different company. Our niche is - Long Distance BibShorts.

When you come to us, we want you to have absolute confidence that what we give to you is a BibShort that is designed specifically for your long ride. No compromise has been made in achieving this end in the design process.

For example, we don't print on our lycra because its a nylon based fabric that's softer and more luxurious than a printable polyester based version. Comfort reigns king over graphics and that's a choice we made happily to achieve the end goal - long distance comfort.

The chamois isn't one that's used by many other brands. We searched for a non mainstream manufacturer. The chamois is manufactured using a Thermic Moulding process - no one else makes a chamois this way and what you get is a plush, breathable chamois that lasts and doesn't flatten out after long hours.

[davidw]

I didn't ask to be a jerk or anything, I'm just asking the same question that others will.

Castelli and others produce shorts made for professional cyclists, who do long rides too.

You know where I see more room for improvement? Winter cycling gear. There's a huge difference between good stuff and shitty stuff. Example: Milano Sanremo a few years ago when it was snowing, and lots of riders were riding with non-team issue Castelli Gabba jerseys because they're one of the best things going for cold weather racing.

I guess that's not a problem for you in Singapore, but here in Italy, winters can get cold and wet.

I don't know... Italian cycling clothing manufacturers are the best in the world (which is why you source from them), and I'm just not seeing a compelling reason to go with someone else.

You might look at Rapha - they've managed to carve out a niche despite not being from a traditional cycling nation.

[yuvaraman]

Hi David,

No problem at all! I do understand where you are coming from.

We're not denying the quality of Castelli and other brands of course. I myself have ridden on these brands and do enjoy them!

But, we are doing something very different by creating a niche within the apparel industry. And this shows in the choices we make during the design process.

We've written up a lovely article for your perusal : http://www.redwhite.cc/bibs-detailed/

Regarding your points about winter gear, rest assured we do have great plans for that. So stay tuned!

I'd also like to get your opinon on a winter bibshort/ tights/ biblongs that you'd like to see on the market. What features would you value?

[thinkling]

For winter use, I have a somewhat unusual take but that might give you a product that's clearly distinct from competition:

I don't wear knickers or long tights with chamois built in; I almost always use chamois-less tights over regular shorts. (That lets me mix & match rather than having pricy gear that I only use a few months of the year.)

Lately I've been using the liners from MTB shorts which have thinner fabric so the combo is less bulky, but they rarely have very good chamois.

So my suggestion would be to make liner shorts with a very-high-quality chamois that go well under tights or paired with MTB "baggy" outer shorts. Great for epic MTB rides too!

[yuvaraman]

Hi thinkling.

I hear you and understand what you have in mind. I am of opinion that buying tights with a chamois is impractical since you only ever bring them out during deep winter. Anything warmer and its usually BibShorts with leg warmers.

We do have plans to release long winter tights that work well with The Bibs under them! Using some very special fabrics from our friends over at MITI. Keep a look out!