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Tri Clothing - pockets or no pockets/ silicone leg grippers?

Hi,

I'm about to launch a new range of tri clothing in the UK. This isn't some cheap plug, but I'm just checking I haven't been blinkered and am actually going to produce what people want. I've done a lot of research overall, but this is one area in which there are a lot of personal opinions.



My questions are, do people use pockets in trisuits, would you buy a tri suit/ tri top without pockets, do people have various suits (ie, one for pool, OW sprint, OD, IM etc) and therfore purposely buy suits without pockets.



My new thinking is to add rear pockets to my trisuits and tri tops but have them concealed and with a water tight zip, which is still easy to access.



On top of this what of this I've elected to put silicone leg grippers on the full range. Just wanted to gauge opinions on this too.



I'd really like to know what people think



Thanks



Phil

Comments

  • I wouldn't worry about water tight zips unless you plan to make the suits water tight too. A flap over them should be sufficient to prevent the wind sock effect.



    Also, if you're going to add logos to them, can you do it in a way that they don't all fall off after two washes like with my Orca suit.



    Will there be a 220 forum discount after all this helpful advice?[:)]
  • tri_dot_dom



    Thanks for the advice. The plan is for the pocket is for it to go into a section of the suit that is water repellant, so I thought a water proof zip would do it. Thinking about it now, if the pouch of the pocket itself isn't water-proof then the zip needn't be, and that way I can make it lower profile.



    Logos has been a bit of a tricky one, and if some of the big names haven't quite cracked it.....

    We subject our trisuits to a lot: chlorine, rubber, sweat, concrete sometimes in my case. We've worked on it a lot and hope the job we've done should do it!



    Referernce the 220 forum discount, I've approached 220 about embossing our suits with 220 magazine logos with forum usernames printed on too, and then offering a discount. They're looking in branding licencing etc, but hopefully it will work out and we'll be able to spot each other at events!



    Thanks for your advice - anymore gratefully received



    Phil
  • BritspinBritspin Posts: 1,655
    You mention different suits for different events..are you going to expand your range in that direction? If so then the obvious answer would be a sprint range wth no pockets, oly range with, iron range with bigger or more pockets.
  • Hello!



    It depends what kind of market your really trying to tap in to I think, personally I only do open water and so am always wearing a wetsuit on the swim phase (having not made it to Kona yet!!!), in which case pockets on a tri suit don't matter either way.



    Also on the ride in the longer events I would be unlikely to put anything in there, maybe a gel if it would fit. But non racing wise, a zip pocket would be great as if I used the shorts for a training ride I would be able to put a house key and some money safely tucked away - something I don't tend to do if the pocket merely has a flap over the top.



    I would say in my experience the most comfortable place for a pocket is the lower back area, not the sides as I have on a couple of suits/tops - as this tends to swing around and get on your nerves if your running with anything in them.



    Essentially I think most people seem to get put off pockets in suits if they are a very competitve sprint triathletes where the swim takes place in the pool, however if open water is your thing, or your not highly competitve then I think it comes down to a good, comfortable fit that provides good funtion for all 3 areas, with overall durability so it can be used for a least a whole racing/training season.



    Hope thats some help!
  • Having read Britspin's comments about bigger and more pockets for the IM range, I'm afraid I would tend to disagree. The feed stations are always so good and frequent on both the ride and the runs that I tend to not carry anything extra on the run at all - extra weight by that point is totally unwanted!!

    Most people also wear cycle jerseys on the ride, if not more with the amazing weather we have in this country.... and so put anything they may want in those pockets.



    I have rarely seen competitors wearing the belts you can get for training that allow you to hold extra bottles and gels etc, on the run phase which must mean, like me, they just don't need them during a race.

    As I say, your so well provided for at the longer events that I just wouldn't carry more than maybe an emergency gel in a pocket tucked away.
  • You can see why I've posted now! It's not easy.



    Britspin,

    I'm deliberating as to whether I can combine all of the elements into one suit and therefore keep the price down, but it almost seems inevitable that I will have to produce an array of suits.



    I think that I could produce almost identical clothing, just with different sized pockets. The problem is people don't want to have to buy a suit for each event. Maybe combine pool/ sprint suit (no pockets) and the oly and IM suit, reducing the number of suits in the range. I personally don't use pockets so there's nothing stopping someone like me using my sprint suit for an IM - I might offer free gel/number belts with the sprint suits to make them more universal.



    Amazon,

    thanks for your thoughts - entirely agree about the large pockets, I'm thinking a combined oly/ IM suit with 'some' pockets would work well. Any pockets will definately go at the lower back. Not sure whether to go for the zip (great for not losing your gels in races and good for security in training), but might cause some discomfort/ chaffing during the cycle. I guess if I design it well it won't cause any problems!



    Thanks again
  • BritspinBritspin Posts: 1,655
    See, you can tell I have never done an ironman..as a predominantly sprint racer I do not use any pockets, I merely assumed ironman racers would be more likely to..on the bike as well as the run. The different suits for different events I thought may be your companies USP, altho' obviously your set up/start up costs would be exponentially higher. So sounds like small pockets on the low back for all then!
  • nivaghnivagh Posts: 595

    Hmm... The general concensus seems to be that there's no general concensus!



    Surely a pocket with a flap would cater for most of the above. I feel a zip would be likely to be uncomfortable beneath a wetsuit, bringing it back, for me, to a choice of pockets with flaps, or no pockets.



    Not being so flush that I would buy several, I would stick with no pockets, and tape gel to my bike, and pick it up from my transition box before the run if I wanted more.



    A "secure" pocket for house keys etc can be put inside the waistband - I have had several pairs of shorts with these, and never lost anything from them.
  • jonEjonE Posts: 1,113
    My one piece has a nice large pocket at the back made of mesh to allow the water to flow through it in the pool,I stick my number belt in it for the swim in the pool and clip it on as I run to the bike saving those valuable milli seconds( on the grand scale of things it makes sod all difference)but the pocket does not create any extra drag in the pool.A waterproof pocket would mean a large sweaty area on your back as the skin would not be able to breathe.
  • Pockets for the win! I refuse to buy any gear without pockets now. Theres all sorts of stuff you need to carry when even just training: mp3 player, money, keys.



    I personally hate zips on race gear pockets... if I'm carrying stuff then I'm going to be using it, and the last thing I want to be doing when racing is fighting to get into a pocket on my back due to fabric trapped in the zip.



    Ive got some orca gear and the pockets arent too bad at holding stuff but arent mesh, and I dont 'feel' that theyre that secure (no flaps). I've also a few ironman 1-pieces (cos I like them so much-for the pockets!). This has deep netted pockets (for fast drying) and elasticated edges which really hold stuff in, and are located in such a way that your normal motion wont 'ease' stuff out of them (namely a deep 1 behind each kidney, and 1 on the lower outside of each of the legs).





    Zips on normal training stuff is OK, because by and large you wont mind stopping for a few seconds to fiddle, and generally can squeeze more stuff in. Id say positioning of the pockets is also paramount, theres nothing more annoying than stuff jiggling around making you paranoid your going to lose it all.



    Good luck and hope it works out

  • BEEFBEEF Posts: 43
    I'm happy to test drive a suit when you have them!! [:D]



    As an XXL guy I can let you know how us Clydesdales get on with your kit[:)]
  • nivagh wrote:




    Hmm... The general concensus seems to be that there's no general concensus!



    You're right there!



    I think that the best solution it to make one suit without pockets (for the pool and for those who don't like pockets) and then another suit with mesh pockets and a flap, with a lot of thought/ testing going into the positioning. A zip is definatley out for race wear.

    itsbeef wrote:


    I'm happy to test drive a suit when you have them!! [:D]



    As an XXL guy I can let you know how us Clydesdales get on with your kit[:)]



    I'll definately be looking for some testers, maybe even one per size to make sure I've got it all right. I'll bear you in mind 'itsbeef'





    Thanks for everyones input - greatly appreciated.





    There's just one more thing I'd like to check I've got right:



    I've opted for silicon leg grippers across the range. So far I haven't come across anyone who really objects to these or has a massive preference for other types of leg stay. Just wanted to gauge the opinion of a wider field - would love to hear opinions on these - Cheers

  • Are you making gender specific suits?



    If you are after testers I certainly put kit through its paces - open water and pool swimming, so with and without wetsuits, and I only do the longer events so any thing I wear gets hours of abuse and wear in both training and racing!! I could put it through 20 hr training weeks for a month and see how it lasts! (and as a poor student I'd even be grateful - tri kit is expensive!!)



    The only thing is that I'm female, and from my experience the tri range for women isn't so great - TriUK do an Ironman winter range for example but no ladies?? What's that about??!! :)



    As for silicone legs, the shorts I have with those I tend to turn them over once on the bike as I found after 4 hours I was left with a bit of a rub mark where it didn't run freely over my skin, but with it turned over it still held on the leg fine, but for the run I turn them back over again as it seemed fine for this part, and stopped the shorts riding up.

    It's not something that would stop me buying a pair of shorts.
  • Thanks Amazon,



    we are doing gender specific, in fact, it's been a lot harder coming up with female designs and features than the male versions, and we've put a lot of effort into getting it right for both sexes.



    I'll PM you a link my website so you can have a look at the features of the female version and see what you think.



    Thanks for your remarks on the silicone. I personally think that the downsides of silicone out-weigh the downsides of compression type grippers. I guess it will be a case of everyone having their own preference - just like pockets!



  • jon_gjon_g Posts: 318
    Hey1 no fair! i think you should put the link up so we can all have a look at your new tri-gear! might even spur on some purchases, we tri lot like to spend money on stuff to make us go faster or be more comfortable[:D]
  • nivaghnivagh Posts: 595

    Grippers - sometimes I'm ambivalent, the rest of the time I don't really have an opinion :)



    I think the importance, or not, of grippers is also tied in with leg length. The longer the leg, the more important grippers become, but on well cut shorter leg lengths there's no need for grippers.
  • nivaghnivagh Posts: 595
    jon_g wrote:


    Hey1 no fair! i think you should put the link up so we can all have a look at your new tri-gear! might even spur on some purchases, we tri lot like to spend money on stuff to make us go faster or be more comfortable[:D]



    Have a look at heymonkey's member profile - the link is there. [8|]
  • BritspinBritspin Posts: 1,655
    I like silicon grippers myself..even more now I shave higher...
  • jon_gjon_g Posts: 318
    cheers nivagh



    leg grippers? my personal opinion is no to silicon ones. i've got a cheap pair of arca tri shorts which have the silicon grippers and i have the orca 226 tri shorts which dont have silicone but they still dont ride up. and the ones without the silicone are much more comfortable, from under the wetsuit to the end of the run much much more comfortable without silicone
  • BEEFBEEF Posts: 43
    heymonkey wrote:


    Hi,

    I'm about to launch a new range of tri clothing in the UK. This isn't some cheap plug, but I'm just checking I haven't been blinkered and am actually going to produce what people want. I've done a lot of research overall, but this is one area in which there are a lot of personal opinions.





    Look forward to it monkey!



    I was kindly given a tri-suit by a member on Tri-talk (TT from Planet-X)



    Great fit but I'm feeling a bit of drag from the pockets on the back. Excellent grip on legs but for some unknown reason the zip is a bit tempermental. That said the template and overall design is very good.

    My questions are, do people use pockets in trisuits, would you buy a tri suit/ tri top without pockets, do people have various suits (ie, one for pool, OW sprint, OD, IM etc) and therfore purposely buy suits without pockets.



    My new thinking is to add rear pockets to my trisuits and tri tops but have them concealed and with a water tight zip, which is still easy to access.



    On top of this what of this I've elected to put silicone leg grippers on the full range. Just wanted to gauge opinions on this too.



    I'd really like to know what people think



    Thanks



    Phil

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