Uniform Update: Spring, 2014
**Update, May 29th, 2014***
All of our items from Louis Garneau have shipped, and Brand Evolutions, our order fulfillment company, will receive them tomorrow, 5/30 and Monday, 6/2. They will begin shipping everything out right away so look for your order in the mail by the end of next week, or soon after about June 9th!
**Update, May 6th, 2014**
Team, I wanted to update you with where we are and have parked the most recent gouge here at the top of this update post:
The Shorts Fix
LG is replacing all of the shorts, with an upgraded, guaranteed not be transparent short. That is:
- If you ordered and have received a pair of tri shorts, you'll get a brand new pair of shorts in the mail, no charge to you.
- If you ordered and have NOT received a pair of tri shorts, you'll get ^this^ upgraded pair when we receive them and ship them to you. These shorts are about $15-20 more expensive than the shorts you ordered. However, we are upgrading you at no additional cost to you, EN is making this happen for you.
- All EN tri shorts, going forward, will be this upgraded short. We will change the description and prices in the Store shortly.
- ^These^ shorts are expected to complete the first week of June. LG ships to Brand Evolutions and BE ships to you.
- We ordered a small inventory of shorts to address returns and to have shorts available for purchase over the summer.
Order / ReOrder of Tri Tops and Cycling Kit
Addressing, negotiating, and solving the tri-shorts issue above delayed our reorder of tri tops and cycling kit, as I brought our current and future business with LG to a complete stop until they had satisfactorily addressed the shorts issue. Summary of where we are:
- All EN tri tops will be their Delfino cut and fabric going forward. This is the same style we've had since 2011.
- If you ordered and received a tri top, you have the Elite cut and fabric
- If you ordered and have NOT received a tri top, you'll will receive this Delfino style instead.
- We ordered an inventory of tri tops to address exchanges to have tops available for purchase over the summer.
- Delivery: we expect the tri tops to ship from LG to BE, and then to you, in early June.
- Cycling Kit:
- Men's Jersey: we are staying with the Elite cut and fabric. Guys who are usually XL and XXL may want to consider going up a size. S-L will be good with your normal sizing. I'm 5'9, 174lb and am a large. That said, that 174 is about 10-12lb over what I consider to be a good training weight and about 18-20lb off a lean race weight. The large accommodates me across my usual range of sloth and indolence, basically
. - Men's Bibs: no changes, staying with the Elite cut and fabric
- Women's Jersey: no changes, staying with the Performance cut and Fabric
- If you ordered and have not received cycling kit, it will ship when we receive it from LG, in this same early June timeframe above.
- We ordered a small inventory of cycling kit, to satisfy exchanges and to have cycling kit available for purchase over the summer.
- Men's Jersey: we are staying with the Elite cut and fabric. Guys who are usually XL and XXL may want to consider going up a size. S-L will be good with your normal sizing. I'm 5'9, 174lb and am a large. That said, that 174 is about 10-12lb over what I consider to be a good training weight and about 18-20lb off a lean race weight. The large accommodates me across my usual range of sloth and indolence, basically
In summary, we should have all items in hand and begin to ship them to you in early June. This is not ideal, we know. Please understand that these delays are a function of our desire to have sharp, quality, well fitting kit for you, as well as art approval, manufacturing, and communication processes that are out of control.
Thanks again, we sincerely appreciate your patience and your eagerness to represent the Team!
++++++++++++++++
Team,
We want to thank everyone for chiming in and sharing their experience with the kit. This is an adventure every year, given the size and distribution of the Team, but there’s nothing better than getting new kit.
Our 2014 Approach to Team Kit
Patrick and I decided that our kit for 2014 would be technically superior to what we had used in the past. The samples we had in our hands from Louis Garneau were awesome and really reflected the level of quality we felt that you, our Team, would appreciate and enjoy training and racing in. But moving up to a higher level of performance gear has brought some changes -- these kits are slightly smaller than previous versions (a 2014 large is smaller than a 2013 large, for example), and then there is the question of fabric. So let’s dive in...
Tri Tops and Cycling Tops -- Elite Fit / Fabric
Men's and women's tri tops, and men's jersey, are all made with LG's "elite" fabric and cut. The women's cycling jersey is their "performance" fabric and cut. As you will tell when you put on the Elite items, the fabric is very lightweight and incredibly comfortable down to the tapered sleeves. That said, the material does stretch to reveal stronger colors underneath -- but it’s a function of how technical the fabric is. Rich and I have both worn these tops and enjoy how functional they are, as well as how “race ready” they are. Just remember to put on your sunscreen!
Bib Shorts
These are great; comfortable, snug, etc. All you could ask for in a bib short.
The Tri Short Conundrum
The one issue we can agree on is that the tri shorts are borderline indecent. Some folks are okay with using them, but most of us agree that they reveal too much...most importantly, our rep at LG also realizes this. Most importantly, LG has recognized this is a mistake on their end and, as of yesterday, April 14th, they have offered us three ways to fix it. We are researching those options to determine which direction is best. We will let you know as soon as we have an answer on what the next steps are regarding your shorts.
The Color Red
There have been some questions around color...on our end, the 2014 red matches the 2013, and 2012 reds (also from LG). If you wore your ‘14 tri top with your ‘14 bib shorts it might not match (?), but I’d have to ask why are you mixing your kit. That said the biggest “color” change was the tri shorts, which only have a liner in the front that, when stretched, made the tri shorts appear to be two-toned. Since the tri shorts are unacceptable, we will have a remedy for this color issue.
Delayed Shipments / Capo Cycling Jackets
All of the items, with the exception of the cycling jackets, are made by Louis Garneau. The jackets are by Capo. And because nothing can ever be simple, the shipment of the Capo jackets has been delayed over and over again. If your order included a Capo cycling jackets, we've delayed that order so we can ship everything together. That said, I was told yesterday, April 14, that the jackets have arrive and therefore your stuff (ie, tri, cycling kit, plus jacket) should ship this week.
Going Forward:
Tri Shorts:
Per above, please give us a couple days to identify which of LG's proposed solutions we will go with and then communicate that fix and timeline back to you.
Tri Tops and Cycling Jerseys -- Moving to Performance Cut and Fabric for the Reorder
As you may know, from mid-Feb through the end of March we were taking orders from new members, or current members who missed the January order. However, we have not yet placed that order with LG, given the friction we've experienced with this order. Now that things have been 98% resolved with LG, this is what we're going to do:
- We've moved our tri top and cycling jerseys from the Elite line to the Performance line: tri tops will be the Delfino cut and fabric we've had for the last couple years, and there jerseys will have a cut and fabric similar to the Capo jerseys we've had since '11.
- That said, we may order limited quantities of the Elite tri tops and cycling jerseys and have those on hand for people who like this version.
- The quantities reordered should be enough to satisfy your gear requests across the season.
Cycling Big Shorts
No changes, we're happy with the current solution and will order more.
Cycling Jackets
After the friction I've experienced with Capo, I need to step back, take a breath, regroup, and decide if/how we want to give them anymore business. Great kit but their manufacturing and delivery process is about the worst I've seen.
Your Action Steps
-
Tri short issues: sit tight for a couple days while we formulate a solution and steps for you.
-
Tri Tops and Cycling Jersey: if you're not happy with the size or fit, please email cs@brandevolutions.com to start the return / exchange process and to receive an RMA number. Please do not mail anything back to Brand Evolutions without having first received an RMA number!
Thanks for your patience and your interest in representing EN at the races!
Comments
Order # : 100999
Email : steveharrast@gmail.com
Order Date : 12/28/2013 5:37:00 PM
Order Status : Approved, Pending Shipping
Payment Status : Payment information received.
Payment Method : Credit Card
(Jersey, leg warmers and shorts)
Steve,
Please email cs@brandevolutions.com to inquire about your order. Thanks!
Hey Coach!
Thank you for the update on the uniforms!! I placed my order late March before the deadline and I understand this order has not been placed yet. When do you expect these kits to come in? I ordered a EN tri top and I was just wondering so I can plan accordingly for my first race, June 1- Quassy half!
Laura,
Getting the order officially "in" could take about 7-9 days from today, and then 4-6wks for it to be produced...though LG is well aware that we want this stuff fixed an in our hands very quickly. But we'll see what that means in terms of production time, I just can't promise you anything at this point.
...and with that, I just fired off an email to LG to get them working and established a firm deadline of 3rd week of May to get this stuff in our hands.
We've had lots of discussion about the tri shorts, cut/fit of the tri tops, but I don't recall much being said about the jerseys?
I really like the current mens "Elite", aero fit/fabric jersey. I feel slick, pro, look damn good...until look down and see my belly but that's another story...anyway...
We're going to place a reorder of jerseys and have artwork for both the Elite and Performance (similar to the Capo jersey) lines. Can I get a show hands from the mens re which one you're interested in, so I can get a feel of what #'s to order of each?
I like the concept though!
Yeah, I'm the same. When I'm riding I'm all like "dayum...I bet I look gooooddd!!" Then I catch a glimpse of my shadow and I'm all like "dayum...I'm a fat bastage!"
Today was my 4th day of riding in a row. On a mission to fit into this bikini...
Feedback on the jersey.
I ordered small, since I am a small in my other LG gear. This definitely feels smaller, but after wearing for an hour on the trainer not uncomfortable. I am 5 9.5 and 147.5 lbs. Bigger shoulders but scrawny arms, and the arms feel t i g h t. One surprising thing is the body is a bit short (and I am short waisted). Not sure if this is an issue if down in the drops but might show some belly sitting up. I may have to pair the jersey with bibs for this reason.
overall I like the jersey, but it will definitely keep me accountable in the body composition department.
Highly, highly recommend you wear the bibs. Not because they hide any issues with these jerseys, but because bibs are just sooooo much better. There's a reason why every professional cyclist on the planet wears bibs vs shorts.
Anyway, I'll be ordering bibs in this reorder, just part of RnP's mission to upgrade the cycling savvy of the TeamEN athlete
I'm 100% bibs for all bike rides. Just much, much more comfortable than shorts for training.
Everyone has their own quirks for what shorts, etc they prefer to race in, particularly long course athletes. Long course athletes tend to gravitate towards more cycling-esque tri shorts options, which is why we've gone to a longer cut with our LG tri shorts.
Rich
I had ordered and paid for leg warmers in the december pre-order but they informed me they didn't receive enough orders and were going to refund the money. Instead of a refund to my credit card which the bank levies a currency exchange fee on, can I just use the amount as a credit toward ordering bibs?
Yes. Copy rich@endurancenation.us on those email conversations and I'll give them the thumbs up. They'll do the accounting on their end.
Hi Rich, Question on the newest tri top order. In the January order, I ordered both a L and an XL. The L is way small and the XL is snug. So about 2 weeeks ago I saw that a new order was being placed and I ordered a XXL. Based on this thread, though, it sounds like the fit will not be the same as the January order, i.e. an XL may be way too big. FYI my 2012 XL fits great. If the upcoming order's fit is to be similar to the 2012 version, should I change it to an XL instead of a XXL?
As an aside, I both e-mailed and called Brand Evolutions (left a VM) to return/exchange the tops and have not received a response in 2+ weeks.
1) I love the Capo Jacket. I got a medium and it fits perfectly with plenty of room to breath.
2) Fit for all my apparel items was spot on, snug.. but that was what I was expecting.
3) Color between the Capo Jacket and other kits doesn't match exactly but it is close enough. No complaints but I do like the Capo red.
4) Cycling jersey fits great and was snug but it is a race cut anyway.
5) Tri top fits like it should and didn't leave a gap of skin on my back. I could see how it could occur if it rides up high enough.
the known issues..
5) Tri bottoms fit well although there was noticeable butt crackage if you made a direct effort to look for it. No problem with this in the front.
4) Bib Shorts fit well and were snug, although they have somewhat similar but opposite problem of the tri bottoms. If pulled tight in the front the bib shorts became more translucent right around the area where the camos and material are stitched when pulled tight, and thus maybe showing more then some may like. If tucked and pulled the right way it can be made less so. Over time I could see this becoming worse as the material starts to fatigue in that area.
On a side note, I also received in the mail some black Sugoi bib shorts which fit great will match with the EN kit so if I get any comments I can use those as a backup and still keep the look going.
Thanks
Do you have the 2012 tri top? If yes, I suggest you order the same size.
Please resend your email to BE and copy me, rich@endurancenation.us
Darren,
Thanks for the detail!
I honestly don't know but you could train with a few times to find out?
A few updates and q's for everyone:
Men's Jerseys:
. My thought is to stock the Elite cut for XS, M, and L sizes, the Performance cut and fabric for XL and XXL sizes.
So it appears that everyone is for the most part Ok with the current jersey? The Elite cut, aero fabric, etc? That is, I asked for feedback but didn't get a ton of "this thing sucks" responses?
?
Tri Shorts:
I've submitted the re-do order and numbers to LG. Basically, if you ordered the "old" tri shorts you'll be getting the "new" shorts instead, regardless of whether or not you've actually received the old shorts. That is, about 20 people ordered the old short but have not received them yet. We are going to upgrade you automagically to these better shorts and will take the $ hit on the difference.
LG is telling me their timeline to get this shorts re-do to us is early June.
Rich,
That seems like a good idea ordering the Performance cut (2012 size) for the larger sizes. I placed an order for an XL, but it is showing as the Elite version. Will that automatically change to the Performance version when you tell BE to stock the Performance for the larger sizes?
Hi Doug, I placed the order with LG yesterday and we decided to stay the elite cut and would advise larger athletes to considering going up a size. How tall are you, what do you weigh?
Ok, please email cs@brandevolutions.com to make this change. Thanks.