Photos by Sean Murphy
As one of the first people to test out the new cycling gear from Mission Workshop, I greeted it with as much apprehension as enthusiasm. Surely, there were already a lot of options for urban cycling gear out there but were these new pieces strictly for cycling?
Not at all. In fact, while I enjoyed riding in the clothes, I didn’t feel like there was anything in particular that made it cycling-specific and that’s a good thing. The side utility pocket has everyday applications and the cut certainly fits on the bike. In the end, this is made in the USA, high-tech, high-quality clothing from a company that is no stranger to those traits.
For most of the Mission Workshop and Factory 5 1,000km bike tour of the Yangtze river delta in China, I was wearing what is now called the Indian Summer Riding Kit from their forthcoming Acre line. The Stahl Shorts being my favorite and the various merino crew neck and henley shirts replaced my normal, day-to-day wear.
When traveling, cotton tends to pick up transient odors and the high humidity of Taiwan and China weren’t exactly making it easy to wash and air dry my clothes. In fact, I ended up leaving all of my wardrobe in Shanghai during our tour, save for a jersey, bibs, boxers, socks and the Indian Summer Riding Kit.
I wore bibs under the shorts and the merino crew on most days, with a forthcoming pocketed vest when I needed some warmth.
My experience with this clothing could fill a whole article, but most importantly, I would never sign off on it if I didn’t believe in what Mission Workshop was pushing here and that’s made in the USA (California), technical clothing that will stand the everyday wear and tear you can dish out to it, on and off the bike.
The material in the crews and henley shirts is high-quality, New Zealand Merino wool, that is cut and sewn in California. Even the buttons are machined in the States. The Stahl shorts are made with military-spec 4-way stretch fabric engineered and developed in the USA and features Swiss-made Riri tack button.
Check out the full Indian Summer Riding Kit here!
