One kit, two kits, black kit, blue kit?

[Alan]

I was waiting for someone to mention the retro red kit, which still looks great. I remember the photo at the end of the Nanaimo -to- Victoria the first year we did it, with almost all of us decked out in the red kit in Beacon Hill park looking totally buff and manly, back when drinking coffee was a sign of your commitment to Tripleshot. Jaysus, do I sound like an oldtimer, or what?
Anyways, if you saw Dave Hill on Tuesday's ride, complete with 'retro-red', jacket, retro red shirt, red cycling shorts, etc, you know what a totally hot cyclist can look like. For what it's worth I have plenty of baby blue and black kit in my cycling drawers. I need more red! (by the way asking for 'more red' is like yelling "More cowbell", which if you get the joke, you deserve to be in retro gear).

[Marcus]

Thanks to the executive for opening this topic up for discussion. I am torn because the blue kit brings out the colour of my eyes whereas the black kit matches my sense of humor. But as Dr. Seuss says, Sometimes the most complicated questions have simple answers. In this case, keep two kits unless as Simon notes it is logistically problematic to do so. I don't understand the cost argument because no one is forced to buy two kits. If you want to race, in addition to going on regular club rides just buy the race kit unless you detest black in which case that is a colour issue not a cost issue. Also, I would have multiple items anyway because I don't want to be doing laundry every day. I am willing to help out in ordering if needed. Finally, if the prevailing opinion is one kit, I'll still be out for hills next week because I like riding with you guys.

[Lister Farrar]

deleted by author

[jeremy]

.

[barton bourassa]

Maybe lets just stick with Baby Blue? It is soft, gentle, kind, peaceful!

One kit for all! All for one kit!

Namasta!

[Rolf]

"So be sure when you step,
Step with care and great tact.
And remember that life's
A Great Balancing Act."

As for kit choice, I fear,
That I've not much to say,
Unlike Mordecai Lister
and Josh Allen O'Shea.

Back to John's Tuesday post:
Number 1 -- I say "No".
To number 2 I say Blue,
Is the way we should go.

Sounds like Blacks should retire,
And the Blues persevere.
But fighting two kits in races,
Is not worth all these tears.

To the exec I wish luck,
To find sweet compromise.
To other posters I say,
Spare us your diatribes.

If you've got trash to say,
to one person alone.
Then do it over coffee,
And let the thread stay on tone.

[jeremy]

"So be sure when you step,
Step with care and great tact.
And remember that life's
A Great Balancing Act."

As for kit choice, I fear,
That I've not much to say,
Unlike Mordecai Lister
and Josh Allen O'Shea.

Back to John's Tuesday post:
Number 1 -- I say "No".
To number 2 I say Blue,
Is the way we should go.

Sounds like Blacks should retire,
And the Blues persevere.
But fighting two kits in races,
Is not worth all these tears.

To the exec I wish luck,
To find sweet compromise.
To other posters I say,
Spare us your diatribes.

If you've got trash to say,
to one person alone.
Then do it over coffee,
And let the thread stay on tone.

Nicely said Rolf. And so Im on the record, I really don't care which kit we go with.

[barton bourassa]

Nice Rolf! I like your poem!

Now, there have been 472 hits on this subject and only 17 or 18 people have posted their preference for the kit. Next time you view the posts, if you have not already done so, please post your preference! We need to give our executive direction.

Like John D said, would you like Blue, Black or Both?

[jj12]

Baby blue, a new version of the blue? Or the same as previous baby blue? If so then I choose the black just because its what I was introduced to when I joined.

[luke.koolman]

Hey all,
Seeing as I do not have a kit yet, I am game for anything as long as I can wear it soon. But i feel as though a mix could serve this problem well; I like the ideas behind baby blue but the practicality of the black (I get clothes dirty fast). So is there still an option of a new kit design, with maybe navy blue side panels and Baby blue argyle. This way those with both kits can mix and match old light blue and black with new jersey or shorts, and for those that race or want a uniform kit can buy both parts.

Luke

[katew]

Luke took the very words out of my mouth. Or off my keyboard. Or something.

As someone who is paying to wardrobe myself and my kid, I would like to revert to a single kit. I like the colour of the Blues. I think a kit that works with either would be Very Cool. David once joked about getting fined for wearing a black top with blue shorts. But if we get something that blends with either and slowly merge toward that as people rip holes in stuff (David) or grow out of things (David) or whatever...

...that would be cool.

Visually, I see the blue in the argyle as the key connector between either of the existing versions. It's what I recognize when I say, "Hey, there goes a Tripleshotter."

Now, that said, in terms of general colour blocking: I'm sorry to say it, but the blues make my butt look big in a way the black does not. I realize that the majority of TS are men who are secure enough to wear powder blue, but if you're looking for a female POV, well, that's mine.



Kate

[trevor]

I like both blue and black and would be up for having the choice between the two for all members. When I have to put my money down I would opt for the black.

Thanks to those involved in sorting out this mess and putting something together for us to look sharp in.

[beegull]

I like the blue because it's distinct, both color-wise and because the design is a bit less generic, and the black for the pragmatic reasons people have already talked about, specifically stain/scrape resistance and easier matching to generic booties/warmers/helmets/gloves/etc.

I think settling on a single kit per order is definitely simpler, but personally I'd be most enthusiastic about some kind of hybrid of the two, something that retained the character of the blue while throwing a bit of pragmatic black into the mix (base color of the shorts? sections of the front/back panels of the jersey). Obviously we want the order to go through in time for people to get geared up for the racing season, but if some frankenkit combination of the blue and black designs (using the current colors to avoid back and forth with Champ Sys on color matching) is a possibility, I'd contribute my limited vector manipulation skills to that effort.

Brent

[Marcus]

I support the hybrid ideas of Luke, Kate and Brent. If we simply changed the blue in the existing black bibs to baby blue, and perhaps added another blue argyle, I think there would be lots of baby blue and we could probably get away with mixing both old kits with the new kit, satisfying the black and blue crowd, and Kate's profile would be enhanced.

[Rolf]

If consensus is to create a hybrid third kit that will match both the black and blue kits, Galen (ART BOY) did indicate last night his willingness to revisit his iconic easter egg design. But then his chain was already well-lubed at that point in the evening and his generosity of spirit may have faded with the cold, hard dawn. Someone should chain him to a computer and make him look at this thread...

[Given my 'druthers, I'd actually support Old Man Alan and the return of the "Belgian" red/black/yellow kit -- but I guess that's not really on the table.]

[DuncanGrant]

I like the Idea of a stylish merger kit. It would kinda be like Omega Pharma quickstep, but with more argyle, or RadioShack Nissan Trek but more creative. Although, we could always just buy pure white jerseys and shorts with tripleshot and our sponsors names in big block letters, and use magic markers to colour our own designs. Just a thought........
-Duncan

[DavidB]

I like the magic marker idea.

More seriously, I think that the baby blue kit Is more distinctive, and If we find another kit, then all the kit will be dated. If we decide that we want to merge the kits, then we merge the kits, but I think we should remember that it could make us even more mismatched, with the belgian kit, the baby blues, the black kit, and whatever new kit pops up. Although a race kit with some baby blue argyle would be really neat.

[EricS]

I think:

Three Jerseys for the Pedal-kings under the sky,
Seven for the Sprint-lords with their calves of stone,
Nine for Mortal Men doomed to be dropped,
One for the Blue Lord on his blue throne
In the Land of Coffee where the Blue Shadows lie.
One Jersey to rule them all, One Jersey to find them,
One Jersey to bring them all and in the peleton bind them
In the Land of Coffee where the Blue Shadows lie.

Sorry, did you say "Suess"? I thought you said "Tolkien"

I like the blue, I like one jersey for all. I do not mind a hybrid/new design, but I like the baby blue.

Eric

[leftcoaster]

As far as the look of the jerseys, I prefer the black, but when I raced in the Penticton Grand Fondo, probably 40% of the riders had black and white jerseys so the baby blue would stand out more.

If we go back to the blues, we shouldn't change it too much. We already have the gray, red, blue and black sets. A small updating of the blues would be great. A complete change - not so good.

[Greg Miller]

My vote is for one kit - blue. Although I personally prefer the black kit, I think the value of a team kit is to be recognizable on the road, and because most people have blue, it makes sense to stick with it.

One suggestion I have is to borrow the font from the black kit to make tripleshot stand out more in the baby blue. Having said this, graphics are obviously a big time commitment and it may not be practical to make changes other than with the sponsors. I hope that once the executive makes the decision, everyone will be happy to live with it. The time they invest into the club is enormous, and the kit decision will never be able to make everyone happy. Let's make sure to keep it positive whatever is decided.

Greg