Royal

Review by Johan Hjord // Photos by Tal Rozow Royal’s SP247 range has been a staple of their catalog for a long time. Originally inspired by Steve Peat himself (hence the “SP” part of the name), it is a no-frills racing outfit that can also be your go-to gear for any kind of ride, any day of the year. For 2014, the jersey and short both see the traditional yearly face-lift, and with good memories of previous iterations we were eager to see what this particular vintage would bring to the table. We got decked out and headed out to find out… SP247 Short Highlights Extended stretch panels for...

by Amanda Richter According to Royal Racing, “The over riding aim with this and all our gloves is fit and performance. Each material is chosen to compliment the others to create a great fitting, light, and durable glove.” How do the Core gloves stack up to this goal? Let’s find out… Women’s Core Glove Highlights Corded Nylon back of hand fabric Micro fibre thumb wipe Index finger silicone grippers 2/2 Mesh fourcettes Direct inject pull tab on palm 0.8mm Royal custom specced synthetic leather palm MSRP $24.95 Initial Impressions
 These gloves are thin and light, no denying that. I couldn’t help...

Review by A.J. Barlas // Photography Jon Anthony & A.J. Barlas Riding apparel over the last number of years has changed. Gone are the long, baggy items, replaced with more form fitting clothing, a move that we feel is an entirely good thing! This isn't to say we should ride in skin tight clothing, in fact, I'm an advocate for the 'no lycra necessary' movement, but wearing gear so baggy that it would catch on your bars, seat, and tree branches as you whiz by is not only ridiculous, it's highly impractical. Having said that there are still baggier fits available, if you so desire. There are also...

by Amanda Richter Let’s start this off by being honest with one another. It is important to look good while on your bike, right? Try to deny it if you want, but I certainly appreciate looking put together when I ride. So when I was given the chance to test out a matching kit from Royal Racing I was beyond psyched. I couldn’t wait to get it. Conveniently I had a trip planned to Sedona so I thought that would be a great way to start off the test. As the days ticked by leading up to the trip I checked my tracking information and planned out locations for photos. However, UPS had a different plan...

by Amanda Richter Let’s start this off by being honest with one another. It is important to look good while on your bike, right? Try to deny it if you want, but I certainly appreciate looking put together when I ride. So when I was given the chance to test out a matching kit from Royal Racing I was beyond psyched. I couldn’t wait to get it. Conveniently I had a trip planned to Sedona so I thought that would be a great way to start off the test. As the days ticked by leading up to the trip I checked my tracking information and planned out locations for photos. However, UPS had a different plan...

Review by AJ Barlas // Photos by Jon Anthony and AJ Barlas Royal Racing has hit the trails with more new apparel for 2014, and a number of these items are targeted specifically at Enduro. Input from Enduro racers around the world, including Justin Leov, Neil "the Don” Donoghue and Steve Peat, has resulted in the birth of items like the Stage jersey. But don't worry if you're not racing Enduro, this collection is really well suited to general mountain biking use, or trail riding as it was commonly referred to prior to the Enduro craze. We've spent the winter riding in some of this gear and have...

Review by Johan Hjord // Photos by Tal Rozow Royal Racing has put a lot of work into its glove range over the past few years, and there’s a pretty impressive selection on offer from the UK-based outfitters today. For 2014 there’s a brand new model in the catalog, and given the spec we were eager to try it out. Here’s our report after a good couple of months of trail time with the Quantum glove. Royal Racing Quantum Glove Highlights 0.75mm AX perforated stretch palm material Minimal cuff closure with expander v panel Aggressive ergonomic pre-curving to avoid bunching Microfiber thumb wipe Lycra...

Review by A.J. Barlas // Photography Jon Anthony & A.J. Barlas A riding jacket that works well is a tricky piece of gear to find - both for the consumer looking for the ideal jacket, and the designer developing it. Depending on where you do most of your riding, water repellence, warmth and breath-ability become prerequisites of varying importance, and striking the perfect balance between these attributes is key. In Squamish, we generally need all of the above for a jacket to work well. Our 'off-season' involves plenty of wet, cold rides, with the body working hard enough to really generate...