The final version of the kit, courtesy of Jeff Keil, has been up for awhile and I’ve been narrowing down the supplier from which to have the kits screened and procured from. I now have a dilemna that I wanted to ask for your advice on. Link to kits: http://trimarkyv.blogspot.com/2009/01/mva-racing-jerseys-final-cut.html
The feed back on verge is… it’s really nice stuff and you’ll be very happy with the fit, cut and comfort. They also more directly address women’s requiremnts. However the drawback is the cost. over 160 per kit maybe more. Champ-sys would be around 100 per kit but both the durability of the fabric and it’s comfort level would not be at the same level.
So I am stuck. regardless of the maker the kit is going to look bad ass. but I want to know what you all feel about the pricing of the kit. Personally i am erring on the side of making this kit not only the nicest looking out there but also super comfortable and a joy to workout/ride/train in. I’ll be fronting the cost of this to a degree so i’ll be taking a bite in the pocket book as well.
The Verge stuff is nice. Chris won a pair of their bibs and they do look and fit really nice. Really nice! As in she gets comments all the time about how they fit. Nice!
That said, our coach decided to go with Champ-Sys for his athlete kits. He is quite familiar with them as I’ve seen him wearing Champ-Sys kits a lot in the off-season. So, I guess his experience with them did not stop him from ordering Champ-Sys for his company kit.
I still have multiple verge kits from 3 years ago that are perfect. By far my favorite. Since then the kits that I’ve used have changed from HotShoppe to Pactimo and the quality of the last two pales in comparison to verge. I’m not even getting a full year out of my newer stuff without either color problems or more importantly chamois stiching coming out.
I’ve had kits from Hincapie (my fav), Garneau, and now we are also on Champ-Sys. The stuff seems OK - definitely good for the money. Is the Verge stuff better? You bet. I suppose you could order an Assos kit for the ultimate as well, but money always come into play.
Just my $0.02
edit: I’m talking about roadie kit only. Tri kits (different team) are from LG and Orca. I’ve never seen the Champs-Sys tri stuff.
Our team just placed our order with champion systems for the 3rd year in a row. The kits always come out looking real good and the price is hard to beat. My bibs the first year were comfortable from day 1. Last year the chamois was different and it took a while for it to get comfortable. Hopefully I have better luck this year.
The fit is good. The quality is definately good enough to last an entire season.
I don’t like the champion system tri gear at all. A few of the women on our team bought the tri tops and none of them fit right. Sugoi is much better. I used their shorts and tri top at a half last year and the top chaffed me bad enough that i had to take it off.
FWIW, a guy on our cycling team bought some verge bibs and never wears them because he likes champion system’s better.
I second the Sugoi vote. I’ve used Champ Sys stuff and while it’s great for the price, I consider it to be a somewhat lower quality than Sugoi/Giordano/etc
The Champ stuff is spotty. I’ve seen some “good” stuff from Champ Sys, but our team kit in 2007 came back like lingerie. Terrible spandex quality, the colors were off and the sizing was different than the trial box (mostly the bottoms/bibs). They agreed it was shabby and took it back…then told us the new lead time (which was too long).
FWIW, I’d consider Castelli custom the best quality/price right now. Completely different from the “old” Squadra stuff.
Good luck. The only “trouble” you might have is getting the proper coloring…
From everything I have seen and played with, Hincapie is probably the best reasonable kit around. I just saw the chamois and fabrics on the '09 stuff and they are really good. It is more expensive than Champ-Sys, but it is in line with Verge. Personally, if you keep the same kit design for a couple of seasons, the premium stuff will pay for itself, because it will last longer. I have some Hincapie stuff that I just retired after 5 years. The spandex was getting a bit thin on the bibs.
My cycling team is currently in Verge gear and has been for about 3 years. I also have a Champion Systems kit a friend gave me from his team. In my opinion, the Verge stuff is way better. Better fit, better fabrics, better chamois in the shorts, better zippers on the shirts, etc. I don’t know if Champions Systems has more than one level of clothing, but I’m not at all impressed with the stuff I have.
I don’t like the champion system tri gear at all. A few of the women on our team bought the tri tops and none of them fit right. Sugoi is much better. I used their shorts and tri top at a half last year and the top chaffed me bad enough that i had to take it off.
Here is my vote for champion system tri gear! We need more topless women at races!
As a cycling and triathlon apparel retailer, I have loved dealing with the Verge people. They are quality people who have treated us very very well. And as an athlete, I love the Verge stuff. When I reach into my drawer especially for the long training days I usually go for the Verge stuff. I dont have an experience with champ-sys so I can’t comment on them.
As the apparel coordinator for our college’s cycling team, the previous two years we went with Verge. We had our order in late the first year (Late November) and were given a delivery date of February 14ish. When the kits arrived on March 20th, the collegiate season was 1/2 done.
The next year we continued with Verge, because the apparel was of super high quality and I figured it was our own fault because we got the order in so late. Well, last year we had the order in in October,and given a delivery date of the 2nd week in January. When the kits arrived in mid February, it was the day before our first race. We were elated to have them finally. Open the box. The kits were the wrong color, the wrong sizes, and the wrong styles (3/4 instead of full zip). We had to use them for the next few races as I continued to call Verge to work this out. Supposedly, the man who took our order was fired in late January, which did not help us one bit. In the end though, Verge gave us our correct kits (which we got by the end of March) and gave us the wrong ones free, so they ended up doing the honorable thing.
Went with Giordana this year, very competitive prices, great quality stuff, and great customer service.
So that is my 2 cents, and just letting you know my experiences. I hope yours would be different.
Our team’s Verge kits from 2008 were horrible. Broken zipper pulls, LS jerseys with the arms 2-3/4" too long, colors didn’t match between shorts and jerseys, men’s chamois super-wide, almost like a women’s version. The first iteration of our bibs showed your buttcrack right through the fabric! Let’s just say our first team ride after getting the kits was, er, butt-ugly. LOL They sent us new shorts in about 4 or 5 weeks, well into the season. That was bad.
I do like the windfront vest a lot, and their Warsaw winter jacket is nice. The LS jersey would be great if I didn’t need ape-arms to fit into it (I’m relatively normal, and Verge verified that they were produced too long). Maybe they had a bad year, but my Bob Cook jersey (Verge) from 2007 also has a rip in a seam. Never had a jersey rip before for no reason.
We dumped them and went with Primal this year, and my son’s new team this year also dumped them for Primal. FWIW. I realize our experience appears different from some of those above, but FWIW I wouldn’t go with Verge…
