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rssc sports l/s retro campus jersey & bibtights

the law according to sod has many variations, not least when it comes to reviewing cycling apparel. i can think of several occasions when i have been moved to contact a manufacturer to advise that, though the review kit arrived over a month previously, the weather has refused to play ball in assisting with a pertinent review. of course, at times, the clothing purveyor has been remiss in assisting, having sent a short-sleeve jersey made from material several orders of magnitude thinner than the toilet paper purchased by mrs washingmachinepost, but doing so in the early weeks of january. this is the scottish hebrides, and there are never going to be periods of weather that would allow just such a garment to be comprehensively reviewed in the manner required.

in the current case, rssc sports were kind enough, in july of this year, to send a short-sleeve jersey and bibshorts for review, timing which coincided with delectably warm weather on our one day of summer. however, the above apparel was accompanied by a green, retro american college style, long-sleeve jersey, matched with a pair of unlined, but padded bibtights. though the hebrides never quite reached the scorching, weather warning temperatures suffered in the deep south, we did enjoy more than just a handful of warm, sunny days that thankfully stopped well short of encouraging wildfires, drought and removing green from the grass.

i would scarce admit that that scottish islanders are a particularly hardy bunch, though in some cases that might be a true description, but up until yesterday morning, those of us in the velo club still plying our trade along the highways and byeways have continued to sport bare legs courtesy of our lycra bibshorts. and if i'm particularly honest, the conditions that had me turn to the long sleeves and bibtights provided by rssc sports were verging on surplus to requirements in weather that turned from somewhat wet and chilly on friday, to a tad milder on saturday with the wind having veered from east to west. however, the opportunity to review this particularly visible apparel was most welcome; had that not been the case, the nice people at rssc would have been in receipt of an apology come monday, since circumstances over the next few weekends would have prevented the undertaking of a review of any kind.

to place this in perspective before we get down to brass tacks, the jersey, reminiscent of the syle of jacket worn by the inmates of rydell high in the movie grease was medium size, while the bibtights were one size down (small). the plus point was the existence of ankle zips on the unlined tights, a feature that seems to have been completely ignored of late by the more prominent and decidedly more expensive brands clamouring for your hard-earned cash. i have become accustomed to wearing my socks outside of all my other bibtights, simply because it's too darned awkward to wear them under. ankle zips provide both opportunities.

i sure hope everyone else is reading this.

that said, i'm slightly confused by the decision to offer bibtights without a fleece-lining. there can only be a very short period in which bibtights such as these can be worn, when it's just too cold for shorts, but not yet cold enough for thermal tights. though the circumstances under which these were worn made them the perfect choice, in a matter of weeks, the lack of a lining will have them confined to the cycling apparel wardrobe. the existence of a chamois pad prevents them being worn over a pair of thermal bibshorts. there is, however, a fleece-lined option, which, if you live in the uk, might be the better choice.

however, though i have not attempted to compare the two, the chamois pad in the tights, as opposed to that in the previously reviewed bibshorts, seems to have been perfectly judged; remarkably comfortable without being too thick. i'm sure someone will tell me it's exactly the same pad as featured in the shorts, where i felt as if i was sitting on a thickly padded saddle, but in this case, you simply wouldn't have known it was there, probably the best recommendation that can be applied to a chamois pad.

the white mesh bib section was simply a treat. sturdy enough to hold up the tights without undue pressure on my shoulders, and light enough to be comfortable throughout the review period.

assuming a jersey fits well enough, there's probably not a great deal that can be said about any cycle jersey other than describing its decor, which, in this case, has been dealt with above. the jersey offers a remarkably close fit, but has a generous degree of stretch built-in, that makes it easy to fasten the full-length zip, even if carrying a few extra grams (i'm being as generous as the jersey here). if i have any complaints it would be the length of the sleeves and the tightness of the cuffs. i'm willing to agree that i have slightly longer arms than is common, but an extra couple of centimetres would have been most welcome. however, even with narrow, bony wrists, it was slightly harder than it needed to be to get my hands in and out of the jersey sleeves. if you happen to have large hands, that might be a bit of a problem.

on the bike, the rssc apparel performed well above its price point, perhaps bringing into question the cost of similar kit from more prominent marques. granted, there's no zipped security pocket on the jersey, a feature that we've mostly taken for granted over the past couple of decades, but the three pockets provided a more than capable (in my case), of carrying an electronic pump, a tyre jack, a spare pair of gloves, a digital camera and a pocket toolset, a combination which failed to pull down the hem of the jersey and remained stable even during my brief impersonation of a cyclocross rider. i had no complaints whatsoever regarding the comfort of the bibtights.

though you could be forgiven for considering it to be a typo on the website, the current combined price of the jersey and bibtights is a mere £46. should you opt for fleece-lined tights, you'll have to add another £6. that, in my experience, is the very definition of a bargain. the jersey and tights are available in sizes ranging from small to 4xl.

form an orderly queue and don't all rush at once.

rssc sports l/s jersey and bibtights

sunday 20 september 2026