Rodeo Kits 2.0

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2.0 was our second road  kit. We don’t offer it for sale anymore, but we are leaving this page here for the sake of our overall story.

This is a big moment for Rodeo. One year ago we floated our 1.0 kits out into the world hoping to have enough guys and gals interested to meet the 10 kit minimum. The response from the world blew our puny little minds and filled us with w00t. 350 kits later, Rodeo has shipped to almost every continent. True to our word that each kit release would be limited, we eventually stopped the presses and went dormant for a few months while we huddled, rode our bikes, and brewed on 2.0.

It is generally accepted in the world of music that most sophomore albums are rarely as good as first efforts. This thought generally filled us with trepidation about the new design. How could we outdo a design that took on a life of its own and got a lot of people excited along the way? On top of that question, there has been an endless stream of “when are you going to do new kits” emails since the very day we ended the last order. Needless to say, pressure for this fresh kit design to be good has been pretty high!

That said, we’re doing this because we love it, and we are doing this because it’s fun. When I (Twinkie) sat back down to work on the new design I simply decided to work from the same philosophy of 1.0: Make something I want to wear as I ride and race with my buddies, lace the design with themes of what Rodeo is all about, and let the chips fall where they may.

As I thought about the team and our general mission of celebrating the diversity of people styles in cycling, I decided that I would try to translate that theme into 2.0 kits. Rodeo seems way too big for a single design or approach to properly represent the spectrum  of riders and members who fly our colors. How can we show that we are a team that celebrates the fact that we all ride our bikes so many different ways and for different reasons? The solution hit me, of all places, at an art museum in Vienna, Austria last summer. As I went from painting to painting I was stopped in my tracks by a profoundly beautiful painting in particular.The painting is “Sturm”, or “The Storm” by Sedlacek. It showed a rocky cliff environment, dimly lit, with a small white animal running down the rocks. I haven’t been able to shake that image from my head for six months. The beauty of the small deer or goat stuck with me. It seemed to somehow remind me of Rodeo. Somewhere in those brush strokes were themes of adventure, exploration, danger, fun, and the unknown.

“What if”, I thought, “we looked to nature to show the diversity in our team?”. The idea seemed consistent with what we’ve already done with the team as 1.0, but it adds a fresh thought. In 2014 we adopted the humble Trail Donkey and Topo Bunny as unofficial and accidental mascots, so why not keep that thought going? I did a quick survey of animals indigenous to Colorado, where Rodeo is headquartered, and picked three more favorites to bring the total number of animals representing our team up to five. Each animal is unique and different from the rest, but each is really cool for its own reasons. I decided then to take each of these animals and put them on five similar, but different, jerseys, so that each Rodeo member could hopefully decide for themselves which animal possesses qualities that they themselves have. There isn’t an obvious choice of any animal / rider type. Each animal does a lot of things well, as do many riders. Aside from the animals, the rest of the jerseys are the same. I look forward to seeing different people pick different animals for different reasons. The hope of the idea is that, as we ride, race, and explore together through 2015, we can notice the differences in each kit and rider and have a cool starting point for discussions about each other and our sport.

Is this all too high-minded and overwrought? Maybe, but who cares if it is. We’re having fun. Break some eggs!

So without further babbling and typing, here is the 2015 Rodeo Adventure Labs 2.0 kit, starting with our mascots.

[fancy_headline]Trail Donkey[/fancy_headline]

Equus Africanus Asinus.

Trail Donkeys are the first animal that Rodeo saw itself in. We simply love all of the qualities that they embody. They are beasts of burden, they are very sure footed, they are stubborn, they are brave. Unbeknownst to many, Donkeys are used many places as guard animals to protect farms and herds from wolfs, coyotes, and other predators. Donkeys don’t know when they are punching above their weight, they blindly do what they want. Donkeys can easily navigate a myriad of environments to from deserts to steep mountains. Donkeys aren’t thoroughbreds by any stretch of the imagination, that aren’t the fastest creatures out there, but we’d take one in an adventure any day of the week, and we already have.

[fancy_headline]Red Fox[/fancy_headline]

Vulpes Vulpes.
Red foxes live around the world in diverse habitats including forests, grasslands, mountains, and deserts. Here in Colorado we often spot them on our rides and for some reason it’s a thrill each time we do. The red fox’s resourcefulness has earned it a legendary reputation for intelligence and cunning. Red foxes are solitary hunters with diets as diverse as their habitats. Foxes are extremely quick, agile, and stealth; Qualities that serve them well in their natural roles as hunters. Like a cat’s, the fox’s thick tail aids its balance, but it has other uses as well. A fox uses its tail (or “brush”) as a warm cover in cold weather and as a signal flag to communicate with other foxes. Some red foxes are golden, reddish-brown, silver, or even black.

[fancy_headline]Snow Hare[/fancy_headline]

Lepus Americanus.

Snowshoe Hare. Aka #topobunny. We adopted this animal as a cyclocross mascot in 2014 because of it’s more or less accidental prominence on our CX.1 kit. We’ve also seen about a trillion of them darting in front of us on our local rides. The Snowshore Hare is mostly active at night. It is highly alert, fast, agile, and adaptable. It tends to go berserk when threatened and run aimlessly in every direction at the same time. It is able to camouflage itself extremely well due to its fur changing color with the seasons. The Snowshoe Hare’s main defense though is that it breeds so fast that it can’t be wiped out. Large feet keep it suspended above snow and give it the animal equivalent of four season all wheel drive. Does not hibernate.

[fancy_headline]Rocky Mountain Goat[/fancy_headline]

3/5 Oreamnos Americanus

Rocky Mountain Goat. Most commonly seen on cliffs of rocks and ice in high alpine environments. This sure footed climber and descender seemingly defies gravity on nothing but strong legs and tidy hoofs, the tips of which have incredible traction. It’s white coat protects it from winds of up to 100mph and temperatures as low as -50. The name Oros comes from the Greek word “mountain” where this beast truly is king. These are aggressive animals, but their attack is curiously named a “frolick”, a fact we rather love. When you see a mountain goat on a Colorado ride you know you’ve gone somewhere special and done something especially adventurous.

[fancy_headline]Pronghorn[/fancy_headline]

Antilocapra Americana

Generally accepted to be the fastest land mammal in the New World. Second only in absolute top speed to a cheetah, but able to maintain speed for longer periods. Heart and lungs are abnormally large. Bone structure is very lightweight. Two long cushioned toes absorb shock at high speed. Pronghorns prefer wide open expanses and grasslands as a habitat, and are well adapted to a large range of temperatures. The glimpse of a herd of pronghorns in full sprint is mind bending and awe inspiring, and gives an give an extra measure of respect for nature.

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[fancy_headline]Rodeo Adventure Labs 2.0 Kits -Proudly Made by Castelli Cycling[/fancy_headline]

A final note on our kits, we designed 2.0 to look fresh compared to 1.0, but we also designed it to be visually compatible with 1.0, so if you still love your 1.0 stuff and you haven’t worn a hole in it, feel free to mix and match 1.0 and 2.0 to your taste.

Team Jersey – $78

The core of our entire design, our Team Jersey is a classic cut jersey suitable for training, racing, exploring, and anything else you want to do in it. This is the jersey that we offered in 1.0 and it served us well. The jersey is available in five variations, each bearing a different animal on the upper back and right front of the jersey. We kept the colors and branding from our 1.0 jersey, but added new elements, made the colors a bit more prominent, and lightened things up just a bit with color gradients. New this year is the presence of a compass in our rear pockets, a nod to the fact that we plan to explore like crazy in 2015.

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Aero Race Jersey – $95

The Aero Race jersey is a new addition to our offerings. The jersey features longer sleeves, an extremely race specific cut, and advanced wicking and venting fabrics that will keep you very cool on the hottest of days. The design is also slightly different from the Team Jersey to highlight features of the cut. The Aero Race jersey is only available with the Pronghorn on it, a nod to it’s primary purpose of high speed racing.

Long Sleeve Jersey – $100

Available for the first time: A Rodeo Long Sleeve jersey. Members requested it, and we are obliging. We varied up the look of this jersey from the short sleeve versions a bit, and made it brighter and whiter, something a few members have also mentioned (you know who you are). Variety is good! This jersey is only available with the Snow Hare on it, a nod to it being worn mostly in cold conditions.

Aero Race Bibshort -X2 Air pad Mens – $128
Aero Race W BibShort -Kiss 3 pad Womens – $128

The Aero Race bibshort are the staple short for us. Extremely comfortable, extremely durable, and all kinds of Aero. X2 Pad in the men’s short is the best that Castelli makes. Kiss 3 pad for the women is the strong preference of the ladies. Of note, our “Make Them Hurt” slogan sits in the same position that it was at on 1.0, because some things should never change.

Body Paint Bibshort -X2 Air pad – $185

What’s the point of naming a short “Body Paint” when all cycling shorts are form fitting? We have no idea, but the Body Paint does seem to fit THAT. MUCH. BETTER. than any other short we’ve ridden, and we love it. This is probably due to the fact that it’s made from a single piece of laser(!) cut fabric and has almost zero stitching to distract from the rad Rodeo graphics. If you like riding in the best possible short, this one is worth the price increase.

San Remo Road Suit -X2 Air pad – $240

San Remo is back! Man this is a sick piece of kit! The San Remo is an extremely aero bicycling skinsuit formed from a Body Paint short and a Aero Race top. Unlike most skin suits it isn’t just for race day, the San Remo has pockets in the rear so you can wear it training, exploring, or racing. Because it’s one piece, it’s probably the most comfortable and best fitting piece of cycling kit you can buy. That isn’t hyperbole, we really mean it. The Rodeo San Remo also varies up the design from all of the other kit items just a bit. It gets a bit brighter and whiter for that #Pro look, for racing or exploring on hot days, and also just because we can. The San Remo also only comes with the Pronghorn on it because it’s original purpose is speed and racing.

Wind Vest – $85

Our wind vest was one of our most loved designs from last year, so we didn’t mess with it much. It’s still blue, it still says Rodeo, but it’s updated with 2.0 graphic themes and it has just a bit more color. Oh. We also added brass knuckles to the back, because it’s kind of our thing.

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Take the time to get your size right!

This is Castelli’s official sizing chart. Please check it our shortly.

 

Here is some size reference:

Steef on the left is 6’1″ (1.85m) tall and weighs about 175lbs (79.37kg). He wears size Large in everything and it fits perfectly.

Peder in the middle is slightly shorter, but is strong like ox! He wears an L short and and M jersey and vest. L SanRemo. Fits perfectly.

Chris on the right is a hobbit (kidding!) and he weighs in the 150s when not drinking too much beer. He wears M/M/M. Fitz perfectly.

Patrick is pictured on the kit page and he is a bit shorter and lighter than Chris, he is S/S/S and is as happy as a clam with the fit. He also climbs really fast.

If you are in complete agony about what size to order, maybe we can help. Shoot us a good pic and some specs and we can give our advice.

Take the time to get this right! Every kit is made for the person who orders it. We don’t do refunds, we don’t do returns. If you order the wrong size your best hope is to trade or sell to another Rodeoer, but we hate to see you kitless.

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Details

This is the first 2.0 kit order. The order will close on January 15th and then be manufactured by Castelli in about six weeks before shipping to customers. We will order very little extra stock, but we will do approx 2-3 re-orders throughout the year.

Anyone can purchase a kit, but by purchasing a kit, you agree to follow the core values as well as you are able. You also agree that, formally or informally, you are one of us. It doesn’t matter where you live, it doesn’t matter what you ride- when you kit up, you’re Rodeo.

International purchasers, we are happy to announce that we have plenty of experience shipping around the world now. Rodeo is global, and we will send a kit wherever there is mail service.

 

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