Cyclist
In the Drops: Pink Quoc/Maap shoes, Albion do-it-all shorts, Maurten carbs and The Beach Boys
It’s Friday again, and I’ve got an absolute cracker lined up today.
On cyclist.co.uk this week it’s been steady as we take a few deep breaths before the action at the Dauphiné and Tour de Suisse kick off and take us straight into Tour de France season.
We started the week with a lovely gallery from the Tour of Britain Women and guides to both the men’s and women’s Tour de Suisse.
We’ve also had reviews of the 3T Strada Italia road bike and Alpitude Navene saddle as well as the news that the Classified and TRP groupset has finally launched and an all-road bike comparison guide.
To top it all off, the latest episode of the Cycling Magazine Podcast came out yesterday with Levi Leipheimer, which is well worth a listen.
Quoc x Maap M3 Pro shoes
The next phase of the collaboration between British shoe brand Quoc and Australian clothing company Maap has been released and it’s a corker. After kicking things off a couple of months ago with Maap’s take on the Gran Tourer XC off-road shoes, the attention turned to Quoc’s top road shoes, the M3 Pros.
Normally available in white only, Maap has put its design spin on the M3 Pros with two new models, one still white just with a few more logos and taglines as well as an off-white strip near the back and one, pictured here, in a stunning ‘Musk’ light pink.
It’s not just an aesthetic difference though, the upper on these shoes are slightly different to the standard M3 Pros with triangular airhole perforations for extra breathability.
This is the most jealous my partner has even been of a product I’ve brought home, and there aren’t many left in a lot of sizes, so if you like them don’t dilly dally.
- Buy now from Quoc (£340)
Albion Zoa shorts
Anyone that’s been following my personal contributions to In the Drops (OK it’s only one person, hi dad) will know that one of my main missions is to find cycling clothing that I can ride in and wear as normal clothes, mostly for commuting purposes. That’s included technical T-shirts, trousers, jackets, jumpers, shoes and most recently shorts.
British brand Albion’s new Zoa shorts are the latest to be put to the test and they look like they might just be the real deal.
They’re made ‘for those who travel by bike’ and as a company that kits out some of the world’s best ultracyclists, Albion truly knows what that means. They’re lightweight, soft to the touch and have a really handy waist fastening and adjustment system to get the fit spot on.
With a big part of the target audience those riders going great distances across the world there’s also plenty of functionality for bikepacking built in too, with a whopping seven pockets as well as packability to help save bag space.
The Zoa shorts are made from durable recycled nylon, are fast-drying and have DWR light rain shower resistance without the use of PFAS.
- Buy now from Albion (£120)
Maurten Drink Mix
What have been the big developments in the last ten years that have made pro cyclists so much faster? Well just look at a picture from the 2015 Tour de France and it’s obvious a lot has changed, but one of the biggest changes has been in nutrition, with modern cyclists consuming more carbohydrates than ever before to deliver a constant stream of KOMs and record average speeds.
Swedish brand Maurten reckons it was the first to push the boundaries of how much was possible to consume, using what it calls Hydrogel Technology to protect the carbs as they go through the body, ensuring they make it through the stomach before dissolving to stop gastrointestinal issues and to open the door to massive carb consumption.
Maurten’s products were used by Eliud Kipchoge in his sub two-hour marathon run (and it would say that made a bigger difference than the special shoes), and these days provide nutrition for the likes of FDJ-Suez and Ineos Grenadiers.
Here we have the Drink Mix 320 and the Drink Mix 320 Caf 100 (the difference being the addition of caffeine in the latter). It’s absolutely brimming with carbohydrates, in each 83g serving there’s 78g of carbs, so will provide the bulk of what most riders need per hour, and each sachet includes 14 servings.
Maurten has recently improved the Drink Mix recipe to make it easier to mix, easier to drink, easier on teeth and more reliable when mixed with hard water.
- Buy now from Maurten (£45.96)
What we’re into this week: The Beach Boys
I’d normally use this space to put a playlist of new music but I’ll save that for next time and just end with the genius that was Brian Wilson, who died this week. He was a true pioneer.
The post In the Drops: Pink Quoc/Maap shoes, Albion do-it-all shorts, Maurten carbs and The Beach Boys appeared first on Cyclist.
