For the ethical cyclists amongst us...

[KatieMacK]

http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/137 ... le-forever

 

[Chopper the ex Copper]

Very Eco friendly, using all those fossil fuels to get it to the punter.

 

[KatieMacK]

Oh, good point! Thank god you were here to stop us all from supporting these absolute monsters.

 

[matthew71]

Second hand cotton and polyester , you can even have your own design printed if you pledge 5k, bargain

 

[Chopper the ex Copper]

Oh, good point! Thank god you were here to stop us all from supporting these absolute monsters.

The biggest environmental impact from most portable consumer items comes from transporting them, not their manufacture, so most of this eco hugging type claim is crap, unless they're delivering it on horseback.

 

[The History Man]

KT could!

 

[PurpleFrog]

Oh, good point! Thank god you were here to stop us all from supporting these absolute monsters.

Fair-do's for meaning well, but...

If you're going to sell cycling clothing on the idea that is eco friendly because it is made in carbon neutral factories, it is fair to ask how much of the carbon cost of the product comes from delivery. I suspect that the answer is "almost all" because sewing machines use damn all energy

As for the fair trade thing: cotton is pretty poor material for cycling gear for the UK because its cold when wet, so you're better off buying merino t shirts or various wicking ones, and you can get either from fair trade companies.
And the ultimate cycling shell is the Paramo Velez Adventure Light, which combines the advantages of hard and soft shells, is again fairtrade, and has capabilities vastly transcending those a polyester top sprayed with Nikwax.

So looked at coldly, this is a company offering products inferior to those that you can already buy from fairtrade manufacturers and the only supposed benefit - windpowered factories - means damn all. In fact, there's probably a negative ecological impact, because merino t-shirts are longer lived than cotton, so the real carbon cost - ie the one including transport - is spread over many more wears. Plus merino wool usually comes from sheep that inhabit places that can't be used to grow food crops, whereas "ecological" cotton can be a devil for replacing rice production.

But most of alll.. a cotton t-shirt costing 25 quid is just insane. If you want to help make the world, buy one for a fiver and give the other 20 to a charity. It will be a thousand times more than the fair trade contribution from 25 quid t-shirt.

 

[Pyro Tim]

I think you'll find that the carbon emissions of a single container are low, let alone for a t-shirt.

However, the designs are poor, and as mentioned, not best thing to make cycling clothing out of

 

[KatieMacK]

The biggest environmental impact from most portable consumer items comes from transporting them, not their manufacture, so most of this eco hugging type claim is crap, unless they're delivering it on horseback.

So, you're implying that it's all a waste of time because of that? I guess treating workers fairly and paying them a fair wage is "eco hugging" crap too? Not supporting child labour and having a repeat performance of what happened in Bangladesh last month is of absolutely no concern. I guess being so well informed means at least you can live with the clear conscience that you are purchasing goods that have never been through this transporting process. I'm presuming, of course, that you buy all your goods from independent retailers that produce and sell their goods within a bikeable radius? Or horseback, if that's your preferred method of transport? Good for you.

 

[KatieMacK]

To the two posts above, fair points made. I was simply passing on some information that a friend had passed on to me! I didn't realise it would get such a reaction! As you will all note, I didn't actually communicate ANY opinions on the products the company makes! I just think it's good that they are trying to make a difference, albeit a fairly small one.