I own a Cavalo jersey, the Squadra 3.0 to be specific…  Well, technically I used to own two of the exact same jersey but I gave one of mine to a new kid in our group who was lacking in decent cycling apparel and cash.  I also gave him a pair of my Specialized RBX Pro shorts and a couple more jerseys.

Dude, if you can’t help out a kid when you’re as fortunate as I am, what good are you?

The point is, of course, that I liked the jersey so much and they’re such a fantastic bargain, I bought a second.  In fact, they still have them (sadly only in Medium) over at Nashbar for forty bucks.  The one I have left still looks excellent and enjoys a regular spot in my summer cyclewear rotation.  It’s three years old.

The other day I was thinking it’s time for another pair of bib shorts.  My shorts, all but one pair, are starting to look a little ratty and now that I finally understand just how much better bibs are than shorts, the correct conclusion was new bibs.  I don’t know as I’ll ever go back to shorts before I’m 70.

I started looking at Specialized RBX bibs.  They start at $150 a pair for the decent one’s.  I had second thoughts about dropping that much cheese on a pair of shorts, I won’t lie.  That’s a lot of jack, Jack.  I went over to Nashbar to see what they had and found the Laccio kit.  Folks, I got the bibs and matching jersey for $25 less than I’d have paid for a pair of the Specialized bibs.

Sizing is a little tricky because it’s European clothing, so it runs small.  Normally I’ll take an American Medium so I need a Large in anything “Pro Fit” or European.  My kit arrived Thursday and put simply, it’s awesome.

.Even though I should represent, as my buddy Mike did, with my Affable Hammers kit, I wanted to try the new one out on a long ride – even though this is akin to heresy amongst cyclists (you never try a new kit out on a long ride lest you end up with an ill-fitting kit and a couple saddle sores the size of oranges).  I won’t get all long and drawn out about it…  The kit was awesome.  In fact, it was even better than my Hammers’ kits, and that’s saying something.  I paid $40 more for my Hammers’ setup too.

I made it through my 100k without so much as a pinch.  Cavalo makes some good stuff.

As a side note, with the Squadra jersey, the Medium was a little tight until I hit mid-season weight, I probably would have done better with a Large.  That’s what I ordered this time around and while the bibs are just a shade bigger than expected, the jersey is longer than I’d anticipated – it’s still tight in the chest, arms and torso, the tail is just longer by an inch or so.  That said, the kit is definitely going into the regular rotation.