What do you put more attention into, the rider or the bike? Both, say Pedalit, a reasonably new Australian company who produce a range of products designed to look after you, your bike, and your bike clothing.
Their selection includes the pre-ride care range, with items such as chamois cream and sunscreen. But they also have a laundry concentrate to use for hand-washing, and a great hand cleaner for use after working on your bike.
In terms of sunscreen, I tend to hope it is easy to apply (and rub in) and doesn’t stain my clothes. Pedalit’s offering in a small pump pack was easy to keep at hand for application before heading out. It is SPF 50+, and has a mix of oils to help soothe your skin – as riding in the elements really it few favours. The Zinc oxide does tend to hang around a bit. You know where you put it, but it’s easy to leave marks on cars and gear. On humid days, there was an element of stickiness – but only a few products avoid this.
I don’t tend to hand wash clothes unless I’m somewhere remote, or living out of hotels. But, Pedalit claim hand washing your gear will prolong the life of your clothing. Gentler detergents and a gentler process keeps the lightweight materials used for cycling gear intact, and in shape.
The Revival Biodegradeable Power Concentrate can be used in your machine on a low setting, or in the sink. Reluctantly, I did both. The results were the same, clean and fresh-smelling kit. Next time I splurge on new gear I’m going to do my best to hand wash with Revival for the life of the product.
In terms of chamois cream, you use it or you don’t. And if you do use it, you tend to fall into one of two distinct camps, liking either a thin cream or a heavier one. Think moisturiser compared to Vaseline, for both ends of the spectrum.
I like a thicker chamois cream that lasts well, without the ‘tingle’ of some brands. Pedalit’s offering, being free of menthol, was forgotten about once applied and did its job. This was the standout product from this range for me. It worked for long rides, short rides, wet rides and dry rides.
Along with the chamois cream, I used the Pedalit’s hand cleaner almost every day. Since I’m often tinkering on one bike or another, the ABITH Workshop Hand Cleaner (standing for ‘allowed back in the house’) now has a permanent location next to the sink in my garage.
In all, this is just part of a great range, and some products will appeal to riders more than others. For me, the chamois cream was the main one.
Pros:
– A well-considered range
– Effective and useful
Cons:
– Microbeads in the hand cleaner
RRP: Revival – $14.95; Chamois cream – $24.95; Sunscreen – $34.95; ABITH – $14.95
From: pedalit.cc