Nestled in a sleepy corner of Somerset, Fabric have been producing award winning saddles for some years. Now they also have an ever expanding range of bottles, grips, lights and tools to compliment the saddles with some interesting developments for 2017.
Our man Ben got invited along to their swanky 2017 Launch – here’s what he saw …
At the launch, head honcho at Fabric Cycling, Nick Larsen explained how they like to do things differently, enabling them to bring innovative and unique products to market that stand out from the crowd.
I did it my way.
A great example of doing things the ‘Fabric way’ is how they have gone about producing their first range of lights, primarily aimed at commuters but with enough lumens for some light trail riding too. Rather than just following the trend and re-packaging an existing light from Taiwan like most companies do, they went to a company who manufacture lights for scuba divers to produce a unique and robust product that should stand up to the worst British weather. The rear light even has a brake light function that glows brighter when internal accelerometers sense you slowing down!
Gripping stuff.
One product that really caught our eye was the new Semi Ergo silicone grip with lock on clamp. Semi Ergo refers to the slight bulge that you can see in the middle part of the grip, providing a comfortable and secure shape for your hand. Although we did not ride it, we had a go on one of the display bikes and it felt comfortable and grippy even without gloves. We have a set winging over to us for testing, so we will let you know how they fare out on the trails soon.
Storage options.
Over the last year, the cage-less bottle system has had a lot of attention for its simple design and ease of use. Basically, instead of a bottle cage, you attach 2 small plastic lugs to the frame. The bottle then slides onto and locates itself securely on these lugs, for a clean look and easy access. For 2017, the main change is that you can get larger capacity 750ml bottles, insulated bottles and a Tool Keg for storing tools and snacks on your bike. They are all BPA free, meaning that they won’t taste funny on hot days and they won’t mess up your hormones like cheap BPA containing bottles do.
Are we sitting comfortably?
When you think of Fabric, you tend to think about saddles first and they have a really large selection for 2017. From the super expensive and light weight carbon ALM model manufactured in conjunction with Airbus, to the new Women’s specific Scoop Gel (which we will also be getting on test soon) there really is a saddle for every bum out there and in enough colours to satisfy the more fashion-conscious amongst you. The Line model also looked very sharp and well thought out with its pressure relieving central channel designed to reduce the dreaded numb willy sensation on those longer rides!
All of the new products will be available from this August apart from the pumps which will be later this year.
