Comfort Evaluation of Cyclists Jerseys Using Wear Trial Test

Abstract

The aim of this study was to evaluate the wear comfort of four commercially available cycling outfits and under¬stand various subjective parameters of garments through consumer perception, which will enable the design and development of an optimized outfit. A questionnaire was developed specifically to address various key aspects such as tactile sensation, garment fit with reference to size, garment assembly, garment aesthetics (style and shape), comfort (before, during and after wearing) and overall satisfaction (relating to design of the garment and style). Three outfits were fabricated from polyester fabric and one from polyamide/elastane (80%/20%) fabric. They were assessed by four male professional cyclists (age 22−25) at various stages of a test protocol of 45 minutes total duration, of which 20 minutes was flat cycling. The four tested garments showed greater dif¬ferences between the sensorial comfort perceptions than thermophysiological comfort. The sensorial comfort sensation was found to be mainly correlated with fabric properties, fit, construction techniques and moisture sensation, whereas the thermophysiological comfort was found to be affected by the fabric characteristics, the test environment conditions and level of activity. Additionally, manual measurements showed great brand-based differences between garments of the same specified size M (medium). Overall, the polyamide/elastane jersey was perceived as a better cycling outfit than the polyester outfit. The results of this study provide guidance for the optimal design and development of professional cyclist outfits.