Gill clothing

We've used Gill's relatively new range of cycle specific clothing for this ride and have been very happy with its design and overall quality. Most popular in our wardrobe has been the Fire road jacket - a simple, lightweight waterproof, tailor-made for the cyclist, with longer sleeves and a drop tail. It's well priced and has a combination of groovy colour schemes, and it packs down nicely too.

We particularly liked the design and fit of the waterproof over trousers with their stylish use of reflective piping and long leg zips. Very minimalist, they also pack down excellently and look cool - though pockets would have been a practical feature. Also, it's worth trying on several pairs as we found sizing can vary. Unlike many companies, Gill produce a full range of women specific clothing which Rosal, smaller than most, greatly appreciated. After much hunting through an assortment of over trousers, Gill came up with the goods. Just right in leg length, however, they could do with some extra elastic in the waist to compensate for girlie hips.

Bearing in mind the limited hauling capabilities of a tandem, we only chose clothing that we really needed. This included a set of thermals - we liked the close fitting design of the long sleeved shirts - and the ' Toasty Top - a lovely lightweight fleece that looks even cool off the saddle too!! Neoprene gloves worked well in normal raining conditions, though we would have like to feel a little more padding in the cut-off bike gloves. Gill's Fleece hats are made from Polartec - a great synthetic material that kept us warm in colder and even wet conditions. For Iran, we wore long sleeved cycle tops. A little heavy for the stifling temperatures, they were very suitable for the cultural conditions of this Islamic Republic.

Overall, we were very happy with the excellent quality of Gill's clothing. Waterproofing and core warmth are key factors with such a cycling tour - after all, you can always buy cheap T-shirts and shorts in a local bazaar - and we found the range definitely lived up to its name.