Icons of cycling: Track mitts

A practical piece of kit and a quintessential part of being any kind of serious cyclist

Iconic apparel unique to cycling

(Image credit: mike prior)

There was nothing like the feel of a brand new pair of crochet-backed track mitts. Opening the packet was a sensory serenade: the oily unctuous lanolin smell of the chamois leather, the beautifully stitched seams, and the airy yet close fit of the backs.

This was the late Seventies, when cycling style was all steel and Super Record. Imported track mitts, which rarely had labels and were the product of tiny cottage industries in Spain, could be bought mail order from the bike shop glitterati of Britain, or by adventurous souls on trips to Ghent, Milan or Paris.

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