The best cycling clothes and accessories to buy now.

“There’s a certain amount of freedom involved in cycling,” former Talking Heads frontman Mr David Byrne writes in his 2009 book Bicycle Diaries, “you’re self-propelled and decide exactly where to go. If you see something that catches your eye to the left, you can veer off there, which isn’t so easy in a car, and you can’t cover as much ground walking.”

As any cyclist who has filtered through gridlocked traffic one summer weekend morning will tell you, a bike is a far better means of escaping the city and exploring country roads than a hotbox of a car. And whether it’s a sportive, Audax or merely a pootle from point A to pub B, when it comes to cycling, right now is the sweet spot – especially with the Tour De France in full swing.

Make the most of the extra hours of daylight: get up early before the stifling summer heat kicks in (or ride late in the day, with the tarmac still throbbing with warmth), get on your saddle and start cranking your legs. Feel your muscles burn with the elevation gain and then the breeze in your hair – or through the vents in your helmet – as you make your descent on the other side.

That there is the freedom. But as Mr Byrne notes, there is only a certain – finite – amount of it. When it comes to where you go, via which coffee or cake shop turns your head, your options are as limitless as the road network in front of you. But as for how you approach it, you really should dress the part. Certainly, if you plan to ride any great distance, we advise that you don’t just wing it in an old T-shirt and a pair of gym shorts. Breathable technical fibres will service your needs in a way that sweaty old cotton won’t, while padded bib shorts will give you comfort where you need it and will help swerve chaffing where you certainly don’t want it.

To that end, here is our edit of summer-appropriate cycling gear – from a lightweight, moisture-wicking jersey packed with handy pockets, to a pair of mesh bib shorts built to support leg muscles over the longest of rides, as well as a pair of sunglasses to fend off the glare of the road. However far you make it, you’ll thank us for it.

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