The centerpiece of UAE Team Emirates' presence in the peloton of the world's best races is a jersey that began to take shape on paper from the very first minute of the agreement between the World Tour squad and Gobik. "The team was clear about its identity. Based on those premises and the need to accommodate all the sponsors, we started to work". says Ángel Lecina, from the product development department at Gobik.
It all started around the end of September last year.
With no time to celebrate the Tour triumph, Gobik the conception of the centerpiece of the entire UAE Team Emirates image for 2021 began. The work took a couple of months, maybe a little less, when the first sketches were agreed and the design was approved.
"We were starting from some team identity colors. White was a priority, accompanied by red. Then we had to fit the Emirates flag. Almost two months passed between the proposals and the final approval. It was a complicated process, also because of Covid19's own restrictions," says Ángel.
The seal of Gobik on the jersey UAE Team Emirates
The task of fitting the sponsors, all demanding their place, was arduous, but to a white centerpiece, a stamp could be placed. Gobik to the design, identifiable mainly on the sleeves and the Emirates flag that the riders wear on the chest: "With that classic geometry and gradient that is so recognizable in our work."
On the sleeves we see that distinctive touch "with a black and red gradient -Angel points out- very characteristic in Gobik. It was a jersey similar to the previous year, but with the plus of our idea, a plus that marks its place in the middle of the peloton, with that gradient, but also with the gold line under the Emirates sponsorship and in the team lettering on the chest."
What effect do the gold touches have? "We think they illuminate, they give light to the garment," says Angel.
One detail the team liked was "the rider's name on the inside of the sleeve," a place rarely used for this purpose, but which nevertheless looks in all its splendor when the rider crosses the finish line first and can be read perfectly with his arms raised in the air.
"It doesn't look like it, but the personalization effort involved is enormous, just like putting the name of each rider under the collar of the undershirts. Now that summer is coming, when they open the jerseyThe name will be perfectly visible". says Angel about those little details that he wants to take care of so much. Gobik.
The jersey base of Gobik for UAE Team Emirates is composed of several parts. A central one, the chest and abdomen, elastic and breathable, a back, more breathable if possible, and the sleeves, with a textured fabric that benefits aerodynamics. The piece is completed with the back pockets, with a kind of double pocket, one inside and one in sight type grid "to carry the dorsal" Angel specifies.
50 garments, 12,000 units and 30 people
The effort of Gobik UAE Team Emirates' efforts to meet the needs of the UAE Team Emirates have resulted in significant numbers. To give you an idea, the standard design of the jersey design is extrapolated to other parts, such as the jerseys in its summer version, jersey long, jacket and vest. Then there are the rainwear pieces, which in the case of the rain jacket is "black because it is built on a fabric that does not support sublimation".
Below, the bib in its short version, i.e. the normal one, but also those for summer and rainy days, with a water-repellent fabric. Then there are the winter long johns and the long ones without chamois "to get on the podium". The finish of the culottes matches the sleeves of the jersey. They are made of compressive yet stretchy fabric.
The range also includes three types of overall. One is a racing suit for in-line days, as there are cyclists who feel comfortable in it, especially sprinters, while at the same time benefiting aerodynamics. In this type of suit there is also the summer version and the time trial version, a key piece for individual effort.
The collection even includes "those vests worn by the auxiliaries at the aid station. They serve to identify them, they are looser than those worn by the runners". Here are the mussetes, the food bags.
Add to this a whole host of accessories: sleeves, leg warmers, knee pads, winter and aero boot covers, normal and aero socks, hats... and so on. vintage and gloves to reach the figure of almost fifty types of equipment available for the team.
An amalgamation that added in total numbers almost reaches the 12,000 garments distributed between the riders' personalized kits and the reserve fund that the team always brings to the races.in case of possible contingencies. A job that employs almost thirty people in Gobik who in one way or another are involved in the mechanics of a World Tour team.
This group includes everything from the project and design, to production, marketing, commercial and logistics managers. Gobik has set in motion to be able to be seen on the best cycling circuit in the world.
By JoanSeguidor's Notebook
