Spoke and Stone

We have some new stock arriving soon, we’re super happy with our winter fleece tops. Here's a testimonial from one of our happy customers.

I recently purchased Spoke and Stone’s Long Sleeve Fleece Jacket because I was looking for a jacket that was a comfortable fit and keeps me warm throughout the winter. From the start, the ordering process was very effective and smooth and the product arrived very quickly. The quality was already conspicuous. Since using it, I’ve already noticed an immediate difference. It fits so much more comfortably than the other cycling jacket I had and doesn’t feel so tight that I have to keep pulling it down all the time. It’s also nice and warm and doesn’t feel cold at all. I would definitely recommend this product to anyone looking for a cycling jacket that keeps you warm through those cooler months and not so tight around your body. Overall, it’s been awesome to use.

Well, that's a wrap on the Gravel in Paradise series!

Yesterday, Cycling Otago sent us off to finish the series in style on the lumpy White Rocks Circuit near Oamaru. And when they say lumpy, they mean it. 1,150m of climbing packed into 65km. My legs are filing a formal complaint as we speak.

120 riders turned up, all shapes, sizes, abilities and motivations and every single one of them was an absolute legend.

The racing was brilliant. But honestly? What will stick with me longest happened at the prizegiving.

I've been around cycling for a long time. I've seen a lot of prizegivings. Most are good. Some are forgettable. And then every now and then, one moment comes along that reminds you exactly why we all do this.

The major spot prize for the series a $10,000 bike from Euro Cycling , went to a rider who'd been doing rounds on a $500 mountain bike. New to the sport, just out there giving it absolutely everything she had. Her reaction when her name was called? Completely, utterly, genuine. The kind of joy you simply cannot fake. The whole crowd felt it. It was brilliant.

And that right there is the whole point, isn't it?

For so many riders, it was never about where you finished or who you beat. It was about getting yourself to the start line in the first place. About doing something that scares you a little. About grinding up a hill you weren't sure you could climb, and finding out that you absolutely could.

It's about riding alongside other people strangers who become mates by the end of the day and remembering that shared suffering is basically just friendship in disguise.

Sure, some of us race hard and love the competition and that's brilliant too. But what makes an event like this genuinely special is that it belongs just as much to the rider at the back pushing through their own personal challenge as it does to the rider winning at the front.

Huge thanks to Cycling Otago for another incredible series, and to everyone who came out and rode. You're all champions. (Yes, even those of you who muttered very colourful words on the climbs. Especially you.)

See you next season. My legs said no but my head already said yes.

I’m not sorry for saying this.

Just slapping “AERO” in the title doesn’t make it aero.
And a massive marketing budget doesn’t make kit faster.
The data’s out there on what makes fast cycling kit.
Wind tunnel tests. Real-world testing. Independent studies.
It’s not hidden… you just have to look. They rely on you not looking.

We recently had a rider test our skinsuit against a heavily marketed “super aero” suit. Independent test, not asked or paid, no input from us into the testing at all, we just got the results.
👉 Cost: 3.5x more than ours
👉 Result: the other one was approx 20 seconds slower over 20km at 40km/h when looking at the cda difference.

Let that sink in. Thats significant.

Speed isn’t a buzzword.

It’s fabric choice, construction, fit, and detail.
And yeah, ours look bloody good too.
Real performance. No nonsense.

Thats why we had customers that brought one, checked it out, tested it and straight away ordered a second one. They speak for themselves.

1 week to go. Next weekend is the final round of the Gravel in Paradise series and we’re off to Oamaru.
Easy cruise this morning… legs are definitely reminding me of a couple of solid weeks in the bank.
Hard to beat these autumn days though. Cool, calm, a bit of sun on your back. No rush, no pressure — just riding for the enjoyment.
That’s what it’s all about.
rideyourbike

Like this jersey? You might want to move quick… we’ve only got 5 left.
So here’s the deal — $65 and they’re gone.
Yeah… we know. Bit ridiculous.
But we’d rather see them out riding than sitting on a shelf.
This is your do-everything jersey:
✔️ Comfortable for long days
✔️ Fast enough for the bunch
✔️ Tough enough for gravel
✔️ Looks sharp without trying too hard
No fluff. No overpricing. Just good kit at a price that doesn’t make you wince.
When they’re gone… they’re gone

www.spokeandstone.co.nz

What a long weekend on the bike.
3 days. 3 proper rides.
Sun, rain, hot climbs and cild descents. Chasing climbers uphill, holding the wheel on the flats.
The kind of riding that reminds you why you do it. You know you've worked hard, and loved every second of it.
Gear got a proper test too, and came though with flying colours. When it’s doing its job, you don’t think about it. No squirming in the saddle, more consistent body temperature and you just ride.

This one’s a bit special.
Our favourite race jersey and no, you won’t find it sitting on the website.

Built properly: • Aero fabrics that actually do something
• Air disupting ribbed sleeve(closer together to suit road, gravel, bunch rides)
• Dialled fit that just sits right
It’s one of those jerseys you forget you’re wearing until you realise how good it feels when the pace lifts.

This is perfect for custom kit.

So if you’ve got a team, a crew, or just want to look sharp rolling into the bunch.
Let’s build something proper.
DM us to create your kit

Let’s just call this out for what it is.

You shouldn’t be paying more for “Aero” kit than anything else in your cycling wardrobe. Those of us out there that race love the numbers, the aero details and finding those marginal gains, but we are often at the mercy of what marketers tell us.

Seriously.

Most high-quality gear is made from similar premium fabrics, whether it’s a relaxed fit jersey or a full race-cut aero piece. Yes, some aero fabrics cost a bit more, but not enough to justify the wild price jumps you see out there.

That’s not performance.
That’s marketing.

At Spoke & Stone, we’re not here to play that game.
We ride bikes, we test gear, and we look after our own.

And here’s something else worth knowing

Just because it says “Aero" doesn’t mean it is.
If it’s missing proper airflow disruptors on the sleeves, it not what you think it is.

And even then, not all aero sleeves are created equal.

Wider rib spacing = better performance at high speeds, breakaways, TT efforts
Closer rib spacing = better performance in fast bunch riding, peloton speeds.

It’s not one-size-fits-all.

We’re here to give you the right kit for how you ride. Relaxed and cruisy or fast and aero.
No fluff. No inflated margins. Just gear that works.

Tell us how you ride, we’ll sort the rest. All our kit can be adjusted to suit your requirements, and printed up in your club and team designs.

Cold’s rolling in… and suddenly you’re questioning your life choices 10 minutes into a ride
Enter the long sleeve fleece jersey.
Warm enough for those “why did I leave the house?” morning.
But still breathable when someone decides it’s sprint o’clock halfway through a chill ride.
Perfect for:
✔️ All-day missions where the sun lies to you
✔️ Bunch rides that turn into low-key race days
✔️ Winter commutes where survival is the goal
Basically it’s the bit of kit that stops you freezing your bits off, without turning you into a sweaty mess.
Ride longer. Stay warm. Still send it

www.spokeandstone.co.nz

Gravel in Paradise was a bit of a misleading name on Sunday. Paradise, it turns out, was having a very wet Sunday. The kind where the sky opens up and decides you need a proper hosing.

With only 500-odd metres of climbing across 100 km, this round of the series was never going to be a lung-searing slog-fest up endless climbs. The course had a different kind of suffering in mind, the slow, soul-eroding resistance of wet Central Otago gravel, which, as it absorbs rain, transforms from a pleasant crunchy surface into something spiritually and physically equivalent to riding through a beach. A very long, very wet beach. False flats everywhere, quietly laughing at your power output.

Act one: the carnage
The race wasted absolutely no time making itself known. The elite boys hit the front like they'd been personally insulted by the weather and proceeded to detonate the field with all the mercy of a man who's forgotten to pack a raincoat and is now furious about it. Riders scattered. Groups fractured. The peloton dissolved like a soggy biscuit.

Through the chaos, cooler heads prevailed, specifically, eight of them. A group formed. A working group. A sensible group. We settled in, shared the load, and quietly agreed amongst ourselves (without actually saying anything, because that's how cycling works) that we were going to ride this thing out together.

The rain did ease about a third of the way in, which felt like a gift from the cycling gods. The roads were still slow, still gritty, still doing their best sandpit impression but at least we were no longer being actively pelted. Small wins.

Act two: the long game
Lap two became a tactical masterclass in doing as little work as possible while looking like you might sprint at any moment. The bunch was still intact. A sprint finish was obviously coming. The mental chess began, conserve, look relaxed, do not blow up, act casual.

I am a patient man. I sat. I waited. I let others do the heavy lifting rolling through occasionally. I drank my bottle. I ate a bar. I thought about how nice a hot shower was going to be. Classic second-lap energy.

Act three: the trotting track twist
And then. The trotting track.

The final section, a lap of the gravel trotting course, appeared on paper to be a reasonable place for a bunch sprint. Firm. Familiar. Race-able. Reader, it was none of these things.

We rolled onto that surface and immediately sank. Not metaphorically. Physically. The gravel swallowed tyres like it had a personal vendetta. Holding a straight line became a negotiation. The sprint that eight of us had been carefully, lovingly preserving for the last 90 km simply evaporated. Gone. No sprint. Just suffering.

What replaced it was more honest, really: a pure, grim test of who could hold the most power for the longest over a surface that wanted nothing more than to slow you to a crawl. The wheels slithered. The legs burned. The grit oh, the grit, found every available gap in every piece of clothing and several gaps that shouldn't exist in a human body.

The verdict
Second in the age group on the day. Third in the series currently. Three weeks until the final round in Oamaru.

The race was an absolute blast. There's something deeply satisfying about a course that humbles you not through mountains but through sheer, relentless grit. Literally. I'm still finding it. In places I did not know grit could reach. Places that should require a waiver.

https://www.facebook.com/gravelinparadise

Gravel in Paradise A 4 round gravel racing series over 4 stunning locations in Otago, late Feb, March, April and May 2026. Age groups and categories for long/short course including Ride Strong (Separate Farming community class ) in conjunction with Farm Strong