by Allam Hannah
Minneapollis Star Tribune, August 6, 1997
It was only a matter of time before the fashion world got hip to bike-messenger chic, a distinctive style that is equal parts hip-hop, skateboarder and punk,
Now, messenger wannabes grace the glossy pages of fashion magazines, sporting cycling shorts under meticulously manufactured cutoffs. But perhaps most commercialized is the bike messenger's trademark - the single-strap mail bag. Now an alternative to briefcases for young professionals and a backpack replacement for college students, everyone has their version of the tote. Timbuk2, a company founded by a former San Francisco bike messenger, started making the bags in 1989. Timbuk2's bags have since been featured in GQ and Details magazines. Eastpak, JanSport, Yak Pak and Mossimo each have turned out messenger-inspired bags. Even the Gap has a spinoff - its courier bag sells for about $45.
Urban Traveler, a travel-gear chain with six stores in the Twin Cities metro area, sells several different brands of courier bags priced from $20 to $70. One employee said they're popular - but not necessarily with bike messengers.
"A lot of college students are getting them because they're sick of backpacks," said Pat Flanagan, a supervisor at Urban Traveler's Roseville store. "Right now, the people who buy these are pretty mainstream."
Bike messengers are generally less than thrilled to find out their style is "trendy."
"The whole messenger-chic thing doesn't exist to me," said Chris Darsow, a bike messenger. "I wear things that are functional. For example, I wear football cleats because they fit into my pedals."
Whether for fashion or function, messenger styles are turning up everywhere from urban sidewalks to designer runways. Although just recently gaining mass appeal, messenger chic is hardly new. In 1990, fashion designer Norma Kamali's fall show featured courier couture. Her finale ensemble was a sweater-knit pullover and matching pants that simply read: Bike Messenger.
"That's cheesy," bike messenger Amber Elandt said of designer messenger clothing. "Our style is very much street fashion. This is just my job."
For now, maybe. But Elandt said her ultimate dream is to take fashion design courses and create - what else - cycling wear.
Good-looking goggles do you good
by David Graham
Toronto Star, June 18, 1998
Snowboarders and bike couriers have helped to make protective goggles a fashion accessory
The renewed popularity of Jackie O-style sunglasses that took off last year may have heralded a return to glamour in some fashion circles. But Toronto's late night clubcrawlers and urban hipsters are setting their sights on goggles - a decidedly high-tech and high-performance twist on the current trend toward posh, bug-eyed specs.
``Last year, the oversized Jackie O sunglasses were everywhere,'' says Sherry Lay, vice-president of merchandising for Sunglass Hut International, with 2,200 stores worldwide. ``But the street kids and club kids didn't connect with the look. So they started wearing the goggles that snowboarders, downhill skiers, arctic explorers, mountaineers and bicycle couriers wear,'' she says. According to Lay, these youths put a glamorous spin on the sports sunglasses created by Oakley and Vuarnet. And now, she says, the look is filtering into the mainstream.
Bike couriers have also influenced the hottest back to school look this fall with bicycle pants. The long calf length tights are worn by many by bike messengers in colder weather. The couriers push their tights up to the calf to prevent chain oil and dirt from wrecking the tights. They do the same with jeans - a look that has spread to the hip hop and alternative communities.
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