Sock Height

Since Lew is sending on advice to Jim about matters of satorial elegance I thought it may be worth passing on such vital information:

Sock Height

Posted by James Moffat on Sun, 10 Oct 2010

I thought that briefly I would go into the most important issue in cycling today. That issue is the one of sock height. Firstly though, I think I have to clear up the issue, or rather non-issue, that is the proper colour of the socks. Only one answer; it has to be white – no black socks like Wiggins and Armstrong, only white. One particular Melbourne bike shop that makes beautiful bikes had decided on having yellow socks, why it has made this awful decision with sock colour I could not possibly comprehend. So without a doubt if you want to look PRO go with white socks.

Now onto the main issue; the one about length. Among cycling circles there are many arguments to do with sock length. While there are some standard guidelines, many choose to break these rules. In my opinion the worst of these people is Michael Huntchison. Hutchinson, a prominent UK time triallist and cycling author has decided to wear compression socks that go up to his knee while riding. While I couldn’t find a photo of the Hutch in compression socks I found the above horror.

The next unacceptable look is that of wearing no socks. This look is seemingly popular with the riders who started in the 70′s. The main reason they say for this abomination of a look is to avoid a sock tan line. In my opinion if you are a cyclist you need to be proud of your tan line, its what makes you a cyclist. Unfortuantely I could not find a photo of this look.

Now we get to the last unacceptable look. That is the extremely low sock look. The people who wear this look fall into the unPRO look. These socks tend to be non-cycling socks and are quite thick. The only just raise above the shoe making for a very amateur look. The other sock falling into the category is the ankle socks, these cycling horrors cut across the top of the shoes. Nothing spells out amateur more than these two looks.

The last two lengths are the only ones to be considered. The first is the 3″ inch sock. This sock tends to be a favourite of the older a.k.a the Dad generation. While these socks are acceptable, in my opinion aren’t nearly as good as the 5″ incher. This sock which has sprung to popularity in the past couple of years is now the pro choice of sock.

I hope this post has given you a little indication of the sock choices you need to make. Here is my final reccomendation if you are pro or under 30 always go the 5 incher, but if you are over 30 or you are simply not pro go for the three incher. Ultimately the choice is up to you and as long as you go for either the 3 or 5 incher you will be fine.