Author: tpbWPadmin

Lisa has answers…

As you might imagine, we get a lot of really great questions from female cyclists every day. Our customer service team leader, Lisa Wilkes, shares her best advice for the questions we receive most often.

How do I choose the best cycling shorts for my needs?

The topic of bike bottoms comes up often and can seem daunting at first, but if you consider the features individually, the best options quickly become apparent.

Your length preference is an essential starting point, and most of us understand what is best for our legs, comfort, and climate.

Do you like a shorter short (5″ to 7″), a bit more coverage (7″ to 9″), or a longer short (9″ to 13″)? Beyond these three preferences, knickers/capris are best for temps below 65 degrees for knee fiber health, and long bottoms offer added sun protection and warmth.

Once your preferred length is determined, we must consider your chamois (pronounced sham-mee) padding needs. Do you want the most padding and wicking available like our Flex Air, Flex Air Carbon, Flex Air Tour, and Flex Air Max, or are you looking for more casual padding for 20-to-30-mile rides found in our Flex Air Light, Fleet Air, or Comfort Chamois? Some riders need little to no padding; we offer padless and lightly padded bottoms for this group with our Fleet Air Lite, Reticulated, Slight, and Minimalist chamois options.

Here is a link to our chamois guide for further details: https://terrycycling.com/pages/terry-chamois-guide

An often-overlooked feature of bike shorts is compression. Do you want a high compression short to support your hips and legs, or prefer a regular fit with more stretch? If you are training for an endurance or racing event, compression shorts can offer the added support needed for success.

Other features to consider when choosing shorts include the kind of leg band you like (cloth band, light grippers, or strong grippers) and what kind of rise you prefer (regular or high rise).

My last and most important bit of advice when choosing bottoms is sizing. Please find a measuring tape, wrap it around your hips where you are broadest, and match our size chart. If you are still unsure, please call customer service or do a live chat with us at terrycycling.com. We wear our products, and we can always help. 1-800-289-8379.

How do I know if I need a new saddle?

Like so many cycling decisions, this one is very personal. If you have been riding the same one forever and feel comfortable in the saddle, don’t change a thing (or sell your bike with your favorite saddle!).

The trifecta of a comfortable bike ride is a bicycle that fits you well, a saddle that supports you well, and good biking shorts for added comfort and moisture-wicking.

If you are experiencing sit bone or soft tissue issues, your saddle may be to blame. If you need help getting comfortable, please call us and ask for a saddle expert. We can examine your riding style and make recommendations.

If you prefer to do your own research, feel free to visit our online helper:
Terry Saddle Selector: https://terrycycling.com/collections/saddle-selector-1

Do I need cycling-specific shoes?

Cycling shoes are a personal choice. When I began riding, I was training for my first century and my coach told us we would be 30% more efficient if we wore cycling shoes and clipped in; this sounded worth the old college try, and I have never looked back.

That said, training for 100 miles is a big undertaking. A stiff-soled shoe may be all you need for shorter miles or those who prefer to put their foot down untethered.

It is worth noting that your stiffest-soled shoe is your best pedaling option; it will keep your pedal stroke strong and protect your arch from strain.

What are the best tops for riding and are long sleeved ones for winter?

While we offer a variety of tops for winter riding, our Thermal and Merino options offer the best warmth; we also provide long-sleeve tops for spring, summer, and fall.

For spring and fall, when temperatures are still a bit cool, I love our Tulip top (12″ zip) and our Strada jersey, which offers a full zip and can double as a light jacket.

We offer various sleeveless, short-sleeve, and long-sleeve jersey options for summer riding. Our Soleil line has quickly become a summer riding favorite, with athletic, semi-fitted, and relaxed (Flow) fit options.

As a fair-skinned rider, long-sleeved Soleil Tops and Jerseys are critical for my skin health. Many riders also comment that since their skin isn’t baking in the sun, they feel cooler and I agree!
Many of us wear Soleil tops year ’round, as they make excellent base layers for added wicking and warmth.

Note: What is the difference between a cycling jersey and a top? A cycling jersey has a zipper, and a cycling top is a pullover.

How do you ship your orders?

We ship most of our packages via the US Postal Service.
However, if you request a faster delivery option (2 to 3 days or overnight), your package will ship via UPS or FedEx the same day if ordered by 2 PM EST or the next business day if you order after 2 PM EST.
PLEASE NOTE: Expedited packages are not shipped or delivered on the weekend.

Don’t hesitate to contact us if you need an order quickly. We are always available to help you pick the best time for your rush needs.

Terry Shipping: https://terrycycling.com/policies/shipping-policy

How do I start my return?

Returns are easy at Terry Cycling; click here: RETURNS
If you have any issues using the link, please reach out, and we will be happy to help. 1-800-289-8379.

Lisa Wilkes is former cycling coach who uses those skills daily in coaching the customer service team at Terry. She also handles our sponsorship efforts with many events and groups including the Wellness Revolution with Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Vermont. At the moment, she’s helping us put customer service front and center via our new website and chat feature. Test her out with your own questions about getting comfortable on your bike.

Innovation from the Bottom Up.

Whether you’re a committed roadie, lover of loose fits or looking for new options in bike shorts, we have you covered with something new this season. Check out our 5 innovations for 2025.

SHOP ALL SHORTS >

https://terrycycling.com/collections/shorts

As we begin our 4th decade at Terry, we’re amazed at how much has changed. Many of you have been there with us for a huge part of our history. Here’s the first in a series of retrospectives about how things got rolling, in the words of our founder, Georgena Terry.

Who I am and Why We’re Here

Okay, let’s set the record straight. A lot of people say, “You started your business because you were short and you couldn’t find a bike that fit, right?” Wrong. Or, “You started your business to benefit maligned, frustrated women, right?” Wrong. I started my business to follow my intuition. No ulterior motives here at all. About 30 seconds after I popped out of the womb, a guardian angel landed on my shoulder and said,  “Georgena, you’re a misfit and a maverick. Don’t even think about conforming. You simply can’t do it.” My nascent brain chewed on that for about a millisecond and then agreed, wholeheartedly.

With this precious bit of insight about my future in hand, I began my life’s journey. I dove headlong into whatever I wanted to do. Against my Dad’s wishes, I bought my first bicycle,  a fire engine red, single speed Schwinn girl’s model. I rode that bike everywhere. It ignited a little fire in me that has burned with varying degrees of passion over the years. The freedom, the exhilaration, the independence, the solitude of cycling–just perfect for me.

By the time I started my fourth job in eight years, I knew I wasn’t long for the corporate world. It was just too hard to like somebody else’s project. I’m not a team player. Yeah, yeah–I know what the books say. Listen, the real secret in life is not to spend hours of time analyzing and trying to improve your weaknesses–it’s playing to your strengths and forgetting about your weaknesses.

Bicycling was continuing to call me. Not that I wanted to ride all the time; I just wanted to feel like I was riding. I have a degree in mechanical engineering. I have some imagination (heck, I had a control panel from the Enterprise’s bridge in my bedroom in 1956–it controlled every function in our house). What to do, what to do? I didn’t know. I just knew I had to know more about the bicycle. Not the components, the frame. The metallurgy, the construction, the flame that made it a reality.

When I was finishing my B.S. in Mechanical Engineering, our senior project was to build a vehicle. Each group was given a nice little two stroke engine and told to make something neat…efficient…totally cool. Some of us were cyclists, so we set about building the best of both worlds. I found the tubing and Ed supplied a torch, flux and rods. We worked out of the basement of an old house. On a hot September afternoon, I watched Ed brazing a joint. There was something very appealing about the glare of the torch on his face, the perspiration. And it wasn’t a romantic appeal either. Maybe it was because we were in Pittsburgh where the steel mills were still pumping and it was heady to be in the presence of all that awesome power. Midnight drives to the J&L mills to feel the blast furnaces were a popular diversion. Say what you will about pollution and the plight of the working man. The country was humming.

I wanted a piece of that. So when Ed took off his goggles, wiped his face and said, “wanna try it?” I grinned and had my first lesson in brazing. It was like looking at a nonsensical throb of hot color. I couldn’t tell base metal from rod, from flux. Everything swirling around. I must have done okay, because the joint held, but I didn’t know why and that intrigued me.

So two years later, I bid a very fond farewell to the corporate world, bought a torch and some rod, read up on the metallurgy of brazing, and had a friend teach me the basics of safe torch operation. And then, in my own basement, I began the process of learning to build bicycle frames. It was as confusing at the outset as it had been in Pittsburgh, but, bit by bit, the pieces fell into place. Soon, brazing was like a good bike ride. I just got into the ryythym of it and it seemed like I could will the silver to go anywhere.

Eventually the word got out and I found myself building for others. I noticed a lot of women coming to me with common complaints–aches and pains, no off the rack bikes available. The MBA part of my brain pushed past the engineer and screamed, “Wake up! Crunch the numbers. Let’s go! Your personal revolution is about to take off.”

All these little voices inside me. They eschew even the slightest suggestion that someone knows more about me than they know. They’re apolitical, selfish little fiends. They provide the fire, I chase down the flammables. These little pals are inside everyone. You just have to shut down the interference and listen. When all is said and done, it’s going to come down to you and them. I’m really glad I heard mine from the beginning.

Our sincere congratulations to Georgena for being one of five inductees into the US Bicycle Hall of Fame later this year. You can reach her through her custom bike building site, georgenaterry.com.