Casquette
Encyclopedia
Casquette is French for "cap". In cycling
jargon, it is used to refer to the traditional peaked cotton
cap worn by racing cyclists.
With the introduction of compulsory cycle helmets for massed-start racing, casquettes have become less common, but most professional race outfits still have them produced in team colours for wearing on the winner's podium, for wearing under a helmet in heavy rain or for sale to the tifosi
. They have also become popular as fashion items in some American cities, often with non-cycling-related designs.
The casquette shields the head from strong sun and the peak can also make riding in the rain
more comfortable, since drops do not fall directly into the eyes. They are sometimes worn with the peak backwards, not for reasons of fashion but because the peak then protects the neck from sunburn.
A traditional way to keep the head cool when cycling in hot conditions was to put a cabbage
leaf under the casquette.
The name was also used by Royal Enfield motorcycles to describe their version of the nacelle
designed by Edward Turner
for Triumph motorcycles
. The casquette is still used on the 2009 Royal Enfield Bullet
model.
Cycling
Cycling, also called bicycling or biking, is the use of bicycles for transport, recreation, or for sport. Persons engaged in cycling are cyclists or bicyclists...
jargon, it is used to refer to the traditional peaked cotton
Cotton
Cotton is a soft, fluffy staple fiber that grows in a boll, or protective capsule, around the seeds of cotton plants of the genus Gossypium. The fiber is almost pure cellulose. The botanical purpose of cotton fiber is to aid in seed dispersal....
cap worn by racing cyclists.
With the introduction of compulsory cycle helmets for massed-start racing, casquettes have become less common, but most professional race outfits still have them produced in team colours for wearing on the winner's podium, for wearing under a helmet in heavy rain or for sale to the tifosi
Tifosi
Tifosi is an Italian word to describe a group of supporters or fans, especially in sports. Tifosi is used for a mixed gender or an all-male group; masculine singular tifoso, feminine singular tifosa, feminine plural tifose.-Football:...
. They have also become popular as fashion items in some American cities, often with non-cycling-related designs.
The casquette shields the head from strong sun and the peak can also make riding in the rain
Rain
Rain is liquid precipitation, as opposed to non-liquid kinds of precipitation such as snow, hail and sleet. Rain requires the presence of a thick layer of the atmosphere to have temperatures above the melting point of water near and above the Earth's surface...
more comfortable, since drops do not fall directly into the eyes. They are sometimes worn with the peak backwards, not for reasons of fashion but because the peak then protects the neck from sunburn.
A traditional way to keep the head cool when cycling in hot conditions was to put a cabbage
Cabbage
Cabbage is a popular cultivar of the species Brassica oleracea Linne of the Family Brassicaceae and is a leafy green vegetable...
leaf under the casquette.
The name was also used by Royal Enfield motorcycles to describe their version of the nacelle
Nacelle
The nacelle is a cover housing that holds engines, fuel, or equipment on an aircraft. In some cases—for instance in the typical "Farman" type "pusher" aircraft, or the World War II-era P-38 Lightning—an aircraft's cockpit may also be housed in a nacelle, which essentially fills the...
designed by Edward Turner
Edward Turner
Edward Turner was a British motorcycle designer. He was born in Camberwell in the London Borough of Southwark, on the day King Edward VII was proclaimed King....
for Triumph motorcycles
Triumph Motorcycles
Triumph Engineering Co Ltd was a British motorcycle manufacturing company, based originally in Coventry and then in Solihull at Meriden. A new company, Triumph Motorcycles Ltd based in Hinckley gained the name rights after the end of the company in the 1980s and is now one of the world's major...
. The casquette is still used on the 2009 Royal Enfield Bullet
Royal Enfield Bullet
The Royal Enfield Bullet was originally a British overhead valve single cylinder 4-stroke motorcycle made by Royal Enfield in Redditch, West Midlands, but now produced by Royal Enfield Motors, the successor to the British company, at Chennai , Tamil Nadu in India...
model.