Discussion: jersey discussion
in: BigWillyStyle; BigWillyStyle > 2015-04-26
Apr 27, 2015 5:39 AM
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I should have come just for that...
Who all was discussing jerseys? I remember when I was down there for Run Black Diamond last year there were people talking about jersey designs, and I think maybe Tapio or someone hinted that I could design them (and technically-speaking, I was a BAOC member at the time and was until about two months ago).
But black and green/orange/purple? Yuck. If you're going to redesign and start from scratch, that's not where I'd start. (Yes, I know that pink and blue isn't orthodox either, but at least there's a connection.)
Who all was discussing jerseys? I remember when I was down there for Run Black Diamond last year there were people talking about jersey designs, and I think maybe Tapio or someone hinted that I could design them (and technically-speaking, I was a BAOC member at the time and was until about two months ago).
But black and green/orange/purple? Yuck. If you're going to redesign and start from scratch, that's not where I'd start. (Yes, I know that pink and blue isn't orthodox either, but at least there's a connection.)
Apr 27, 2015 8:40 PM
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I'm still struggling with the desire for black/orange/purple/green.
BAOC's existing combo of green, gold, and maroon look really good together, so good in fact that Mr. UniWatch himself designed his website in those colors.
But man, orange/purple/green is going all in on the Halloween theme at worst, or this at best.
BAOC's existing combo of green, gold, and maroon look really good together, so good in fact that Mr. UniWatch himself designed his website in those colors.
But man, orange/purple/green is going all in on the Halloween theme at worst, or this at best.
Apr 27, 2015 8:44 PM
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Actually, I think the most logical explanation is that you're trolling me.
Apr 27, 2015 9:58 PM
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Haha you'd think so. It was more of a B + X thing, where B = black and X = another color. Mainly the group was myself, Erin, Francois, and Marie-Josee, with a couple other folks here and there. Personally, black is about the last color I'd associate with the Golden State, so I'm not sure where that comes from. Some evocation of warm climate, sun, sky, water and golden hills seems most logical to me; however, they want the maroon in particular to go away and never come back.
Basically, they were plotting against the status quo. As history shows us, revolutionaries are often driven to disastrous extremes by their own fanaticism.
Basically, they were plotting against the status quo. As history shows us, revolutionaries are often driven to disastrous extremes by their own fanaticism.
Apr 28, 2015 2:34 AM
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however, they want the maroon in particular to go away and never come back.
Personally, I'm not a huge fan of maroon, so I could see why they'd want it to go away and never come back. And maroon with green and gold is an acquired taste (I'd prefer maroon and gold and green and gold over the three-color combo).
But it's actually not a horrible color combination, and it has history with BAOC, and it has regional symbolism, I think (maroon = redwoods, gold = gold, duh, and green =poison oak plants and trees.
I think what's hampered BAOC has been bad design, not color. 5-6 years ago, they got new jerseys that looked like they said yes to everything. Black? Yes! Black gradient to maroon? Yes! Various panels that you can pick to be whatever color you want? Yes, yes yes! Sideways text on the side panels meant to be viewed while cycling? Yes!
Taken together, it was must too much, too busy.
One other problem with maroon/green/gold is that it's hard for it to look fresh and modern, so you'd have to go with a more traditional design to make it really work well. Something collegiate-ish, I guess.
For example, I know that I've already used this motif, but I might start with with something like the Sprint Camp jerseys, and have the base be either white or gold, with the sash being maroon/white/green (if gold), or maroon/gold/green (if white) and start from there.
If you'd blow it all up and start from scratch, I just don't see black for Bay Area. (Heck, I don't really see black for Seattle, but it's in the club color scheme). I like the gold and blue idea. Gold works so well for California, and there aren't that many clubs out there that use gold, so I'd embrace it, whether it's with maroon and green, or with something else.
Personally, I'm not a huge fan of maroon, so I could see why they'd want it to go away and never come back. And maroon with green and gold is an acquired taste (I'd prefer maroon and gold and green and gold over the three-color combo).
But it's actually not a horrible color combination, and it has history with BAOC, and it has regional symbolism, I think (maroon = redwoods, gold = gold, duh, and green =
I think what's hampered BAOC has been bad design, not color. 5-6 years ago, they got new jerseys that looked like they said yes to everything. Black? Yes! Black gradient to maroon? Yes! Various panels that you can pick to be whatever color you want? Yes, yes yes! Sideways text on the side panels meant to be viewed while cycling? Yes!
Taken together, it was must too much, too busy.
One other problem with maroon/green/gold is that it's hard for it to look fresh and modern, so you'd have to go with a more traditional design to make it really work well. Something collegiate-ish, I guess.
For example, I know that I've already used this motif, but I might start with with something like the Sprint Camp jerseys, and have the base be either white or gold, with the sash being maroon/white/green (if gold), or maroon/gold/green (if white) and start from there.
If you'd blow it all up and start from scratch, I just don't see black for Bay Area. (Heck, I don't really see black for Seattle, but it's in the club color scheme). I like the gold and blue idea. Gold works so well for California, and there aren't that many clubs out there that use gold, so I'd embrace it, whether it's with maroon and green, or with something else.
Apr 28, 2015 3:40 PM
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So I'm curious, what are your thoughts on potential HVO colors? We're currently undergoing some re-branding and looking for color schemes/combos. The area is N. Jersey, NYC, and the hudson valley region of NY state. One color could be blue, for the river, maybe grayish-greenish-blue to represent reality..
Also, do you think having a mascot is generally a good idea for a club vs just a nice logo?
Also, do you think having a mascot is generally a good idea for a club vs just a nice logo?
Apr 28, 2015 6:03 PM
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grayish-greenish-blue to represent reality....
This is my favourite thing I've read today.
This is my favourite thing I've read today.
Apr 28, 2015 9:06 PM
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So I'm curious, what are your thoughts on potential HVO colors? We're currently undergoing some re-branding and looking for color schemes/combos.
Since I don't orienteer much on the east coast (#westcoastbestcoast, right Will?), I don't know much about HVO's identity. I know its logo uses an old boat, which I would normally really like, but in this case, it's not great for awareness of orienteering. With sailboat logos and associated words like compass and navigation, I think people may assume that the club and sport are nautically-related. And HVO uses Comic Sans, which is a bit ridiculous.
As far as color schemes go, there are several options:
1) Keep what you've got, and rebrand everything else (logos, website, etc). Admittedly, I'm a traditionalist, so when I designed my clubs' jerseys, I kept with tradition. I brought back the pink and blue from early days of Orienteer Kansas (which were also the colors of the successful track teams from U. of Kansas for 50 years). And after a few decades of going astray with uniform colors, CascadeOC went back to its original red/white/black colors in 2010.
If people strongly associate HVO with certain colors already, perhaps keep them.
2) Start everything from scratch, including a color scheme. Some professional teams do this from time to time. For orienteering clubs, some go with colors that fit naturally with the terrain: Vancouver's multi-green fits them. San Diego's bright red and yellow fits them. Rocky Mountain's sky blue and green fits them.
I know that others will use colors that are representative of the city in other ways. Chicago's orange and navy mirrors the Chicago Bears, for example.
If you're going to pick new colors, it's also worth noting what colors other regional clubs use. WCOC is blue and yellow, DVOA is blue and red, and I think (?) ROC is purple and green? If I were picking a color scheme, I'd try to differentiate HVO in some way.
Also, do you think having a mascot is generally a good idea for a club vs just a nice logo?
I think a mascot would be a great idea, and not that many orienteering clubs have them! I know DVOA has a rabbit and NEOC has whatever furry creature that thing is. HVO is athletic club/team, just like the teams in major sports leagues, and most of them have mascots.
Since I don't orienteer much on the east coast (#westcoastbestcoast, right Will?), I don't know much about HVO's identity. I know its logo uses an old boat, which I would normally really like, but in this case, it's not great for awareness of orienteering. With sailboat logos and associated words like compass and navigation, I think people may assume that the club and sport are nautically-related. And HVO uses Comic Sans, which is a bit ridiculous.
As far as color schemes go, there are several options:
1) Keep what you've got, and rebrand everything else (logos, website, etc). Admittedly, I'm a traditionalist, so when I designed my clubs' jerseys, I kept with tradition. I brought back the pink and blue from early days of Orienteer Kansas (which were also the colors of the successful track teams from U. of Kansas for 50 years). And after a few decades of going astray with uniform colors, CascadeOC went back to its original red/white/black colors in 2010.
If people strongly associate HVO with certain colors already, perhaps keep them.
2) Start everything from scratch, including a color scheme. Some professional teams do this from time to time. For orienteering clubs, some go with colors that fit naturally with the terrain: Vancouver's multi-green fits them. San Diego's bright red and yellow fits them. Rocky Mountain's sky blue and green fits them.
I know that others will use colors that are representative of the city in other ways. Chicago's orange and navy mirrors the Chicago Bears, for example.
If you're going to pick new colors, it's also worth noting what colors other regional clubs use. WCOC is blue and yellow, DVOA is blue and red, and I think (?) ROC is purple and green? If I were picking a color scheme, I'd try to differentiate HVO in some way.
Also, do you think having a mascot is generally a good idea for a club vs just a nice logo?
I think a mascot would be a great idea, and not that many orienteering clubs have them! I know DVOA has a rabbit and NEOC has whatever furry creature that thing is. HVO is athletic club/team, just like the teams in major sports leagues, and most of them have mascots.
Apr 28, 2015 9:49 PM
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I recently read a couple of James Fenimore Cooper's Leatherstocking novels (Last of the Mohicans is the famous one). Accordingly, I think the HVO mascot should be some Davy Crockett-looking guys with flowing locks orienteering in a canoe, preferably with guns.
Apr 29, 2015 6:56 PM
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Thanks Pink Socks and Will for your great suggestions. I will make sure to bring them up on our next board of directors meeting. #donottrustthewestcoast
Apr 29, 2015 8:41 PM
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My Uni colours (McMaster) are maroon, black and grey. They added some gold in there for a logo rebrand about 12 years ago. McMaster athletics went all in with Maroon with a recent rebranding titled 'colour our passion - we are maroon' the argument was they wanted to own the colour.
http://i.ytimg.com/vi/h94jSkb4u6U/hqdefault.jpg
Merchandise has skyrocketed though a top football team helped.
http://boxscorenews.com/clients/boxscorenews/9-1-2...
I like maroon and black but I really like black for most things O since black tights seem natural to run in but other colours not so much.
DontGetLost went with lots of black and some 'eco green' in our latest jerseys. Simple but perhaps effective.
Love the new cascade jerseys and the home and away idea. I'd like to see DGL have three jerseys (sprint singlet, middle and long)
The variety of colours some clubs have is a good example of a committee approach. The old ontario junior team has a 4 -6 colours and it was fugly.
http://i.ytimg.com/vi/h94jSkb4u6U/hqdefault.jpg
Merchandise has skyrocketed though a top football team helped.
http://boxscorenews.com/clients/boxscorenews/9-1-2...
I like maroon and black but I really like black for most things O since black tights seem natural to run in but other colours not so much.
DontGetLost went with lots of black and some 'eco green' in our latest jerseys. Simple but perhaps effective.
Love the new cascade jerseys and the home and away idea. I'd like to see DGL have three jerseys (sprint singlet, middle and long)
The variety of colours some clubs have is a good example of a committee approach. The old ontario junior team has a 4 -6 colours and it was fugly.
Apr 29, 2015 9:14 PM
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Love the new cascade jerseys and the home and away idea.
My idea wasn't so much home vs. away, but primary and secondary, similar to what a lot of soccer teams have. We have enough people in the club that we could pull off ordering two styles of jerseys.
I really like black for most things O since black tights seem natural to run in but other colours not so much.
Yeah. Designing with black as a complementary color at a minimum is smart, because it's easy to find plain black tights, shorts, knickers, whatever. Therefore it's easy for anyone in the club to match.
Most bright colors go well with black, too, so even if you don't design with black in mind, you can still easily match. For example, the new CSU jerseys are really bright, so they'd look sharp with black shorts if there was a circumstance where a team wanted to match but not everyone had the custom blue pants.
Which means that navy blue and brown are colors that I'd avoid. Other dark colors can work (maroon and forest) with black as long as you keep the color palette to a minimum. GVOC is dark green (and only dark green) with black. Looks sharp. BAOC's 2009-era jerseys are maroon (and gold and green) with black. Looks messy.
The OKansas jerseys have 5 colors, which is borderline too many (pink, royal blue, sky blue, white, and black).
three jerseys (sprint, middle and long)
I used to do this with socks. I had just one pair of pink ones so I saved them for "fast" races, sprints. And I had one pair of black socks, so I wore them for really long "death" races, so longs. And then blue socks for the rest.
My idea wasn't so much home vs. away, but primary and secondary, similar to what a lot of soccer teams have. We have enough people in the club that we could pull off ordering two styles of jerseys.
I really like black for most things O since black tights seem natural to run in but other colours not so much.
Yeah. Designing with black as a complementary color at a minimum is smart, because it's easy to find plain black tights, shorts, knickers, whatever. Therefore it's easy for anyone in the club to match.
Most bright colors go well with black, too, so even if you don't design with black in mind, you can still easily match. For example, the new CSU jerseys are really bright, so they'd look sharp with black shorts if there was a circumstance where a team wanted to match but not everyone had the custom blue pants.
Which means that navy blue and brown are colors that I'd avoid. Other dark colors can work (maroon and forest) with black as long as you keep the color palette to a minimum. GVOC is dark green (and only dark green) with black. Looks sharp. BAOC's 2009-era jerseys are maroon (and gold and green) with black. Looks messy.
The OKansas jerseys have 5 colors, which is borderline too many (pink, royal blue, sky blue, white, and black).
three jerseys (sprint, middle and long)
I used to do this with socks. I had just one pair of pink ones so I saved them for "fast" races, sprints. And I had one pair of black socks, so I wore them for really long "death" races, so longs. And then blue socks for the rest.
This discussion thread is closed.