I'm offended with their misleading advertising! According to that video, they have pockets on their clothing that can carry a full size road atlas and a stand up floor pump. I don't think that is true. :D Thank you BTW, now we can talk about the bidon flip and give Rapha some free advertising.

Enve wheels set some people off, too. In the hiking and climbing communities, there are people who respond to Arc'teryx gear the same way some cyclists respond to Rapha. I can get a shirt for $3 at Walmart, nothing makes that one worth $130, you're an idiot for not doing like I do, more dollars than sense, etc. It's the combination of expensive, the reputation for excellence, and the popularity among people with disposable income. We saw this with Cervelo too.

Funny thing is people somehow got over it with Cervélo. Still not sure how that happened.

Maybe Rapha took its place? :innocent:

That would suggest people have a need for, and an attention span limit to, exactly one thing to fight over.

You’re probably right.

I'd much rather look like one of those cool Rapha guys than my dumpy old self. I'd buy a closet full if that was all it took.:rolleyes: BTW, this thread:troll:

I passed a Cervelo/cyclist on the side of the road with a mechanical a couple of years ago. I think his problem was he had a SRAM group on the bike. I was in my van so I gave him a lift back to his house. Red/black/white bike and matching red/black/white kit. Lived in the old money section of town. Seemed like a nice person. Come to think of it, I believe he was a dentist.

As someone with more crowns than the royal family, I really appreciate a good dentist. And I don't care if she rides a bloody Cervelo.

Hambini killed Cervelo.

He seems to have missed the four in my house. One more thing he’s lied about.

Cue the sound of the entire 41 dialling it up to 400W....

Rapha, by all account, make good kit (atleast jerseys). They also come across as a little... pretentious, shall we say. Some people cannot get past the idea that the two arent mutually exclusive. Honestly, the whole "Rapha Club" concept doesnt appeal to me but beyond that, i dont really care.

I have a Rapha f/s polo that is fits me perfectly. It has a little zip pocket in the back, as if i would seriously go on a bike ride wearing a thick woolen polo. But it looks great on me, so i can deal with it. Polo is all black and you cant see the pocket anyway.

Thing about Castelli is that is always on sale somewhere.

To paraphrase Groucho Marx....I would never join a club that would have me as a member.😀

"Kit" usually includes socks, gloves, arm-warmers, rain jacket, shoes, helmet, hat/headband etc etc. Though obviously you wouldn't wear/bring all of those on every ride.

I wouldn't say "cycling suit," but I do have a matching jacket and trousers than I wear in combination with a shirt, tie, polished leather shoes, and sometimes cufflinks, for certain work or family events and special occasions.


Rapha is divisive because it's expensive. I know plenty of people who swear by it. I'm perfectly happy with my Pearl Izumi stuff, because I think I get good value for money.

I feel like you nailed it. God forbid people that made a ton of sacrifices to get where they are enjoy the fruits of their labor by owning an expensive bike or jersey.

Yea, no...

Damn straight. My wife works hard for our money, and she enjoys watching me spend it.

It's good quality stuff that's generally understated in design and they present a quite good value with their Core line. If someone takes issue with that, they're projecting.

Time to start a thread - "A Jersey Is A Jersey"....

The only issue I have with them is my reluctance to spend that much. I get uncomfortable spending over $40 for a jersey. Mind you, that limit was probably set in my mind 20 years ago and hasn't been adjusted for inflation.

Understated with obvious branding almost always visible...

While not a Rapha hater, I admit to a tendency to Rapha eye-rolling. Love the bottle flip, 'tho...

Rapha isn't relatively expensive if you compare to similar high-end brands. Roughly the same as Castelli, give or take. But of course in absolute terms they're all expensive, but that really depends on what's affordable to you, how much you ride, and how much you appreciate any differences to less expensive equivalents.

What I HAVE learned over the years is that nothing is as expensive as that which I never use.

Yup - god-awful billboards, amiright?

https://cimg3.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...2573c4a9a8.jpg
https://cimg2.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...f77c00e183.jpg

Compared to:

https://cimg9.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...457086826.jpeg

When I first started paying attention to my cycling gear, Pearl Izumi held a similar status to me as Rapha does in 2020.