Rapha closes North American office

[cgolvin]

Originally Posted by AngryScientist

Still looking for the Prestige Cambridge GPS file!!

They generally don't release the route until less than a week prior to the event.

[merckxman]

"(Rapha) brand closed the year out at an operational loss of £21m, making this the seventh loss-making year in a row for the British cycling brand."

[chirpy999]

Had a couple of pairs of shorts and a couple of jersys from Rapha the shorts were ok diidnt think much of the jerseys .

[Wunder]

I have several items from Rapha, mostly the Brevet line. Been very happy with the quality, fit, and finish of them. My one main complaint on the brevet line (vests especially) is while they are pretty visible and have decent reflective accents they are NOT made to the EN 1150 European standard. I was also in Bentonville last month and briefly visited the Rapha store in town (bought a hardshell jacket that was on clearance).

[unterhausen]

The Rapha brevet vests I saw on PBP in 2011 were not visible at all, which you can tell just looking at them in a picture. The organizers made everyone wear the official vest in 2019, and I don't remember seeing any of the Rapha vests. Hopefully the motorcycle marshals would have stopped anyone wearing one. Those requirements are written in French law for anyone walking or riding on the road at night, and that was in effect before 2011, so Rapha should have known their vest was not legal in France. I never understood Rapha's approach.

[benb]

Originally Posted by unterhausen

The Rapha brevet vests I saw on PBP in 2011 were not visible at all, which you can tell just looking at them in a picture. The organizers made everyone wear the official vest in 2019, and I don't remember seeing any of the Rapha vests. Hopefully the motorcycle marshals would have stopped anyone wearing one. Those requirements are written in French law for anyone walking or riding on the road at night, and that was in effect before 2011, so Rapha should have known their vest was not legal in France. I never understood Rapha's approach.

Do you mean the vest made the cyclists hard to see out on the road (as in driver's can't see them, etc.. ?). And French law requires you to have a vest that is reflective, etc.. ?

Back about 10 years ago when I started seeing people here wearing Rapha it was a wave of cyclists wearing black everything and they did indeed seem invisible, it was the same time Trek and Specialized and everyone were getting into "murdered out" bikes that were completely black even down to gloss black logos on a matte black finish, etc...

I need to start looking at clothes again.. I got 2 Louis Garneau jerseys this year. They are OK but are not going to last long, they have pulls already. They are much more aero than my older jerseys. Almost to the point I think they make a noticeable speed difference. But they also have issues with smell that the older jerseys don't have. I have a bunch of jerseys that are very old and cheesy looking at this point but not showing any sign of wearing much. My 2007 Serotta Owner's club jersey pretty much looks brand new for example, and I still have a Nova Scotia jersey I bought on a trip there in 2001 that doesn't look particularly worn. That jersey has been washed hundreds of times by now.

And meanwhile my Assos bibs are all starting to fade & seem stretched out. Not failing but just not as comfortable and not necessarily staying in place as well as they used to. IF people here are saying newer ones are not so bombproof I have shopping to do.

On top of that my PI Amfib winter tights have a hole. I think I've only had 3 pairs in the last 24 years and I didn't replace them yet because PI redesigned them and the reviews are much worse than the old ones.

So maybe I need to finally check out Rapha if they're not cool anymore and there are some deals.

As an aside my son wants us to take a family vacation to Bentonville to ride the trails VERY badly. The Youtubers have been doing their job pretty well on the Walton take perhaps. He is getting pretty good technically on his MTB but I want him to be capable of longer epic rides before we do something like that, and there are tons of spectacular places closer to home he hasn't been yet. I'd rather go to Kingdom trails with him in VT for example first.

[Likes2ridefar]

All my jerseys are Rapha, and with a few exceptions all I’ve worn the last decade plus. I like the fit and features and buy them when they are 40-50% off and only buy high viz unwanted ugly (presumably) colors. Even the thin summer weight last me a very long time and I think they are a great buy on sale. Not a fan of the bibs though. I still prefer Assos, nothing fits me so perfectly, and have found a few models that have been good quality and long lasting recently but a few major flops, too.

[peanutgallery]

You guys praise the almighty Rapha...but who's paying retail?

There's the problem

[November Dave]

Originally Posted by peanutgallery

You guys praise the almighty Rapha...but who's paying retail?

There's the problem

If you buy from them at 25% discount from retail, they're making out better than they would be selling them through a dealer. Implementing an omni-channel pricing strategy is one of my main concerns right now. Not being able to hold your retail pricing is problematic, though.

I'm sure a big part of their losses are accounting losses tied to the sale of the business. That's how PE and LBOs work.

Rapha Core bibs have become by far my favorites. I bought 2 pairs at $100 instead of $130 retail, but I'd easily pay $130 for them after using them for a year.

[fourflys]

I've become a huge fan of the Brevet jerseys (never tried others), but I've only ever bought them used as I'm cheap.. now I will say there is a small maker in England named Torm (https://www.torm.cc/) that makes just as nice (some parts better) than Rapha at better prices and you're supporting a small two-person shop..

For the bibs- how is the fit? I find I usually have to size up on the jerseys.. even when I'm in decent shape..

I did buy a couple of the Rapha bar bags new from them (on sale though) and they are my go to for sure..

[Andy340]

Last generation Classic bibs were my favorites, then the new brevet bib replaced those as favorite - brevet bibs are on the looser side compared to pro team (newer classic bibs have an odd fit on lower elastic above knee)

[RoosterCogset]

Seems like the IZOD (or was it Lacoste) syndrome. People got tired of alligators on their shirts. Rapha kept with the armband thing and it has become trite.

[marciero]

Originally Posted by unterhausen

The Rapha brevet vests I saw on PBP in 2011 were not visible at all, which you can tell just looking at them in a picture. The organizers made everyone wear the official vest in 2019, and I don't remember seeing any of the Rapha vests. Hopefully the motorcycle marshals would have stopped anyone wearing one. Those requirements are written in French law for anyone walking or riding on the road at night, and that was in effect before 2011, so Rapha should have known their vest was not legal in France. I never understood Rapha's approach.

That was the weird irony about the "brevet" vests. They didnt meet RUSA requirements either-which must be similar if not the same. They are right on the line for area requirement, but not located in accordance.

I cynically imagined it was on purpose, like they are flouting the rules- too cool. Either that or incredibly ill informed, tone deaf.

On the whole I have liked their stuff. Bought my first piece in 2005. Still have a few.

[Wunder]

Originally Posted by benb

Do you mean the vest made the cyclists hard to see out on the road (as in driver's can't see them, etc.. ?). And French law requires you to have a vest that is reflective, etc.. ?.

French las has VERY specific requirements for both high viz colors and retroflective elements for being on the road at night. This applies to both cycling as well as changing a flat on your truck. The Rapha vests are no worse for visibility than most cycling vests but are nowhere near satisfying that standard.

See the famous yellow vest protests

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yellow_vests_protests

[adub]

Rapha has become the Eddie Bauer of cycling clothing