Rapha experts, what's this patch on the collar of the Classic jersey?

[slowpoke]

Just received an old Rapha Classic jersey and noticed there was a round patch on the collar.

Anyone have any idea if this was a repaired jersey, or if it serves any function?

Thanks!

[slambers3]

Originally Posted by slowpoke

Just received an old Rapha Classic jersey and noticed there was a round patch on the collar.

Anyone have any idea if this was a repaired jersey, or if it serves any function?

Thanks!

probably a repair. I have a few of those jerseys with no such patch. for what it's worth, a buddy sent a pair of bibs back to them for a repair and they came back with a round patch.

[uber]

Not a repair!! This area is reinforced so one can bite the jersey while zippering with one hand and keeping the other hand on the bar. The original soft shell jacket had it as well.

[slambers3]

Originally Posted by uber

Not a repair!! This area is reinforced so one can bite the jersey while zippering with one hand and keeping the other hand on the bar. The original soft shell jacket had it as well.

interesting! i stand corrected.

[polyhistoric]

Yep - bite patch. Helpful for one-handed zipping on the bike. One of the small, thoughtful details of the original company that seems to be left out of many current Rapha products.

Not a Rapha hater, and many of their products have evolved wonderfully in fit and materials.

[shrimp123]

for this

[slowpoke]

So to follow up, I had emailed Rapha last night and one of the CS reps just replied "The patch is intentional and it is meant to wipe your mouth or nose on during a ride." But this seems too rough compared to the faux-suede material often used, so the bite patch seems to be correct answer.

In addition, I did some digging and found an old review that called it a "bite grip" and it included some photos of it too.

Thanks for everyone's help!