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rapha sonic collection

rapha sonic collection

though we no doubt considered our favourite sporting activity to exist in splendid isolation, unaffected by the mores of the 'real' world, if nothing else, this year has proved that to be a false assumption. and if you're inclined to adhere to the philosophy that, the season pretty much went ahead anyway, even if a tad later than originally scheduled, surely the cancellation of paris-roubaix' provided something of an urgent wake-up call?

rapha sonic collection

but prior to the entirely uncommon nature of the 2020 season that ended with roglic in the vuelta's red jersey, surely cycle-sport has pretty much gone its own, solitary way, flying in the face of a world seemingly obsessed with the motor car as transport. sadly, that too would be a naive stance to take; you need only view an aerial shot of the professional peloton in full flow, to note that the number of following cars and motorcycles begins to rival the number of cyclists. that said, i'm sure i noted at least a couple of electric skoda commissaire vehicles during the latter stages of the spanish race.

rapha sonic collection

and then there's the influence (or not) of fashion. prior to the late 1980s, the average cycle jersey could be viewed as just a bit on the rudimentary side. any catwalk influences could be easily discarded, if only on the basis that the wool jersey was more than just moderately restricted in the realm of haute couture. but then along came the slightly mis-named method of dye-sublimation printing. i say, 'mis-named' because originally it was mistakenly thought that the dye moved from solid state to gas, without passing through the liquid state (sublimation). however, subsequent investigation proved that there was minimal liquefying of the dye. thus, the correct name would be 'dye-diffusion', though in practice i've yet to hear it called that.

rapha sonic collection

dye-sublimation is a computer based printing technique that uses heat to 'sublimate' the printed dye onto the fabric of choice. in the case under discussion, that would be the polyester of a jersey and the lycra of the shorts. by the late 1980s, early 1990s, this became a practical and economic means of applying virtually any computer-generated design onto a cycle jersey. and since this was dye, rather than ink, the colours could be vibrant to say the least. and suddenly, fashion and colour had found inroads into the previously and relatively monochrome cycling world.

rapha sonic collection

rapha's new sonic collection is a celebration of this new era of garish graphics, of the 1990 tour de france and the big logos, the modern face of this graphic revolution allowing rapha and others to offer the current state-of-the-art to their customers. the full collection consists of a lightweight shadow waterproof jacket, a long-sleeve winter-weight jersey, thermal bibshorts, a headband (which comes attached to the jersey) and a pair of socks. rapha kindly supplied everything, apart from the shadow jacket, for review in advance of the official release, and i'm very glad that they did.


rapha sonic collection

on a bright, sunny day, when my garmin displayed seven degrees pretty much all day, accompanied by a windchill that reduced it to around five degrees, the breathable and thermal, midweight long-sleeve jersey was well constituted to fend off the chill in the air, even when descending the hill at foreland. though i have very disparagingly referred to this as sonic the jersey, i feel i must underline that i regard that as a term of endearment. i am a major fan of long-sleeve jerseys, and though i like to think of myself as a tad more on the subtle end of the spectrum, i rather enjoyed sonic's bright personality. my only complaint would be the minimal height of the collar; i'd have liked a taller version, similar to that seen on the core l/s winter jersey.

rapha sonic collection

due to covid-19 demands at debbie's, i wore a richard sachs neck-warmer/face-covering, but i do draw the line at headbands, no matter what the late lauren fignon said.

the thermal bibshorts are quite simply to die for. comprised of a three-layer fabric on the front providing wind and rain protection and fleece-backed panels at the rear, these are so well-fitting and cosy, there was a lengthy period of deliberation over whether or not to take them off post ride. it will surprise you greatly that i have so far failed to get them wet, but since they have fulfilled every other requirement, i see no reason why the water-resistance should be any different. rapha contend that these are designed for winter-training under darkening skies, but since i wouldn't know a training schedule if it offered to buy me an orange juice, i'll settle for the darkened skies.

rapha sonic collection

even with a jersey costing £160 and shorts just the right side of £200, i'd advise opting for both at once. these are offered to rapha cycling club members in advance of going on general release, so there's a reasonable chance a sell-out is on the cards. it's no use you coming crying to me when, a few weeks along the road, you find you cannot get hold of matching shorts for your jersey. and though i'm no fashionista, the socks are pretty darned ginger-peachy into the bargain.

imperial works have been slightly cute in their celebration of the advent of the dye-sublimation era, in that the differently coloured sections of the jersey are fashioned from separate sections of fabric, including the forearms. but i don't care; i love that.

sonic the jersey (with headband) is available in the usual sizes at a cost of £160, the bibshorts at a cost of £195 and matching socks for £20. the lightweight shadow jacket (not reviewed) costs £200
| rapha sonic collection
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thursday 12 november 2020

twmp ..........................................................................................................................................................................................................