Rapha, nice but a bit pricey?

Yeah discount code for sausage and bean melt Rapha Crocs of course. What else?

Are the Rapha classic shoes good? Need new road shoes at ~150€ and these are on sale right now

Anyone have the travel backpack (whether reflective or otherwise, not the “small” size)?

Looking for a work, bike, business trip suitable backpack, so any other suggestions would be much appreciated!

Tom Bihn makes very nice bags, ships from the factory in Seattle. I find my Synapse 19 bit on the heavy side (when compared to cheap decathlon things ofc) maybe due to the fabric or the excessive number of pockets... https://tombihn.com/

travel backpack

I bought one to replace a really worn-out Deuter bag when I changed roles a few years ago. Feels a bit plastic-y and it's very boxy in shape. It's okay as a daily (haven't cycled with it ever, mind!) but I'm not sure I'd replace like-for-like as and when it eventually comes to the end of life. Just enough capacity to make it useful for weekend trips, but it's a tight squeeze.

My wife's Briggs & Reilly (also bought when changing roles, thanks in no small part to vouchers from the previous one!) is definitely a better looking backpack overall and is certainly 'smarter' in terms of layout.

I've got one too, it's well made and I like the reflectivity, which has proved more durable than I expected. As above it's very rigid, which I think may reduce the comfort somewhat. No chest strap if that's an issue for you. It's fine for my needs, but I lucked out on eBay. I suspect there's better & cheaper designs.

I’ve got a chrome one I use on trips. Laptop sleeve, plenty of pockets and room for clothes. Even has space for a pair of cycling shoes and helmet in places you wouldn’t otherwise use.

I have the travel bag, i've used it for everything other than riding a bike.

It worked great for me for business trips / flights but it's very boxy, i never liked getting on a bike with it. The clamshell design is good though and i would recommend getting that design for any travel type bag tbh.

I found 25L was a bit cramped - I have a 30L bag I use more often now.

If you're going to spend that sort of money there are better options out there - there are entire forums on Reddit dedicated to this topic too, common recommendations are things like the Bellroy Transit for example

Thanks so much for the input everyone. I’m reading from the above that it’s fine, but has its quirks and there may be better out there for the money. The research continues, but the above suggestions are on the list 🙏🏻

They're a great cafe shoe, but I prefer the PT (even though I dislike BOAs) as the Classics seem to have a dull power transfer when you wanna GO (I wonder if this is just the carbon being less stiff at larger sizes as smaller footed people have reported no issues there). Otherwise, they do the job. But depends on the parameters you have for 'Good'.

I have rapha slides. they are ok. couldnt destroy them last 3 years. only issue. if you go with them into the water the inside of the stipe (over the feet) will stay wet for longer. the outside is water resistant

.

https://instagram.com/rapha_tuesday_new_­product

Do the Pro Team and Pro Team Aero jerseys fit the same as the Training jersey? Or a bit more snug?

aero is lot more snug

Thanks!

Like, a lot more snug

Having the winter jersey does anyone know the difference to the older winter windblock jersey? I do see a good offer for the windblock jersey - which seems to have windblock also in the sleeves, which my winter jersey does not have and I do not know if I‘m happy with that, even if it is my best fit comfortable jersey.

The ‘aero fit’ thing always baffled me. As far as I was concerned ‘Aero’ should have been designated for anything quantifiably aero-optimised (ie fabric, fit, features, put through tunnel testing etc). These Aero details could then be applied to Pro Team fit/athletes kit etc A clear connection between data-informed design and commercial products

Instead, aero was defined (by someone much senior than me) as essentially ‘Pro Team-but-one-size-smaller’?

(by someone much senior than me)

The Tour has aged Taco Van Der Hoorn.

So, so true. Our Aero kit is fully tunnel tested and only upgraded when definitive gains are measurable. And Team issue kit measured performance at significantly higher pace than general commercial aero products. Rapha's - not so much.

Rapha do tunnel testing FWIW. It's a selling point that the kit the pros wear is what you can buy yourself in a shop, not a downside IMO

Fair enough if they now do testing - they didn't for many of the iterations.

I think the point is that aero should be used to denote this - tunnel tested/selected on data - as Villa-ru says, rather than fit or sizing.