The Rapha hater thread

[blutto]

See, I don't have those important contacts.

Lil' Prince.. Chuck those ol' freebie Rapha jersies my way. I'll rock that poseur crap for you!

Good to hear that the LG bibs are comfortable. kiwi, how's the quality of the build?

...the LG bibs fit very well (a very close second to Nalini and Exteondo(sp?)) and wear like iron( I have several LG shorts that have seen over 20 years of heavy use )....though be forewarned their chamois choices were sometimes, and I stress sometimes, not the best, though this was in the low to mid range bibs....the issue was solved immediately, but that issue dogged the brand for a while after...now back to where they were, which is highly recommended...

...and BTW Louis is a great great guy....and a real class rider in his day...a monster in a break-away ( the guy pulled like a truck )...

Cheers

blutto

 

[RDV4ROUBAIX]

So Damiano, we get it, you don't like their approach. Find it laughable that you think they're all phonies, making up crap about people you've never met to boost your own ego, very, very bush league.

Ok, so be it, but what about that gift you got? Do you ride any of those jerseys, or use anything else from it? In over 50 posts, it took 3 or 4 from me to finally get you to admit that you own some Rapha gear, why don't you tell us what you think of the product rather than crying about their marketing, which is really, really, really annoying btw? If you can't stand the company so much, why do you still have it? Anytime these "hater" threads are started on the forum you guys come of as those crazy people that yell at the tv or at a movie.

In the famous words of Reagan Youth "I hate hate".

 

[leftover pie]

Ok, so be it, but what about that gift you got? Do you ride any of those jerseys, or use anything else from it? .

i sure hope whoever bought him the gift doesn't see this thread.

 

[RDV4ROUBAIX]

i sure hope whoever bought him the gift doesn't see this thread.

Maybe he'll re-gift to me....., no label makers, no cashmere sweaters with red dots on 'em, just the Rapha please, thank you.

 

[leftover pie]

Maybe he'll re-gift to me....., no label makers, no cashmere sweaters with red dots on 'em, just the Rapha please, thank you.

and hope if he does, he doesn't change his mind and become an india. . . .


i mean, um, take it back from you.

 

[Damiano Machiavelli]

No regifting without bringing about dire consequences.

 

[marathon marke]

I'm just being entertained by the emotional responses from both sides in this thread.

 

[pedaling squares]

Is there someone in your neck of the woods that carries LG?

Haven't seen any up here but I'm sure there is a dealer in K-town.

 

[RDV4ROUBAIX]

I'm just being entertained by the emotional responses from both sides in this thread.

I not only ride the stuff, but also have some very good friends that work there. Could you imagine if this was a discussion about PRIMAL WEAR or PACE?

 

[Damiano Machiavelli]

If you don't like their advertising then don't buy their products. Why have a thread dissing something you don't like?

Who are you? Rodney King? [Best wuss voice] "Can't we all just get along?" No, we cannot. RDV assures us that the people at Rapha are good guys, keeping it real, and passionate about cycling. Apparently passion only goes one way with him. It is okay for a bunch of image merchants to sell their phoney baloney to the prols because they are passionate, but god forbid if the prols should react negatively to the cynical manipulation. Apparantly that is not passion. That is hate, and we cannot have that.

Of course this same RDV promotes wheels custom built by the hands of a master. Why? In a world where all it takes is a group of advertising majors to slap a cool sounding name on chinese goods and tell people how passionate they are, what value is there in something that is built by experience? Where is the tradition? Where is the pedigree? Where is the authenticity?

Instead we are left with white collar bamboozlers telling us what we have to buy to be who we want to be. There is no authenticity there. It is just image. I am sorry to tell you this, but Andre Agassi retired years ago and long before that he abandoned his "image is everything" motto when he shaved off his remaining hair. Reality should matter.

Rapha, the J. Peterman Cycling Collection, promotes image over reality. The whole company is built on stroking the egos of well heeled schmoes by catering to their fantasies of epic endeavor. Personally, all the "epics" I have had to endure have been the result of me misjudging my fitness, the weather turning against me, mechanicals, bad planning, late starts, and a variety of other screw-ups. I have never set out on a ride with the intention of having an epic. The idea of a preplanned epic, especially when dressed head to toe in Rapha, is comical. It is like two people preplanning a one night stand. It is fake.

I guess the fakery does not bother RDV (unless it is prebuilt wheels) but there are people who dislike the implications of what the world will be like when the last companies standing consist of brand managers selling the same goods manufactured in the same factories but with different labels.

 

[RDV4ROUBAIX]

I use nothing made in China in my builds, have in the past with carbon rims, but all that is changing to ENVE.

Asian made clothing is another story though. Assos is made in Europe, sure, but Bulgaria. Not just Eastern Europe, but the *** end of it, standard of living no better than, probably worse in some cases than China. Romania too is textile heavy, and very poor, was there 6 years ago. Shame on you Assos, and Rapha, and you're probably wearing something very Yen right now....

Have I mentioned that my Rapha jacket rules? What about your Rapha stuff?

 

[LugHugger]

Irrespective of branding, I have this to say about the Rapha items which I own:

The club jersey has by far the best cut and best access to rear pockets of any jersey that I own.
The leather gloves are the most durable and comfortable gloves that I have owned. They have survived crashes which would have totalled the other gloves that I have owned.
And the base layers are 3 years old and show no signs of loss of shape or unravelling.

I consider all of these items to be excellent value and worthy of recommendation. In my opinion, they are well designed and well specified and more than the match of many other more established apparel providers.

 

[Damiano Machiavelli]

Have I mentioned that my Rapha jacket rules? What about your Rapha stuff?

I am not that into wool. As Austin Powers said, "That's not my bag, baby." I cannot very well use a man purse with a "bon courage" motto without feeling like a tool. That is one step away from doing a bucket list Ironman then strutting around for the next three years in Ironman finisher gear. I am also not a fan of knuckle holes in gloves. I feel like I should be driving a Jag XKE while wearing an English driver's cap.

 

[RDV4ROUBAIX]

That's cool man, I understand your frustration with ad men, and you're right, Rapha was started by ad men. But your perception is a bit off about the peeps that are involved with them, yeah it can be froofy at times with the product and some of the words, from an art standpoint you either appreciate it or you don't, I do coming from a photography background, my gf was in video post production for over a decade and gave me new insight to the value of creativity as a whole.

 

[fatsprintking]

It looks like they are involved in organizing a "Gentleman's Race". Oh dear.

I can feel myself tipping the way of the little prince.

 

[marathon marke]

That's cool man, I understand your frustration with ad men, and you're right, Rapha was started by ad men. But your perception is a bit off about the peeps that are involved with them, yeah it can be froofy at times with the product and some of the words, from an art standpoint you either appreciate it or you don't, I do coming from a photography background, my gf was in video post production for over a decade and gave me new insight to the value of creativity as a whole.

Very good post. I can understand your perspective, as I've done some photo work myself. Marketing is about touching the emotion, same as art.

 

[RDV4ROUBAIX]

It looks like they are involved in organizing a "Gentleman's Race". Oh dear.

I can feel myself tipping the way of the little prince.

You're late to the party, they've already done a few races. This was fun, a ride not a race, but fun..http://www.rapha.cc/minneapolis-gentlemen-1

"behind the shop in an actual garage" was my old wheel shop before I moved here...

During the work week the phrase "you don't know!" gets thrown around lightheartedly, this could be one of those occasions even though it's the weekend... You don't know!

 

[Damiano Machiavelli]

It looks like they are involved in organizing a "Gentleman's Race". Oh dear.

I can feel myself tipping the way of the little prince.

This could be the first "helmets are forbidden" ride in history.

 

[pedaling squares]

I can see why some don't like the style. $180 for gloves with holes in the knuckles and multi-coloured piping does make me laugh. So does the $600 single-breasted sport coat / cycling jacket. But it's a style thing and style has never really been my thing. I get that they're presenting a certain 'image' and if it's a successful marketing schtick in tough economic times - more power to them. I do think some of the jerseys and jackets look really nice from a style point and the feedback on their quality seems good. I don't understand the comparison between Rapha goods and hand-built wheels, as the guys who promote the benefits of hand-builts on this site always refer to build quality, longevity, and design tailor-fit to the rider. Not really the same as promoting them based on pretty piping or a nice corduroy pattern.

 

[RDV4ROUBAIX]

This could be the first "helmets are forbidden" ride in history.

Helmet Nazi's suck too, another topic that's been beaten to death.

 

[fatsprintking]

Very good post. I can understand your perspective, as I've done some photo work myself. Marketing is about touching the emotion, same as art.

I think thats kind of the point. They are touching emotions, but they are going to touch some people in the negative while trying to elicit a positive response from their "target" group.

And that would be the interesting point - who is their marketing strategy aimed at? RDV might have some inside knowledge re this, but lets be honest they are not trying to appeal to **** kickers. Off course there are exceptions to the rule that can be trotted out, but the fact is that they want to appeal to those with money with the promise of a superior product that justifies the price, that you buy as you are "discerning" in your choices.

Thats cool, but as soon as we start to break dowsn the marketing we start to see that we can easily define what is better in terms of what we can justify. Its all cool, but perhaps best if we just accept that most of what we buy we dont really need.

Anyway, by the looks of this thread most of us are wearing the gear we got 10 years ago anyway...

 

[RDV4ROUBAIX]

Damiano, why all the hate? Ride and let ride brother, life's too short to be a fashion critic or a helmet Nazi. This isn't Iran, the Morality Police aren't giving out tickets to Rapha wearers and helmetless riders. c'mon dude, cheer up.

 

[RDV4ROUBAIX]

I think thats kind of the point. They are touching emotions, but they are going to touch some people in the negative while trying to elicit a positive response from their "target" group.

And that would be the interesting point - who is their marketing strategy aimed at? RDV might have some inside knowledge re this, but lets be honest they are not trying to appeal to **** kickers. Off course there are exceptions to the rule that can be trotted out, but the fact is that they want to appeal to those with money with the promise of a superior product that justifies the price, that you buy as you are "discerning" in your choices.

Thats cool, but as soon as we start to break dowsn the marketing we start to see that we can easily define what is better in terms of what we can justify. Its all cool, but perhaps best if we just accept that most of what we buy we dont really need.

Anyway, by the looks of this thread most of us are wearing the gear we got 10 years ago anyway...

All the people I know that own anything Rapha aren't in a upper tax bracket, nor do they care what other people are wearing because they're not in grade school any more. I'm in the same boat, every few years I afford myself a nice luxury good for riding, I know I can accomplish the same thing with something cheaper, but I usually don't like the cheaper articles construction and style usually. I know I can shoot photos with a Cannon, Nikon, Olympus, whatever, but I'm a lifetime Leica user, I'm sure I'll get heat for that too.

 

[kuoirad]

Well yeah, you *should* get heat for shooting Leica. Next thing you'll say you're still shooting film. I mean, it's not Hasselblad, but damn...

(says the former Pentax shooter, now on a Canon S95...)

 

[RDV4ROUBAIX]

Well yeah, you *should* get heat for shooting Leica. Next thing you'll say you're still shooting film. I mean, it's not Hasselblad, but damn...

(says the former Pentax shooter, now on a Canon S95...)

No doubt, my 1970 M2-R takes better photos than anything digital.