Despite being published on Friday morning, I’m writing this intro on Thursday before spending the end of my working week with Jack Luke at Rouleur Live, which takes place at the Truman Brewery in London and is dubbed 'the world’s greatest cycling show'.
While I can’t foresee the future and verify that claim, I do know we’ll be publishing stories from the show throughout the day, so keep an eye on our homepage. And I’m almost certain I’ll be helping Jack with a tube map at around 8pm and tries to make his way to Paddington – and back home to Bristol. I’ll ask him to text me when he’s safely on the train.
Away from Rouleur Live, this week on Bikeradar Simon von Bromley took a close look at Team GB’s hyper-expensive track bike, after he visited the additive manufacturer Renishaw.
Having claimed victory in his final race, Mark Bailey explored how Mark Cavendish became the greatest sprinter of all time before we turned our attention to many other cycling greats with our Rider of the Year shortlist.
We also updated our guides to the best road bikes and, with the weather turning, the best waterproof jackets and best mountain bike gloves.
Elsewhere, Oscar Huckle rounded up some incredibly expensive gadgets for the latest edition of Torque About Tools and we learnt of a new freehub with 3D-printed pawls.
Finally, if you haven’t seen it already, last weekend we published our latest long read, where Charlie Allenby investigates why so many gravel races are being cancelled.
Santini Magic waterproof jacket
Outdoor clothing brands have long relied on per- or polyfluorinated chemicals (PFAS) to make their products waterproof. The problem is that PFAS are toxic and don’t break down in the natural environment, earning the name ‘forever chemicals’.
These chemicals are now banned in certain parts of the world and in specific applications, such as consumer textiles, so there has been a rush to find alternatives – as well as pockets of the cycling press mourning their beloved Gore-Tex Shakedry rain jackets.
The Santini Magic cycling waterproof is part of a new generation of jackets that avoid these forever chemicals. The jacket uses Polartec’s Power Shield RPM fabric, which is PFAS-free and waterproof.
The fabric is made from 100 per cent recycled polyester (RPM stands for Recycled Polyester Membrane) and has a non-PFAS coating to repel precipitation.
Most waterproof jackets that use a membrane are inelastic, with the likes of Castelli inserting stretch panels into its Gore-Tex jackets for a close but mobile fit, and others opting for baggy sleeves that don’t limit motion.
However, Polartec’s new fabric is soft and stretchy, ensuring a comfortable and close fit. As a result, Santini says you can treat the Magic Jacket a bit like a jersey, similar to the latest Castelli Gabba R jacket.
Santini says the jacket is also highly breathable, helping to avoid overheating.
The Magic jacket has the details you’d expect from the best cycling jackets: a drop trail that protects you from road spray; a zip that opens from the top and bottom; a high collar; and reflective details.
At 155g in a size medium, it’s also lightweight and packs into its zipped pocket.
- £180 / €200
The Extra Mile by Rapha
- Buy now from Rapha
Rapha recently released its latest book, The Extra Mile. The book chronicles Rapha’s first two decades and was revealed at its 20th-anniversary exhibition in October.
The tome is packed with page after page of insight and backstory, full-bleed images in Rapha’s recognisable high-contrast style and the brand’s rather dated take on the suffering life on two wheels can entail.
The Extra Mile could be viewed as a history book, so it’s no surprise to see Rapha’s mythologising of cycling as a heroic pursuit. But there is more revealing material, such as its original business plan and founder Simon Mottram’s pitch document. This document is particularly enlightening. It lays out what many cycling brands have also tried to do since Rapha began in 2004.
Mottram describes how Rapha will combine “high performance and high style”, target “male, 25-45, high earning design conscious bike enthusiasts” and aim to be like the now defunct Prada Sport.
The aspirational aspects of the cycling book may turn some people off. However, with its descriptions of cycling offering an animal relation to the world and wistful present-tense accounts of ascending climbs, The Extra Mile plots how Rapha has become a global phenomenon that, whether you like it or not, has changed cycling and how people see the sport. But, like many of these brand-endorsed retrospectives, maybe the biggest mythologising is of Rapha itself.
- £35 (softback)
- Buy now from Rapha
Chrome Warsaw backpack
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Chrome has updated its Warsaw backpack for AW24. Like the new Chrome Citizen courier bag, the Warsaw is aimed less at “messengers and pro riders” and is instead “made for your cross-town commute or weekend carry-on”.
Chrome says the new backpack is as durable and functional as the original Warsaw, which came out a decade ago, but with a smaller 30-litre capacity.
It describes the bag as having been “built twice”, with a nylon outer body paired with the brand’s familiar tarp lining.
While the Warsaw doesn’t have a roll-top like some of Chrome’s bags, the outer flap is said to protect your belongings in all weather conditions.
Underneath the flap is an unlined but zipped laptop pocket and two smaller pockets close with magnets.
There are two more zipped pockets on the front of the bag and on the side, alongside two large open pockets for carrying things such as a water bottle.
The bag has ergonomic shoulder straps, a cross-body strap and a foam back panel. There are compression straps, so your possessions won’t be rattling around inside.
Like all Chrome bags – including my ancient Mini Metro – the Warsaw has a lifetime guarantee.
- £150 / $150 / €180 / AU$305
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Columbia Men's Arctic Crest Down Hooded Jacket
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This down jacket is part of Columbia’s new Omni-Heat Arctic collection. The collection uses the brand's latest technology, an insulation system inspired by arctic wildlife and the way polar bears capture heat to keep warm in extreme cold.
The biomimetic design enables solar energy to pass through the outer layers to reach an inner layer that traps heat close to the body. Columbia says the result is lightweight and high-efficiency warmth.
The jacket also has Columbia’s Omni-Shield technology. This long-lasting finish prevents liquid from being absorbed in the yarns and should help protect the jacket’s 700-fill goose down, which is RDS (Responsible Down Standard) certified.
Columbia says the Arctic Crest down jacket can be packed into its pocket and thrown into your rucksack.
This jacket has a hood, but it’s available without it for £30 less.
- £300
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