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TECH NEWS
Rapha Peace Race - 5.jpgYou’ve seen the Rapha jersey, now buy the board game
Rapha has unveiled a new Peace Race special edition jersey collection along with a silk scarf and – a bit left field, this one – a board game.
A board game?!? Has Rapha actually turned into a parody of Rapha?
First, the jersey…
“Inspired by the jerseys worn by the race leaders, this luxury merino wool cycling jersey features a ‘Dove of Peace’ emblem and comes with button-on removable arm warmers,” says Rapha.
Someone in the office said ‘Beam me up’ and now I can’t get that Star Trek image out of my head. Make up your own mind.
The annual multi-stage Peace Race, open to amateurs, ran from 1948 to 2006, the original idea being to relieve tensions between Central European nations after World War II.
The jersey has a high button-up collar (the buttons are on the side) and, naturally, it comes with typical Rapha details like embroidered emblems inspired by the race.
Nothing too unusual there. Oh, and the £150 pricing is typically Rapha too.
A board game, though? That's got to be an absolute gift for those who think Rapha is stuck up its own bottom bracket.
“It can only be bought with a Peace Race Jersey, and not as a stand-alone product. Conceived and developed by Herbie Sykes, author of The Race Against the Stasi, the board game is a homage to the riders of the race’s 1952 edition,” says Rapha.
“With a graphic design inspired by the rich visual culture that flourished around the race, players are challenged to compete as national team riders on a ‘race’ from Warsaw to Prague, taking in 12 stages on the way.”
Yep, this is an actual thing. You might think that a board game based on a post-war edition of a now defunct amateur bike race is a little niche, perhaps, but it’s going to cost you £45 to find out if it’s any good.
Hell, in for a penny… Get yourself the silk scarf too. It features a parcours map of the 1952 race and a list of riders. Yours for another 50 quid.
Mat has been in cycling media since 1996, on titles including BikeRadar, Total Bike, Total Mountain Bike, What Mountain Bike and Mountain Biking UK, and he has been editor of 220 Triathlon and Cycling Plus. Mat has been road.cc technical editor for over a decade, testing bikes, fettling the latest kit, and trying out the most up-to-the-minute clothing. He has won his category in Ironman UK 70.3 and finished on the podium in both marathons he has run. Mat is a Cambridge graduate who did a post-grad in magazine journalism, and he is a winner of the Cycling Media Award for Specialist Online Writer. Now over 50, he's riding road and gravel bikes most days for fun and fitness rather than training for competitions.
Latest Comments
- froze 1 hour 16 min ago
Just my opinion, but sorry that bike is UGLY! I can't see that sort of price for a completed bike, not alone for just the frame and fork!...
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May need insurance, tax and a licence. No problem with the lights though.
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Yes, they look just like the Lezyne Zecto model. My club bought a couple of sets from the LBS for our midweek TTs so if someone turns up without...
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If you can't see a %^$&ing large tractor what ^%$£"!*ing hope is there that you will see a cyclist ?...
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Live: Car plunges over wall and lands on beach rocks...
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Looks like yet another bike share service that's going to fold because of selfish idiots.
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21 comments
I usually find myself defending Rapha on here but this is just bizzare.
I also thought Star Trek the moment I saw it, the logo really doesn't help, right shape, right colour, right location...
I like the tagline in their email 'One of the biggest bike races you’ve never heard of'. Rapha really does know its customers.....
Yeah, it may have been mentioned once or twice in Rouleur ...
I can forgive them anything for the long-sleeved mesh base layer and pro-team long-sleeve jersey combo. Normally I sweat like a terrified pig being herded into a slaughterhouse, even when it's cold, but I was out on Monday morning at zero degrees C in those, warm and comfy, and their combined thickness is less than some t-shirts I own. Scooped in the sale for a combined price less than the Peace Race jersey.
If they can get people to pay that, plus board game, then good luck to them quite frankly. If they keep on making really good basics that don't shout logos, putting them on sale regularly and also organising events like the (Ally Pally) super-cross, then they're all good with me
You have to hand it to Rapha, they put their head above the parapet and suffer the slings and arrows.
But the best thing about Rapha special issues is the humourous derision that they generate from esteemed members of this forum.
I used to dress in Rapha from head to foot although I think their sizing isn't as generous as it used to be so I can't fit my wallet into the pockets any more. I think next season I'm just going to sew a skinsuit out of laminated £50 notes. It won't be as comfortable but at least people will be able to see how rich I am, which is the main thing.
Fivers are now prelaminated and cheaper.
I'm a big Rapha fan, having shelled out £59 for the inhaler and £80 for the monogrammed leather prescription pad holder, but even I think this is too far.
Me too, though I do like the look of the £235 dodo skin coin purse, the £78 scrotum featherer and the £95 certificate of disposable income.
I like the look of that jersey, but... Hahahahahahahayahahaahahahayaaha
When it goes on sale it will be gone anyway no matter what.
Don't bother, just get yourself a copy of leader one "hell of the north". An excellent game and only £35, no jersey required
who knew!
http://www.cyclingboardgames.net/cyclogames.htm
I only came here to see where the first 'Star Trek' comment would be...didn't even have to make it to the comments.
Also those removable sleeves would be a pain in the ass to put on / take off! Reminds me of doing up cuffs for a formal occasion like a wedding but X5 the annoyance.
I take it that you've never suffered the faff of studs, removable cuffs and collar on a formal shirt.
There's a definite 70s vibe with that shirt - I can see Jason King in one.
Thought it was more of a TMFU vibe....
illya-kuryakin.jpg
Absolutely nothing pretentious about a 1950's inspired cycling board game that can only be bought with a special jersey.
Hope the badge has full NextGen communicator functionality
http://www.thinkgeek.com/product/jmgi/
in which case I hope they dont produce a version in red...
They can peace off