It’s Friday again, that means all you’re thinking about is how dominant Mathieu van der Poel will be at Amstel Gold Race this weekend. Rightfully so. But you should also remember it’s an In the Drops Friday, so away we go.
This week we’ve obviously been banging out Paris-Roubaix content, with a race gallery and tech gallery, as well as a look back at the incredible story of the 1949 Paris-Roubaix. Newbie Ewan Wilson also ranked every MVDP Monument performance and claimed it’s OK to find the Classics boring.
Our latest Big Ride also hit the website, in which we attempted to get from London to Flanders, ride a Tour of Flanders loop and get back to London in one day.
There was also two bike launches from BMC and Enve, reviews of Lauf’s new road bike as well as the Basso Astra and the Rapha Classic Long Sleeve Jersey. And just this morning we published our guide to the best energy gels, bars and chews. I’m hungry now so let’s get to the good stuff.
Rapha Pro Team Aero jersey
I’m not a small man, so squeezing into super compressive aero jerseys has never been something that appealed to me, so when Rapha said its new Pro Team Aero jersey was designed to be worn by people of different body shapes I was intrigued. Now while I can’t attest to the experience of those bigger than me – 188cm, approx. 90kg – I was very impressed by the fit, it’s snug but doesn’t squeeze and I felt physically and mentally comfortable.
Part of how Rapha has achieved this is through the use of an Italian fabric called Clima, which is compressive but not restrictive. The sleeves have also been adapted, with less elastic, so they don’t squeeze in the arms, instead sitting nice and comfy over the skin, the same goes for the waistband too.
This generation of Pro Team kit is also part of the new wave of Rapha products that feature its updated branding, doing away with the armband, which is a bold move, but I like it.
- Buy now from Rapha (£185)
Bravur Team Heritage watch
‘Will’, I hear you cry, ‘what does a watch have to do with cycling?’ Wow, that’s a great question and I’m glad you asked. Bravur is a Swedish watch brand with a big thing for cycling. It has a ‘Grand Tour’ watch collection, its own branded cycling kit, and now comes the Team Heritage watch collection.
The three Team Heritage watches each represent an iconic pro cycling team of yesteryear: Mercier, Renault and Peugeot. While the Mercier and Renault designs are very obvious in their colour schemes, this Peugeot watch is a lot more subtle because of the monochrome design but still represents the checkerboard pattern nicely for those in the know.
The watch is hand-built in Båstad, Sweden, and has either a stainless steel or Black PVD casing and a choice of five straps.
- You can find all the technical details that go straight over my head at bravurwatches.com
- Buy now from Bravur (£912.50)
Quoc Gran Tourer XC Lace
If you’re a regular here, you may know that I’m a huge fan of Quoc shoes, the first time I wore the Grand Tourer II gravel shoes my world was changed and I’ve since upgraded to the very trendy pink Gran Tourer XC. Now, the brand has released a lace version of the Gran Tourer XCs called Gran Tourer XC Lace. Crazy I know.
They come in this very nice ‘Chalk’ colour and carry over all the best bit from the original Gran Tourer XCs, except for the lace, which is not only a lovely aesthetic but also probably more aerodynamic (probably because it’s not been tested but Alex Dowsett said laces are better so I’m running with it).
For the uninitiated, the Gran Tourer XC shoes are made with a carbon composite outsole and a TPU tread to balance stiffness, durability and walkin grip – which is also helped by the studded underside.
The shoes have padded heel cushioning, come with foot-moulding insoles and have a rubber top cap and an abrasion-resistant microfibre upper.
- Buy now from Quoc (£220)
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What we’re into this week: hobbies and playlist #19
Now for a lot of people reading this cycling is probably your hobby, so well done you win. For those of us who’ve made a hobby a career, it helps to have hobbies other than cycling. Outrageous right?
As previous readers of my In the Drops will know I’ve been making playlists of new music for each edition – I’ve done the same this time and it’s a banger including excellent new albums from Vampire Weekend, English Teacher, Maggie Rogers, Yard Act and Beyoncé as well as the best Kings of Leon song in a long time – but beyond my enjoyment of listening to music I’ve also made my own for a number of years.
I recently released a little EP with songs I made a while ago and I think it’s alright. I’ve put a couple of songs in the In the Drops playlist but I’ll link directly to my work because I can. Hope you like it.
- Listen to my EP ‘Renaissance Man’
- Listen to In the Drops #19 on Spotify
- Check out all my In the Drops playlists
Excited for the Ardennes? Check out our guide to the Amstel Gold Race.