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rapha special edition belgian country jersey

rapha special edition country jersey

to celebrate a significant birthday around three years ago, my son treated me to a seat in glasgow's chris hoy velodrome to witness a uci world championship track meet. the velodrome, adjacent to celtic football park, is hardly the easiest place to reach by means of public transport, so we took a taxi from buchanan bus station. as we neared the venue and slowed for traffic lights, the cab pulled in behind a group of cyclists all clad in the belgian national jersey, which we thought was taking fandom just a tad too far. that was, until we realised that this flemish peloton was, in fact, members of the belgian national track team.

rapha special edition country jersey

it is indicative of the profile attached to their national jersey design, that even the taxi driver was moved to point out that there was a group of belgians heading in the same direction as ourselves. i have serious doubts that the selfsame taxi driver would have recognised members of team gb, had we happened upon them, because our own national jersey seems to change more frequently than the hebridean weather.

velominati's rule #17 dictates that 'team kit is for members of the team', a rule worth adhering to unless referring to items of retro kit purchased from andy at prendas. by simple extrapolation, rule #17 surely encompasses world championship jerseys and any of the leaders' jerseys from a bona-fide grand tour. one can only imagine the ribbing one would receive from members of the sunday peloton were i to arrive clad in yellow. but what about national jerseys?

rapha special edition country jersey

this is perhaps more of a grey area; though the chances of any of us being selected for team gb are remarkably slim, as british citizens, do we harbour the right to wear our often hideous national jersey? darn tootin' we do. but how then, can i justify riding the highways and byways of islay, dressed in a belgian national jersey? surely this may lead to accusations of usurpership (a word i just invented)? strictly speaking, it would be hard to defend myself against such accusations, were it not for recorded evidence to the contrary.

rapha special edition country jersey

long has it been my contention that hebrideans are the flandrians of the west. there is even a stretch of single track road leading between ballinaby and saligo on islay's atlantic coast to which we occasionally refer as the belgian road, due to its similarity to those seen in the spring classics. featuring grass and weeds breaking through the road surface along the centre, it is edged on both sides by flat farmland and, until it reaches saligo bay, it is dead straight.

if you're willing to accept a climate with a propensity for horizontal rain, galeforce winds and substantial evidence of agricultural activity leading from every farm gate, lift your eyes from under the peak of your casquette, and that sunday bike ride could just as easily be in belgium as on an exposed rock on the edge of the atlantic. regular readers will perhaps recall that i have often floated the possibility of offering classics training camps to replace warm, tedious hill climbs in tenerife. after all, how does a few perambulations of mount teide assist in competing over the cobbles of paris-roubaix?

rapha special edition country jersey

thus, viewing rapha's most recent array of country jerseys, there really wasn't too much time spent considering in which would be the most appropriate to be seen scurrying along that belgian road. this is the very style of jersey for which rapha has rightly become famous. based on the classic, sportwool fabric jersey, the range of country options feature the good old merino/polyester mix that is considerably more luxurious than their pro-team range.

in the case of the belgian country jersey, the black, gold and red bands across the back and front of the torso, are repeated on the short-sleeve cuffs and on the commendably high neck. the clever aspect here is the reverse positioning of those bands on the sleeves; should you raise your arms by way of a sprint victory salute, they will appear in the correct orientation. the quarter-length metal zip has a well-sized ring to ease opening and closing. the three rear pockets, aside from button closures atop each, also sport the race number and winning time of jean-pierre monseré a belgian rider who became world champion in leicester in 1970.

rapha special edition country jersey

this is a beautiful, luxurious jersey that, from personal experience and if well-looked after, is likely to last in excess of fifteen years, during which time, team gb will have worn at least twelve different jersey designs, none of which will match the perfection displayed by the never-changing belgian example. and, as a hebridean rider, i feel perfectly justified being seen in my national garmentage. not only that, on its first outing, (riding in the big ring at all times) it provided the necessary succour and inspiration to return home bearing an average speed some 2kph faster than usual.

if only debbie's served frites and (vegan) mayo.

rapha's country jersey is available in sizes ranging from xs to xxl at a retail price of £140.

rapha special edition country jersey

monday 6 april 2020

twmp ..........................................................................................................................................................................................................