I saw this yesterday and its made me want to buy some Rapha kit.
Rapha Continental – The Movie from RAPHA on Vimeo.
I’ve been thinking about why this made me want to buy their kit and a few thing jumped out at me.
- This film is pretty good. Its produced well, great camera work ect. it come across that this company is pretty serious about riding, and this type of riding. There is really no talk about racing. Just men and women on their bikes riding. They arent even competing against each other. There are several shots of two guys climbing, and one of the guys with his hand on the back of the other guy. This film is centered around the juxapostion between cyclings group dinamic and the extreme individuality of cycling.
- Almost all the people in this film came across like people I’d not want to talk to, let alone ride with. Let me be clear I dont know anything about the rider in this film, they all might be great guys. Its really could be just the way the film was cut. However, I do think the stuff they are saying really did resinate with me in regards to why I ride. Almost like I want to buy Rapha kit in spite of the people in the movie.
- The bikes. They seem to be all hand made, but with some very top shelf gear on them. I’m sure that they are all super light even though I did not see any carbon fiber frames. From the credits it looks like they are all hand made steel and Ti in America. So I think thats says something.
Its funny, road cycling is so much like NASCAR, or F1,or any pro sport for that matter. To be really into it you must copy the pros, what they wear and what they ride. Even if you never race you still need to look pro. This film was the polar opposite, the only thing these guys were racing were themselves. I think that Rapha is way ahead of the curve on this.