For Colnago lovers/anti-Rapha

mrushton

http://www.thewashingmachinepost.net/

Ash_

Yanto Barker's 'Le Col' range of clothing might be an alternative to Rapha (although it's not available to buy yet), but the washingmachinepost is definitely not anti-Rapha.

Scroll down the page somewhat and you'll see it's a proper Rapha love-in. To the point where I don't bother looking at the site as much as I used to. Pity really because there's some well written articles in there, but it's 'bogged down' with glowing testamonies for Rapha kit, none of which, as far as I recall, has ever been criticised.

Still, if Rapha were to send me loads of free stuff to 'review' just as long as I heaped praise on it in my blog, I guess I'd do exactly the same...




So working on the principle that 'if you don't ask you don't get', if anyone at Rapha's reading this, I'm more than happy to wax lyrical about how great your clothing is. I think I'd need a size medium, and I'm not fussy about what you're sending me. Though I'd rather have a nice jersey or shorts than some retro-trendy little casquette. Oh, and no tweed please.
Thanks.

cyclingvet

Ash_ wrote:

Yanto Barker's 'Le Col' range of clothing might be an alternative to Rapha (although it's not available to buy yet), but the washingmachinepost is definitely not anti-Rapha..

Is the Le Col range going to be available to buy? If so, where from?

mrushton

i actually meant an alternative for those who didn't want Rapha as opposed to the WMP who loves rapha/Colnago (dont we all ). There is a link to the site but the site isn't working as yet. i just thought that people might like a look

Monty Dog

Has the WMP ever done a review where anything wasn't 'good'? Strikes me as someone who enjoys testing free kit, rather than it being a genuine 'warts n all' review. He used to question Colnago's UK pricing until those chaps at Windwave obviously lent him a bike to shut him up!

Ash_

Monty Dog wrote:

He used to question Colnago's UK pricing until those chaps at Windwave obviously lent him a bike to shut him up!

Sometime's selling out's no bad thing though. Earlier Colnago reviews were just reproduced from the likes of Pro Cycling or whatever, or the bike's he'd bought himself. Since being less critical of the official UK distributor - he has been supplied, by them, with:

A C50
A CLX
A Dream
An EPS (at a time when nobody else had even seen them)
A Master frame (which may or may not have been purchased, I don't know)

I'd lob my principles out the window if I got to spin around on that lot for free.

And, in fairness to the guy that writes it (it's Brian, isn't it?), his reviews (though they're not really reviews, are they?) are normally very positive, but then he does seem to get sent some really high-end kit. The only negative with most of it, if being purchased, would be the high price, which isn't really an issue for him.

I'm obviously very, very, very jealous. And it's something the guy does as a labour of love*, not his job, so he can go about reviewing / introducing products in whatever way he likes. But, for once, I'd like him to write something like "This Rapha Gilet's 40 quid more than the previous version and no better, it's just got a different colour stripe on it. What a rip-off!" just to see what would happen.

Oh, and does anyone know why he never begins sentences with a capital letter?

* Which also extends to running a club to get children involved in cycling - probably much more than most of us do to promote the sport we all love.

thedaffodilfish

While WMP can be an interesting read, it is no where near as fabulously ott than his buddy over the pond @ Velodramatic. Someone started a previous Cake Stop thread about Velodramatic's 30 Days of Rapha.

http://www.velodramatic.com/archives/727

That's definitely my first stop for an unbiased review of cycling kit...

Nice photies but

mrushton

Velodramatic LOVES Rapha. That should be the title. It's hardly unbiased but he has some lovely pics on there. Anyway, why not just email Brian at the WMP and ask him the questions posed on here. I'm sure he will answer them. The kit he gets is only used on the island where he lives, so the wet/windy weather kit is subjected to a fair review. I've not noticed any kit get a real slagging in any publication since the advertising revenue is v.important

nicensleazy

Great stuff

You see...................the EPS is just so ORGASMIC!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

mrushton

nicensleazy wrote:

Great stuff

You see...................the EPS is just so ORGASMIC!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Compared to?

mrushton

I emailed Brian at WMP and this is his reply

i tend not to bother about forums much. people are more than welcome to criticise if they like, and indeed welcome to pose questions directly, since the e-mail address is on the page. however, i tend to review on the basis of whether the stuff works or not - how much it costs is irrelevant, because that's an individual thing. there is no way i could afford anywhere near the clothing i've been sent, but if it works, it works.


the colnago thing has been made quite blatant - i like colnagos, and to be honest, they're hardly any more expensive than things like treks, specialized, pinarello or even focus these days.


each to their own, but i have to say i receive no e-mails asking why i review rapha, but plenty asking if i'm going to. and assos refuse to even answer my e-mails.

nicensleazy

I like Brian, he's a top guy and gave me lots of advice before I purchased my EPS!

nicensleazy

http://simonkeitch.blogspot.com/2009/04 ... lnago.html