Once the exclusive market of Castelli’s Gabba, specialized wet weather clothing has become a critical item in the kit bag of professional cyclists. And with the demand from every team, sponsored by pretty much every big clothing maker in the cycling market, most manufacturers have had to step up their game to try to match or better the Gabba at the risk of having their racers compete in their competitor’s kit when the weather turns foul. So, now Rapha is the latest to put out their take on bad weather gear. Their newly released Shadow jersey and bib shorts have been raced under the Sky team since at least the tail end of last winter, and Rapha has finally sorted out the last refinements to put the kit into production and make it available to consumers…
The Rapha Pro Team Shadow line-up is now limited to a shortsleeve jersey and a pair of bib shorts with the intention of it being ridden from Spring through Fall as a shortsleeve wet weather deal for now. But we have it on pretty good authority that the arm and leg warmers that Sky were using last year will be available in next autumn so that it can be combined for more winter capability too.
The Italian-made Shadow kit is based around a new all-weather, breathable, hydrophobic fabric designed to be worn across typical seasonal boundaries, and developed at the direct request of the Sky team. It is made with a single-layer fabric, stretch-woven for a compressive fit. Its yarn gets a DWR coating before being woven, then a steam treatment that shrinks the fabric for a tighter feel, then finally another DWR finish. The resulting fabric is both highly wind resistant and water repellent, while maintaining breathability, with a comfy brushed interior.
The jersey come only in black for now and sells for $320/320€/£220. It gets extended 3/4 length short sleeves that come down almost to the elbow to keep your upper arm warm in colder weather, and taped seams at the shoulders to keep water out from above. The jersey has a standard 3+1 pocket layout with drain holes, and reflective accents.
The Pro Team Shadow bib shorts go for $385/385€/£260/ with the same compressive hydrophobic fabric. They use the same fit and chamois as the Pro Team Thermal bibs with which they overlap a bit in their functionality. Again the black-only shorts include small reflective tabs on the legs for a little added visibility.
The kit is available now, and we expect to give it a try in the near future, so look forward to our thoughts ahead of the Spring Classics.
