Review: Rapha Pro Team Jersey

For being less than a decade old, London-based Rapha Performance Roadwear has had a sizable impact on the cycling apparel game, turning out merino jerseys and accessories that befit its native climate.

Recently, though, the company has been venturing into lightweight territory, and its recent Pro Team Jersey promises comfort on the hottest rides. An upper-70s day in Sonoma County was perfect, but you're not going to want to wear this in anything too much under 75. But you're not here for meteorology, right? Unless you are, in which case the best I can do is point you to this crazy-looking map of all the current wind patterns in the U.S. It looks like hair!

So the jersey. The first thought I had when I put it on was NOT, "Well, this is going to look absolutely ridiculous" – which is important, because that's a thought I have about almost every single jersey I've owned. On aesthetics alone, it's a thing of beauty. It's got a slim fit, but it's somehow forgiving enough to find room for and camouflage my last couple of burritos. And for those of you, like me, who cringe at the garish all-over prints of most jerseys, the off-white/cream with a single black band on the left arm is nice fresh breath of minimalism. Details abound (sorry for just saying "abound"): The very top of the placket, when unzipped, exposes a subtle black-and-white pattern that's as close to a color splash as you're going to get. An eyesore it ain't.

Functionally, it's got all the hallmarks of a true race-fit jersey (rare for Rapha, which tends to opt for boxier "club cuts"). The sleeves are snug, but not so tight as to leave marks after a long ride. The front is cut higher than usual – when you're low in the saddle, the logic goes, all that extra material is just going to bunch up and make things uncomfortable. There are radio cable loops, which 99 percent of us are never going to need, but give the same feeling of craftsmanship as the label in one of the pockets featuring an odd little meditation on the joys of cycling ("Tongues hang, like those of dogs, and the gang breathes fast and heavy"). The pocket placement was significantly higher than most other jerseys, which I didn't love – it certainly inhibited the usual in-and-out inventory transfers of a long ride (vest, arm warmers, food, etc.).

Above all, though, the jersey's raison d'être is heat dissipation, from the superthin fabric to the mesh side panels and collar, and it accomplishes that in spades. After a two-hour ride in the surprisingly hot late afternoon – one that featured a few heartstopping (and legstopping) 25 percent grades – the jersey was absolutely soaked, but I felt cool and comfortable.

So wear it, but don't hand it to anyone afterward, lest they drive you from their village with pitchforks for being some sort of heretic water-creature.

WIRED It's a departure for Rapha, to be sure, but one that bodes well for trimmer cyclists riding in warmer weather. A head-turner on the road.

TIRED Beware the high pockets, and the high price.