RAPHA TRAIL

£80

SPECIFICATION Weight: 358g • Sizes: XS-XL • Contact: rapha.cc

After spending years with the pro peloton, Rapha has finally ventured off-road and has a single kneepad called simply the

Trail. It uses a four-way stretch Lycra sleeve that, unlike most, has an ergonomic cut, so fits really well around the back of the knee.

The material doesn’t offer the best level of breathability but when working hard, the Trail never felt clammy. The front covering is constructed from something called Superfabric, a sort of durable Kevlar-type synthetic material.

Rapha has specced a wide leg gripper on the thigh, with a thinner, narrower one at the calf. These get silicone ribbing rather than the big bands you see elsewhere and that means they hold without pulling on the skin. Obviously, Rapha has a lot of experience putting grippers in roadie bibshorts that are used for hundreds of miles, and it shows.

Rapha has collaborated with a third-party, Rheon Labs, on the protector. It’s basically an active polymer like D3O, so is soft and flexible when you’re just riding along but then it intelligently strengthens when subjected to an impact force. It has an open-cell structure to increase air and allow it to easily mould to the shape of the knee.

The Rapha Trail is neither the lightest, cheapest or best-vented pad and while the level of protection is high, other pads here are just as good. What it does do is balance all those elements really well, but what gets it over the finish line first is the comfort. They say if the glove fits you’ll wear it and the Rapha Trail has been our go-to choice on recent rides. With a lot of kneepads, to get a decent level of protection you have to compromise on comfort; with the Rapha Trail, you simply don’t have to.