Rapha Archive Store

Last Friday we had a visit from Bob Scott who had just completed a 216 km ride from the Rapha Store in Soho to Kilver Court.
Bob, a member of Twickenham Cycling Club -TCC, bought his first road bike 12 years ago, however he had a particular fondness for Italian bikes & when the time was right chose a handbuilt steel Zullo Pantarei with full Campag groupset.
Born in Verona in 1952 Tiziano Zullo is one of a dwindling band of master framebuilders & still produces steel frames fr...om his workshop on the shores of Lake Garda. Cycling competitively during his teens Zullo began brazing frames by the age of 21 & had his own company by 24. Between 1986 & 1992 Zullo became frame supplier to Dutch pro team TVM with riders such as Phil Anderson & Dmitri Konyshev.
Bob wanted to set himself a new challenge &, as the Zullo is the perfect machine for a big ride, rather than a big loop he looked for a ride with a destination. Bob's friend & cycling buddy Jason Marino lives a short walk from the Archive Store so, having calculated that the journey from his home in West London to Jason's would be around 200kms & being a big fan of the Rapha brand, he thought why not ride from one Rapha store to the other.
Route plotted & bike prepped Bob headed west in the early hours on the last day of August. Under a perfect blue sky his route took him through Surrey, across Hampshire & on to Thruxton motor racing circuit for a well earned pit-stop. Salisbury Plain proved to be tough, exposed & relentless but it eventually gave way to pretty countryside once more &, after stopping in Warminster, Bob finally reached the Somerset border & the final 24kms to his destination at Kilver Court.
Cyclist magazine included a feature about Tiziano Zullo last year http://www.cyclist.co.uk/…/29…/inside -zullo-an-italian-story
http://www.zullo-bike.com/
See more

Thanks to everyone that dropped into the store yesterday for the Tour of Britain - and to Pedal Bites for providing energy bars for riders. Here are a few photos snapped by staff and RCC members.

Good luck to the 300 riders who set off from the Manchester Velodrome at dawn this morning on the 5th Manchester to London Ride, including RCC South West member Rupert Marlow.
Their aim is to raise money for Ambitious about Autism who celebrate their 20th Anniversary this year. Autism is a lifelong developmental disability which affects 1 in 100 people. To find out more about their work as well as how you can support them click on the link below:
https://www.ambitiousaboutautism.org.uk/< br>

3 days to go until Stage 3 of The Tour Of Britain. Starting & finishing in Bristol, it's a short sharp 128km out & back foray into the North Somerset hills including the climb of Cheddar Gorge.
Take a look at the route - https://youtu.be/QvwYAJ_2FMg
If you're cycling to the stage why not call in, grab a free coffee & Pedal Bites energy bar (limited availability) & ride over to see the stage. If you live a bit further away you can park your car at Kilver Court, change in the f...itting rooms, download 1 of the 2 routes we've created & ride to see the stage. Please note this is not a Rapha led ride.
Route 1. 100km (Kilver to Cheddar Gorge KoM, Bristol & back) Catch the pros twice if you're quick, once at Cheddar Gorge, then race them back to the finish line in Bristol before returning to the store. https://ridewithgps.com/routes/28281063