Stripy arm warmers

Three piece knee warmers

Rapha Arm Warmers £34.95 Knee Warmers £34.95

The Rapha arm and knee warmers are the latest addition to Rapha’s slowly expanding range. Made from Roubaix material – manufactured in Italy – they are soft yet hard wearing with a fleece lining that makes them ideal for use next to the skin in a range of conditions.

Fit is paramount with arm warmers, and this tester found the small/medium tested a perfect fit (he does model himself on Michael Rasmussen though- ed). The arm warmers need a bit of teasing around the upper arms: for the well-built cyclist a large/x-large size is available. A puller loop helps to tease them into place, and gripper elastic keeps them in-situ. We didn’t experience any slippage in use and to be honest we didn’t find much use for the puller loop, instead preferring to pull at different points around the arm until they were in place, but they’re there if you want them.

The arm warmers are made from two pieces of fabric to allow Rapha to increase the aesthetic appeal of an otherwise unexciting item of clothing, and are available in either black/white or white/black. Reflective piping and a reflective logo complete the package.

While designing arm warmers to fit properly is a relatively easy task, the same can’t be said about knee warmers. They need to be engineered to accommodate the movement of the knee. Rapha’s solution is to use three panels; a curved panel sits just below the kneecap, with another higher above the outside of your knee. The result is a great fit that doesn’t interfere with your cycling. They are however longer than other knee warmers we’ve tested, which does allow for more coverage of the leg, or you can just pull them up higher. And they’re made from the same Roubaix material as the arm warmers. Available in small/medium and large/x-large.