A new British bike brand – Rapide – has launched with a nine-bike debut range for 2015.

The range starts at £649.99 and tops out with the flagship £2,999.99 Rapide RC4. Two kids bikes will also be available, in 24″ and 26″ wheel sizes, starting at £399.99.

The line-up has been designed to meet the demands of UK sportive riders, with an emphasis on geometry and, in particular, stack and reach, to ensure a “logical progression between sizes to ensure the perfect fit.”

The £1,799.99 Rapide RC3 is based around a frame made from a mix of 24T and 30T carbon fibre, with a compact geometry, said to offer the “feel and handling of a true racing bike while not compromising comfort.”

The machine is dressed in Shimano’s 11-speed Ultegra 6800 mechanical groupset, with non-series Shimano chainset, and with a wide range of gears specced with hilly sportives in mind. The matte and gloss black frame has fluoro yellow accents for an understated finish which Rapide say will be emulated across the range.

Rapide is the new house brand of Sportline, one of the UK’s leading bicycle distributors, and the name dates back to the 1990s, when it was used by Ridgeback, another bike brand in the Sportline stable, for its road range.

Rapide brand director Phil Hammill said: “We are delighted to finally unveil this debut range from Rapide, a range we have been working hard on for two years.

“We have already received some great feedback from those who have been involved and we are really happy with how the range has turned-out and confident the cycling public will feel the same.”