131 – Protecting Your Bike And Yourself with Rapid Racer Products
Today Guest:
Owner and Founder of Rapid Racer Products – Craig Bromley
On episode #131 we are chatting with Craig Bromley about what it takes to run and own your own mountain bike products company, Rapid Racer Products, and when I say ‘your own’, I mean it. Craig is a one man band. He does everything from designing the products, sourcing materials, maintaining the website, looking after the social media and even answering the telephone to you the customer, and that’s just the start of the trail.
I first seen the Rapid Racer Products (RRP) brand when Glyn O’Brien was unboxing a set of their mudguards on his social media (you can socially stalk Glyn here!). I had no idea that the Vitus First Tracks Enduro Team was sponsored by RRP, or even had a mudguard sponsor for that matter, but it got me thinking…if Glyn and the First Tracks crew endorse these mudguards and they can withstand the treatment these guys will put on them, not to mention the Irish weather, then they must be a pretty good product.
So, I reached out to Craig to see if he would be interested in coming on the show and telling us about RRP, how he got started, what products RRP produce, where we can purchase them and of course how Craig knows Glyn O’Brien.
Enjoy the show!
Find Out:
- Craig’s racing background
- How he knows Glyn O’Brien
- How RRP was born
- Their first product
- How Chain Reaction Cycles helped RRP get to where it is today
- What products RRP produce
- How Craig designs proto-types on his printer
- The difficulties with producing a mudguard (it may seen easy but its not)
- Why Craig uses local UK based businesses to manufacture his products
- Why Craig likes being a one man band
- How ambassadors help with the design of the products
- Where you can find RRP products to purchase
- How to get in contact and follow RRP
Now, I am sure most of you have heard of RRP, and probably a good majority of you are running RRP mudguards as we speak, because lets face it, we do get the odd day of rain here and there in Ireland, but I am also probably right in saying that you didn’t know that RRP was run by one person? That’s right, Craig runs RRP all by himself, so when I originally reached out and asked him to come on the show it took a little time to get it set up and organised. The man does not have a spare minute. But we got there in the end and I am glad we did.
The story of how RRP came into being is an interesting one. It all started with a couple of DH racing and riding friends who had an idea for a product that would help them protect their bikes and make thing that little bit easier for them and their racing buddies. To cut a long story short (listen to the podcast for the full insight) RRP was born and their first product called the ‘NeoGuard’ was put into production.
The company has changed a little since those first days but Craig has continually expanded the product range, even learning CAD Design along the way (no mean feat by any mortals standard) to help with better design and a better end product. But in the end, all that hard work and hours spent designing and setting up a brand has paid off. The RRP products look amazing and they preform amazing too. In fact Craig is so happy and confident in his new ProGuard that he offers a ‘Crash Replacement Scheme’ with 50% Off a replacement set. Of course you would be confident in your product if people like Glyn were testing it out for you and trying to break it at every chance. And this is how Craig tests the RRP products, by sponsoring riders and getting their feedback to see how he can make better, stronger and longer lasting products for us all to enjoy.
RRP products are all produced in the UK by small local business and Craig intends to keep it this way. He loves the fact that he can simply drive up the road to one of his local manufacturers if there is an issue or he is working on a new design to see the products progress or help with any decisions that need to be made etc.. And to be honest, I love this. I love that we can still produce a product from start to finish in the UK and help support manufacturing here by purchasing UK made brands. It is great to see and I hope it continues, and continues to grow for a long time.
If you are still riding and getting dirty from all our winter mud and rain, then have a listen and find out what makes RRP products a good purchase for now or the near future!
Thanks for tuning in!
To Connect with Craig and RRP:
Website: www.rapidracerproducts.com
Instagram: rapidracerproducts
Facebook: RapidRacerProducts
Twitter: RapidRacerProd1
YouTube: RapidRacerProducts
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#rapidracerproducts
#proguard #proguardbolton
#bestdesignedmudguards
#mudguardevolution
@rapidracerproducts
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Thanks so much to Craig for coming on the show and sharing his story!
Thank you once again for tuning in and for supporting the podcast.
Join me next week for another MTB TRIBE Podcast show!