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TECH NEWS

Air-filled cycling backpack to "reduce drag" and "enhance safety" hits Kickstarter funding goal

The RAF1's designer claims it will make you faster — the "one-of-a-kind accessory" that costs £31, weighs 300g, has an integrated airbag and is probably coming soon to a road near you… no, really...

The Kickstarter funding campaign for an air-filled cycling backpack that its designers say will "reduce drag" and make you faster, as well as offering "enhanced safety" with an integrated airbag, has hit its funding target.

The "pioneering bike bag", designed by RAF (that's Hong Kong-based innovators Ram Air Fairing, not the RAF), is essentially a giant fairing and sent the cycling world into something of a meltdown back in September when we noticed it was about to hit crowdfunding platform Kickstarter.

2024 Ram Air Fairing Pioneering Bike Backpack 3

Shortly after we pointed out it was £7 short of its £992 target, the campaign set to close at lunchtime on Saturday, a 20th backer pledged support and took it past the goal. Now it has been reached, RAF says it will crack on with getting its "pioneering bike backpack" that will "revolutionise cycling safety and performance" out to supporters next month.

According to Kickstarter and at the time of writing, 18 people have stumped up £31 for one RAF1, while two ultra-committed backers have pledged £62 to receive two of the backpacks.

2024 Ram Air Fairing Pioneering Bike Backpack 2

The project's enthusiastic founders reckon their "one-of-a-kind accessory that sets you apart on the road" represents the "next level of cycling safety and performance". On said performance front, RAF says the 300g air-filled backpack boasts "unparalleled" efficiency and has been "meticulously engineered to elevate your speed on the road".

How? Well, that's "by significantly reducing air drag", the makers (who were inspired by their background in paragliding) claim, although no info about how much you might save yourself has been made available, just that "you'll effortlessly slice through the wind, propelling yourself towards your personal best with ease".

Then there's the safety side of things, RAF suggesting it will enhance rider safety by giving users integrated airbag protection. As we concluded when it was first spotted, we'll be waiting to see how it handles in crosswinds before verifying the safety claims.

> Where are they now? The best, worst and wackiest cycling crowdfunders and what happened to them

 The dimensions of the backpack are 95 x 35 x 65cm, and it comes in black, white or blue colourways. It's safe to say you won't be seeing these in the pro peloton any time soon. Can you imagine the UCI's reaction?

2024 Ram Air Fairing Pioneering Bike Backpack 4

The UCI's technical regulations state items of clothing "may not modify the morphology of the rider and any non-essential element or device, of which the purpose is not exclusively that of clothing or protection, is forbidden", going on to add: "This shall also apply regarding any material or substance applied onto the skin or clothing and which is not itself an item of clothing." So there, good luck sneaking one of these into a race.

Ultimately, whether it works and does indeed make riders faster remains to be seen, although the internet's cyclists were gleeful in dismissing any hopes before the Kickstarter had even gone live. Despite the ridiculing, 20 people have already backed the project to see it past the magic £992 mark.

2024 Ram Air Fairing Pioneering Bike Backpack 5

RAF's page says it will enter mass production and backers will receive the product in December. With Kickstarter telling us there has been support from Glasgow, Nottingham, London, Solihull and Lymington — you might be seeing one of these in the lanes near you in the not too distant future...

Dan is the road.cc news editor and joined in 2020 having previously written about nearly every other sport under the sun for the Express, and the weird and wonderful world of non-league football for The Non-League Paper. Dan has been at road.cc for four years and mainly writes news and tech articles as well as the occasional feature. He has hopefully kept you entertained on the live blog too.

Never fast enough to take things on the bike too seriously, when he's not working you'll find him exploring the south of England by two wheels at a leisurely weekend pace, or enjoying his favourite Scottish roads when visiting family. Sometimes he'll even load up the bags and ride up the whole way, he's a bit strange like that.

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7 comments

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Paul J | 18 min ago
0 likes

Whichever way you look at it, this is a scam.

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Cyclecynic | 22 min ago
0 likes

will the person who has bought 2 be wearing one front and back? I would pay to see that.

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hawkinspeter | 1 hour ago
2 likes

I'd like them to succeed as it'd be so funny to see people wearing those.

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chrisonabike replied to hawkinspeter | 1 hour ago
0 likes

*thinking of overinflated shark-fin fairing and a pin and following cartoon-style consequences*

Could be good for a short speed burst?

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levestane | 1 hour ago
0 likes

"99.9% five-star Trustpilot rating" but no Trustpilot entry; beware.

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Steve K replied to levestane | 1 hour ago
0 likes

levestane wrote:

"99.9% five-star Trustpilot rating" but no Trustpilot entry; beware.

Fun fact, by my calculations, you need at least 667 Trustpilot reviews to get a 99.9% rating.

Avatar
levestane replied to Steve K | 26 min ago
0 likes

I think 199 5s and one 4 will do the trick.

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