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Good As Gold: Specialized RHC London Allez by Jon Takao

Good As Gold: Specialized RHC London Allez by Jon Takao

It seems the Allez Allez – Specialized team of Colin Strickland and Aldo Ino Ilesic can’t put a pedal out of place these days. The boys replicated their win at the 2016 Brooklyn Red Hook Crit in April with another 1st and 3rd podium finish at last weekend’s London round — upon these gold-plated Allez Sprints, designed by Jon Takao.

Good As Gold: Specialized RHC London Allez by Jon Takao

Jon is a designer at The Big S, primarily of their footwear; but as a member of their Designer Series, conceived a scheme for the bikes and kit of the Allez Allez team to ride and wear at the London Crit. Four designers in total will participate in the Series, creating four different concepts, and this is the second that we’ve seen.

Good As Gold: Specialized RHC London Allez by Jon Takao

The gates of Buckingham Palace provided Jon’s initial spark of inspiration, referencing the Queen’s elaborate front fence built by the Bromsgrove Guild of Applied Arts in 1911. After contemplating the high stakes nature of the Crit, Jon developed aspects of a royal flush into the scheme as well.

Good As Gold: Specialized RHC London Allez by Jon Takao

From that point the idea branched to incorporate visual elements of the Queen’s guards from Alice In Wonderland onto the kit designs. It may sound like a convoluted process but it’s entirely appropriate considering both the event and location — and the results are nothing short of spectacular.

Good As Gold: Specialized RHC London Allez by Jon Takao

When you’re looking to impress, a bit of gold leaf goes a long way, but it’s backed up by Jon’s application. Specialized have done a great job of documenting the whole process and providing a personal insight into Jon’s background — and his love of surfing, which he correlates to his creativity.

Good As Gold: Specialized RHC London Allez by Jon Takao

After applying faux lugs the the Allez Sprint frames, more serpentine motifs were implemented along the top and seat tubes in a reflective material that will explode with brightness under the flash bulbs and spotlights lining the course — at certain angles, however, they won’t appear at all.

Good As Gold: Specialized RHC London Allez by Jon Takao

The Allez Allez team sure looked like some sort of racing royalty as they negotiated 32 laps of the circuit, equating to 30.4 kilometres, which obviously offered some mental advantage. The results were, coincidentally, an identical 1st and 3rd final position to their Brooklyn results. Let’s see what they can do at Barcelona in August.

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Good As Gold: Specialized RHC London Allez by Jon Takao