On the one hand, I find myself surprised that a sizeable number of people seem to reach that association.

On the other hand, as a native English speaker, I understand the word to be pronounced such that it isn't much of a stretch to put it between "rapey" and "rapiest". While neither of those is, I think, particularly well established as a word in "proper" English, they are understood and used in less formal contexts (if jocularly).

I don't know where all of this leaves us.