Singletrack Reader Awards 2015 – Best Hardware

So here it is, then! The Singletrack Awards, Back From The Dead A Nice Languid Snooze.

The collating has been done, your suggestions have been considered, bickering has broken out, doughnuts have been hurled, and finally, a consensus has been reached. But we need your help. Voting will start on Friday, but we’ll be putting up all the nominations in all categories this week.

First off the blocks is Best Hardware.

For this award we were looking for the best component, gadget or accessory. Not a complete bike, not something edible and you can’t wear it. Think components, bars, brakes, seatposts. What has given you the most bang for your buck in terms of your riding this year?  We’ve taken everything on board, and whittled things down to three.

And the finalists this year are…

• Shimano 1x XT Groupset
• Hope Cranks
• Fox 34 Float Forks

The Shimano 1x XT Groupset

A bit of a stretch, granted – it’s more than one component after all – but it’s sufficiently important that it merits inclusion. Finally bringing 11 speed to the masses, with a cassette which undercuts the competition by a pretty substantial margin, and fits on your existing wheel. Shifters which simply work. A chainring which is performing quietly and efficiently, and seems to be as good at retaining chains as the thick/thin alternative? Yes, please.

Hope Cranks

We’d been waiting for these for an impressively long time, and when they finally appeared, they didn’t disappoint. Our reviewer said: “…they are stiff, well made, and … dependable in the long term”. And we’ll back that up with the fact that they look bostin’ too.

Fox 34 Float Forks

The latest iteration of the 34 Floats had everyone in the office drooling. Chipps wrote, “..fast and bumpy descents, meanwhile, were a ‘how fast do you dare?’ exercise with the fork galloping over the landscape, even on consistently repetitive hits and offering up all the travel, without feeling out of control or short on class.” That about sums them up. Classy.

So which is it to be? Make your minds up, people – you’ve not got long!

Click here to cast your vote

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Mark Alker

Singletrack Owner/Publisher

What Mark doesn’t know about social media isn’t worth knowing and his ability to balance “The Stack” is bested only by his agility on a snowboard. Graphs are what gets his engine revving, at least they would if his car wasn’t electric, and data is what you’ll find him poring over in the office. Mark enjoys good whisky, sci-fi and the latest Apple gadget, he is also the best boss in the world (Yes, he is paying me to write this).

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