Eee… I don’t know about you but there seems to be an inordinate amount of leaves on my lines all of a sudden. I think last week’s high winds are to blame for the new cloaking of existing trails.
I’ve mostly been riding ‘from memory’ across aesthetically pleasing but traction-ally interesting carpets of tree droppings. Still, it’s all good testing times for suspension forks and winter tyres isn’t it? That’s what I keep telling myself anyway as I pick myself up from the floor once more.
Anyways, here is this week’s Fresh Goods for you, and only you. Because it’s been Half Term, a ten year old was duly press ganged into service and made to take (most of) the pics this week.
Atherton AM.130.1
- Price: £7,800
- From: Atherton Bikes
Atherton Bikes may have taken a bit of time to get going as a fully fledged bike brand but 2022 has very much been their breakthrough year it seems. They’ve been racing on the AM.200 for quite a while. The AM.150 trail bike came out earlier this year (you can read our First Ride of the Atherton AM.150 here).
And now we have this bike. The 130mm travel Atherton AM.130. Diet Trail bike? Double Down Country? Just a Mountain BIke? Regardless, it’s certainly one of the most unique bikes out there currently. This particular model is the AM.130.1 with a 490mm reach. It weighs in at 14.53kg (on our our Digital Scales Of Truth & Justice), which we think is pretty good when you factor in that it has very burly tyres on. We reckon it could get under 14kg with a pair of less chunkster rubbers on. Which is someting that we’ll no doubt find over the next few weeks of testing and tweaking.
Pivot Firebird 29 Ride SLX/XT Air
- Price: £7,450
- From: Saddleback
They’re like buses these flipping DW Link pushbikes. Okay, technically Pivot and Atherton use wholly different DW Link layouts. But still, it feels a bit like the good ol’ days of the noughties when every other bike seemed to have Dave Weagle’s fingerprints on it.
This Firebird 29 then. Yes, it can be flipper chippered to run a 27.5in rear wheel if you’re a keen as mustard mulleter. 165mm rear travel. 170mm fork travel. Super Boost 157 back end. 64.6° head angle. 76.5° to 77.5° seat angle (depending on frame size). 450mm to 515mm reaches.
This one has already been swiped from Singletrack HQ and taken up to our remote tester’s Lakeland lair. Stay tuned.
Troy Lee Designs Descent Jacket & Resist Pant
- Price: £200 jacket, £160 pant
- From: Saddleback
Descent jacket. Waterproof 10K/10K fabric (78gm2). Zipped hand pockets. Droptail hem. Adjustable hood for helmets. Waist adjustment cinch.
Resist pant. Taped seams throughout. Bluesign certified 10k/10k waterproof stretch fabric with Teflon Eco Elite finish. Reinforced seat panel. Front zippered vents. Waterproof zipper fly. Ratchet closure at waist. Driveside inner calf panel.
CushCore XC 29″ Insert
- Price: £84.99
- From: Silverfish UK
Light weight version designed for cross-country racing, light trail riding, and/or “less aggressive riders”. For tyre widths up to 2.48(!)in and inner rim width of 22mm to 32mm. 150g for 29in flavour.
I’m [Benji] will be running one in the rear of my blessed NS Eccentric Alu Evo hardtail. Hopefully allowing me to unleash the beans a bit more confidently when out testing mud tyres and 130-140mm forks. I’ve used other inserts but do keep coming back to CushCore for ‘ardcore ‘ardtailing.
Fizik Terra Artica GTX boots
- Price: £249.99
- From: Extra UK
Terra Artica GTX is Fizik’s off-road winter boot. Insulated and equipped with a ‘Koala’ membrane by GORETEX, the Artica GTX is fully waterproof, meaning you can rely on their proven performance to keep you dry when it matters most.
Inside the shoe, a soft, brushed-fleece lining for an added cozy layer. Velcro strap secures the ankle in place, while the single L6 BOA dial enables micro fit adjustments.
Ride Concepts Vice Mid
- Price: £119.95
- From: Silverfish UK
In our round up of flat pedal shoes earlier this year, Hannah really like the regular Ride Concepts Vice shoes. So we’ve got the higher topped Vide Mid versions in for autumn-winter bashing.
RC Fuzion outsole hexagons varying in diameter from 9mm to 7mm at the pedal contact area. D3O High Impact Zone Technology insole. Suede/canvas upper. Anti-bacterial mesh lining. Internal TPU toe protection. Gusseted tongue.
Birzman Uncage Side Draw Bottle Cage
- Price: £10.99
- From: Silverfish UK
Design allows for assembly according to left/right handedness (unscrew and move the bolted stopper from one end to other basically). It’s also possible to attach Birzman’s range of tools/spares/repair kit to the end of the cage should you so fancy. Fits bottles with diameter ranging from 72mm to 78mm and length of 250mm and under. We’ve encountered these before on a few test bikes and always liked ’em. 62g, if you’re bothered.
Litelok X1
- Price: £149.99
- From: Litelok
Armoured with Barronium, “a composite material that resists angle grinder attack by turning the grinder’s energy and force in on itself. It offers at least 5 times more resistance than the best-selling, best-performing D-locks”.
Designed to repel angle grinders. Anti-rotation feature fights against twisting attacks and single cuts. Soft plant-based eco-rubber outer layer. Reflective strips. Silicone keyhole sphincter.
Spada MTB Enduro Jacket & MTB Route Trousers
- Price: £139.99 jacket, £89.99 trousers
- From: Spada Clothing
Enduro jacket. 3 layer. Waterproof rating 10,000mm H2O+. Breathability rating 10,000g/2/24hm+. Underarm vents. Cuff inserts with thumb holes. Waterproof zips at pockets and front zip. Adjustable hood, cuffs, hem and across the back. Designed for armour to be worn underneath if desired. Helmet compatible hood with roll away function.
Trousers. And yay for them actually being trousers for once, by the way. Velcro waist adjuster (enclosed waistband). Two-way stretchy fabric main. Mechanical stretch is two way (main fabric). Lycra crotch. Laser cut ventilation holes. Knee pad friendly. Mesh pockets with zip closure.
Oxford Aqua Evo Adventure Handlebar Pack & Seat Pack
- Price: £29.99 handlebar pack, £54.99 seat pack
- From: Oxford Products
Bar bag. Front zip pocket. External bungee storage. 9 litre capacity. Dual ended roll closure. 450g claimed weight. Dimensions: 35 x 15 cm (L x D). Maximum load of 4kg.
Seat pack. 400D Ripstop TPU material. Welded seam construction. Waterproof to level IPX6. Hypalon panels. External bungee storage. 10 litre capacity. “Universal seat-post fitting” (doesn’t look overly dropper friendly but hey).
I Heart Singletrack Wonky Women’s Organic Tie Dye T Shirt
- Price: £24.99 (members get a groovy discount)
- From: Singletrack World Shop
Charlie says: “Say ‘right on, right on’ to our new tie dye T shirts.
“These are wonky shirts. Just like the wonky veg in a supermarket, these have a bit of kink and jaunty angle going on in the “I heart Singletrack” print. However, Amanda, Zoe and Hannah have disguised the kink with glorious colour. Yes, these are hand tie dyed, by hand, at Singletrack towers. Each one is very unique and way cool.
“Handmade stuff is great. But I’m confused, I was given some hand cooked crisps this week. How hot do your hands have to be to make crisps crisp? Surely using a fryer is easier.”
Thread Of The Week
This week we’ve decided to give the nod to the esteemed funkmasterp for this all-too-family-ar tale of toddle theft…
Every week the winning TOTW in FGF gets a prize. And it’s now the fabulous majestic Singletrack x Granite Designs RockBand Strap that is to be awarded.
So.. hey there funkmasterp! Please email editorial@singletrackworld.com. Please include your postal address, as it’ll really speed up despatch.
Classifieds Ad Of The Week
- Price: £2,300 ONO
- From: Classifieds
Once again, we’re bigging up up our Classifieds. Great place to find bargains. Great place to raise some funds.
This Hightower (size Large) caught our eye: “All standard spec, fox 36 performance forks. Gx eagle 12spd, Guide brakes. Will come with standard wheels not the Blueflows you can see. One careful lady owner.”
Toodle-pip!
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