Fresh Goods Friday 646 – The Weird Galactic Soup Edition

Let’s start out with something approaching normal service…

For the CNC and skate nerds, it’s kinda cool, but also seems like a vest waste of metal. Beware the wormhole that awaits you if you explore the rest of that channel, you may get lost:

…and then things are probably going to go weird. Which is sort of normal service for round here anyway, isn’t it?

Zoe has had to nip out to a school ukulele performance this morning. Which led to some staff chat about what are the worst instruments to have to go and listen to in school. Hannah is convinced that violin is number one. Amanda thinks ukulele is better than the recorder, and is threatening to make Hannah play the recorder on a podcast. Mark doesn’t think he’s got the skills to balance the sound for that. For some reason, Amanda is also anti-flute. Short sad story: Hannah wanted to play the flute, but she went to a tiny school where there was only one flute and one violin. The popular girl got given the flute, which meant Hannah had to play the violin for the next 8 years of her life. She sucks at violin. She then wanted to play the double bass (because bluegrass, and jazz), but there was only one double bass in the entire region and someone else had that, so she got given a cello. Which is not the same at all, and is considerably worse than a violin when you have to carry it a mile up a forest track to get to the school bus.

Which leads us to this video, which has had 49 million views, so perhaps we are very late to the party, or missing something in its appeal. But surely this is a band made up of all the weird kids at high school, who had some kind of spiritual experience after some spiked punch at a Mad Max themed fancy dress party at band camp.

We note that they don’t have a violin, cello, or tenor recorder player. If Hannah finally catches the rat in her loft, she may be able to start on an audition outfit.

OK… back in the room… where are we? Oh yeah. Bikes. Fresh things. Here we go…

Cannondale Habit 3

• Price: £2,950
• From: Cannondale

This ‘purple haze’ bike has an alloy frame, SRAM NX Eagle 12-speed drivetrain, Rockshox Pike Select 140mm fork and 130mm Deluxe Select+ shock, SRAM G2 R 4-piston brakes and 29in wheels. It looks well good. Purple haze… it’s more of a galactic sheen really. It’s very nice. Once we’ve stopped looking at it and stroking it, Benji will be finding out if it lives up to its billing as ‘A trail mountain bike that is primed for grinding climbs, mashing flats, and ripping descents. One for all, and all for fun!’.

Etnies Johansson Pro

• Price: £109.99
• From: Etnies

Apparently Emil Johansson has been keeping a list of the features he needs in a shoe since he was a kid and these new Etnies have all of Emil’s favourite features. They’re designed to be tech-packed but comfy, plus wearable for everyday life as well as for riding. The mid-top ankle shield collar provides extra support and protection against the cranks and frame. Formula G rubber in the geo-hex tread pattern outsole provides grip, and the Force Shield reinforced upper has tongue gussets to shield moisture, dirt and debris. There’s Lace Lock to keep the laces in place and the Lace Guard asymmetric lacing system is designed to keep laces protected from pedals.

Hope Pro 5 Hubs

• Price: £220 rear, £95 front
• From: Hope

The new Hope Pro 5 Hub promises improvements throughout compared to the Pro 4. By upgrading the sealing with a new zero drag labyrinth seal, and an improved ratchet and pawl system, with new springs, Hope says they’ve reduced drag as well as increasing durability and load capacity when compared with the Pro 4.

Points of engagement increases from 44 to 108 using an offset 6 pawl freehub design, where 3 pawls are engaged at any time. This promises a speedy feel on the trail. And makes for a quick gif thanks to this desk toy we’ve been sent.

Sorry, silent clicking too frustrating for you? Try this:

Mizu metal water bottle

• Price: £0
• From: Etnies

A promo piece from Etnies. But 156 plastic bottles on average saved per year? Who is out there buying bottles of water every day? Or even every other day? Who are you? And if you’re having plastic bottles forced on you – like on airplanes – are they really going to be replaced by one of these? We’re tempted to send this claim to Radio 4’s More or Less for verification. But yes, don’t buy water in plastic bottles unless completely and utterly unavoidable.

Madison Flux Superlight Jacket

• Price: £129.99 (currently on sale at £99.99)
• From: Freewheel

Ross is a big fan of this jacket. It comes in his favourite colour – black – and see how happy it makes him look. 20,000mm waterproof and 30,000gms breathability, laser cut pit vents, and hand pockets at the front. Plus silicone grips on the shoulders for keeping your back pack in place – a feature which Ross never deploys. He is committed to the long walk home, rather than the carrying of gear. One day we will make him ride a gravel bike and carry a backpack, and then you can see how he looks when he’s not happy.

Maxxis Minion DHF 27.5 Tan Walls

• Price: £69.99
• From: Freewheel

2.75in tyres? With tan walls? Benji must be up to something. Is he going to screw with all your (wrong) ideas that F in DHF stands for ‘front’ and build a mullet bike with this on the rear? Is he just going to cuddle them at night? Or is he going to put both on a bike with (shock) 27.5in wheels front and rear, and write something provocative about wheelsize?

Dry bag

• Price: £16
• From: Sea to Summit

Handy for keeping things in that you want to stay dry. Like first aid kits, or spare warm layers, or cameras. Also doubles up as an emergency bivvy for elves.

Kids Ride Shotgun Dirt Hero

• Price: from £290
• From: Extra UK

See how we mess with your heads by posting a pic of a bike the other way round? There’s no drivetrain to look at because it’s a balance bike, but there is a disc brake, so feast your eyes on that. For more eye nutrition, head to the in depth first look at this bike. Parents whose balance biking kids have just eaten their way through the toes on yet another pair of shoes may rejoice at the addition of a rear brake. We’re now keenly awaiting the launch of the mini Kids Ride Shotgun seat add on, so your kid can carry a teddy – or elf – on the front. We’ve probably just ruined their April Fools plans, haven’t we?

ODI Reflex Grips

• Price: £27.99
• From: Freewheel

Made with ODI’s own compound rubber, these are designed to reduce fatigue through arm pump. Squidgy where they need to be to reduce vibration, and given a tread pattern to help you hold on without having to grip too tight. They come in 33.5mm and 34.5mm diameters, and a range of colours.

FREE Singletrack Forum Bottle Opener Worth £7.99

• Price: £7.99, but free when you spend £20 in the Merch Store. Use code “Volped28”
• From: Singletrack Merch Store

Charlie says… “To Celebrate ST staffer Anthony’s birthday, we are giving away the forum bottle opener with all orders over £20. Ant is the dude who fixes the forum and keeps it running. He can be seen on cold mornings getting under the STW bonnet and squirting virtual WD40 on the internet thingies and bump starting the forum into life. Well, I think that is how the interweb works.”

Rab Cinder Downpour Jacket

• Price: £170
• From: Rab Equipment

This is the third of the Rab Cinder range jackets. This one is waterproof, made from 40D Pertex Shield, it has a 2.5-Layer construction with fluorocarbon free DWR coating. Like the Phantom, this one promises 20,000mm waterproofing, and is designed to be extremely windproof. However, the Downpour is a little less lightweight and packable than the Phantom, which means it’s a bit more durable and has handy features like a zippered pocket on the front and rears zips for venting or accessing jersey pockets. The hood has a stiffened peak and is designed to fit under your helmet. Unlike the other Rab jackets, this one doesn’t have hood stowage.

100% S3 Photechromic Lens

• Price: £69.99
• From: Freewheel

Sun’s out! So this photochromic lens has gone dark – it was completely colourless when it came out of the envelope, to the point where we at first thought we had just some empty packaging. This fits in the 100% S3 frame which Hannah has been testing. She likes them because they give almost as much coverage as a pair of goggles, but without the associated eye sweat. Oleophobic, hyrdophobic, and UV protective, these lenses let in 89% – 24% of visible light, depending on the conditions.

Thread Of The Week

We can’t send boardmanfs18 a new mattress, but we can send them a TOTW prize. Apparently peeing in random places is a sign of cat stress, and is something to be sympathetic about rather than angry. If anyone tries this tactic out at work in response to unreasonable demands from a boss, we’d love to hear how that works out.

The winning TOTW in FGF gets a prize. And it’s the fabulous majestic Singletrack Forum Bottle Opener! So, HOLLA! to boardmanfs18! Please email editorial@singletrackworld.com. Please include your postal address, as it really speeds up delivery logistics init.

To round things off this week, here’s something a little different.

Does that make you feel small, or connected, or lonely, or insignificant? Positive, or lost? Have yourself a bike ride to ponder it all. Happy weekend!

What is Fresh Goods Friday?

It’s Singletrack’s long running, weekly roundup of all of the new products that have been sent in to the magazine.

Where do all of the goods come from?

They’re sent in by bike companies and marketing agencies

What happens to all of the products?

They’re featured and then some are reviewed down the line in either Singletrack Magazine or in online reviews and photoshoots.

What happens to them when you’ve finished with them?

They’re usually sent back after review, or kept on long-term test bikes. But no one ever asks for shorts and shoes back. Trust us on that. Once we were asked to return some brake pads.

I’m a company making the next big thing. How much does it cost to feature in FGF?

Nothing. Nil. Zero. Diddlysquat. Sod all. Just send all ‘next big things’ to us at – Fresh Goods Friday, Singletrack Magazine, Lockside Mill, Dale Street, Todmorden. OL14 5PX. Please note that if you require the products back after they have featured then you are responsible for arranging collection at your cost. While it is our policy to feature everything we receive in FGF if we decide your product is not suitable for publication we won’t do it. Publication is at our discretion. Whether a product goes on for publication as a review is at editorial discretion. Beer, coffee & spirits will ALWAYS be tested.

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