Fresh Goods Friday 651 – The C-Word Edition

Regardless of where you stand on the whole divine right to rule over a nation of subjects whilst wearing a really heavy bling-bling hat, we can all agree that an extra Bank Holiday is nothing to be sniffed at.

So before we all head off to procure us some eggs (whether they’re for making quiches or making a point), here is this week’s Coronation collection of Fresh Goods!

Marin Alpine E1

• Price: £4,795
• From: Marin

A very military-looking purposeful e-bike from Marin. Very much coming from the other end of the e-spectrum compared to the nouvelle vague of carbon mid-power machines, this is a very metal full-fat proposition. And it looks very well thought out and lots of fun to ride. 63° head angle, 505mm reach (XL), 78° seat angle, 200mm dropper, 150mm travel RockShox coil shock, 160mm X-Fusion fork, 160mm cranks, 35mm stem, 85Nm Shimano EP6 motor, 630Wh battery… all great numbers. And the best number? Very probably the price tag.

Look Trail Roc+ flat pedals

• Price: £159.90
• From: Look

Forged aluminum body, two cartridge bearings, a needle bearing, 10 replaceable pins per side. Made in France. 105 x 100 x 16mm proportions. The body of the pedal itself sits very close to the crank. The Roc+ is not to be confused with the cheaper and completely differently shaped Roc. Initial impressions: not masses of concavity but the sheer size of the area covered and the height/thinness of the pins makes for an extremely grippy, secure platform. And we quite like their aesthetic vibe. Euro-industrial?

Hutchinson Kraken tyres

• Price: £57.95
• From: Windwave

Hutchinson’s Racing Lab have gone all downcountry. The Kraken 2.4 is a larger version of Kraken XC tyre. But it’s not simply made the existing tyre bigger, the new Kraken has elongated, higher volume central knobs and a smaller number of knobs around the circumference of the tyre. The resulting rubbers have a more open tread pattern, so should be more adept on loose and rocky terrain. 

SRAM Code Ultimate Stealth brakes

• Price: £320.00 excluding rotors
• From: SRAM

The latest and (hopefully) greatest stoppers from the house of SRAM. The new brakes are broadly an aesthetic reworking to bring things in line with the new AXS drivetrain – sorry, transmission – as well as getting the hoses to exit from the lever more in line with the handlebar. Why? “A sleeker, more modern ride” apparently. Which is doubletalk for the new fangled thru-bar/stem cable routing that no one appears to actually want. It’s like 27.5 all over again.

Supersapiens Glucose Monitoring

• Price: €150/month (2 sensors per month), or €435 one off payment for 10 week program (5 sensors)
• From: supersapiens.com

Using Abbot Libre Sport Biosensors, you can get continuous glucose monitoring on the Supersapiens app or on any partnered app/device (Garmin, Wahoo etc). Why? We’re hoping to find out! Learning how to fuel work properly is a minefield, especially when trying to navigate through information that isn’t necessarily designed to work for women. So Amanda is sporting these trendy accessories in the lead up to the Frontier300 in the hope of learning how to look after herself, not lose her period, not bonk and not get severe café legs from glucose spikes. Time will tell if you need a phd to be able to understand all the given data.

Velocio Concept Radiator Jersey

• Price: €179
• From: Velocio

More ‘Chipps in Lycra’ – for which we can only apologise. Unfortunately, he’s the only person on the team who can test hot-weather cycling gear at the moment… Here’s the Velocio CONCEPT Radiator Jersey. Apparently, the Polartec Delta Mesh Radiator fabric wicks and absorbs moisture so effectively, it’s actually cooler than wearing nothing at all. With SPF protection throughout the sun-exposed shoulders and back and reinforced pockets that won’t budge when fully loaded, this is what you want when you’re going big on a hot day. Don’t forget to wear your vest, though. It’s virtually transparent.

Velocio Utility Bib Shorts

• Price: €269
• From: Velocio

Bib cargo shorts are a thing! A low-profile carrying solution for any ride. The Velocio Utility Bib Short combines Velocio’s lightest bib-short fabric with one large rear-panel pocket and two stealth cargo pockets ‘for a hot-weather essential that is ready to be loaded for the long haul’. Haribo and beer, model’s own…

Airmail Husband

• Price: Hannah’s heart
• From: Utah

Regular readers may be pleased to hear that Hannah is yet another step closer to getting married, with the arrival of her betrothed on UK soil. He arrived wearing these, which reminded Hannah of TJ’s recent thread on ‘Clothing for a man of a certain age’. Do these meet STW standards of appropriateness?

Canyon Olive Oil

• Price: n/a
• From: Tuscany

No, not a new eco-suspension fluid solution. This is for your salad. An unusual but very welcome press camp perk, made from olives grown in the immediate vicinity of the press camp in Massa Marittima. Press camp? Uh huh. Watch this space… ssh!

Fat Tire Flyer Issue 1 Signed by King Charles*

• Price: £14.99
• From: Singletrackworld Shop

*Charlie Kelly, Godfather of MTB

Another ‘king Charlie says: “This is the very first mountain bike magazine. Charlie Kelly explains that he thought that now they had a scene they needed a newsletter, but he made the mistake of printing ‘issue 1’ on it, so had to make another, and then another.

“This is made exactly the same way as the original, by exactly the same guy (Charlie Kelly), using the same printing process (a photocopier). It’s as original as it can possibly be, but is technically a repro.

“So, this is where it all started. Without this newsletter/magazine maybe the scene would not of stuck around, maybe it would of lost momentum, and maybe mountain biking would of faded away. Maybe now you might be into Frisbee golf instead! Whilst this is packing colossal retro credentials, it is also only packing 12 A5 pages.

“Charlie has signed and numbered each one. And you also get a neat covering letter explaining how it all went down. It’s a glimpse into our genesis, the birth of the mountain bike magazine, and certainly a keeper.”

Specialized Levo SL S-Works

• Price: £13,000
• From: Specialized

Coming in from the very opposite end of the e-spectrum to the Military Marin that opened this week’s Fresh Goods, here we have the Specialized Levo SL S-Works. 50Nm, carbon, 320Wh battery, Fox Kashima squish, all of the bling. Not to mention a very 2023 price tag. Wanna know more? Read Benji’s First Ride Review of the Specialized Levo SL S-Works.

Thread Of The Week

Congratulations to Harry_the_Spider this week for this sure-to-be-evergreen posting…

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

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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