Fresh Goods Friday 658 – It’s a Gas Gas Gas Edition

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New Schwalbe tyres and a new Aphex Twin tune! Truly it feels like Xmas in Benji’s domain this week. On a slightly more worrying note, Benji also had several teams of Gas Engineers around his neighbourhood this week, chasing leaks from 1930s not-properly-abandoned gas pipes.

Anyway. All is well now. Apart from the several gaping holes in various neighbours’ driveways, gardens and pavements.

While the SIngletrackworld Staff get on with their ironing, here’s this week’s FGF!

Same same but different

Schwalbe Tacky Chan

  • Price: £74.99 (29 x 2.4in, Super DH, Addix Ultra Soft)
  • From: Schwalbe

NTD! New Tyre Day. And this particular one is very exciting. Why? Not just because it breaks with Schwalbe’s tradition of alliterative model names (Magic Mary, Wicked Will, Nobby Nic etc) but because… well, it’s a new tyre from Schwalbe that’s aimed gravity-ish type riding. And we have the Purple flavour. Yessssssss! The surprisingly named Tacky Chan looks a bit like a Schwalbe Big Betty. But with larger side knobs. And generally a bit gappier. Another way of looking at it is the Tacky Chan is a scaled down Dirty Dan. Maybe. Not so much visually, but in its intentions. It looks to me (Benji) like it’ll be great pedal-able winter tyre. Unfortunately, it is currently June.

Nukeproof Reactor 290 ST Factory

The ST (short travel) is a version of Nukeproof’s Reactor trail bike. 125mm rear travel. Downcountry! The Reactor. T700/ 800 carbon frame. This ‘Cream’ (akak white) spec bikes come with Shimano 12 speed XT drivetrain and excellent 4-pot Hayes Dominion brakes. The ST comes fitted with Reynolds TR 309/ 289 XC carbon wheelset with a low profile and wide channel rim and Reynolds TR MTN hubs with 10° of engagement. The wheels are also backed by a lifetime warranty from Reynolds. Which is nice for carbon hoops. This Reactor ST is medium size and will be flung about the place by Amanda.

DJI Osmo Action 3 Adventure Combo

  • Price: £399
  • From: DJI

We really like DJI’s other video cameras – principally the excellent DJI Action 2 which has become our go-to chestcam – so we’re looking forward to getting our ‘shoot on with their GoPro-alike Action 3 camera. 4K, 120fps, HDR, 10-bit colour depth. Super-Wide field-of-view. HorizonSteady mode. Cold resistant and longer-lasting battery. Quick release vertical ‘pinch-n-click’ mount. 16m waterproof. Dual touchscreens. Various mounts in this ‘Adventure Combo’ package.

Hutchinson Wyrm

The Wyrm is designed to sit (burrow?) between the worlds of XC and Enduro. Hutchinson: “The Wyrm takes its name from a giant mythological creature, armed with sharp teeth and claws and ready to attack any situation, faultlessly navigating towards its prey and avoiding blows with unmatched agility. Its armour-like shell, robust and capable of fending off multiple attacks.” Anyone remember The Lair Of The White Worm by the way? Great film. The Hutchinson Wyrm sits in between the brand’s Griffus and Kraken rubbers.

Garmin Varia RCT 715

This camera and light will record footage of vehicles (or bears) approaching from behind. It’ll also pair with a wide variety of devices, and can give you a warning sound that a vehicle is coming from behind – which might be useful if you struggle to hear approaching vehicles, or very annoying if you ride a busy route. Promises up to 4 hours of battery life with radar and tail light on solid high or night flash, 5 hours on solid low and and 6 hours on day flash — all with camera recording at 1080p. The light is claimed to provide daylight visibility for up to a mile – the prospect of a mile long straight road is fairly terrifying, and would probably make for some of the scariest cycling imaginable!

One Up 27.2 Dropper Post

A 120mm dropper post for a gravel bike – we think this is the longest 27.2 dropper you can buy. Comes with 31.8mm clamp lever mount and V2 lever. This is for Fahzure’s e-gravel bike, because the other one he ordered wasn’t quite long enough.

Crank Brothers Synthesis Gravel Alloy Wheels

  • Price: £549.98 pair (or £219.99 front, £329.99 rear)
  • From: Crank Brothers

“Where Comfort Meets Performance”, baby! Tuned Alloy wheel system for gravelleurs. “Compliant tuned” front and rear wheels claim to improve handling and maximise grip and control. 26.5mm inner rim width to support tires from 40mm-48mm, providing increased tyre volume and contact patch while also adding sidewall stability. Welded and sleeved rim joint for additional strength. Nice price to boot.

Schwalbe Mystery Box

Despite all the fancy multi-million dollar bikes and things that arrive at our door, by far the best boxes are boxes that contain stuff for tyres! Along with the aforementioned Tacky Chan tyres, Schwalbe also supplied us with some ‘Doc Blue’ sealant (which appears to be provided by Stan’s No Tubes), some tyre levers, an nicely designed mini-pump with a cute and positive little valve lock lever, some Easy Fit tyre bead lube and some Natural Bike Soap in a neat drained-tray tin and a soft bristle brush.

Lexon GRV 120 Fork

  • Price: £146
  • From: eBay

Another gravel bike upgrade for Fahzure, this is the Chinese/ebay purchase: 50mm travel, flat mount, tapered, 12mm thru axle with compression lockout. He’s not fitted it yet, so no comments on performance, but out the box it appears OK. Took about 3 weeks to arrive, for those that are interested.

Shredz The North Sends T-shirt

Handmade in Calderdale, much like this here website. Screen printed design, not like this here website. Available in either this large centre logo or in a left chest option. 100% organic cotton. Fair wear. PETA approved vegan. Soft feeling water-based inks shouldn’t peel off. Shredz hem tag. Available in quite a number of colour combos. The Best Combo being the orange on black. Obvs.

Shredz O.G. Race Jersey

The garment that started it all for Shredz apparel. “Super versatile and perfect for bike park laps, long rides, your favourite enduro stage or just wearing about the house.”Breathable. Stretchy, Quick drying. Drop back hem for extra coverage. Raglan Sleeves. “Calderfornia” sleeve print and “Shredz 01” back print. Shredz hem tag.

Arrow Wheels Carbon MTB Rims x Hope Pro 5 Hubs

Another business from up-the-road (technically over-in-the-next-valley but hey), we’ve reviewed Arrow Wheels’ gravel/road wheels before – read the Arrow Wheels AGRS Road Gravel wheels review here – so we were keen to try the mountain bike wheels when they were available. And here they are. Using Sapim Race spokes to attach them to super shiny orange Hope Pro 5 hubs.

Wedding Shizzle

  • Price: A world of paperwork
  • From: Cupid’s arrow

In the style of a New York Times report…

Fahzure Freeride and Hannah Dobson were wed at Halifax Registry office on Monday. The small wedding party – consisting of the bride and groom, the bride’s teenage children, and two witnesses – arrived in the recently purchased Welfare Van, driven by the bride. The teenage children presented the Native American made rings (wrongly – there was some confusion about who had which ring), and the youngest child was also the photographer (which explains the low angle of most images). The bride wore a borrowed blue dress and carried flowers picked from her garden that morning. The groom wore a second hand shirt. The wedding party retired to their witnesses’ garden for drinks and a light supper. Fahzure will continue to be known as Fahzure Freeride, or Kevin Dwyer, and Hannah will be Ms Dobson when needs must. The couple will be honeymooning over the course of the summer, visiting a variety of bike shops and bike events.

(If you’re not familiar with the NYT mini-vows wedding write ups, they’re a hoot. Barefoot forest parties, Wall Street power marriages, and even something called ‘Weed Weddings’. A weird combination of right-on and power-tripping.)

Secret Socks

  • Price: Nothing
  • From: Nowhere

🤫

Singletrack Art Print ‘Riverside Respite’ by Martin Bissig

soca river mountain bike Slovenia cover 149

Martin tells us: “The renowned Soca River, which courses through the valley bearing its name, is a popular destination in Slovenia for hikers and river rafting enthusiasts. During our two-day stay in Soca as part of our Slovenian road trip, the weather took an unexpected turn and rain began to pour. The image captured here is the final one before a relentless 24-hour downpour ensued. The once tranquil, blue water transformed into a muddy, raging current in the days that followed, making it impossible to capture any more picturesque scenes featuring the river’s signature clear, blue water.”

  • A3 and A4 size options.
  • “White Unicorn” stock, as this works very well with full colour prints.
  • Recycled material
  • A chunky 0.7mm thick material
  • Shipped nestling between two sheets of card, and then lovingly slid into a nice and stiff card envelope. This is then garnished with “Fragile” tape.

Thread Of The Week

Congratulations to bearnecessities this week for this squawktastic forum posting…

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

Grab a classifieds bargain

Hannah is not having a honeymoon

But if she was, she’d quite really like to go here. Green River, Utah, is featured in lots of freeride videos. Steep, drifting sandstone formations make for fun lines and bike surfing. She has been here, but only to buy melons. It’s a tiny middle of nowhere town with lots of empty lots, little more than a couple of petrol stations and a taco bar. With a big new Holiday Inn… wonder if it has a honeymoon suite? Or indeed, if they’re abandoned the usual white hotel sheets, with all those scabby mountain bikers passing through?

NEW NORMAL’ is a short film that embodies Shawn Neer’s departure from enduro racing at the highest level, and his transition into a new lifestyle filled with dog duty, film production and plenty of aggressive riding, just without a number plate or component-marking stickers.

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.

Orange Switch 6er. Stif Squatcher. Schwalbe Magic Mary Purple Addix front. Maxxis DHR II 3C MaxxTerra rear. Coil fan. Ebikes are not evil. I have been a writer for nigh on 20 years, a photographer for 25 years and a mountain biker for 30 years. I have written countless magazine and website features and route guides for the UK mountain bike press, most notably for the esteemed and highly regarded Singletrackworld. Although I am a Lancastrian, I freely admit that West Yorkshire is my favourite place to ride. Rarely a week goes by without me riding and exploring the South Pennines.

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Home Forums Fresh Goods Friday 658 – It’s a Gas Gas Gas Edition

Viewing 15 posts - 1 through 15 (of 15 total)
  • Fresh Goods Friday 658 – It’s a Gas Gas Gas Edition
  • 1
    footflaps
    Full Member

    That Schwalbe tyre name is just wrong. Can’t we just call it Tacky Tim instead?

    and Congrats again to the happy couple…

    honourablegeorge
    Full Member

    I’m still unclear what sort of a tyre it is, pinkbike seemed to suggest it was more of a fast rear, like a dissector, but this points to a shorty?

    2
    nickc
    Full Member

    I idly wonder each Friday what was in FGF 1. It must’ve been years ago, I wonder if there’s product featured in it still being sold?

    mpeacock
    Full Member

    Whats the saddle bag on the nukeproof please? Is it a LifeLine Adventure Stash Pack from Chain Reaction Cycles? I was thinking of getting one for packless riding with a dropper but it does look like it rubs / interfers with the dropper. What’s your experience please?

    brakestoomuch
    Full Member

    Congratulations to you both. Looks like you had a great day.

    I like that Nukeproof top cap. Turned up to 11. Or it could be zero.

    amandawishart
    Full Member

    @mpeacock Yes it’s the Lifeline Adventure Stash – not totally convinced it’ll work well on a bouncy bike but I took it off my hardtail for the commute home. It’s a really good little pack

    montylikesbeer
    Full Member

    Hats off to you both.

    paule
    Free Member

    Congrats to the pair of you!

    About the goods, that Wyrm tyre looks an awful lot like a tweaked tioga psycho 2 to me

    9
    darlobiker
    Full Member

    My mate bought one of those Garmin Varias and he’s never looked back.

    matt_outandabout
    Free Member

    Now that is the style of wedding we should have had – and spent the money on a summer of travelling instead….!

    1
    hopkinsgm
    Full Member

    Schwalbe tyre names – yes, there are plenty of alliterative ones, but off the top of my head there are/were other “name” tyres that aren’t/weren’t – “Hans Dampf” and (showing my age a little) “Fat Albert”, and that’s just tyres I’ve used off the top of my head. More recently, there’s the “Eddy Current” too, I’m sure probably others… 😛

    2
    Woo
    Full Member

    Many congratulations to the newly married couple. It takes me back to when Marie and i got married. It was a thursday and we had only told people the sunday before. Our total outlay was around £100. Neither of us has a ring, still thinking where to go for honeymoon. 38 years on we are still here. Second time round you know what you are doing and it is better.

    2
    chaos
    Full Member

    Congrats to Hannah and Fahzure/Kevin!

    btw the PNW Rainier 27.2 Gen 3 is 125mm if he needs that extra 5mm to test on.  Very nice it is too 🙂

    ktache
    Free Member

    Congrats both.

    Great choices for outfits, I remember there being dilemmas.

    The Schwlabe Easy Fit works remarkably well. Got it when I was having problems, technique got me over them, but when fitting a brand new tyre I tried some and the bead just slid onto the rim, I cannot say wether it helped popping into place though, still doing the tricks I had learned. Was always a big user Of talc when running tubes, that lubricates everything too.

    MadBillMcMad
    Full Member

    Congratulations to you all.

    • Lovely looking rings by the way.

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