What’s your cycling product of the year?

I was just idly thinking about how I haven’t had many “new” things in 2024, just tons of bargain consumables in the endless sales.

The one that springs to mind is probably the Five Ten Trailcross XT shoes – which I got cheap and wasn’t expecting much from, but were unexpectedly “just right” for most of my summer (and dry autumn) riding and meant I hardly wore my Freerider Pros.

What’s yours then?

im still amazed at how good sealskinz waterproof socks are. warm AND dry feet when the weather is cold and brutal.

High pivot suspension.

Slim fit long windproof trousers for gravel, road and MTB riding when it’s chilly (Madison Flux DWR – waistband an inch higher and they’d be perfect)

Probably not that new but a Tailfin top tube bag for me. I was initially reluctant to spend the money but after a succession of floppy bags that moved about constantly I bit on the bullet. Well worth it. Doesn’t move. Holds enough stuff and is now a permanent fixture on my MTB.

7Mesh Glidepath Pants

They’re a constant wonder, they’re both warm and cool when it’s appropriate, they fit well, move well, pocket placement is well designed. Despite their close-fitting appearance, I can get knee pads under them easily and comfortably. The only real issue is the ankle fit which is really quite tight. It’s a pain putting them on or taking them off, but other than that, when these wear out, I’m buying another pair straight away.

GP5000s in a 30c width. Still getting over how impressive they are. And that’s on narrow open pro rims rather than full fat carbon bling.

29 x 2.35 schwalbe G one allround.   £13.99 from Bankrupt Bikes.

amazing tyres.

nickc
7Mesh Glidepath Pants

They’re a constant wonder, they’re both warm and cool when it’s appropriate, they fit well, move well, pocket placement is well designed. Despite their close-fitting appearance, I can get knee pads under them easily and comfortably. The only real issue is the ankle fit which is really quite tight. It’s a pain putting them on or taking them off, but other than that, when these wear out, I’m buying another pair straight away.

I can only agree, and I got mine for 60 euro in a sale, a”20% off sale prices” thing they did for a day or two.

Big bars – in my case 80mm.  Gives a very upright riding position which is a lot more intuitive when things get steep.  I may have gone too far but I do quite like them.

Spatz

Stealth overshoes to be specific, really good

Big bars – in my case 80mm.  Gives a very upright riding position which is a lot more intuitive when things get steep

TIL Dak Norton has an STW login  😉

Do share a pic of your bike mate.

Madison Flux DWR – waistband an inch higher and they’d be perfect)

Most of the Madison legwear I’ve had has been great apart from constantly feeling like it is slipping down at the back. Sadly I’ve given up buying it now.

(Addict shorts excepted)

Cold winter rides: Rab Vapourise Light for the win.

Julbo Renegade Zebra – cracking cycling and general wear glasses…

Creise and Meall a’Bhùiridh by Matt[/url], on Flickr

I think the only new thing I’ve bought this year are TPU (Ridenow) innertubes for the road bike. So far they’re as unexciting as you’d hope for innertubes.  I’ve not bought much else.

Big bars – in my case 80mm.  Gives a very upright riding position which is a lot more intuitive when things get steep

Not quite so high but I put Stooge Moto bars (50mm?) on my trail bike a few years ago and haven’t looked back. I was half expecting to hate it and need to find a flippable stem etc as I really just wanted the sweep but they just make riding better.

I’m going with high bars as well, I’m running 70mm rise and I feel like they’ve been a revelation.

For me Schwalbe Marathons which I fitted to the commuter after endless faffing about with tubeless which couldn’t seem to cope with the mix of urban debris and rural bridlepaths. Zero punctures since fitting them (and I can say that now that the last commute was finished last night). Roll acceptably well, reasonably comfortable, sketchy in the mud to an entertaining degree but utterly bomb-proof. Untrendy and nothing conceptually new about them but definitely my product of the year, closely followed by the Garmin RTL515 rear light and Exposure Strada front light.

Raaw Madonna V3 frame – I’ve always wanted a Raaw, but they were always a bit more money than i was happy to spend. Then earlier this year i threw caution to the wind and ordered one. Its ruddy amazing. Rides so well. Fills me with confidence. Isnt super long slack and low (compared to some), so actually fits me and is enjoyable to ride. I love it.

I’ve picked up a bunch of cool stuff this year.

Not really a cycling specific product but a Berghaus Corbeck wind jacket. It’s great for stopping the chilly wind on your sweat when you stop, but almost unnoticeable when wearing because it’s so thin and light. Really like it, dries mad quick too. Bit of DWR on the shoulders and chest too.

In a similar vein – 2 x Patagonia Cool Trail T-shirts (used as a MTB jersey). These are sensational…they feel like thin cotton rather than shiny tech fabric so are incredibly comfy. But they dry really quick, and are so light and nice to wear for biking, running etc. And cheap too for Patagucci stuff, got mine on sale from the outdoor shop in Ullapool for £30 each.

Madison Crypto glasses. Awesome big frames & clear lenses that I got cheaper than I would a second clear lens for my Oakley Sutros. Think was like £20 or something.

Specialized Tactic 4 MIPS helmet. I bought it as a spare just because it was £30 at the time, and I didn’t want to suddenly be without a helmet should something happen to my POC Tectal for whatever reason. Handy to have in the shed sort of thing. But I actually like it way more – the dedicated glasses slot is great, and I love that the visor is held in one position only. It’s also one of the highest rated helmets in terms of safety, and it looks modern and cool for that tekkers Pinkbike press-shot steez.

I suppose I could mark down my Trek Slash for this too as I got that this year, and it’s a fantastic skills compensator that has allowed me to ride much harder than I did before on my too-small-for-me trail bike. I absolutely love it. Climbs nicely too.

Madison Crypto glasses.

Ooh yeah these are good, wish I could find where mine have gone though 🙁

Another vote for higher rise bars. 50mm here, found them really confidence inspiring.

Conty Argotal… was that this year?

If not the Specialized Recon 1.0 shoes bought in a sale for commuting. Just the most comfortable shoes I’ve had in years and no faff with buckles or boa rubbish, just old skool 3 velcro straps that work and hold them tight.

For me, EXT Storia v3 shock. No idea how it improved on an already well-riding bike, but it has. Worth every penny. Not a new product but new to me this year.

Linked to that, Geometron G1.

The Schwalbe Eddy Current tyres on the ebike have been amazing – I’ve always been a Magic Mary/Big Betty combo lover but found I was just eating through tyres on the ebike. The Eddys offer the same level of grip – dare I say even better in places – and have lasted longer, so it’s a win win.

Not new, but new to me this year, my Pipedream Moxie Mx3 frame.

Assisted by the supporting cast of the rest of the parts I built it up with of course, particularly the Chiggle bargain Lyrik Ultimates with a custom tune by J-Tech which improved them way more than I ever expected (my second best purchase of 2024).

Now dialled in to my liking, it’s a fantastic bike. Every time out it’s just so much fun, oddly comfortable and extremely capable. I’ve managed to get both up and down things I’ve never managed on any other bike and generally makes me feel like a slightly better rider all round. I catch myself grinning at some point on every ride.

Some handguards (Sendhit Nocks, but others would do).

After years of picking gorse out of my knuckles, and a couple of nasty finger infections this year, I love the protection they offer. Saved my fingers from a few tree strikes too.

These – as seen on FGF, a brilliantly simple idea, a ball valve that when open gives a completely clear tube for air and sealant, get the hybrid and your presta becomes a schrader so can be inflated with a compressor without an adaptor. An allen key socket in the base enables the valve to be properly tightened into the hole. Set my fat bike winter wheels up today first time must add that I’m new to tubeless, only the second set I’ve done so really pleased. Two criticisms, for thin fat bike rims the thread needs to extend further down and the valve “handle”, I can’t get my head around 90degrees, across the valve is open, inline is closed! This is opposite to any ball valves you may come across- gas pipes, inline open, stop cocks, inline open – I just know it’s going to lead me to getting in a mess at some point!! MucOff you can have my product improvement advice for free – I’m so impressed with something that actually fulfils its promise.

A br

Some Maxxis Rekon Race I got cheap(-ish) in a sale even though I had to ask LBS to order them in for me. They replaced some heavy 2.6 Minions on my hardtail and transformed how it rides. I was expecting them to be useless in winter but so far so good.

Oh and some cheap SLX brakes as well. First Shimano mtb brakes I’ve ever had and I love how grabby they are…

Rab Cinder Borealis Windproof Softshell Jacket

They do come up big though. I’m 5’11” about 12 1/2 stone and wear a small. Fits beautifully, not tight but also not baggy, with perfect body & arm length.

Fantastic bit of kit.

A few things I’ve thought “why didn’t I try these before” as they have been around for ages.
One up edc lite and a peatys tool wrap.

Magic Mary Radial on the front!!