It’s become a cliche to say that in the bike industry we come for the gear and stay for the people, but it’s true. That said, the gear never gets boring. I’m not going chapter and verse; these are my favorites from the day.
Panaracer
Take, for instance, this new gravel tire from Panaracer, the Gravelking ZX. It features a center slick section for quick rolling on the road, but much more aggressive knobs on the side than I usually see. And it comes in five widths: 35, 40, 45, 50 and 55mm. And, yes, it comes in purple as well as glack and gumwall.
Orucase
Necessity gave birth to all the best ideas, and with Colin and Isaac at Orucase, being poor, pro bike racers made them think creatively about how to fly their bikes to races for as little outlay as possible. This is their newest case and the number of good ideas it features boggles my mind. I love that the top completely zips off to ease packing. And with the way the handlebar and top tube are anchored, the bike seems far more secure than with many other methods.
The pads that protect the bike are super intriguing. What looks like tape saying “Orucase” are, in fact, hook and loop straps to affix the pads. They are selling the pads separate from the carrier for folks with other travel cases.
Redshift
I’ve been a believer in the Shockstop Stem—a suspension stem that uses various durometer elastomers to adjust how soft a ride the rider enjoys—since their introduction … in just three sizes. I’ve been amazed by just how much shoulder and neck strain it can reduce. They now offer the standard Shockstop stem in nine sizes and the lighter Shockstop PRO stem in five sizes.
Allen Racks
The Allen Smart Suction Go compact bike rack distinguishes itself from the Sea Sucker rack in that it has sensors inside that will detect if any of the suction cups lose pressure. The sensor then sends an alert to the owner’s smartphone—connected by Bluetooth—so they can pull over and pump the suction cup back up to pressure.
Having used a Sea Sucker rack, I can confirm that this works well—I drove from LA to San Fransisco with two of them—but the nagging feeling that it could fly off doesn’t always go away. Knowing that I’d get an alert on my iPhone should one suction cup begin to lose pressure is all the reassurance I’d need.