Weekend Watch: ENVE

ENVE make some awesome wheels, they also seem to be making some of the best MTB videos at the moment. Great stuff.
Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Explore – 5 Best Road Cycling Routes on the Isle of Wight

Image
Those that have ridden a road bike on the Isle of Wight will know that it is an incredible landscape to explore. The unique geology of the island has created a topographic profile that is undeniably tough, but unquestionably beautiful; from towering cliffs to wild wind-swept flats.

In this post, I have selected five of my favourite road cycling routes on the Isle of Wight — an insider's choice for the best road cycling on offer, as well as my personal recommendations for café stops and highlights.


Wight Road Route #1 – Panoramas and PotteryDifficulty – MediumDistance – 50 kilometres (31 miles)Elevation Profile – Moderate (400 metres elevation gain) We start with a fairly easy route in the West Wight — starting and finishing at the wonderful Caffe Isola in the centre of Newport; the ideal place for a pre-ride breakfast and coffee.

The route then heads out of town through the rolling hills of Bowcombe, and down to Chale Green —  a picturesque village at the southern point of the I…
Keep reading

Review – Altuvita Cycling Phone Wallet

Image
Protecting your phone and cards when cycling is a necessity; your jersey pocket is bombarded by spray, sweat, and grit — none of those go well with electronics. The Altuvita Cycling Phone Wallet is a neat weather-proof phone wallet that is designed for cycling.

The case is a hard-shell design, which is quite different from the other soft designs that I have reviewed and used in the past. The hard case gives significantly more drop protection for the wallet's contents; the coating material is also water resistant, as is the zipper, so it provides a weather-proof and sweat-proof barrier.

Inside the Altuvita Cycling Phone Wallet you get four sleeves that can be used to house cards and paper cash. There is no zipper compartment for coins, but then perhaps few riders carry shrapnel in their pockets these days? The cards are held securely in the slots, with no risk of them slipping out when you open the wallet.

On the other side of the wallet is where the phone sits. It will accommodat…
Keep reading

Review - Restrap Rando Bag - Front Rack Rack-Top Pannier

Image
The Restrap Rando Bag is designed to be a go-anywhere do-anything front rack pannier bag; with a semi-rigid construction to make it easy to load, and extra stable. I have used Restrap's panniers, handlebar bag, and frame bags for numerous long distance tours, and they are faultless. While I have not taken the new Restrap Rando Bag on any global adventures, yet; it has been fitted to my run-around Quella Varsity single-speed bike, and it is performing very well.

The concept behind the Rando bag is that it would be ideal for a long distance randonneur (a.k.a. Audax'er) with a front rack, equally though it is superb as a daily run-around. It connects to the rack using two magnetic fasteners on the bottom front of the bag, and a tie-back strap on the rear of the bag; securely holding it in place but making it easy to remove. [N.B: you do need to use the magnetic buckle tie-back strap if you do not want to see your milk go flying down the road on the next downhill!]

The Rando bag …
Keep reading

Gearing Up – The Celtic CrossTrail Bikepacking Kit Selection

Image
The #CelticCrossTrail will be a 2000 kilometre journey from Inverness to the Isle of Wight; encompassing many parts of the Highland 550 Trail in Scotland, the Wild Atlantic Way in Ireland, and the Brecon Beacons in Wales.

The route will offer up a diverse and incredible mix of scenery and terrain. From the rugged Highlands and North Coast of Scotland, down the Mull of Kintyre, then across to Ireland by ferry. On Irish soil the route heads out to the Atlantic coast to see the iconic cliffs and harbours of the exposed western shoreline. Then, turning south and east, the path goes across the Irish Sea from Rosslare to Fishguard, and the journey continues through Wales, down to Bristol, and back to the Isle of Wight. See the route map here.

12 days of riding, through some of the most remote regions of the British Isles. This is the kit that I have personally selected for the tour...

Luggage and Camp KitPrototype Waterproof PanniersPrototype Waterproof Frame BagPrototype Waterproof Saddle…
Keep reading

Review - Arkel Signature BB Waterproof Handlebar Bag

Image
With each additional long distance bike tour, my bikepacking kit list shortens and lightens. On returning from each trip I can usually pare back my equipment based on 'use versus weight' calculations. The Arkel Bags Signature BB Handlebar Bag could well be the minimalist lightweight handlebar bag that I have been searching for to use on future bicycle touring trips.

Handlebar bags are great for stashing valuables in that you do not want to lose in the cavernous depths of your panniers. On my last few tours, such as the #CoastsandCols, #7Countries7Passes, and #RoadsFromRome, I used traditional rigid style handlebar bags or large roll-bag bikepacking handlebar bags; from brands like Arkel, Thule and Restrap. These bags were great, but they were also quite cumbersome and restricted your view of the front wheel.

The reality was that on these past bikepacking trips I used to fill my handlebar bag with everything from jars of peanut butter to rolls of toilet paper (some would say …
Keep reading