Category: Accessories

Hello there gravel riding folks and anyone else out there that loves a bit of off-pavement adventure. The time of year when gift giving is on our minds is right around the corner. We have a list here of items which might make you happy to unwrap, or you know……..to give to someone else who rides gravel like you. To those ends, here our some good ideas for gifts that might make the gravel traveler happy.

I was pleasantly surprised by the Muc-Off products and the high functionality of the solutions for cleaning, protecting, and lubrication. There isn’t a clunker in the group here and the fact that Muc-Off does try to take consideration for the environment is impressive.

The Recon HL 1600 is in a hotly contested category in the bike lighting market place. New contenders are out there with similar, and sometimes better, feature sets. As always, ‘caveat emptor’ when looking at this category, but the Recon HL 1600 is a solidly built, reliable light. While it has a basic feature set, (unless you own the proprietary Giant computer which opens up more features), it holds its own at the asking price of $126.00USD.

I thought the light beam color and pattern was excellent. I ended up running this on the medium/800 Lumen setting, which to be honest, was more than bright enough.

The KOM Cycling products seem to be well made and, in the shop, were a joy to use.

Bar tape has come a long way since the thin, fragile cork-type tapes of days past. Now it is even high tech. The colors and thicknesses are quite varied and you can pretty much have it your way. It is also a disposable item, so it is not unusual to go through a set of bar tape each season. And with the cost of premium tape at near 50 bucks a pop, its not a trifle.

The Recon HL 1600 is at the top of the heap in the range of Recon lights that Giant Bicycles offers. It is a “self-contained” light, in that the battery and emitter are all in one enclosure. Like many lights in this category, the internal battery is recharged via a USB cord.

PRO Bike Gear introduced a number of new components and accessories for gravel and all-road bikes today at the Eurobike trade show in Germany. Highlights include a new 27.2mm dropper post, new carbon handlebars and seatposts, and an off-road version of the popular Stealth saddle.

The Eurobike trade show is happening in Germany now and with the demise of the North American trade show, Interbike, and no replacement for it, show news is packed into the time slot for Eurobike. Press releases are flying everywhere as a result. Here are a few tidbits concerning the gravel/back road rider which may be of interest that have come across our RidingGravel.com e-mail.

The tape was nice and kind of rubbery feeling when pulled from the box. It also had a slightly tacky feel as well. The installation was simple and by not stretching the tape, it left it pretty soft feeling when installed.