SCOTT's brand new Gravel shoes have been meticulously designed for the outdoor adventurist who are after a shoe that'll get you out into the unknown and back again. However, it's not just a road shoe and it's not just a mountain bike shoe, it's more of a blend of the two, offering ruggedness and lightweight.

We've had a pretty serious influx of kit make its way to Off-road HQ this week with a big package of kit from ION, Madison, and 76 Projects. That comes along with more from PNW and Troy Lee Designs but we can't divulge all of the kit in one go, that just wouldn't be 5 cool things, would it? Here are five of the most interesting things we've had come into the office for testing this week.

Last week we were excited to see that PNW Components announced a new range of apparel to compliment the well-established mountain and gravel bike components on offer. It hasn't taken long for the brand to build upon the non-bike part offerings with the release of the Rover Hip Pack, dubbing it a 'booster shot of trail storage'.

Ergon's BA Hip Pack joins the brand's well-established range of hydration packs as the first hip pack entry. It comes small in size but big on carrying power. However, it can slip a little and doesn't come with a bladder.
 

The Michelin Force AM2 is a fairly recent addition to the brand's well-received tyre range. This tyre fills the gap for a fast-rolling design intended for mixed terrain, hardpack and trail centre conditions. It makes for a solid rear tyre in the dry that can stretch for when things get a little damp, but it's not without its quirks.

The futuristic-like BluegrassPrizma 3D gloves sell themselves around the fancy TPR prisms dotted around the glove. They’re comfortable and well-sized, but the fabric gets tatty quickly, and the level of protection the prisms offer is very questionable.

It's not been long since Specialized introduced the new 2FO Roost Canvas shoe especially for those flat pedal lovers but the brand has now released the redesigned 2FO Cliplite. The new clipless shoe puts pedal connectivity, fit and comfort at the forefront of its design and there are a couple of BOA dials. Read on.

After testing a few budget-friendly hardtails this year, we’ve found that very few of them have come close to matching the apparent value of Vitus’ Sentier VR. It comes with a mighty impressive spec for the cash and a geometry that’ll please new riders. However, that same geometry offers a severe blow to the bike’s versatility.

In this week's 5 cool things, we've got some pretty interesting kit come in for testing. First off, we've got some drop bars designed to work with mountain bike brake levers, even more kit from PNW, and WTB's new Vulpine tyre. There's more to take a look at so let's get on with it.