The Esker Trail men’s jersey comes as part of Altura’s new off-road-specific autumn/winter collection. It does a great job of offering a little extra warmth and weather protection on those nastier days, at a very reasonable price, but the white colour for a winter garment is definitely questionable.

The usual SPD cleats that we've come to know and love are usually made from softer metals in order to make sure that the cleat wore faster than the pedal interface. More often than not, this means that we're left with heavy cleats that wear super quickly. That is until now, as Silca has announced a new, 3D printed titanium cleat.

Despite huge issues with supply chains and the boom in cycling uptake we saw last year, we still managed to get bikes in for testing.  This year, we've seen full sussers for as little as £850 right up to steel-framed, full agro hardtails so it's safe to say, we've tested a good range of bikes. Without further adieu, here are the five most viewed mountain bike reviews of 2021. 

Like with mountain bikes, it's been equally as tough to wrangle a gravel bike these past 18-months due to the pandemic, BREXIT and even the Suez Canal drama, but that hasn't stopped us. We've managed to get our filthy mitts on a bunch of gravel bikes this year, including full carbon featherweights and steel framed adventurers.

It didn't take too long after the guys from YT visited Off-road HQ (when they showed us the new Jeffsy Uncaged) before they dropped in a bike for testing and it's one we're pretty excited about.

The Stash Chain Repair Tool Kit handles the chain repair duties of Granite Design’s Stash system. It’s cleverly designed to work with all kinds of grips and it does its job very well while carrying a beautiful build quality along with impressive ergonomics. It could do with a bit more refinement, so it’s not perfect but it’s definitely not far off.

The flow of cool things coming into the office is showing no signs of stopping as this week we see fresh kit in from Brooks England, ExoGard, Specialized, Deity, and Apidura. There's a pretty respectable heap of stuff in for testing so let's get on with it.

Giant has introduced the brand new 2022 Trance X Advanced E+ e-mountain bike but it's not just a quick refresh for the new year. Instead, the brand has refined the Maestro suspension platform for the bike, updated the SyncDrive motor, and has added Hybrid Cycling Technology to make the Trance X Advance E+ blend power, performance and fun.

Recognising the massive evolution of modern cross country circuits, Giant has updated the Anthem, giving it more aggressive angles, a lighter frame, and new FlexPoint Pro suspension. The next generation Anthem is designed especially to get the brand's team riders that competitive edge.

Granite Design’s Stash Tubeless Flat Tyre Repair Kit completes the Stash system, offering a flat tyre solution that sits neatly inside your handlebar. It’s nicely made and packs quite a punch, all in a mighty small package, for a very modest asking price.