The YT Industries Decoy SN, Stan's Incredible Dart Tool, Pro's aero gravel handlebar, Endura's latest jacket and the Vittoria Mostro
This week's five cool things and the top stories of the week!
More Features
This week's Five Cool Things and the best stories.
Five Cool Things is back – and we've got some seriously cool kit to show off.
We take a look at the best coffee table literature as well as this week's hottest products.
The five coolest things to come into the office alongside this week's top news.
Headed by YT Industries' latest e-mountain bike, this week's five cool things come from Endura, Stan's No Tubes, Pro and Vittoria as we take a glance at the top tyres, tubeless repair and waterproof kit that the market currently has to offer. Of course, we'll also dive into the top stories of the week.
- How to: Convert your bike's tyres to tubeless - Top tips on ditching the tubes
- Everything you need to know about tubeless repair kits
- How brands build bikes - From concept to the final product
First up, we have to mention this week's competition and it may well be on of the best yet. We've teamed up with the folk at Kenda to offer the chance to win a full year's supply of tyres to one lucky reader. Whether you ride road, gravel, MTB or urban, or the whole lot Kenda is looking to kit someone out will all of the rubber they could ask for. Head over to the competition page and leave a comment before Monday the 18th for a chance at the prize.
Although tech news has been a little quiet over the past couple of weeks, there have been some interesting things stirring up and once again, Lauf is at the forefront. However, it's not a mad, double-bottom-bracketed mountain bike, rather it's a freehub design that uses self-sprung pawls, promising up to thousands of engagement points. Check out the new Lauf patent here. Dangerholm has also made headlines once again, showing off his latest custom Scott Spark RC that gets a 3D-printed titanium handlebar. Nimble has also unveiled its premium gravel kicks, the Urano.
As for features, we've been talking Alan Hatherly as he has his sights set on WorldTour success and, with help from Favero, Aaron has presented five ways to get faster off-road using a power meter. And as we go deeper into autumn and winter, it's time to dust off the mudguards. With that, we've highlighted the best MTB mudguards of 2024.
Stan's No Tubes Incredible Dart Tool
£70
2024 stan's incredible dart tool 5ct.jpg, by Liam Mercer
Next-level tubeless repair or cycling's treated fidget toy? The Stan's Incredible Dart tool takes the brand's own crack at tubeless repair and turns it up to 11. It's a small cylinder that contains a spring-loaded insertion tool with a pre-loaded Dart head. Give it a twist and the insertion tool pops out, ready for use. There's then space for two extra Dart heads at the end of the tool, so it's primed to plug three punctures.
As far as tubeless repair kit goes, this one is fairly flexible as the £70 asking price gets you the Incredible Dart Tool that can fit easily in a backpack but spend a little more (£29) and you can get an attachment that allows you to store the tool inside your handlebar.
It's not just the Daysaver-designed spring-loaded tool that's cool, however, as the Dart heads are interesting themselves. Rather than simply plugging a hole with a sticky bit of rubber, as seen on nearly all other tubeless repair kits, the Dart heads react with the sealant inside of the tyre to create a permanent seal, so it won't be pulled out under usual riding loads, as it sometimes the case with regular plugs.
YT Industries Decoy SN Core 4
£8,500
2024 yt industries Decoy sn core 4 hero.jpg, by Liam Mercer
The Decoy 29 is a bike that went down swimmingly in our reviews, so it goes without saying that we got excited when YT Industries pulled the covers off a new, Fazua-powered, lightweight e-MTB, the Decoy SN (or Super Natural). Compared to the Decoy 29, or even the Decoy MX, in fact, the Decoy SN is a very different beast as it's all a bit bigger, in every sense of the world.
First up, it gets 170mm of travel at the front with 160mm at the rear and on this range-topping bike, it's sprung with a Fox 38 Factory fork and a Fox DHX2 Factory shock. As the priciest bike in the range, no corner has been cut as this build is more than ready to rip, straight out of the box with its SRAM GX T-Type drivetrain complete with e*thirteen Helix Race E*SPEC cranks, SRAM Maven brakes, a Renthal cockpit and, of course, Fazua's Ride 60 drive system.
That motor knocks out 60Nm of torque and 450W of peak power and is combined with the brand's own 430Wh battery. And the geometry, well it's rather modest but it's definitely a step towards and for an e-MTB like this, we can expect it to be rather balanced. On the large frame we have here, there's a 475mm reach, a 64.2-degree head tube angle and a 78.3-degree seat tube angle. The chainstay is on the shorter side for an e-MTB at 442mm and there's a low BB that sits at 344mm in height.
As standard, it runs a mixed wheel size and there's a geometry-adjusting flip chip. On this model, all of its components is bolted onto a posh Ultra-Modulus carbon fibre frame and it rolls on a pair of Crankbrothers Synthesis Enduro Alloy wheels. They're then wrapped with Continental rubber.
Endura Men's MT500 Waterproof Jacket
£270
2024 endura mt500 jacket iii 5ct.jpg, by Liam Mercer
The MT500 Waterproof Jacket has become renowned for being one of the very best mountain bike jackets and fresh for autumn/winter 2024, Endura has completely redesigned its flagship jacket. The fabric used is ExoShell30DR that gets boosted waterproofing through a DWR coating. It promises tonnes of ventilation too as it boasts plenty of vents, from large underarm zipped vents and a three-way adjustable zip that comes with poppers that allow the user to open the main zip, but keep the jacket from flapping for all of the airflow.
It also gets a hood that can fit over a helmet that's also sorted with volume adjusters that Endura says ensures a perfect fit, and helps with stowing the hood when not in use. There are loads of pockets too and the zips are water-repellant with storm flaps.
Vittoria Mostro Enduro Race
£70
2024 vittoria mostro 5ct.jpg, by Liam Mercer
Primed for winter riding, the Vittoria Mostro Enduro Race is designed to provide traction in soft and loose conditions as it sits between the Mota and Mazza tyres. Vittoria promises that it delivers 'anchor-like' performance under braking and tonnes of control through its pronounced trailing edges. As for the pattern itself, it follows the increasingly common two-three-two layout that was made popular by the Maxxis Assegai but its more angular, so hopefully there shouldn't be too much rolling resistance.
As one of Vittoria's Enduro Race tyres, it uses a single rubber compound throughout that's created with a blend of Graphene and Silica. The casing uses multiple 60 TPI plies as well as a bead-to-bead reinforcement layer. Additionally, there's an anti-puncture belt underneath the tread.
This tyre is loaded with inserts as Vittoria has even placed its sidewall stability insert to add sidewall support but also to protect the tyre and rim from rim strikes.
Pro Discover Aero Carbon handlebar
£350
2024 pro aero gravel handlebar.jpg, by Liam Mercer
We reckon that the most exciting movement currently in gravel is its shift towards aerodynamics with wheels, frames and loads of other components getting futuristic-looking shapes and profiles with the aim of reducing drag and boosting speed. Pro's Discover Aero Carbon Handlebar is one of those components and its designed especially for gravel racing.
It's built using US T700 carbon that's blended with Dyneema but where the aero goodness comes in is the profile of the bar itself. It features flat tops and flared but compact drops. The brand then says that fatigue is reduced through that carbon layup and its ability to dampen vibrations. It's capable of running all cables and hoses internally and it comes in three widths, 40, 42 and 44cm.
Speaking of measurements, there's a 12-degree flare, a 100mm drop and a 72mm reach.
You might also like:
- Gravel bike vs mountain bike: what are the differences?
- 27.5 vs. 29-inch wheels - understanding the differences
- Gravel cycling: experiencing a women's bikepacking event
Author block
