Paul Burwell

Contributor

Wolf Tooth Echo grips

Wolf Tooth makes a range of cockpit componentry, so it was only a matter of time before it produced a lock-on grip. Like most, the Echo Lock-On features a nylon…

Fox Ranger 2.5L Water jacket

Fox has a number of different jackets in its outerwear line-up, with the cornerstones being the Ranger 3L Water and this, the Fox Ranger 2.5L Water.

Rapha Padded Liner shorts

Bizarrely, some riders I know wear regular underwear when they go riding. Some even go commando. I have a XC racing background, so I wear a padded short because I…

Race Face Atlas pedals

The is a reboot of the Race Face Atlas flat pedal – one of the best flat pedals on the market – and to save you Googling the old design,…

Mavic Crossmax XL wheels

Mavic offers three tiers in its mountain bike trail wheel range and the CrossMax XL is the budget model. Like its siblings, it’s built around a 30mm asymmetric Maxtal alloy…

Gaerne Icestorm shoes

As you can see from the shape, the Gaerne Icestorm is more of a XC-style winter boot with a sleek clipless sole and a tapered toe. It’s built using Gore-Tex…

Northwave Kingrock Plus GTX

If you’re looking for a winter boot for mountain biking, with its Gore-Tex liner and meaty Vibram sole, the Northwave Kingrock Plus GTX is a full-on winter warrior. The membrane…

Back in the old days, when I was a kid, a bike chain was held together with a split link – albeit one with an extra plate holding the whole…

Fizik Terra Artica X2 shoes

The Fizik Terra Artica X2 is one of the most expensive clipless winter boots we’ve tested, but it is superbly made and features a quality eVent membrane. The rip-stop Nylon…

Acros Stealth stem

Since we stopped using the best mountain bike stems as a way of compensating for tiny bikes, they have become shorter and more focused on handling. Most of the stems…

Five Ten Trailcross Pro shoes

There are a couple of ‘Pro’ features to it, but essentially the TrailCross Pro is just a high-top version of Five Ten’s regular Trailcross. The cuff adds a bit of…

Scott Heater shoes

In the world of the best winter boots for mountain biking, the Scott Heater is like a half-way house between the Giro Blaze and Shimano MW7. It gets a full…

Burgtec Bartender grips

Like the other contact points  on a bike (saddles and pedals) there’s a definite love/hate thing going on with certain grips. When I first tested the Burgtec Bartender Pro, I…

Leatt 7.0 HydraDri winter boots

If you ride flats in the winter there are currently only a handful of weather-resistant shoes on the market, but Leatt has thrown its hat in the ring with the…

100% Hydromatic waterproof jacket

Like several manufacturers, 100% uses a non-branded fabric in the construction of the Hydromatic jacket. This is classed as a 2.5-layer laminate, meaning there is a polyester/elastane face fabric, a…

Specialized Trail Rain waterproof jacket

Specialized’s Trail Rain jacket is a 2.5-layer option with a polyester face fabric bonded to a waterproof and breathable membrane. This is less breathable than the three-layer Rapha Trail Gore-Tex…

Giro Blaze shoes

In the past, pulling a neoprene bootie over your shoe was a cheap way to get winter protection. The Giro Blaze is more sophisticated and a lot more expensive, but…

Shimano MW7 XC shoes

We were really impressed with the Shimano MW7, and it proved to be one of the best winter boots on the market. Like the Giro Blaze, the Shimano MW7 XC…