Hot stuff: what we’re excited about this month. Black magic wheels, stowaway bibshorts, rally shoes, wider pedals, getta grips, shiny stabbers and more…

>>> Dirty Deals: 2.6in tyres, workstands, knee pads and much more!

Enve M730 Series Wheelset, £2,800

Carbon rims are nothing like Marmite, but they do tend to split opinion as to whether they’re worth having or not. The best on the market are tuned to balance compliance with stiffness, light weight with strength; but when they break, they break properly, and as such racers tend to favour alloy rims because they can often be bodged back into service well enough to finish an event.
Enve reckons it’s produced something drastically different in its latest version of the M Series though; a rim that requires no maintenance, helps prevent pinchflats, and that protects itself from the trail if you do flat. After all, it’s the first big rock strike after a pinchflat that wrecks your rims.

Enve M Series: wheels built to take a beating

The M Series rim has grown fatter, so instead of two thin blades of carbon just waiting to punch your tyre between rock and rim, there’s now much more surface area. This dissipates energy better and should reduce the instances of a pinchflat.

Wider rims make pinch flats less likely while rim strips offer added protection

Enve has also gone a step further and added a unique rim strip that covers the tyre bed and wraps up over the top of the rim, adding a layer of plastic between the wheel and the tyre. This adds even more pinchflat protection by further reducing forces on the rim, and also protects that rim by slowing down any impact. Enve also says it improves the seal for the air inside your tyre, and maintains that pressure even if you do damage the rim – ideal for racers, who only get one shot at their race run. If you do crack a rim Enve will replace it free of charge.

Specialized Ultralight Liner Bib Short with SWAT, $75

The SWAT clothing concept from Specialized is a good one, letting you stash a few essentials close to your body where they won’t budge, negating the need for a pack. But we’ve always found the traditional bib with SWAT too hot for summer use, made with relatively close material and proving lots of coverage under your baggies and jersey. Well, there’s now an Ultralight version, made from Specialized’s own VaporRize mesh fabric that’s designed to be cool and breezy, lightweight and good at wicking away sweat. There’s less coverage in general around your midriff too, meaning more room for your skin to breathe. You still get the excellent SWAT storage pockets at the rear though, helping you ditch your pack. The only slight problem is that Specialized isn’t bringing this line into the UK… yet. It’s designed for warmer climates, but with our recent hot summers in mind, this is being reconsidered. In the mean time, it’s pretty easy to find a US retailer online and get them shipped.

Rally driver

Bontrager Rally, £139.99

The Bontrager Rally clipless shoe is for trail and enduro rather than XC, with increased protection from its reinforced toe box with “GnarGuard” abrasion-resistant coating, shock-absorbing EVA mid-sole, and treaded sole for pushing up.

Short shorts

Dakine Vectra, €79.95

There’s ventilation galore on the Dakine Vectra short, with a perforated lumbar and inner thigh panels, combined with four-way stretch panels and double stitching. The inseam is 13.5in so best for shorter riders.

Wide loader

Crank Brothers Mallet E LS, £149.99

With 5mm longer spindles, the Crank Brothers Mallet E LS shifts your feet outboard slightly, giving you the same wider stance of the Mallet DH pedal. Made from 6061-T6 aluminium, the E LS also has eight pins per side for extra grip.

Trail slasher

Maxxis Dissector, £64.99

Troy Brosnan’s signature tyre is designed for dry and fast trails, and those tricky loose-over-hard conditions native to Oz. The Maxxis Dissector is optimised for 30-35mm rims, comes in both wheel sizes, and multiple compounds including 3C Maxx Grip.

Palm pilots

Race Face Getta, £21.95

Race Face has released its new Getta grip. Made from its own soft rubber compound, they feature a directional hex pattern under your finger tips, lock-on design, tapered and ergonomic design, two diameters (30 and 33mm) and nine colours.

Plug and play

Birzman Tubeless Repair Kit, £19.99

Inside the Birzman Tubeless Repair Kit are 10 tyre plugs and the corresponding tool so you can fix a slash in your sidewall. It’s disguised as a CO2 cartridge to make it compatible and attach to Birzman’s CO2 bottle cage mounts.

Coffee stop

Boost Coffee Co, £7.00

The Boost Coffee Co operates out of a cool vintage horse box, their beans are roasted by Wogan Coffee of Bristol and the blend is 100 per cent Arabica, organic, and Fairtrade. Catch them at festivals, or buy beans and ground coffee online.

Optical express

Smith Wildcats, £165.00

Smith says its Wildcats blend the performance of glasses with the coverage of goggles, thanks to a huge curved lens and hydroleophobic coating to dispel mud and water. Included is a ChromaPop tinted lens, and a clear spare for winter days.

Bag for life

Guardian Helmetbag, €69.00

The Guardian Helmetbag looks after you rhelmet between rides with protective padding and a solid plastic base, and will fit anything from an XC lid to your full-face in size XXL. YOu cna hook it to other bags with nylon straps too, with two G-buckle hooks.