Tech round up: Silca Gravelero mini-pump, Adicta Lab Quartz Gravel clothing, Tifosi Breast Cancer Awareness sunglasses and a pair of Roval wheels up for grabs
Gravel gear, shades for a good cause and an artistic challenge
When looking for gear to feature in the weekly round up, trends often emerge. It could be that bright minds think alike. It might also be that the industry is prone to copycat designs. Whatever the reason, at the moment hardly a week goes past when there aren't a slew of gravel-specific products worthy of inclusion. This week we've two gravel inspired entries, a mini-pump and clothing capsule collection.
In an attempt to address the balance somewhat we've also got some 'active lifestyle' sunglasses that are looking to raise awareness of breast cancer and details of a competition to win a pair of your own Roval carbon wheels. That's not to say that you couldn't use either for a spot of gravel riding though...
Do gravel tyres need a gravel pump? Silca think so...
(Image credit: Silca)
As an industry sector gravel riding has gone from burgeoning to blossoming to booming, all in a few short years. From a product perspective it means more gravel-specific gear than ever before. Including this Gravelero mini-pump from Silca.
Silca are known for making a few products, from tools to bottle cages, but making them well. There’s typically a focus on simplicity of design and quality of materials, and that appears to be the case here too. The Gravelero mini-pump borrows plenty from its road equivalent, the Tattico. This means an aluminium handle and barrel, a retractable hose and a reversible thumb-lock chuck for both Schrader and Presta valves. It all adds up to a claimed weight of 139g.
(Image credit: Silca)
The differences are largely due to its gravel focus. Silca says the Gravelero pushes 35% more air than the Tattico despite being the same size - both pumps measure 243mm / 9.5” in length - which should be handy for those large volume gravel tyres. Silca says the mini-pump has a maximum pressure of 80psi, which is plenty for its intended use. It also features a smooth outer texture and “improved sealing”, that Silca claims makes it easy to clean and generally better suited for off-road use.
As if to prove a point regarding gravel’s seemingly all-consuming assault on our cycling senses, next up is another clothing collection dedicated to the adventurous, off-road life.
The Swiss brand Adicta Lab, a sister company of BMC, is better known for its premium road riding clothing. With the Quartz collection it aims to bring its apparel expertise to gravel riding in the shape of a streamlined collection comprising t-shirt and shorts.
Adicta Lab says the Quartz shirts and shorts are designed to “meet the demands of gravel and multi-day adventures” using a combination of fit, material and added storage. The Quartz Tech Tee, available in mustard and grey, both with a splatter paint design, features a relaxed fit that’s been cut for a more upright riding position typical of gravel bikes. It’s also designed to be breathable (the back panel uses a mesh material), fast-wicking and with UV-protection, all delivered in a lightweight package. Handily, it also includes a large zipped pocket on the rear and an internal pocket for your valuables.
(Image credit: BMC)
The Quartz Bib Shorts, currently offered in navy only, feature a pad designed for “sustained comfort over rough ground” as well as some ‘targeted’ compression to help ease tired muscles and ‘anti-snag material. They also boast mesh cargo pockets and rear zip pockets, increasing your carrying capacity. After all, you can never have too many gummy bears on a ride.
Both shirt and shorts are made in Europe using recycled fabrics, enabling them to carry the Certified Bluesign & Global Recycled Standard certificates.
Tifosi turns pink in support of breast cancer awareness
(Image credit: Tifosi Optics)
Many of today’s cycling specs have you looking as though you’re about to undertake a spot of metal fabrication. While the large lenses and full coverage frames are ideally suited for on the bike use, they can look a little odd off it. Cycling glasses brand Tifosi’s latest lifestyle collection provides something a little more suited to everyday wear, while at the same time shining light on the most worthy causes.
The Breast Cancer Awareness Collection uses five of the brand’s ‘active-lifestyle’ models - Swank, Shirley, Svago, Swank XL, and new Sizzle - but debuts them in pink colourways with pink mirror lens; perfect for those participating in breast cancer fundraisers including bike rides and fun runs where pink is the colour of choice.
A portion of the sales of all the featured models will go to the Lynn Sage Breast Cancer Foundation, a US-based non-profit that’s raised over $40 million, investing in scholarship programs, research grants and symposiums.
The affordable glasses, which start at $29.95 in the US and will be available from early September, all feature shatterproof lens and hydrophilic Grilamid frames, making them ideally suited to casual bike rides as well as general wear.
Roval's Project Rattle Can brings some colour to carbon wheels...and a chance to win a pair of your own
(Image credit: Specialized)
While jet black carbon wheelsets have plenty of appeal, Roval, Specialized’s in-house brand, felt the need to inject a little colour into what's usually a monochrome world.
To achieve this, it armed two of its ambassadors Elliot Phillps, a documenter of the gravel racing scene, and Kriss Kyle, a BMX and MTB wizard, with a crate of spray cans and asked them to get creative. The blank canvas for their artistic expressions were the new Rapide CLX IIs, a super lightweight wheelset used by WorldTour riders such as Remco Evenepoel and Julian Alaphilippe, and the Traverse SL trail hoops.
(Image credit: Specialized)
You can judge if we’ve a future Turner Prize winner on our hands by checking them out in person. Both wheelsets are part of the Roval Rattle Can Tour, taking in a number of the UK’s Specialized Concept stores. It’s here that you’ll also be able to complete your own Roval wheel decal design, before submitting it via Instagram. The selected winner can choose from a set of Rapide CLX II or Control 29 wheels.
The competition ends on September 29. To get more information on Project Rattle Can and the competition visit specialized.com
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Luke Friend has worked as a writer, editor and copywriter for twenty five years. Across books, magazines and websites, he's covered a broad range of topics for a range of clients including Major League Baseball, the National Trust and the NHS. He has an MA in Professional Writing from Falmouth University and is a qualified bicycle mechanic. He has been a cycling enthusiast from an early age, partly due to watching the Tour de France on TV. He's a keen follower of bike racing to this day as well as a regular road and gravel rider.
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