Editor’s picks: Our favourite mountain bike gear of 2023

Every year we get a ton of new gear in for testing at Canadian Cycling Magazine. Some of it is good, some of it is not great and some of it is really good, but not as good as what we were already using. But every now and then there’s something that surives the test cycle and makes it onto our permanent gear list.

This year, the gear that changed our riding includes a made-in-Canada saddle that could actually be a big step forward in how saddles are designed. There’s no fancy suspension or boutique frames. But there are alloy wheels with a big warranty, a jacket, some really comfortable shorts and a bit of safety gear we can’t believe we weren’t using already.

Titanium rails anodized in-house, by hand.

The finished product

Many months of (often muddy) miles later, this things still going strong and comfy as ever

Reform Tatalus heat-mouldable saddle

There is not enough good things I can say about Reform. The Tantalus saddle is made right in Vancouver, down to hand-anodizing the titanium rails, which makes it unique already. More functionally, it is the first heat-mouldable saddle on the market. While it took years for Reform to get here, now that it exists the heat-moulding technology is immediately in the “I can’t believe this didn’t exist yet” category. Not every rider will get a huge benefit from the custom shaping but, even with no major imbalances or physiological constraints, this custom-fit saddle is among the most comfortable I’ve ever used. Check out Reform for more details on the surprisingly easy process.

Race Face Turbine wheels

There are two aspects of the new Turbine wheels that stand out. Ride quality and warranty. Race Face turned heads when it offered a lifetime warranty on the alloy Turbine wheels, but there’s no point in buying something to last a lifetime if it doesn’t feel good to ride. And the Turbines have an impressive ride quality that, to be honest, feels better than many more expensive carbon fibre options. They’re forgiving without feeling flexy and, with a respectable weight on par with comparable carbon enduro wheel options, still accelerate quickly. At $1,000 in Canada, they are on the higher and of alloy wheel prices. But the lifetime warranty changes that value calculation if you plan on using them for a while, or using them harshly, and is considerably more affordable than any carbon fibre wheel warranty.

Ripton & Co. jean shorts

There’s not a lot to say about the shorts from this Colorado brand. They’re possibly the most comfortable jean I’ve ever worn (same goes for the pants) and they’ve stood up to months of near-constant wear. They’re comfortable on the bike and, unlike other stretch jeans I’ve tried, haven’t bagged out after too much saddle time. In fact, any stretch that does develop goes away when washed. I wore these all summer and well into the fall, on the bike and off, and plan on doing the same next year.

Garmin inReach Mini 2

The only item on my list that doesn’t start with R, and also not a product released this year, Garmin’s small-but-mighty inReach Mini 2 quickly earned its place on the packing list for any big adventure ride (and many smaller solo ones, as there is patchy cell service in a lot of places I ride). To be honest, I’m kind of embarassed I wasn’t riding with something like this already. It’s not inexpensive, and it does require a monthly fee to when you’re using it (you can pause the subscription if the off-season), but its potential value in an emergency is beyond any price I could name.

If you’re not familiar, the primary funciton of the inReach is a big SOS button that automatically communicates your location with the relevant emergency services in case of an emergency. The secondary funciton is non-emergency test-based communication. You can write pre-selected messages (“running late but OK” for example) or use it to text via Garmin’s app. Which is useful for keeping loved ones from getting concerned when adventure rides take longer than expected or require a change of plans mid-ride.

Did I use the emergency function? Thankfully no. But, when a friend dislodged a boulder as he was stepping down a rocky cliff and fell, it was close. He ended up being fine and his bike, which the boulder landed on, was “fine.” Or at least servicable enough to ride 25km out. But it could have been a very different story. Knowing that we could call for help made the situation less stressful. This wasn’t a particularly hard trail, it was remote though. You don’t get to choose which crashes reqire outside assistance, but you can choose to be prepared.

Rab Cinder Downpour

Rab is bringing its considerable mountaineering experience to biking (mountain, gravel, adventure, whatever) and, while not all of the Cinder line is perfect, the Downpour jacket gets pretty darn close. It’s impressively waterproof, both in a deluge and over constant weeks of everyday Vancouver Island rain, DWR-free, windproof, packable and lightweight. It has big vents for temperature regulation and big pockets for holding actual things. The sleeves are long enough to overlap with gloves without leaving a little gap for water to seep in. Personally, I wouldn’t mind a slightly closer cut on the body, but it is also nice that this will fit over layers. For such an effective jacket with so many functions, it is reasonably priced. Especially compared to some of the competition out there.