Fresh Goods Friday 742: The Ed’s Wood Hopper Edition
Fancy a jump? Excuse me? Welcome to this week’s tempting and dangerous collection of New Biking Stuff that we all like to dub ‘Fresh Goods Friday’.
Let us jump straight in…
MTB Hopper Intro 4
- Price: £169.00
- From: Apex Distribution
Back in my day we used planks and bricks blah blah old person blah. You can still use planks and bricks to make kicker ramps. There’s no conspiracy. If you want/need something more substantial and portable in a kicker ramp, MTB Hopper are here for you. This is the smallest ramps they produce. It’s designed for scooters, skateboards, rollerblades and MTB/BMX beginners (whether kid or adult). “The Intro ramp is a safe way to improve skills” – we shall see. It’s also possible to carry it around (even as a backpack if need be). No tools required to assemble and it is impressively light (3.5kg) for its sturdiness.
MTB Hopper Balance
- Price: £169.00
- From: Apex Distribution
It’s one of those manual machines. “Rear-wheel balance trainer, nose manual balance trainer, and a bike stand for your home. It allows you to feel & work with the rear brake doing a manual, especially if you feel you are just about to flip back too much. If you are leaning too much to the back, just engage your rear brake and that will stop immediately. The design of the trainer lets it wrap around the wheel in places the bike tolerates flex, also the balance trainer itself moves a bit to the sides, this feature imitates real-life balancing with your legs to keep your bike straight.” Again, nicely made. No tools required to assemble and noticeably lighter than you’d expect from it’s sturdiness.
MTB Hopper Core
- Price: £69.00
- From: Apex Distribution
The third MTB Hopper item this week (which is being dealt with in the UK by a new outfit called Apex Distribution). It’s a plank for planking. Kind of. This training board claims to strengthens your core muscles, legs, hands, and grip while improving your balance and coordination. As well as doing press-up type stuff on it, you can alsop stand on it as a balance aid. It comes with two set of ‘underneath thing’ (the orange one is more strenuous). And has rubber X-strip to protect flooring and stop it from sliding around too much.
Sensus Swayze Sans Flange Grip
- Price: £25.99
- From: Apex Distribution
Another brand that Aopex Distribution is bringing in is Sensus. This is very good news. We always, always, always notice – and love – when a test bike comes fitted with Sensus grips. Especially the Swayze ‘wavey mushroom’ style grip. So nice. So good. These are the lock-on versions.
Sensus Swayze Single Ply Grip
- Price: £14.99
- From: Apex Distribution
And this is the non-lock-on (AKA push-on) version of the Swayze that also features a flange. Features: super soft compound, made in the U.S.A., trim lines for easy chopping (completely, or just partial for shifters etc), 148mm length, 30mm diameter, rubber bar plugs.
Sensus EmJ Grip
- Price: £16.99
- From: Apex Distribution
This initially looks just like a Swayze but with EMJ and a tramline embossed on it. But on closer inspection, it is actually a very different grip to the Swayze. It’s basically an inverted design of the Swayze that’s quite a bit fatter (32mm diameter). What else? Cut lines for shortening, ‘Micro Interior Flange’, reduced inner diameter (for tighter fit on the bars?) and upgraded end plugs.
Sensus Meaty Paw Grip
- Price: £28.99
- From: Apex Distribution
Kyle Strait is to blame for this one. “By combining our thinnest interior sleeve with an oversized diameter, we achieved a grip that not only dampens small bumps but provides superior grip. Using the softest rubber ever used by our American factory has allowed for supple grips” – Sensus. Oversized is the word; 151mm length, 35mm diameter. Semi-flange at one end, pinky ramp at the other. Single collar. Integrated end caps.
6Seven apparel
- Price: £26.00 T-shirts, £34.00 hoody
- From: 6SEVEN
Another new brand to us. Which is nice. “Here at 6SEVEN we think it’s important to give back to the sport we love and the people we meet along the way. Riding for us is not only a passion but also a social event and over the years we have met some amazing people and made some awesome friends. We continually strive to give back by supporting events and riders. We’re sure that you share that same passion and look forward to bringing you along on the ride.” Fair trade garmets, vegan friendly inks, shipped in recycled packaging.
Muc-Off AirMach Electric Mini Inflator
Don’t like mini pumps? Don’t like CO2 cartridges? Maybe you’ll get along with one of these. Aluminium body encased in silicone. Claims to deliver up to 100psi (albeit in a road bike tyre). “Powered by cutting-edge brushless motor technology, it’s the ultimate sidekick for when you want to re-inflate fast, with zero effort. It’s USB-C rechargeable so is re-juiced in a flash (25 minutes, to be exact), and you can switch between Presta and Schrader valves”. The USB-C port is also where the air gets sucked in via by the way. Sounds like Action Man’s generator when in use. (We secretly rather like this item.)
‘Forged By Speed’ by Steve Peat with Tim March
- Price: £25.00
- From: Adventure Books
Peaty’s story. “Peaty’s road to the coveted rainbow stripes began almost two decades earlier on the woodland trails of Northern England. Born and raised in Sheffield, he narrowly avoided going down the wrong track and instead chose to race cross-country mountain bikes before switching to the rapidly emerging discipline of downhill where he would compete alongside other young British racers including Rob Warner and the late, great, Jason McRoy. Since then, Steve has competed against the greatest riders of all time, including Nicolas Vouilloz, Shaun Palmer and Greg Minnaar, and his name has become synonymous around the world with downhill mountain biking. Honest, compelling and funny, it is the autobiography of a British sporting legend.”
The Dirt Directory
- Price: £20.00
- From: Adventure Books
Available to pre-order now (with a chance of winning a set of Hope pedals too). This book intends to be the comprehensive guide to the purpose-built mountain biking trail centres and bike parks in England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. Each riding spot features information on the trails, facilities (parking, uplift, bike hire, shops) and rother stuff.
Zwift Cog and Click
- Price: £79.99
- From: Zwift
The Zwift Cog on the Wahoo trainer Hannah has been testing was the older model, so this is the newer version which includes adjustability that allows you to alter the chainline. This means you can choose between the big and small ring if you have more than one option up front on your chainset. Having discovered that the earlier version would only align with her Granny ring on her old MTB, and that it was too small to do the ‘spin up’ required, Hannah is trying this adjustable version out. Also in the box is the Click shifter that allows you to override the ERG mode and change the virtual gears yourself.
Fox Speedframe Pro
- Price: £164.99
- From: Fox Racing
The new Fox Proframe Pro was revelaed this week. We’ve had one for a little while. Read our first look feature. In a nutshell: it’s got lighter and safer.
Forum Thread Of The Week
Congratulations to the-muffin-man this week for this sleep depriving thread:
As ever, the winning TOTW in FGF gets a prize. So the-muffin-man please email editorial@singletrackworld.com for your random prize (possibly a mini cowbell). Don’t forget to include your postal address, as it really speeds up delivery logistics like. Laters taters.
STW Recycled Technical Ride/Baselayer
- Price: £37.00
- From: Singletrack World Shop
Made from recycled Polyester but you won;t believe how soft and wicking this t-shirt is. Use it as a ride jersey in the summer or baselayer in the winter. Or just wear it off the bike everyday as a luxury feeling t-shirt.
Featured Member Reward of the Week
- From: Singletrack Members Rewards
- Reward: 18% off Exposure Lights
About Exposure Lights: “Designed, engineered and made in the UK to benefit every ride, no matter the terrain. Road Specific beam patterns that can be dipped at the touch of a button. DAYBRIGHT, a specifically designed pulse pattern for day time riding that can be spotted from more than a kilometre. Reflex technology that provides the right lumen output at the right time automatically from your bar light combined with TAP technology for Helmet, simply tap the light or helmet for rapid mode change. No matter the ride, we have you covered.”
Stale Goods Friday – 2012 Santa Cruz Nickel
- Price: £2,549 as seen, frame and shock from £1,399
- From: Fresh Goods Friday 149
Who remembers the 125mm travel Nickel. It used the APP linkage-driven single pivot design with the ability to take 120-140mm travel forks. The bike pictured was the 2011 spec. No dropper. Front mech. 26in wheels. Maxxis Crossmark rear. High Roller II front. Incredibly short wheelbase. Nice green.
Singletrack Magazine MTB Podcast Season ’25, Episode 4
Also available as pure audio perfection via your Podcast service of choice (Acast, Spotify, Apple etc…)
It’s Singletrack’s long running, weekly roundup of all of the new products that have been sent in to the magazine.
They’re sent in by bike companies and marketing agencies
They’re featured and then some are reviewed down the line in either Singletrack Magazine or in online reviews and photoshoots.
They’re usually sent back after review, or kept on long-term test bikes. But no one ever asks for shorts and shoes back. Trust us on that. Once we were asked to return some brake pads.
Nothing. Nil. Zero. Diddlysquat. Sod all. Just send all ‘next big things’ to us at – Fresh Goods Friday, Singletrack Magazine, Lockside Mill, Dale Street, Todmorden. OL14 5PX. Please note that if you require the products back after they have featured then you are responsible for arranging collection at your cost. While it is our policy to feature everything we receive in FGF if we decide your product is not suitable for publication we won’t do it. Publication is at our discretion. Whether a product goes on for publication as a review is at editorial discretion. Beer, coffee & spirits will ALWAYS be tested.