Welcome back to another frenetic First Look Friday, as we recap the events of the past week and give you a glimpse at the latest shiny cycling goodies to catch our eye.
I'm dispatching this introduction from the fast lane, en route to the Velofollies cycling show in Belgium. There, I'll be tirelessly traipsing the show floor in search of the most titillating new tech while wolfing down waffles, feasting on frites and devouring Delirium Tremens. Don't cry for me…
Before I departed, it was a typically busy week on the site, with all manner of spicy news stories and features gracing the homepage.
We brought you the first images of Tom Pidcock aboard his new Scott Addict RC, wearing the colours of Q36.5 Pro Cycling, and rounded up four of the worst road bike upgrades we've ever invested in.
After we'd taken a look at the growing cycling sub-culture of tile hunting, Alex Evans imparted us with his wisdom gleaned from testing winter mountain bike tyres.
Stan Portus explained why he wishes the cycling industry wasn't so heavily male-dominated and we looked back at the development of the 3D-printed bike that changed cycling tech.
We weren't done, as Simon von Bromley rounded up the rider and equipment developments in the 2025 Women's WorldTour and Stan returned with a news one-two, reporting on the new Basso Sempre Veloce and Ridley Noah Fast road bikes.
Finally, late on Thursday in the UK, Giant lifted the lid on its wost-kept secret.
Keep your eyes on the site over the weekend for all the news from Belgium. Tot ziens.
DT Swiss 350 SP PL-7 dynamo wheel
To give you a wee peek behind the content curtain, news of DT Swiss’ first-ever dynamo wheels was among the most popular news stories published in November on BikeRadar.
While I’m a dynamo dullard and sympathise with those who are agitated by drag graphs, I was surprised by the story’s mass appeal.
Then again, the 350 SP PL-7 wheel is competitively priced, backed up by DT Swiss’ existing worldwide support network, built around sensible rims and manufactured using proven internals from SP.
That’s a pretty compelling combination for those in the market for a dynamo wheel who don’t want to go down the boutique custom-build route.
I’m typically BikeRadar’s self-designated dynamo testing darling – heck, I wrote the damn guide – but road tech lead Ash Quinlan is threatening to nab these for testing and make use of his Fairlight Strael’s dynamo light routing. Should he get his way, I wish him many happy miles of carefree illuminated riding.
Smart Lever tyre levers
Although he was specifically referring to bike computers, beloved colleague Alex Evans once said that, if a product requires consulting a manual to work out how to use it, it’s fallen at the first hurdle.
This wee aphorism has always stuck with me, and the Smart Lever certainly doesn’t pass the look-at-it-and-get-it-first-go test.
In truth, I spent half a day sitting at my desk working out how on earth it could possibly function as a tyre lever.
I then did the sensible thing and watched Smart Lever’s helpful walkthrough video and all was revealed.
I defer to said video for a clear explanation of how it works but, in brief, once the composite slider is placed on the rim sidewall, a wheel on the leading edge of the head guides the bead in place as you push it forward.
This takes a little practice to do smoothly, but it certainly works. The relatively tight-fitting WTB Vulpine tyre pictured slid on easily despite my hand model’s weirdly limber thumbs.
The true test will be with a known-to-be-nightmarish tyre/rim combo – a Schwalbe Marathon intended for a Brompton rim should be enough to make even the most seasoned mechanics reading this sweat.
Priced at £22.50, the Smart Lever is designed to be carried in a saddle bag. I couldn’t fit it in my fashionable wee tool holder fitted to my go-fast road bike but, provided it performs as promised, I can see a place for this on bikes with bigger bags or when touring.
- £22.50, international shipping available
DMT WKR1 winter boots
SQUIRREL_TEXT_13178093
Winter cycling shoes typically pair heavyweight insulated and waterproof uppers with a chunky weather-proof outsole.
DMT’s WKR1 winter shoes take a slightly different approach, using a 3D-knitted upper and an – albeit weather-sealed – outsole that’s very similar to that used on its summer shoes and concealing the lot in an integrated high-stretch softshell overshoe.
It’s a neat setup that weighs only 517g for the size-45 pair currently on test with Warren Rossiter. That’s a weight we wouldn’t raise eyebrows at for a mid-range summer shoe.
Early impressions from Woz suggest the shoes offer impressive weather resistance and a great fit, but they need to be paired with thick socks for truly cold days.
Keep your eyes peeled for the rest of Warren’s 2025 winter shoe test in the next few weeks.
SQUIRREL_13178093
