ALL POSTS
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Whether you have a 200 or a 2000 lumen bike light, cars and other traffic may still not see you at night. To stand out from the crowd you’ll need to be creative. Planet Bike’s Bottle Blinky, a bicycle side light, is a great way to get people to notice you. Designed to sandwich between your frame and bottle cage mounts, the Bottle Blinky has 6 bright amber LEDs to improve your side visibility. Combined with a traditional headlight, tail light and reflectors, the Bottle Blinky can ensure you are visible from any angle. The Bottle Blinky is a surprisingly…
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Deciding between cycling helmets typically has come down to budget, design and comfort. More recently, many helmet manufacturers have incorporated additional safety features beyond the simple EPS foam and head cradle systems. Bontrager has made a big splash with their debut of WaveCel liner technology. Marketed with the slogan “You only get one Brain,” WaveCel is an exclusive technology that Bontrager has developed to protect against cycling related head injuries. In this review, we’ll be taking a close look at the Bontrager Specter WaveCel helmet in an eye catching radioactive yellow gloss finish. The Bontrager Specter WaveCel is a unique…
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The Planet Bike Blaze headlights have been a mainstay of their bike light product line. Throughout the years, they’ve been continuously updated to improve their output and usability. In this review we’ll be looking at three models in the latest Blaze SLX line: the Blaze 400, 600 and 800 SLX headlights. These three headlights feature integrated rechargeable Li-ion batteries, excellent 275° side visibility as well as Planet Bike’s exclusive “Courtesy” and “Superflash” output modes. With the latest iteration, the SLX lights have been upgraded with higher lumen output, an improved Quick Twist handlebar mounting, and a Clean Beam design. The…
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Shopping for cycling helmets these days can be confusing, as every helmet seems to be designed for a specific cycling subset. That’s why we were excited to get our hands on the new Lazer Cameleon MIPS helmet that doesn’t limit itself to any single discipline. Visually the Cameleon combines design cues of traditional road cycling, mountain biking and commuting helmets. The helmet is available in both a standard version for $69.95 and the $89.95 MIPS version (which we are reviewing today). We chose the matte dark blue finish due to its sleek yet subtle design, although Lazer offers three other…
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If you have a smaller bicycle frame or a mountain bike, you may not have enough space to use a standard bottle cage. To get around this, side entry variations of bottle cages allow the bottle to be removed side ways (either the left or right depending on the variation purchased) and avoid hitting your frame. Elite offers a large selection of bottle cage varieties that stand out from the market through minimalist design, lighter weight and great grip. In this review we’ll be taking a close look at the Elite Carbon Prism side entry bottle cage for right side…
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Lightweight carbon fiber cycling shoes are typically limited to higher-end collections of shoe manufacturers. This unfortunately means if your counting grams and you want stiff cycling shoes you have to shell out hundreds of dollars. The FLR F-XX II shoes are an exception to that trend, and feature stiff R500 carbon soles and impressive light weight (406 grams for our EUR 40) at a retail price of only $249. The shoes also feature a dual ATOP dial closure system to equally distribute tension in fine increments. The stiff carbon fiber sole and light weight make the F-XX II shoes an…
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We didn’t spend much time in Lisbon except for a day and 2 nights in total there as we wanted to go to Sintra as well and were short on time. Nevertheless, we saw what we wanted to see so no complaints. Unlike Porto, Lisbon gets very hot so be prepared to carry plenty of water, hat, and sunscreen if traveling during Summer/early Fall. Getting in We took the train from Porto to Lisbon and back. As with Italy and pretty much all of Europe, tickets are cheaper if booked early as opposed to buying them at the station. However,…
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“Affordability” and “Cycling” are two words rarely used in the same sentence. A short walk through the ‘entry-level’ bike section of any local bike shop or bike manufacturer’s website can give you sticker shock. If your budget for a new bike is limited to under $1000 dollars, you’re typically limited to single speed or townie bikes with lower tier components or older drivetrains. This is one reason we’re particularly excited to be reviewing the Decathlon Triban Disc 105 RC 520 today. Although the model name is a mouthful, the RC 520 has one of the highest specs for Decathlon’s Triban…
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After seeing the ‘something-out-of-a-Disney-movie’ Pena Palace on Pinterest feed, I knew we had to visit Portugal. Only after getting there, did I realize that Portugal is more than a land of fairy tale castles and home to one the best desserts in the world, the Pastéis de Nata! We were in Portugal for 7 whole days and visited Porto, Guimarães, Lisbon, and Sintra. We were there in late September in 2018 and flew in and out of Porto from the US. Weather-wise, Porto is a lot cooler than say Lisbon (like SF vs LA). It is also a lot less…