Hi, I’m Liam Cahill. You might remember me from another cycling website, but I’ve recently climbed aboard the good ship BikeRadar, working as a presenter on our YouTube channel.
It’s been a year of change in more ways than one. I’ve moved further away from road racing in 2022, citing the usual pull towards gravel riding, and simply wanting to spend my hours cycling for the fun of it, rather than focusing on any performance goals.
I’d even go as far as saying I never want to do another interval, but I’ll likely get sucked into Hill Climb Diaries next year, so some 40/20 intervals will be required to avoid embarrassment.
Between my new hour-long commute and the racing I did manage, I’ve managed to get through a wide variety of kit.
So, for my Gear of the Year, I’m going with the crème de la crème – if it stuck in my mind, it makes the grade.
Specialized S-Works Aethos frameset
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- £4,500 / $5,500 / €5,200
I’ll preface my first choice by stating that I don’t hate aero.
However, after riding the Specialized Aethos, I fell in love with its reactive handling and feathery weight, so I sold my S-Works SL 7 and dipped my hand quite deep into my pocket for a new frameset.
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Chasing those few watts of aero gains just isn’t for me anymore, and the Aethos gives me exactly what I want for my riding style. It also doesn’t have massive S-Works logos all over it.
With such a lightweight frame, the Aethos is brilliant uphill.
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Whenever acceleration is needed, or the gradient pitches up, I really feel as though the bike under me is responding instantly.
The round tube shapes might not be the most aerodynamic, but they offer an excellent blend of stiffness and comfort, while also making for a bike that handles incredibly well.
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Specialized S-Works Torch shoes
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- £385 / $450 / €440
Continuing with the ‘big S’, Specialized’s S-Works Torch shoes, released in May, have opened my eyes to what a perfectly fitted shoe can do for comfort and happiness.
The shoes use a new last that is wider in the mid-foot area. I found the S-Works 7 shoes a bit narrow, so this is a brilliant change for me. I’m extra happy with these shoes because I went as far as having a set of custom insoles made.
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I’m not going to claim the shoes have made me any faster, but I can feel the difference in comfort. My toes are spread properly and I no longer clench my feet at the 6 o’clock position in the pedal stroke.
That has led to fewer foot cramps and, because they usually occurred at about 2am, I can tell you that this makes me very happy.
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Every cycling shoe I’ve worn previously has had a compromise, so it’s nice to have finally found something that works perfectly for me.
Oh, and they’re very easy to keep clean – jazzy.
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Spatz Roadman 3 overshoes
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- £94.99
Will these win you a fashion award? Actually, I know very little about fashion, so they might.
What I know for sure is that, when sleet is falling and you’ve got freezing road spray plastering your legs, these Spatz Roadman 3 cycling overshoes are going to keep you warm and dry.
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They’re very robust, with a Kevlar toe box protecting them when you inevitably slip a pedal while trying to clip in – or, as I have done on many occasions, catch the sharp end of the mudguard stay that you should have trimmed down but didn’t because you’re lazy.
Nothing about these makes them good for going fast, but they’re just what you need for getting the hard yards done in the depths of winter.
That said, I think I’ll find it hard to avoid the draw of a warm gym. But I’m fully expecting to need them on several commutes, so they’ll certainly see some use.
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Campagnolo Levante wheels
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- £1,349.99 / $1,899.95 / €1,575
With aero claims and super-wide rims stealing everyone’s attention, it can be easy to overlook the humble hub.
Thankfully, Campagnolo makes brilliant hubs, and the Levante wheels feature absolute gems.
The cup and cone bearings are very smooth and easily serviceable. The freehub is also beautifully quiet and the N3W body future-proofs your hoops for 13-speed groupsets.
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The rims won’t leave you wanting either. These use the same HULC (Handmade Ultra-Light Carbon) moulding process as Campagnolo’s Bora Ultra WTO rims. The glossy finish with laser-etched graphics also looks divine.
Besides the looks, the 25mm internal rim width supports wide gravel tyres with ease, and the 2-Way fit makes tubeless setup easy thanks to the deep rim well.
Campagnolo’s Micro Hook profile enables you to run tubeless-ready and tubeless tyres, ensuring the widest selection of tyres for users, while at the same time creating a tyre sidewall profile that’s as straight as possible for the best tyre feel.
You could say the rim profile gives you a slight aero saving over a shallow rim, but really, these wheels are all about brilliant handling, stunning looks and excellent tyre support, rather than saving a few watts.
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Lezyne Macro Drive 1300XXL
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- £89.99 / $109.99
My year started with dark training sessions before work and has ended with a new commute that consists of unlit sections along the Bristol to Bath cycle path. That has meant plenty of time spent using the Lezyne 1300XXL.
I’ve got this setup mounted upside down on a GoPro attachment under my LifeLine out-front mount. This keeps the front end of my bike a little cleaner and ensures the light is spread on the road ahead, unencumbered by any cables or computers.
Sticking it down here might even act as an aero fairing (it absolutely doesn’t), but any hope of being slippery through the wind is crushed by the double panniers that sit on the rear of my bike.
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As I now ride mostly in the dark through the week, I have automatically set up in race mode.
This gives me the simplicity of just two settings to flick between 1,300 lumens and 150 lumens. The change in brightness is stark, but it works perfectly well for the lit/unlit/lit nature of my commute.
Battery life is also solid, giving me well over two hours in Overdrive mode.