Plus all the latest news and reviews from the week <\/p>
The final working day of the week has arrived and that means it\u2019s time for First Look Friday, your weekly hit of the latest red-hot tech to land on our desks at BikeRadar (I hope your wallet isn\u2019t in close reach).\u00a0<\/p>
You know the drill \u2013 before I unveil this edition\u2019s sumptuous pickings, let\u2019s recap on the week just gone.\u00a0<\/p>
On Sunday, we were treated to the written version of Pro vs Punter<\/a>. Senior technical editor Tom Marvin headed to BikePark Wales on a dismal dreary day to see if he could beat multi-discipline pro rider Hattie Harnden down the esteemed Dai Hard black-graded trail on a range of Trek mountain bikes.\u00a0<\/p> It\u2019s an idea Tom\u2019s been trying to realise for the best part of seven years and the results of which bike was fastest down the trail may surprise you.\u00a0<\/p> Digital writer Nick Clark then introduced us to the Ari La Sal Peak Elite<\/a>, which will be his long-term review bike for the year.\u00a0<\/p> Nick also brought us news of the RockShox Psylo<\/a>, a new entry-level mountain bike suspension fork, which inherits tech from the Pike and Lyrik at half the price.\u00a0<\/p> One of the most notable news stories of the week was the announcement of Cane Creek\u2019s Invert fork<\/a>. The brand boldly claims the Invert is the \u201cworld\u2019s first\u201d true gravel fork with the reasoning that current options are either too firm or offer too many adjustments that simply aren\u2019t needed for gravel. <\/p> We\u2019re looking forward to getting the gravel suspension fork<\/a> in for testing, to see whether the Invert delivers on these heady claims.\u00a0<\/p> Finally, Simon von Bromley delivered an insightful investigation on why the pros are using bigger chainrings<\/a>. You\u2019ll need to read the article to find out whether profesionals are now simply stronger or whether there\u2019s more to the tech than meets the eye.\u00a0<\/p> Right, enough dilly-dallying, now let\u2019s get on to what you\u2019ve been waiting for.\u00a0<\/p>