On a personal level, 2022 has been quite the year.
I arrived at BikeRadar in the summer, taking on a role that’s been on my career wishlist for well over a decade. Naturally, this has opened the door to a little more riding than I’ve been able to do for a number of years – however, I assure you, my job isn’t all riding bikes!
So, although I only have half the year to call upon, there are still plenty of bits of kit that have really impressed me.
Let’s dive in.
Pirelli P ZERO Race 4S tyres
- £62.99
You’ll often hear us say that one of the best upgrades you can make to your bike is fitting new (and better) tyres.
And there may have been flashier products in my 2022 test bank, but arguably none have had as large an impact on my riding than the Pirelli P ZERO Race 4S tyre.
The P ZERO 4S might seem an odd choice. After all, in 2022 I’ve tried out (among others) the outstanding Continental GP5000S TR and GP5000 Clincher, Schwalbe’s raciest Pro One TT rubber and Vittoria’s highly rated Corsa tyres.
Those might be faster/grippier/more supple/lighter/tubeless (delete as appropriate), but it’s the P ZERO 4S that impressed me the most.
It offers the brand’s race-derived SmartEVO compound and a 120 TPI (threads per inch) casing, plus it tips the scales at just 261g per 28c tyre.
That’s 20g or so heavier compared to the lightest and fastest road bike tyres around, but don’t forget there’s more of the compound here to present a thicker barrier between the inner tube and any errant road debris.
This approach helps the tyre preserve the P ZERO 4S’ compelling overall performance and ride feel, while improving puncture resistance. I haven't had one flat in more than six months of regular use.
This offers peace of mind for a regular tester such as myself. And I bet it will do the same for those of you who want performance without the risk of standing by the roadside swapping your inner tube.
Don’t get me wrong, tubeless has its plus points in that regard, but in my mind there’s still comfort in the ease of a traditional clincher setup should things go wrong.
In short, it offered the most compelling blend of the majority of factors performance-oriented riders often look for, and it's proven hardy to boot.
Lezyne Strip Drive Pro 300 Alert Rear light
- £57 / $59.99
The Lezyne Strip Drive Pro 300 Alert Rear is one powerful light, and it’s also my current go-to.
The sheer brightness of it is enough to make anyone take notice, and, as such, has proven reassuringly effective in bright winter sunlight.
It’s a true daytime-running light, which, one could argue, is a smart addition to any road bike.
More often than not, though, I’ll use the light on dark morning and evening commutes, or when the conditions are dubious or less than perfect.
The Strip Drive Pro 300 Alert Rear’s party piece is its alert function. This senses when you decelerate, spooling up the light to full brightness in a disruptive flash sequence.
This is particularly reassuring in built-up areas. I can’t control what those around me are doing, but I can at least maximise the chances of being noticed among the plethora of other urban lights.
Drivers may (or may not) give me a wider berth while I'm using this light, but when I have it on my bike I feel confidently visible.
This means I can ride more assuredly in traffic and spend less time veering towards the gutter.
The only downside to the alert function is you can’t switch it off. This makes battery life difficult to predict, although Lezyne claims the light can go up to 28 hours in the lowest power setting.
So, as long as I maintain a regular recharging habit, I'll have little reason to worry about it running out.
Castelli Perfetto RoS 2 jacket
- £245 / $279.99
You might not have noticed (Castelli hasn’t exactly shouted from the rooftops) but the famous Perfetto (née Gabba) RoS jacket had a gentle update for the end of 2022.
At first glance it hasn’t changed much, but look closer and there are a raft of tweaks that hint Castelli might have listened to the many cyclists who bemoaned the Italian brand’s typically racy designs.
First, the cut has been tweaked. It’s still sporty, but it now has more space in the arms, under the armpits and around the chest.
Next, there’s a little more space around the mid-section, plus it has a slightly longer body too.
Owning a previous-generation Perfetto, there’s a discernible difference, and it will likely be appreciated by anyone who isn’t a racing whippet…
Other changes include three pockets rather than two, modified sleeve cuffs and a seamless construction over the tops of the shoulders.
The garment sticks with Gore’s excellent Gore-Tex Infinium fabric, which has, time and again, proven a great performer in changeable weather.
I’ve ridden with the jacket in heavy rain showers and constant light drizzle, and it shrugs off everything with minimal fuss.
That said, if you’re going to be cleaning your bike or messing around with oily chains, I would keep the jacket off. I can vouch that once dirty oil gets onto the Infinium fabric, then it’s pretty impossible to extract it out.
The tweaks to the jacket have been mostly beneficial, which will no doubt reaffirm the Perfetto RoS 2 as a firm favourite among club cyclists the world over.
Reynolds ATRx wheelset
- $1,699.99
When it comes to all-road wheels, it’s hard to know where road should stop and gravel should start. And given the condition of some road surfaces I tend to ride on, they seem to be one and the same.
However, with many roadies looking for wider rims to support wider tyres on the road (and yes, wanting the flexibility to traverse some light rough stuff), brands are introducing new wheelsets that straddle the divide.
During the last half of 2022, the Reynolds ATRx became a firm favourite for my road bike.
It features a 40mm-deep hooked carbon rim, which measures 23mm across internally. That gives it the ability to run anywhere from 28 to 45c tyres.
I’ve been running it with Pirelli’s P ZERO Race 4S 28c tyre, and the two have been a perfect match, with the rims blowing out the tyres closer to 29-30mm wide.
So far, the ATRx wheelset hasn’t skipped a beat in testing. It’s fun and fast when I want to give it the beans on a weekend hit out, yet it remains stable, efficient and reliable when I press it into regular commuter duties.
There are an increasing number of riders looking for do-it-all solutions for their road bikes, rather than shell out for more than one wheelset to accommodate their riding needs. This makes the ATRx a very compelling option indeed.
