By substituting the bottle cage with Fidlock ’ s magnetic 17g base , you get a secure twist-and-release system thanks to strong magnets and a mechanical latch . We tried to bounce the bottle off with some severe bike tossing but it stuck like an African tick on a buffalo ’ s butt . Reaching down to release the bottle from the base with a simple clockwise twist is great because it requires less time with eyes off the trail ahead . It ’ s also a space saver for small frames , especially with different sized bottles . We had the 600ml but would suggest the 800ml if frame size permits given most of us MTBers mix drinks for 750ml in our dry , hot climate .
All of this seems ideal , but before you scrap your old cages , there are some downsides . Longer distance riders can ’ t simply swap out bottles on the go – unless you have a bunch of them – so you ’ ll be stopping to refill and cleaning the couple you have a lot more attentively . The current iteration has a dust cover that , while great for avoiding a side serving of grit , can prove distracting . Once it is open , it takes a while for the non-spill valve to refill the soft bottle with air , which makes it hard to get more out the bottle without manual manipulation .
In summary , a great step towards the future which will be great for a person who rides less on a small frame , but at the price , there ’ s work to be done .
RIDING ON SUNSHINE
Garmin Fenix 7 Sapphire Solar Multisport GPS Watch , R17 999 | garmin . com The Fenix 7 is Garmin ’ s most advanced multisports watch to date , and we got to play with it in an ideal test environment . After a speedy set-up via the Garmin Connect app , we biked into deep forests and climbed mountain passes exploring the Seychelles , then swam and even dived with sharks in the deep blue sea in the hot and humid islands . All the while recording each effort and storing the GPS tracks for an event we plan to host in this sporting playground paradise .
You ’ ll find atmospheric pressure , altitude , gradient , temperature and a host more features . More importantly , the science that was once the role of a coach is now included as a training tool accessible to a wider range of athletes . Stats such as stamina and training load are presented in a way that ’ s simple to interpret , revealing the effects of daily , weekly and monthly workouts , and how these relate to your long-term fitness levels and race readiness .
It seems obvious , but we love the big energy boost offered by the Power Sapphire solar-charging watch lens , which converts the sun ’ s energy to all-important battery life with no added weight . It keeps the upgraded features , like GPS , heart rate , health and wellness monitoring sensors , etc , working for much longer . You can expect up to a crazy long 22 days of battery life in sport mode . We live in sunshine country , so this is a no brainer for Saffas .
You have the option of a very accurate chest strap that links to other devices or a surprisingly accurate wrist-based heartrate monitor and pulse oximeter to track your health 24 / 7 . And , yes , sleep stats are the most critical – do you keep an effective eye on your recovery , or thumb suck how you ’ re feeling and when to train hardest ?
The mapping navigation tools are much improved from the Fenix 5 we last trialled , a huge benefit , especially in uncharted territory . One of our group was the navigator who enjoyed the PacePro feature for mapping and planning our trail and road runs .
All this navigation tech comes in a lightweight design featuring a sturdy 33mm display and 47mm case . The control buttons worked perfectly in wet and often sandy tropical island circumstances . These combined with the responsive touchscreen interface made for fast function selection .
gotta have it | MTB | 21