OK, so current MTB trends don’t tend toward ‘disco slippers’, but if you aren’t a fashion victim then you’ll be looking for the best performing product out there, and we love the Dominator shoes because they are so light, strong and rigid; perfect for trail riding and they’ll do everything better than flat-style SPD shoes, although it has to be said you won’t be going down the pub in them after your ride.

We may joke about the slipper styling, but that does give you the best fit of any bike shoe, and better fit means more power and less foot fatigue at the end of the day. The Lorica Microfibre upper construction is water repellent, breathable, tear resistant and actually moulds to the shape of your foot, and then the sole is made from carbon reinforced nylon. All of the tread is replaceable, as is the excellent ratchet system, and we know first hand that because of this these shoes last for years and years. There’s also a two year warranty on all the non-replaceable parts, which we think along with their overall performance helps justify the hefty price tag.

PRICE: £229.99

Big Bear Sports 02089 919 255

www.sidiuk.co.uk

The soles have that perfect blend of stiffness and flexibility so that they don’t waste any power when you’re on the bike, and yet they’re still comfy to walk in, plus they give a decent amount of grip. These shoes are built to last too with their functional lace covers and shiny wipe clean surface they’re ideally suited to UK muck, something that really can’t be said about some of the competition. All-in-all a great UK SPD shoe that is loved by many riders and racers alike.

PRICE: £74.99

www.madison.co.uk
www.shimano.com

For several years riders who wanted their unbeatable level of grip had to make do with clumsy club-foot styling and black or white only colour options. Five Ten have really sorted it out now though, with a large range of shoe models available and this Freerider VXI shoe highlights their devotion to progression with its smooth twist-pad section of the sole enabling easier re-positioning of the foot on the pedal if needed. It’s only a small advance but if you found your Five Tens too grippy, this little innovation could be just what you’re after.

PRICE: £95.00

Bigstone 01142 586 688
www.fiveten.com

Finally a competitor to Five Ten! There are plenty of flat pedal specific shoes out there, as well as innumerable non-specific skate shoes that will do the job, but when your bike and body is bouncing over rough terrain at break-neck speeds you really want your feet to be as close to glued to those pedals as possible, and until the introduction of this Gravel shoe from Vans, no-one could even come close to Five Ten’s sticky Stealth Rubber sole.

It would be easy to talk about legendary Vans styling, so too the proven waffle pattern sole, or even the revered construction of the company’s shoes, but what is most important is the grip factor, and we really have to say that these probably steal the show in the market right now. If there’s one thing we’d have to doubt though, it would be the Gravel’s rigidity – particularly around the toes, but it really is a small trade-off for owning the best looking and possibly best gripping shoes in mountain biking.

PRICE: £84.99

Vans 0080080 001 966
www.vans.co.uk

Although the majority of riders are most at home in a set of knee-only pads, the 5450 knee and shin guards from TLD are so comfortable that we can’t see why everyone doesn’t consider them.

Anyone who has tried a set of these on is amazed by their lightness and also by the fact that they do very little to restrict movement. These don’t have any velcro strapping which may deter those with skinnier legs, but the lycra that holds them in place on your leg will help to keep you warm on winter rides, making them a great option for UK riders. Contrary to the genetics of the O’Neal pads, these have a hard shell with softer foam behind, good news for impact-resistant foam doubters out there.

The amount of protection on offer might not meet everyone’s DH needs, but for trail riding these simply can’t be beaten. Styling is something that Troy Lee never fails to succeed at and the 5450’s are some of the coolest looking pads out there, we like these an awful lot.

PRICE: £54.99

Fisher Outdoor Leisure 01727 798 340
www.troyleedesigns.com

Comfortable, lightweight, minimal. What else do you need to know about Scott’s Minus gloves?

Well everything that comes out of the Scott factory seems to have ultimate performance mixed with quality styling and long life-span, and the Minus gloves are easily the best winter glove on sale right now. These are made to keep your hands warm throughout even the harshest of winters and that they most certainly do, without being in the slightest bit bulky and with no kooky padding on the palm as some other manufacturers seem insistent on featuring throughout winter ranges. This is all thanks to the soft and comfortable Windstopper material that keeps out the cold wind (of course!) and also all but the heaviest of rain. They come in at the expensive end of the glove world but you will be more than thankful for them when your hands are warm and snug on every ride all winter long.

As a side-note, Scott also make a liner glove that costs just under thirty pounds to ensure that all bases are covered for those who ride in super cold climates.

PRICE: £42.99

Scott Sports 01670 712 129
www.scott-sports.com

O’Neal have definitely hit the nail on the head though, and although these Sinner pads use a thick and reasonably heavy layer of ‘SC-1 by SAS-TEC’ (similar to d3o which is used by other brands), they are still malleable enough to be extremely comfortable and leave your knee free enough even for them to be one of our favourites for enduro and trail type riding. Smash your knee into the ground and the foam firms up well, we haven’t had any scares at all and feel perfectly confident in the SC-1’s ability to protect our knees.

With downhill World Champion Greg Minnaar on board, O’Neal were bound to make the most of the partnership, and his feedback from using the already great Sinner pads has resulted in these nigh on perfect signature pads. Just make sure you get the right size as they do come up a little small.

PRICE: £76.99
Fli Distribution 01613 048 555
www.oneal.com

With Swiss resident Ben Walker on-board with Scott product development (if you haven’t heard of him, he’s a man with more passion for bikes than probably any other and a world record sewing-machine collection in his house) you can be sure that every single gravity product has been designed, refined and refined again to arrive at the best possible outcome.

The Recruit armour is light and very flexible thanks to the heavy-duty d3o (impact resistant foam) in the back plate, shoulder and elbow pads. Basically this is a compression vest with sewn in protection, so something that riders with a dislike of conventional and bulky body armour will be interested in. There isn’t a single strap in sight and once on you genuinely forget you’re wearing it, it just moves with you like a second skin. The ability to remove all the pads also means that you can tailor the protection to what you need for a particular ride, but with everything in place there’s little else out there that’ll offer you more protection, and there’s certainly not anything as comfortable.

PRICE:£129.99

Scott Sports 01670 712 129
www.scott-sports.com

Neck braces are still relatively new on the mountain bike scene, but we think it’s fair to say they’ve earned their place and aren’t going to be disappearing any time soon.

Leatt have had an absolute hold on the market since the fashion gods accepted their use, and it’s hard to deny their pedigree or popularity. However, this Atlas brace has stolen the show this year because of both its unbeatable value and great design.

Coming in a fair bit cheaper than the competition, yet still offering quality and function is hard to achieve, yet Atlas have done just that. Designed with comfort and practicality in mind, there isn’t the open/close procedure necessary with other neck braces, just pop it over your head and away you go. Straying from the ‘bog seat’ characteristics of more rigid neck braces (although retaining the styling), the Atlas has also been designed to flex where possible without sacrificing safety, making this the most comfortable neck brace we know of.

PRICE: £249.99

Decade 01792 469 811
www.atlasbrace.com

Swedish company POC have a real eye for innovation and the new Crane helmet looks set to retain that reputation, with its 2012 Eurobike Award backing it up. The award is given to a company or product with great sense of innovation and function, two words that absolutely encompass all that POC are about.

Aimed at the ‘freeride’ market, this lid will appeal to all sorts of UK riders, from dirt jumpers to aggressive trail riders, and will also most certainly live up to POC’s unbeatable safety standards. The lid is lightweight and yet it’s probably the most protective ‘piss-pot’ style helmet available – POC would settle for nothing less after all – featuring a dual density liner ‘EPS sandwich construction’ which basically means one layer slightly softer than the other to aid slowing-down in the event of a head impact.

A hard outer shell makes this less susceptible to dents than most helmets too, so it could be perfect for those who tend to throw their kit into the back of a car or kit bag after a ride. It’s great to see a piss-pot lid featuring a proper adjustable retention system too.

PRICE: £100.00

2Pure 08448 112 001
www.pocsports.com