For little jobs and frequent flyers, the Granite Hex Stand is ideal. It's never going to replace a full workstand, but I found it mostly stable and robust enough for cleaning and travelling. As a pure workstand, it's easily beaten by anything that clamps the bike – I'd see this more as a secondary stand, one to take in a bike box on holiday.

Scott’s RC Raceday 60 bag is the premium option for transporting your race kit to an event. You get a compartment for everything which helps massively for remembering gear when the kit list gets long. The shoulder straps are brilliant and it’s comfortable to carry a heavy load.

Fizik's X5 Terra is a stylish, sleek and comfortable shoe with a sole that is stiff enough for big power efforts yet still comfortable on long rides. They’re slightly narrow, but the upper forms to the foot while being durable too. I’m a big fan of these shoes.

These FLR Defender Winter Shoes are incredibly effective at trapping heat but your trousers will need to cover the ankle section if you want to stay dry in wet weather. These are tough shoes that will survive the worst conditions, but the drawcord closure system isn’t the most secure.

Pivot's new carbon 100mm travel cross-country race bike is a lightweight full sus with the DW-Link suspension system that's been designed for Pivot’s athletes coming into their Olympic year. It's dropped weight over the previous model while also getting longer and slacker.

Last year’s World Championship Downhill couldn’t have been much closer.

Video: Who's faster? Mountain biker or roadie?

Hot off the heels of Danny MacAskill's new video, Chris Akrigg dropped this insane edit that has left our jaws firmly dropped to the floor. We really are being spoiled lately...

Pivot has launched two new and more affordable models to its all-carbon Shuttle e-MTB range. The bike has also seen a slight bump in front wheel travel to 160mm along with a move to short offset forks and 29" wheels.

•  9 ways to ensure you survive your first mountain bike marathon

Following on from some seriously dodgy overtaking of horses, Cycling UK and The British Horse Society are launching a campaign called "Be Nice, Say Hi" that aims to promote harmony between equestrians, cyclists and other user groups.

• Mountain bikers save woman and child from being trampled by cows in Snowdonia