Gear of the year: Josh Croxton's favourite tech from 2022

Following the impossibly difficult years of 2020 and 2021, it turns out the post-pandemic era isn't the bright light at the end of the tunnel we all hoped it'd be. 2022 has been another difficult year for a lot of people, both within the bike industry and beyond. Families are facing a cost of living crisis, with inflation at its highest rate since the early 1980s in both the UK and USA. 

Companies within the cycling industry are feeling it too, descending from the dizzying heights of the pandemic boom faster than Tom Pidcock on rails or Primoz Roglic on skis. Market leaders such as Zwift and Wahoo have been forced to lay off staff. Even the behemoth that is Specialized has cut ties with a bunch of ambassadors, and publisher Outside Inc has laid off long-serving staff too, to much public dismay. Elsewhere, others such as Saris, are on the brink of disappearing altogether. It's not a pretty time to be in business, it would seem.

Gee, Josh, thanks for the uplifting start. Merry Christmas to you too. 

Forgive me, but I've started my 'Gear of the year' on that uplifting note for good reason. Through the difficulties, I've had a few pertinent reminders that cycling – or more broadly, exercise – is an outlet. Iain Treloar, soon-to-be-former writer at CyclingTips and all-round very good egg, previously wrote that he forgets to ride when he needs it most. That has happened a couple of times to me this year, and while it's not a shiny piece of cycling tech as is oft expected within a 'Gear of the year', the related lesson is the first and most important thing I wanted to put into this year's list. 

1. Just ride the damn bike

Heed this reminder that riding your bike is a seriously incredible tool that can not only benefit our physical health, but our mental health too. When tiredness, rising energy bills, work stress, or anything else beating the same negative tune into your brain become overwhelming to the point that you'd rather just curl up on the sofa and doomscroll through Instagram, cycling - nay, exercise - is absolutely your friend. The rest of this article will be full of my favourite tech, but before we get there, it's important not to lose sight of the fact that the tech isn't very useful if you're not actually using it, and hence, just riding the bike is the most important thing. 

When the brain fog descends for me, riding into a disgusting headwind for an hour and enjoying the tailwind home, meeting mates for a café ride, taking the dog to the woods on a gravel bike (me on the bike, not him), or jumping onto Zwift for a group ride makes me feel a million times better, and I hope it does you too. 

But - and this is a big but - it is far from the only solution. As good as bikes are, they're not a substitute for the sound advice of a GP or mental health professional. 

Anyway, with that heavy topic covered, let's step into the lighter stuff, and probably the reason you came: my favourite cycling gear. 

Despite everything I've said above, in hindsight, I've actually done a lot of things that 'bring me joy' this year, to coin a very 2022 phrase. I started running and entered a duathlon for the first time, I raced numerous criteriums in Spring, I went to Switzerland and Chased Cancellara around the Alps, I raced cyclocross for a bit. I even introduced my dog to bikejoring, a lesser-known sport that I will explain shortly. I've had some great times, and many of them have been on two wheels. 

Throughout the year, I've tested some of the best gravel bikes, I went to a wind tunnel to test some wheels, I whiled away many an hour testing the best smart trainers and more.

Such is the actual purpose of a gear of the year roundup, the remainder of this list will be full of my favourite items used this year. Some are brand new technologies, others are appreciations of old. Some are high-ticket items, others are much more affordable. They are things I've used, enjoyed, and either look at with fondness or see huge potential for how they could affect our lives. 

2. Classified Powershift 

The best way to sum up the Powershift is to recall the same way I've described it in a few headlines this year: the 'Front Derailleur Killer'. Essentially, it is a two-speed gear system built into the rear hub that connects wirelessly to an electronic shifter or add-on at the handlebars. The gear in question swaps between a ratio of 1:1 to a 1:0.7, making for a similar difference to most road chainsets. 

I've used it on a few occasions this year and the first thing that impressed me was how immediate the gear shift is, no matter the power going through the pedals; it's like flipping a switch. Secondly, you don't even need to shift when pedalling, so you can fix your gear selection when stationary at traffic lights, when descending and more. 

It pairs with traditional groupsets such as Shimano Dura-Ace or Sram Red, but enables the rider to run a 1X chainset up front, rather than 2X. The potential benefits of this are as wide-ranging as the gear ratio it enables. Time triallists can benefit from a 2X gearing system but without having the aero penalty of the chainset and derailleur. Riders - and racers - from both gravel and road can enjoy 2X gearing with less likelihood of the chain being shipped off the chainring. The brand promises development into mountian biking and urban cycling too, so I'm excited to see where it goes. 

3. Exposure Strada 

As I mentioned, I took part in Chasing Cancellara at the end of the summer. It was a 275km ride - my hardest ever, in fact - from Zurich to Zermatt, and it started at the frankly disgusting time of 2am. This meant I needed a light that would take me from 2am through to sunrise (approximately 7am) with enough lumenage to allow me to navigate a route I'd literally never seen before. 

I reached out to Exposure and the kind folks let me borrow the Strada Mk11 SB AkTiv from their demo program. After a few hours of sitting in groups and not needing full power, I rolled to the front of the group and thought I'd give the brightest setting a whirl. I was so impressed with it, that I laughed aloud. Not purely at the brightness, but at how efficiently it puts the beam onto the road. 

In addition, it's easy to use, has a minute-by-minute battery countdown, comes with a variety of mounting options, and its machined aluminium finish feels extremely premium in the hand. 

Upon returning home, the time came to send it back to Exposure, but I was so enamoured with the thing that I chose to buy it. It's sitting charging on my desk in front of me as I type. 

4. S-Works Tarmac SL6 Disc

Uh, Josh, we're on SL7 now, didn't you know? Oh I know, I even spent a year using it. I loved the Tarmac SL7, but I love my own Tarmac SL6 more. 

I have a fairly regular stream of new bikes coming through my door, and if I were being totally honest with myself, I have very little need for the Tarmac SL6. I first told myself I'd sell it in early 2020, but here we are, almost three years later, and I still use it almost as much as any other bike in my possession. 

It was the only bike I wanted to ride on the 275km jaunt through the Swiss Alps. It's the bike I used for my criteriums, and it's the bike I used in the duathlon. I stopped short of using it in 'cross races, but it's my favourite bike. Full stop, the end, I'll hear no arguments. 

 5. Ridley Kanzo Fast 

Wait, what? How can you include another bike after waxing lyrical about ye olde faithful up there? 

This is my Gear of the year, I make the rules. 

The Ridley Kanzo Fast was sent as a means for me to try out Campagnolo Ekar, and it quickly transformed into a long term test bike that I rate incredibly highly. I like Ekar as a groupset in its own right, though I wouldn't say it's my favourite gravel groupset (GRX Di2, thanks for asking). The braking is great, and the shifting is crisp, but the loud clunk of Campag's shifting irks me a little, the step-up from bar tape to hood becomes uncomfortable beneath my hands (weirdly more on my right hand) over longer rides, and I much prefer 2x groupsets, because I live in an area where hills are 20% or go home. 

I've raced the Kanzo in 'cross, I've ridden it for many many-hour gravel rides, I've used it for dozens of commutes and more. It's an aero 'gravel race' bike, but it can take mudguards, making it a decent mix of utility and fun. 

6. Zwift Hub

In a world where things are getting more expensive all the time, it's refreshing when something comes out without a million taglines of being harder, better, faster, stronger, and instead says 'cheaper' or 'easier'. 

With the Zwift Hub, Zwift announced a turbo trainer that is smart, easy to use, with features in line with the competition, while also being around 40% cheaper. While that's not done great things for the other brands occupying the middle section of the market, it's brought the startup cost of an indoor cycling setup down considerably for the public, meaning more people have been able to afford to start - or continue - cycling in the otherwise financially difficult year of 2022. 

As a unit in itself, it's really rather good too. It offers 2% power accuracy, enough flywheel inertia to replicate a decent real-ride feeling, and stable enough to deal with every watt I've thrown at it (yeah, all 17 of 'em!). 

Sure, it's not as good as the Wahoo Kickr or Elite Justo for example, but at less than half the price, it's not trying to be. 

7. NonStop Bikejor gear

Hands up if you have any idea what I'm talking about. No, I didn't think so. 

I'll let NATB Dog Sports explain what bikejor means: "Bikejoring is simply attaching your dog to the front of your bike and letting them pull/run in front of you. Most dog breeds are suitable for bikejoring. Its best to go off road, single track trails around woodlands are the best." 

To elaborate: it is borne out of mushing, which is most commonly known for groups of huskies pulling sleds in the snow (Google 'Iditarod' if you're still unsure). In bikejoring, a bungee line is attached to the bike – usually wrapped around the head tube or steerer – through an antenna to stop it from getting tangled in the front wheel, and then to the dog via a running-specific harness designed to allow the dog to pull safely. The dog runs, you ride behind, and together you have an all-round great time. 

I bought the NonStop Bike Antennae and Bungee Leash early on in the year, and it's made my Gear of the year because it's opened up an entirely new sport for me. One full of friendly people spending time doing something they love with their dogs.

I mentioned Duke in last year's Gear of the year (and the year before that, and I will mention him again next year...); he's an English Pointer and is commonly referred to, in this household at least, as the goodest of boys. He and my fiancée race in canicross, the running equivalent of bikejoring, and he loves it. Throughout 2022, I have begun introducing him to the bike, and though we've not taken it past the occasional group ride with the local canicross club, he loves every second. 

I've seen at those races that bikejoring is a refreshing departure from road racing. Anyone can get involved, you don't need a race license, there's no sock height stigma, unwritten dress code or anything else. It's just you, your dog, a stopwatch, and cheese toasties at the finish (srsly). Sure it's still competitive, but I don't think this sport will push me to the brink of an eating disorder. 

And with Zero, our new Eurohound, coming home after Christmas, I'm sure there'll be more to come in the sport of bikejoring for me! Head to NonStopDogwear to view more.