Cyclist popped along to Madison's house event IceBike this week to see what one of the UK's largest cycling distributors had in store for 2018.
Ridley, Shimano and Lazer were just three of the brands on show and below we have compiled the five items that caught our eye.
A revamped Genesis Zero
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UK domestic team Madison-Genesis’s race rig has been overhauled this year. The headline improvement is significant drop in weight but in general the frame looks alot sleeker and more integrated.
The junctions at the top and bottom of the headtube looking particularly refined, presumably in a bid to improve aerodynamics. The rim-brake frame has moved to direct-mount brakes and there is now a disc version available too.
Trelock SL 460 Smartlock, £105.99
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Granted, locks aren’t the most exciting product but German brand Trelock has just produced something novel in its SL 460 Smartlock.
The device is unlocked wirelessly using your phone via an app or a key fob so has no mechanism for crafty thieves to pick, and the brand says the wireless protocol is impossible to hack.
Finish Line tubeless tyre sealant, £TBC
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We appreciate getting excited about tyre sealant is pretty geeky but Finish Line genuinely seems to have bumped road tubeless technology up another notch with its new product.
In contrast to its competitors, Finish Line’s new sealant is latex-free, which means it will not dry out over time or cure if the tyre is inflated with a CO2 canister (which effectively freezes normal sealant and renders it useless).
Where other brands use simple plastic flakes or even just glitter, Finish Line uses Kevlar fibres that apparently plug punctures quicker and more effectively.
Yorkie Pro chocolate bar, £1.49
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As if it wasn’t good enough already that you can buy high-protein Mars and Snickers bars, you can now buy high-protein Yorkies too.
Yorkie packs over 10 grams of protein in its new Pro bars, which also contain 35% less sugar than regular Yorkies. Staying on that pre-summer diet just got a bit easier.
Shimano Evolve kit, £TBC
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The components giant is really starting to expand its soft goods catalogue and is producing some genuinely intriguing ride kit.
Shimano’s Evolve range sits below its top-flight S-Phyre line but contains similar design cues and technologies at a more affordable price point.
Evolve’s fit is just as racy and the fabric is claimed to be aerodynamic, lightweight and very breathable, ideal for summer crits.