It’s the end of another year at off.road.cc! As always, we’ve tried, tested and reviewed all kinds of bikes and kit from all corners of the off-road cycling world. From gravel bikes to heavy-hitting e-mountain bikes, tools and tyres, we’ve racked up a whopping 234 reviews in 2025. Here are only the very best products we’ve tested throughout the year.
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What makes something worthy of a Gear of the Year accolade?
Once a year, we reflect on everything we’ve reviewed in the past 12 months, and consider the very best things we, as a team, have tested. We take a look back at products that have stood out from the crowd, things that have made an impact on our daily riding lives, and those particular bits of kit that we haven’t stopped thinking about since handing them back to the brand after a test.
We then take a look at the review scores. Nothing in this list will have been reviewed with fewer than 4.5 stars. That means that each product is something we would consider buying ourselves, and things that we regularly pick up ahead of a ride. If it has the odd problem, it’s something we’re happy to compromise on for its performance elsewhere. If it’s scored five stars, it’s utter perfection, so we’re talking about some darn good stuff here.
However, it’s not just about scores. In our Gear of the Year awards, we aim to pick kit that achieves an excellent performance-to-price ratio, which is no mean feat. Of course, we also choose gear from both ends of the off-road spectrum, so expect to see kit for everything from gravel to e-enduro.
Mountain bike of the year: Canyon Spectral AL 6
Canyon’s Spectral AL 6 is one of those bikes that hits an excellent price-to-performance ratio. As its name suggests, it’s an alloy version of the excellent Spectral CF, but Canyon has simplified its design. It gets the very same, very good trail geometry, but it loses things like the K.I.S system and a bunch of adjustability. However, that really doesn’t hold the bike back.
What made us like the bike so much is that it comes with a slew of top-notch components that prioritise performance over bling, which all help to deliver a great, fun and confident ride at a neat £2,600. If it’s value we’re talking, the Spectral AL delivers. It’s not the cheapest bike around, but it’s all about bang for buck.
For more, check out the Canyon Spectral AL 6 review.
e-Mountain bike of the year: Merida eOne-Eighty
Ridden by our Ty, the Merida eOne-Eighty is a bike that surprised just as much as it impressed. It’s a 180mm enduro e-bruiser that’s powered by Bosch’s Performance Line CX motor, and it can be kitted with either a 600Wh, or 800Wh battery. Without a doubt, the eOne-Eighty is quite a lump at 27kg.
But this is where the bike surprised. Despite weighing slightly less than a tectonic plate, Merida has managed to tune the bike’s suspension and geometry to bring a refreshingly lively and maneuverable ride. Ty reckons that its suspension helps the wheels track the ground like nothing else he’s ridden, while the unsprung to sprung weight ratio allows the suspension to be active but not overly so, resulting in serious stability.
There’s plenty of support in that rear suspension too, as Ty states that it does a great job of hiding the bike’s overall weight. It’s poppy and lively, all while balancing the steamroller-like performance when pushing through nastier terrain.
Here’s the Merida eOne-Eighty 900 review for a deeper dive.
Gravel bike of the year: Whyte Verro
This year, Whyte blasted back onto the gravel scene after a brief hiatus. With that, it unveiled two new gravel bikes, with one being the Verro. It’s another bike that hits an excellent price-to-performance ratio as it comes in at a very friendly £1,800, but according to tester, Matt Page, it provides plenty of control on the downhills, and it’s loaded with mounts, so it’s primed for big outings in the wilderness.
As you might expect of a bike of this money, the Verro is built around an alloy frame, and there’s plenty of clearance for fat and modern gravel tyres. It’s wisely specified with SRAM 1x shifting and a dropper post, which may have some gravel purists up in arms.
Built as a do-it-all gravel bike, that’s exactly how Matt tested it, all while pushing the Verro’s limits where he could. He was impressed with the Verro’s mountain bike-inspired geometry as the numbers resulted in a confident, descent-focused ride and balanced climbing character. Matt also reckons that the bike can be made even better with a suspension fork.
If you’re keen to know more about how it rides, here’s the Whyte Verro review.
Clothing of the year: Leatt Ride Kit MTB 1.0
£100 for a pair of trousers and a jersey? Yeah, that’s a tough ask, but that’s exactly what Leatt’s Ride Kit MTB 1.0 is – a very solid jersey and excellent riding pants.
The duo is fairly basic; there are no two ways about it, but basic doesn’t mean bad. The jersey comes with all of the right tech to help it breathe and wick moisture, all while fitting excellently with slim sleeves and a baggier torso.
The trousers, however, are a shining part of this whole package. They fit well, breathe well and provide just enough protection to keep mild spray from getting uncomfortable. All that for £100 makes for a kit that’ll suit anyone who rides trail through the downhill. There’s plenty of room in the trousers for bulky knee pads, and well, the kit just hits top marks, and for a price-point product, there’s nothing to moan about.
I still ride in the ride kit fairly regularly, even as things have gotten wetter, so head over to the Leatt Ride Kit MTB 1.0 review to find out more about why.
Get all of the info in the Leatt Ride Kit MTB 1.0 review.
Shoes of the year: Ride Concepts Hellion
Ride Concepts is on an absolute stormer this year. Ty tested the Hellion Clip, and I rode the flat pedal version of the shoe, and we were equally impressed. Previously, Ride Concepts’ shoes were good, but there was always something that held them back but with the Hellion, the brand has pretty much nailed it.
The flat shoe provides tonnes of grip and support in a comfortable and surprisingly weather-resistant package. The Hellion Clip is built a little differently with a Boa dial and a wrap-around closure, but Ty reckons it is excellent thanks to its generous cleat channel, stiffness and vibration reduction. Both sets have shown excellent durability, too.
Here’s our review on the Ride Concept Hellion and the Ride Concepts Hellion Clip Boa shoes.
Helmet of the year: Fox Racing Speedframe Pro
The Fox Speedframe sits with the likes of the Troy Lee Designs A1 and A3 helmets. It’s hit a status where it’s equal parts cool and functional, and not many helmets manage to get to that point. However, earlier in the year, Fox Racing brought a long-awaited update.
Now, it looks even cooler with its sharper lines, but it’s packed with more features that make it better to live with. Its sunglasses dock is super secure, its Boa fit system provides tonnes of adjustment, and importantly, it’s comfortable. The Speedframe Pro isn’t terribly heavy either, and when paired with plenty of vents, it’s been the helmet that I’ve reached for after every helmet test this year.
Click on over to the Fox Speedframe Pro review to find out more.
Wheelset of the year: Hunt 25 Carbon Gravel X-Wide
Gravel is developing incredibly quickly, especially as road-inspired aerodynamics have come into play, and perhaps light mountain bike-inspired riding. Hunt’s 25 Carbon Gravel X-Wide wheelset is one of those products that’s bang on trend, providing a wide 27mm internal rim width and strength that would impress even modern cross-country riders.
However, this wheelset is designed especially for gravel, and Hunt has done a great job of specifying it with all of the right kit that helps it perform on the bike. Matt says that some riders might want a faster freehub, but some points that have held Hunt’s wheels back have been rectified. They should be easy to service and repair, too, thanks to the fact that they run only a few different spoke lengths. Matt reckons that these wheels are so reliable that he would have no issue taking them somewhere properly remote.
Here’s the Hunt 25 Carbon Gravel X-Wide review for a closer look.
Accessory of the year: Tailfin Long Top Tube Bag 1.1L Flip Lid
Although he’s very much of an enduro persuasion, our Ty has been enjoying life on the more leisurely side, choosing the odd bikepacking adventure to break up his usual hell for leather riding. Having spent some quality time with the Mason Macro, which meant a big week-long trip up in Scotland, where he put Tailfin’s Long Top Tube Bag 1.1L Flip Lid to the test.
As it uses a flip lid, rather than the very common zip closure, he found it easy to access while on the move, even with one hand and very secure regardless of how he mounted it to his bike, whether that was directly with bolts, or with the included strap. It is on the pricier end of the spectrum, but its quality more than justifies its cost.
Eyewear of the year: Smith Optics Motive
Smith Optics is renowned for its range of glasses and eyewear. The Motive does things a little differently as it’s the only dual-lensed pair of specs in the whole of Smith’s range. However, it gets all of the usual hallmarks from the brand, including ChromaPop technology and interchangeable lenses.
At first, Jimmer wasn’t a big fan of their look, but it grew on him fairly quickly, he says. Winning him over further was their fit, versatility and unobstructed field of view. They come with clear lenses in the pack, which is always a big plus, and that ChromaPop tech makes them well worth the cash, Jimmer reckons. The lenses are small, too, so they can be easily carried about if the fitted lenses aren’t perfect for the current conditions.
Head over to the Tailfin Top Tube Bag – 1.1L Flip-Lid review for more.
Tyre of the year: Specialized Butcher Grid Trail
The Butcher is one of those staple names in mountain biking, joining the likes of the Minion and the Magic Mary. You hear those names, you know what folk are talking about. In fact, the Butcher has been around for a good while now, but this year, Specialized revamped the tyre once again.
As a result, the newest version of the Butcher provides exceptional grip in a range of conditions with a casing that balances plenty of protection with good comfort. It’s not a heavy tyre either, but the best bit is that it costs just £50.
If you’re in the market for an affordable but excellent tyre, check out the Specialized Butcher review to learn more.
Component of the Year: SRAM Eagle 90 Transmission
SRAM’s Transmission drivetrains came to the market with folks standing on their mechs to prove how strong they are. But importantly, it brought more definite shifting, smoother shifting under a lot of power and impressive durability. However, upon release and further into 2024, none of the T-Type drivetrains were mechanical.
That was until March 2025, when SRAM unveiled its Eagle 90 and Eagle 70 mechanical drivetrains. Both took the Full Mount derailleur from the T-Type ecosystem but threw in good ol’ cable actuation, which made the technologies more affordable, but without relying on battery power.
And both are belters of drivetrains, but Eagle 90 is the only one of the two that can be bought as an upgrade. During our test, we found it to be lighter than the bulk of SRAM’s AXS T-Type drivetrains while performing very similarly, which is a great thing because Eagle 90 shifts with the directness and assurance of a T-Type system, but without the weight or cost. Then, because it doesn’t rely on a motor in the derailleur or a Bluetooth connection between the mech and shifter, general shifting is faster, all while providing the durability that Transmission has made its name for.
If Eagle 90 is the start of what’s to come from the whole Transmission concept, I’m very excited to find out what’s next. Here’s the SRAM Eagle 90 Transmission review.
