Everyone fed up with the rain and dreaming of spring and a bit of sunshine? Sorry to any Australian readers, but here in the UK the next few months can’t come soon enough. Regardless of whether you found a brighter window to head outside this weekend or stuck with the turbo trainer, here’s our latest tech round-up of all the hot new stuff we spotted this week to keep you entertained today.
We’ve got a major new helmet launch from Giro, head-turning stuff from Pas Normal Studios that probably won’t be for everyone and plenty more new bike tech to share, so let’s get cracking…
Giro reckons Eclipse Pro helmet “sets new benchmark” as “most advanced aero road” lid
First up is Giro’s new Eclipse Pro helmet, a top-of-the-range aero lid designed for the world’s fastest riders (or just those who want to feel like that). It’s, in true bike brand launches new product style, apparently the “most advanced” aero road helmet Giro has ever produced and “sets a new benchmark for aerodynamic efficiency, ventilation, and race-day protection”.
How is Giro so confident? That comes from the fact it was developed at the brand’s in-house wind tunnel facility and R&D lab (that’s research and development for anyone wondering). Giro says the design process involved Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) modelling, iterative clay shaping, and full-scale wind-tunnel validation, the result a new silhouette which “optimises airflow across critical boundary layers while maintaining the lightweight feel and balanced ventilation”.
That’s certainly something we’ll be interested to see when we test one of these, aero helmets are too often uncomfortably warm to wear due to their air-cutting design, understandably, rarely lending itself particularly well to getting air to sweaty heads.
Giro tells us “early testing and competition with WorldTour athletes and elite domestic racers” confirmed “measurable gains in aerodynamic efficiency, thermal regulation, and all-day comfort”, although the launch did not include any numbers to back this up.
However, with Wout van Aert, Pauline Ferrand-Prévot, Jonas Vingegaard and the rest of the Visma-Lease a Bike pros rocking this in the season ahead (as well as to Ferrand-Prévot’s yellow jersey last season, Van Aert’s Paris masterclass and Vingegaard’s Vuelta) it is probably fair to conclude, as Giro has, that it is the brand’s “fastest aero road helmet to date”. It would be a strange sponsor decision to have your riders in anything less.
The official consumer launch for the Eclipse Pro is not until February 15 so you won’t find any further info on Giro’s website just yet, but the brand tells us the new lid will cost £249.99 (€329.99). Limited edition team helmets will be more expensive and available later in 2026, although exact pricing details are to be confirmed.
A £60 bucket hat and £190 “tech skirt”? Pas Normal Studios’ newest off-bike range is… interesting
I’m the last person you want to be asking for fashion advice so, as ever, I’ll leave it to the brand to explain the thinking behind this. Pas Normal Studios has launched its new ‘Off-race’ collection “shaped by cycling’s utilitarian roots” and offering riders something (very expensive) to don when off the bike (and presumably out of your expensive PNS kit) “travelling through the city, into nature and back home again”.
We’ve got… a £190 Off-Race Tech Skirt, £190 Off-Race Tech trousers, a £260 poncho, £139 shirt, £43 caps, a £60 bucket hat and £17 bandanas. Combined I’m guessing you’d look something like a build-your-own video game character, but maybe people more stylish than us will make it work.
Is gold grease really faster and longer lasting?
Doing this job means you read more than your fair share of new product launches and, more to the point, cycling brands making big claims about said products. Joining the list is this one from Chris King who reckons its new lubricant, Gold Grease, optimised for hub and bottom bracket bearings “makes you faster” and “improves bearing life”.
As Chris King president Kirby Bedsaul said earlier this week: “Obviously, we put a lot of effort into making our components look good and last a long time but at the end of the day, riders want components that perform, and that has always been one of our core tenets, too. Gold Grease reduces bearing drag and improves bearing life, so it quite literally makes you faster. It’s also a more stable lubricant, so it extends service life, too.”
Apparently the grease was discovered during testing, which saw a number of lubricants put through speed and wear tests.
The press release continues: “What they discovered is that Gold Grease was both more lubricious AND more stable. It yielded faster hubs right out of the box and then allowed those hubs to get even faster over time, and it took longer to break down under heavy use than any of the other lubricants tested, including the company’s own Silver Grease, which has been discontinued.”
Chris King puts the drag reduction at 25 per cent over Silver Grease and 16 per cent less at 1,000 miles versus the older product. The brand also intriguingly claims the Gold Grease produces 18 per cent less drag at 1,000 miles than when brand new, giving “some context to the company’s frequent claim that bearings get faster over time”.
“With hubs, but really with all components that use bearings, you’re looking at two characteristics, drag and durability,” Bedsaul continued. “Gold Grease gives us a huge advantage in reducing drag, which is really about gaining speed. It’s funny to get so excited about grease, but honestly, these are the details that make all the difference. Our Downhill World Championship win with Jackson Goldstone last year showed us we’re on the right path.”
What do you reckon? Are you sold on gold?
Canyon partners with L’Étape du Tour
Some quick news for anyone riding L’Étape this summer. Canyon is now a major partner of the sportive and will provide “event support”. No word yet if that means you’ll be able to pop to the start village to pick up a 6.7kg Canyon Ultimate CFR for the big ride, but we’ll keep you posted.
The UCI gets to work on its controversial new handlebar rules
Coming to a startline near you…
📏 La regla de los 28 centímetros
➡️ Uno de los nuevos controles de la UCI en 2026 es medir, en cada salida, el ancho de los manillares, midiendo 28 cm como máximo
🚲 El que no pase el control… tiene que modificarlo
☀️ El @CajaRural_RGA, en acción
📹 @danimiranda9 (Omán) pic.twitter.com/XOtksXa2fy— AS Ciclismo (@As_Ciclismo) February 6, 2026
1 thought on “Giro reckons new Eclipse Pro is “most advanced aero road” lid, plus Pas Normal Studios’ new off-bike range includes £60 bucket hat and £190 “tech skirt””
Love the Nun skirt. PAS gone Lulu