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Christmas 2015: 10 best cycling gifts

Find the perfect present for a cycling fanatic

Monday 30 November 2015 16:20 GMT

If you’ve got a cyclist in your life, then gift-buying becomes a whole lot easier. The range of possibilities is huge.

With the boom in cycling has come a surge in creativity around it - inventive ways with kit, a revolution in aesthetics, a raising of the game that extends from bike parts to cycling literature via clothing and accessories. We don’t think you could go wrong with any of this stuff.

1. Pro Team Aero jersey: £140, Rapha

The Rapha look that did so much to put cycling back on the map 10 years ago was all about discretion – minimal touches on plain backgrounds. Fashions change, and a busier, more graphic-ey look is now in vogue. The pioneering label, still a byword for quality, captures that spirit with this striking jersey.

2. Bouchon jacket, Van-Chilli women's short sleeve jersey: £160 and £150 respectively, Velobici

In the wake of Rapha, a number of other highly tailored labels have come along, and one of the newer ones I really like is Velobici, whose proud boast is that all their kit is manufactured in the UK. But that’s not the only reason to buy it. Velobici’s colour palette is gorgeous and the quality of the finish top-notch.

Buy Bouchon jacket now

Buy Van-Chilli women's short sleeve jersey now

3. Women’s winter jacket: £170, Le Col

I’ve always liked Le Col, the creation some years ago of leading UK pro rider Yanto Barker. The fit is snug and sporty, and just putting on Le Col kit makes you feel like you’re going a whole lot faster. This is a sleek look for the woman sportive rider in your life.

4. DO Blade: £160, POC Sports

I won’t pretend that these haven’t been chosen with style in mind. But POC sunglasses aren’t just for looks. These are superbly designed, super-comfortable and offer maximum protection from the elements.

5. Topeak Joe Blow Sport II track pump: £29.94, Wiggle

Simply the best track pump I have ever come across. Fiddly is the thing we cyclists all want to avoid, especially on a cold morning, and in my experience the connector on this pump works beautifully. The 160psi gauge is easy to read. A robust, durable, precision piece of kit.

6. Brooks Hackney bag: £160, Extra

Brooks is synonymous with saddles. But the ultimate heritage cycling brand brings all its quality to bear on its myriad ruck-sacks, any of which will be great on your ride to work. This one - the Hackney Bag, handmade in Italy – has adjustable shoulder and chest straps, three inner and five outer pockets, a laptop compartment and a water bottle pouch.

7. Cateye VOLT 100 front light: £29.99, Cycle Surgery

You get what you pay for with lights, and the temptation where safety is concerned is not to stint. But you know what – this is a both a superb light and at £29.99 superb value. Easy to fit, re-chargeable, and with two brightness settings, it comes with my highest recommendation in that it’s the light I have on my own bikes.

8. Crankbrothers Y-12 Multi-tool: £24.99, Extra

The good old Allen key has evolved over the years, and this ingenious contraption from Crankbrothers is a great piece of design, super strong, easy to use, and a better shape for your pocket than the traditional key. It comprises three compartments and includes a puncture repair kit. Perhaps not the most romantic present, but your recipient will certainly thank you for it.

9. Cycling prints: from £40 (unframed), Eliza Southwood

Cycing is a “constant inspiration” for illustrator and printmaker Eliza Southwood, who started out as an architect before turning to the thing she most wanted to do, launching her new career some six years ago with an exhibition at the north London bike shop Look Mum No Hands. Southwood, who is 42 and lives in north London, tells me she commutes to work on a Brompton and enjoys riding her Eddy Merckx racer round the countryside but when she had to climb off on a steep hill in the Chilterns realised that sportives probably weren’t for her. She’s made numerous trips to spectate at bike events on the Continent, including watching cyclo-cross in Belgium. I first encountered an Eliza Southwood print on the walls of the very excellent Ronde cycle shop in Edinburgh earlier this year, and I bought it immediately. Uplifting, colourful, and wonderfully evocative – “The 1980s are my era,” she says – an example of Southwood’s work will honour its recipient and offers a super alternative to the purely practical.

10. Rouleur annual subscription: £78 for eight issues, Rouleur

The most aesthetically pleasing cycling magazine in the world. Capturing the pro scene in all its gritty glory, it exudes a sense of cycling history and is the repository of both great writing and great photography. Every issue has “Collector’s Item” written all over it.

Verdict

Some great clothing here - from the pioneering Rapha label plus two others who deserve to flourish - as well as five fine bits of kit and a top read. But our star gift is one illustrator Eliza Southwood's stylish and evocative prints.