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The 15 Pieces of Gear Ideal for Powering Up Your Cycling Adventures

Cycling is one of the best ways to enjoy the great outdoors. Make it even more enjoyable with this gear.

a helmet on a road landscape with a bike headline and outdoor badge icon

By Hayley Helms

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This story is part of the 2023 Outdoor Awards. To see the full list of winners, click here.

Whether it’s race day or just another lap around the neighborhood, what’s the most important thing about cycling besides putting your feet on the pedals and pushing off? That’s right — your kit.

Gone are the days of riding around in that old cotton sweatshirt and (God forbid) blue jeans. Whether you’re into road, mountain or gravel riding, each discipline has a corresponding kit as unique as the terrain it’s meant for. With a plethora of options — and the products only getting better — determining what suits you for cycling can be like finding the Spandex needle in the haystack. Don’t stress too much, though; the following 15 products will get you, and your kit, pretty damn well dialed-in. See you out there.

Compact carry makes all the difference when you’re commuting or traveling by bicycle, and this lightweight wonder helps keep packing to a minimum. When it’s not in use, tuck it under your bike seat or clip it onto your belt loop.

READ MORE: The Best Bike Locks for Every Cyclist

Calling all design-forward cyclists: you can bring your favorite beverage on the go in this elegant, functional bottle. It scores bonus points for fitting in any standard cage and for keeping coffee warm with double-wall insulation.

READ MORE: Best Travel Mugs for Any Occasion

If you’re looking for a race-day bib that is reliable, performance-oriented, lightweight and damn good looking to boot, consider this your sign.

READ MORE: The Best Cycling Bibs for Men and Women

Adidas Five Ten Sleuth DLXADIDAS

Best Budget-Friendly MTB Shoes

Adidas Five Ten Sleuth DLX

The Sleuth is a dependable, comfortable flat mountain bike shoe that delivers just what it promises: no-nonsense performance. No fuss, no frills, just performance, pedal stroke after pedal stroke.

READ MORE: The Best Mountain Bike Shoes

Surprisingly lightweight, with more coverage than the average road helmet, the Altis feels right at home both on-road and off. Just don’t take it downhilling.

READ MORE: The Best Bike Helmets for Every Type of Riding

With a surprising amount of power at a reasonable price, it doesn’t take much to figure out why this is our favorite overall e-bike. Factor in the Gates carbon belt drive, the five levels of pedal assist and the 30–60 mile range, and it’s a no-brainer.

READ MORE: The 12 Best E-Bikes You Can Ride Right Now

Track your time, distance, heart rate, cadence, effort and so much more with what we’re betting is the last cycling GPS you’ll ever buy. Yes, it’s that good.

READ MORE: What We Love About the Garmin Edge 1040

Thousand used eight years of feedback to create the new version of its popular helmet, which features a hybrid head form that can fit a wide range of head shapes comfortably. Inclusivity, meet style.

READ MORE: The Best New Outdoor Gear of 2023 (So Far)

When tech is comparable, aesthetics are what really make or break a pair of shades. With the Norvik, you get both in spades.

READ MORE: The Best Cycling Sunglasses for Any Rider

Besides being fast and comfortable, this bike is just damn fun. Plenty of travel, progressive geometry and 47mm of clearance will have you ripping gravel until your legs give out.

READ MORE: The Best Gravel Bikes of 2023

The Epos took all the lessons learned from previous Thule designs and brought the best of the best together in one package. The all-new Epos features individual, flexible telescoping arms with pivoting heads and reinforced straps – among other updates.

READ MORE: Thule’s All New Epos Bike Rack May Just Be Your New Favorite

The gusseted inseam and integrated waistbelt on these tailored, premium shorts keep things in their rightful places — no trailside adjusting with these on.

READ MORE: The Best Mountain Bike Shorts for Every Type of Rider

The newly-updated Shuttle is a head turner: Best for steep and technical terrain, the Shuttle survives on the uphill and thrives on the down. And no matter where you take it, it’s an incredibly fun ride.

READ MORE: The 7 Best E-Mountain Bikes of 2023

Shimano Ultegra PD-R8000 SPD-SL PedalsREI

Best Road Bike Pedal

Shimano Ultegra PD-R8000 SPD-SL Pedals

Riders of all levels will find pro-level performance in these pedals, thanks to classic design and premium materials brought together at a reasonable price point.

READ MORE: The Best Pedals for Your Mountain and Road Bikes

Bike nerd alert: This dropper post has the shortest stack height (32mm) on the market, a short insertion depth and a super-low weight-to-travel ratio. But the best feature of all? Its first-of-its-kind self-bleeding cartridge: it purges air with every full drop, meaning you can kiss seatpost squish goodbye.

READ MORE: The Most Interesting Bike Gear of the Year

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