Five cool things for when uncool things happen on your ride from Schwalbe, Wera, All Mountain Style and Squeeasy

This week’s five cool things are a bunch of tiny things that can make a big difference to your ride. Leaving any of these at home has the potential to make a ride a painful experience... The list of things you should carry with you as a cyclist can be quite long, which is why multi-use products like the Wera set and the Squeeeasy bottle are pretty cool indeed - and save space in your back pockets. 

This is just a first look at the products, as they're currently meticulously put through their paces by our reviewers. New reviews go up daily, so do check the reviews page frequently - and if you're after only the very best scoring reviews, check out the road.cc recommends. Now, let's get into these wee cool things... 

Schwalbe Tyre Levers - £4.99

Okay, a set of tyre levers is probably stretching the 'cool things' concept right up to its breaking point, but Schwalbe’s tyre levers come in a set of three and the brand promises they make “changing tyres a snap” which sounds pretty cool. There is nothing groundbreaking visually about these levers - but they should help particularly with popping difficult tyres on rims.

> Best tyre levers 2023 — make light work of puncture repairs and tyre swaps

You can clip the lever to the rim to fix the already mounted section of the tyre, and it should not slide out when the last section is levered onto the rim. That's the theory anyway, we'll find out how they perform in our upcoming review.

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Schwalbe SOS Mini Pump - £35.99

Another one from Schwalbe, their SOS Mini pump is literally mini in size, being only 12.9cm in length. This means it fits easily in any jersey or can easily be attached to the frame of the bike.

> Best cycling mini pumps 2023 — tiny tools to get your tyres topped up

The Schwalbe SOS clamps directly on the valve without any screwing, which the brand says prevents abrasion and ensures a highly airtight seal. There is also an additional seal that Schwalbe says prevents dirt from getting into the SOS Pump and the anodised surface gives the aluminium pump a high-quality finish – so it looks every inch its £35.99 price tag… if how your mini pump looks are important to you.

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Wera Tools Bicycle Set 15 - £38.99

We first spotted this Wera Tools Bicycle Set at the Core Bike show back in February, and the way it combines a bunch of features impressed us. 

You might at first look think this is simply a set of tyre levers, but actually, you get a whole set of bike tools with two quadruple bits and three tyre levers. There are multiple different screw sizes ( 2.5, 3.0, 4.0, 5.0 6.0 and TX25 bits) that can be operated with just one bit built into the tyre lever. 

Without going into all the details this small but mighty thing can do, to highlight the main features, it can also work as a torque wrench, valve ejector and bleeder valve, and has a lifetime guarantee. It’s really a bit of a do-it-all product.

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All Mountain Style Frame Guard Gravel & Road - £42.00

All Mountain Style (AMS) frame guards for mountain bikes have been such a success the brand has now introduced a Frame Guard for Gravel and Road bikes. it’s made with a new thinner and lighter material better suited for the specific protection needs of gravel and road bikes, saving your precious frame from cable rubbing, scratches and minor impacts.

You get 12 parts for a universal protection system: 1 big part for the downtube, 2 long arrows for the fork or the seat stays, 1 big part for the top tube or the seat tube, 8 arrow parts for cable rub protection and areas where tyre fits tight with the frame.

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Squeeasy PES Elite (750ml) - £21.99

This water bottle is yet another multi-use product. The Squeeasy PES Elite is a dual fuel bottle, combining gels and water bottles into one.

> How to eat right for sportives and long rides

In essence, you have a normal 750ml bottle and inside it, a squishy tube where you can store one or two gels (without the wrapper). You choose whether you want to drink or have a gel with a switch mechanism on the top of the bottle. You can store 630-690ml of liquids in the bottle depending on how many gels you want to have.

Squeeasy says is in discussions with energy gel manufacturers and expects gel to be available soon in bulk rather than individual servings, which would further cut down on excess packaging.

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