This month’s Staff Gems article features Zach Cassidy, our summer marketing intern. Based in Kemptville, Ontario, Zach is a mountain biker and home mechanic, who can often be found either riding or wrenching on his bikes. Below are some of his picks from the HLC catalogue, used both on the trail and at home to keep pedalling on all-day adventures and maintaining his bikes in tip-top shape.
EVOC Hip Pack Pro 3 Bladder – Another one of the many converts in the mountain biking world from hydration pack to hip pack, due to “putting a damper on my lively style” as he so eloquently puts it. From boosting side hits on a trail to dedicated jump lines, the EVOC Hip packs snug fit makes riding more comfortable and with less jump and bounce on the back. Still able to carry all he needs, such as snacks and spares, the Hip Pack is a mainstay of Zach’s riding equipment.
Nuun Sport Drink Tablets – The newest edition to Zach’s essentials, the Nuun tablets found their way into his rotation when looking for an electrolyte drink that didn’t have as much sugar or additives to them compared to other sports drinks. The biggest advantage to using Nuun in Zach’s eyes? How efficient they are at not only keeping him going on long days, but also at helping him recover and take in nutrients so that he can stack back to back days, especially when on longer riding trips. From a riding only addition, the Nuun tablets have snuck their way into every day use, helping him while studying, building trails or generally looking for something a little more than water in his day to day.
Lezyne Bar Insert Repair Kit – “As the guy who’s always getting to the trail head and realizing I forgot something, having tools integrated into my bike has saved me on a few occasions.” It wouldn’t be a staff gems article without some sort of multitool, and Zach’s pick is the bar end model from Lezyne. Peace of mind comes naturally from this tool set, especially with the convenience of always having it with your bike and discreet stashing. Better to forget you have it with you and it be there when you need it than calling a day early because you forgot a multitool.
Wera 3950 SPKL Hex Wrench Set – “I spend almost as much time fixing my bike as I do riding it, so quality tools are really important to me.” Colour coded for easy identification, space efficient packing and high quality material means that despite an ever-evolving tool kit, the Wera hex set has always stayed at the top of the bin and sseen consistent use.
Look EN-RAGE TI Pedals – Being a University student is all about figuring out who you are? For a mountain biking university student, that means discovering what path you want to take. Is it Cross Country? Is it Urban riding? Or maybe even Enduro? Luckily, the Look EN-RAGE pedal makes it easy to try everything and figure that out. A strong pedal in a lightweight package, it can not only handle any trail, but also is versatile to be a reliable option for any kind of riding.