Tech features
The top 10 of the first year of Collective Favourites, in one place.
Escape Staff, Polar
This year, we started a new series called Collective Favourites. It pulled together our staff and member favourites across a variety of categories – from bike travel bags to favourite supermarket snacks. In total, over the year, we covered 21 different favourite categories. Now that 2025 is coming to an end, it’s time to have a look at some favourites among those favourites.
From the beginning, we weren’t trying to crown “the best of everything” – instead, these are simply products that we like and keep using. Throughout the year, we have had plenty of conversations about these categories in the comments, on Discord, and in our Community Forum. This has been a great new way of interacting with the audience and, while providing service content, also involving you, our members, in it. In the process, we have created all of these articles that list products that we are ready to publicly call “good” – but not necessarily declaring them the best of everything.
Among the 20 categories, only a few had clear favourites, while in most categories, opinions on what is the best product for the job varied widely – and this is what’s the issue with creating articles around the best “x” product. As became clear in the Collective Favourites articles, we all ride in different styles, in different conditions, and have various budgets. While Josh might ride in shorts all year round and wants to keep his water in the bottles from getting too warm, Alex is going to be having the opposite problems.
We deemed that summarising all the 21 Collective Favourite articles would not be very helpful, mainly because, as said, many categories didn’t have a clear favourite. So instead, the 10 Favourites below list the favourite items from categories that A) had a clear favourite or two and B) people had the strongest feelings about.
We hope this will get you up to speed and point you to those deeper dives into a host of products, and also suggest new categories for going forward with this series. If you want to scroll through all the 21 instalments, then you can do so here, and as always, the comments are the place to give us feedback and well, share all your favourites.
Saddle bags: VeloColour Rocket Pocket
A saddle bag’s entire job is to be unnoticeable until you need it. When it is noticeable, it’s usually because it rattles, rubs, falls off on a bump, or blocks your rear light. These seemingly simple creations come in all sorts of shapes and sizes, from rolls and small zip pouches to more boutique creations with BOA closure. Whichever you deem best is largely down to personal preference, as the main function of a saddle bag is to keep a tube, plugs, levers, a CO2 canister, an electric inflator, a mini-pump, and a multitool tidily in one place.
Plenty of you skip bags entirely, instead opting for tool bidons, back pockets, frame storage, or less conventional ways such as socks strapped under saddles (yes, that’s Caley), yet, there was one conventional saddle bag winner across staff and members. VeloColour’s Rocket Pocket got more mentions than any other bag because of its sensible volume, a mount that doesn’t loosen, and the good quality fabrics. If your ideal bag is the one you never think about, the Rocket Pocket seems to take the crown.
Collective Favourites – Saddle bags
Saddle packs, seat rolls, even socks – what do we carry under our saddles?
Front lights: Exposure
Winter, and the accompanying short daytime, should not really be a surprise, but each year, it’s those first weeks of dark commutes that remind us of the capabilities of our bike lights. While more lumens means more light on the road, there are more things to think about when choosing a light. Size is a consideration, as is battery life, general reliability and local regulations. The lights that impressed most were not necessarily about top-end lumen output, but also about how usable the beam shape and light modes are on real roads and trails.
In terms of favourite picks, it was interesting to see the regional tastes in lights. British brand Exposure has garnered a strong fanbase in the UK, but also in wider Europe and in the US. Outbound is another US staple brand that also has a devoted following in Europe, and Knog is a popular pick in Australia. If there was a single crown to give, it would be to Exposure – the brand got a lot of praise for the quality, reliability and lighting power.
Collective Favourites – Front lights
Our favourite lights to see and to be seen with – without blinding everyone else.
Rear lights & radars: Garmin Varia RTL515
Unlight front lights, rear lights don’t necessarily have to be the brightest to make you visible on the roads. However, as was clear from the picks in this category, a vast majority of us now prefer to use a smart rear light, or more precisely, a rear radar, instead of a simple light.
This post is for subscribers only
Subscribe now
Already have an account? Sign in
Did we do a good job with this story?
👍Yep
👎Nope
