Intro
While some of our friends and family might be easier to shop for than others, we hope our annual Gift Guides can help add a couple of new worthwhile ideas to the list, and maybe provide the perfect gift for someone that they didn’t know they were missing.
For this year’s gift guides, we once again started small(er) with Stocking Stuffers, then moved on to gifts that’d be perfect Under the Tree, and now our reviewers are offering their suggestions for those bigger gifts that you might need to hide in the garage — though we all know that what we really want is good days in the mountains spent with good company. Happy Holidays!
Magellan Outdoors Pro Waterproof Gear Boxes
MSRP: $49–$99
Luke Koppa: I’ve steadily been trying to reduce the chaos that follows the gear I use throughout the year, which includes everything from fishing rods to ski boots, mountain bikes, tents, archery equipment, and more.
My go-to garage solution lately has been Husky’s Pro Grip Storage totes — they’re just big bins with lids, but I like that I haven’t yet been able to damage any and they’re reasonably priced. Maybe not the most glamorous gift, but they are very functional.
That said, I also like having storage solutions that allow for more fine-tuning of the organization. I.e., not just one big black hole of a bin. Yeti’s Loadout GoBox series is awesome, and I happily store the miscellaneous bits and bobs of archery gear in the GoBox 15 that my brother kindly gifted me last year.
But, those cost a pretty penny, especially if you’re someone who wants / needs several different bins.
Recently, Blister podcast producer and photographer extraordinaire, Taylor Ahearn, put me on to Magellan’s Outdoors Pro Waterproof Gear Boxes, and I’ve been very happy with them so far.
Available in 22L, 50L, and 92L variants, they’re all pretty rugged bins that feature zippered mesh pockets under the lid, and the two larger versions also include dividers and a removable tray. This bit of added separation makes it a lot easier for me to store and locate smaller items, while still having lots of open spaces for the bigger gear.
The boxes are also rated at IPX5 for water resistance, have rubber feet to keep them from shifting around, and they stack pretty well. I’ve so far found their latches easy to use but still pretty substantial, and I hope to be able to use these bins for years and years to come.
I’ll keep using cheaper, simpler bins like the Husky Pro Grip series for the bigger items and the stuff I don’t need to access as frequently. But Magellan Outdoors’ Pro boxes have so far been great solutions for the gear that I use on a more regular basis and want to have easily accessible in my car, garage, etc.
Also: if you know someone who might be a good fit for these boxes, you should definitely enter our Gear Giveaway this week (entry deadline is November 22nd). The winner will get several of Gregory’s new Alpaca gear-storage pieces, all of which our other reviewers have really enjoyed so far in their testing.
Wahoo Kicker
MSRP: $1299.99 (currently on sale for $999.99)
Simon Stewart: Almost exactly four years ago on our Bikes and Bike Ideas podcast, we did an episode titled “In defense of Indoor Trainers,” where I talked about how much I love my indoor trainer. Fast forward to today, and I’m still using the same Wahoo Kicker, and I still like it just as much as I did back then.
We just got our first snowstorm of the season, the trails are covered, it’s cold, and I just got my trainer setup for the winter — so there’s no better time to revisit what could be the perfect gift for the cycling enthusiast in your life.
Wahoo still makes the Kicker, and while the nuts and bolts are mostly unchanged, it has received a host of software upgrades to help keep it current. The Kicker is a smart trainer, designed to be used with some sort of training app or interactive ride app. Wahoo has added WiFi connectivity (previous versions like mine use Bluetooth) to improve data transfer stability and speed while connected to your favorite app.
They’ve also added a Race mode that tunes the data transfer to happen even faster for that competitive edge when riding in a virtual race. One of the things I wish my Kicker had is an odometer; it would be fun to see my total training miles since I’ve had it. Wahoo has since added that functionality, so all new models have it moving forward.
The Kicker is a direct drive trainer, which means your bike’s drivetrain is connected directly to it via the cassette. This is by far the most efficient way of connecting a bike to a trainer, and not only is it more accurate and engaging, but it is also pretty quiet and just makes normal drivetrain noises.
All the reasons why I love my trainer still apply today (I discuss all of them in that podcast), but my favorite aspect is how good I feel on my first outdoor rides of the year in the Spring. Not surprisingly, I think I have less free time now than I did four years ago, so riding the trainer while also being productive is key (e.g., binge-watching the Viking series on Netflix…). Additionally, my Kicker has a ton of miles on it and has been super reliable, so I have no reservations about adding it to this year’s Holiday Gift Guide.
Granted, putting a trainer under the tree is probably akin to buying them a gym membership or Weight Watchers subscription, but they’ll get over it as soon as they start using it, and will be fitter and happier as a result, trust me.
A Bootfitting Appointment and/or New Boot Liners
Luke Koppa: A splurge gift for a skier in your life would be to take them to a reputable bootfitter and foot the bill for both a new pair of boots and any related bootwork. However, a good bootfitter may be able to do a lot with the boots someone already has — they can create space where needed, correct someone’s stance, mold a custom footbed, customize a stock liner, fit a new aftermarket liner, or a range of other wizardry.
Boots that don’t fit well make skiing a whole lot less fun. But many people (myself included) put off a trip to the bootfitter for far too long. That makes this an excellent gift opportunity that can make a drastic difference in someone’s time on the mountain.
If you’re not sure which bootfitters to consider, I highly recommend checking out our list of Blister Recommended Shops. It includes tons of shops around the world that we can vouch for.
Another idea: aftermarket liners. If you know someone who has a pair of boots they enjoy but they’ve worn them for hundreds (or even just dozens) of days and are complaining that they no longer fit like they used to, aftermarket liners can be a game-changer.
Most of us at Blister run ZipFit liners ($499–$549) in all of our ski boots, and most of us never want to go back. Across all of reviewers’ many different feet and the numerous boots we test every year, ZipFits have been able to help all of us achieve a fit that’s both more precise and more comfortable, and they last for many seasons (I think reviewer Kara Williard’s pair is getting close to 1000 days). ZipFits will work best when they’re fitted with the help of a bootfitter, so this would pair nicely with a bootfitting appointment, but you can also heat mold ZipFits at home. If you go the at-home route, I recommend chatting with the folks at ZipFit or using their liner-finder quiz to figure out which liner model would make the most sense).
Alt/Alt Basic Bearing Press – Acetal
MSRP: $139.39 CAD ($100.11 USD at time of publishing)
Zack Henderson: All bearings eventually go bad, and they do so especially quickly for bikers who live in wetter climates. Shops often charge a pretty penny for replacing bearings, and rightly so — shop-grade bearing tools cost hundreds of dollars, and it’s a time-consuming process to swap bearings on complex, multi-link, full-suspension bikes.
I love wrenching on bikes, but a bearing press and full set of drifts is a pricy bit of kit that most home mechanics (hopefully) won’t use often. The Alt/Alt Basic Bearing Press is a solution to that problem. The base model kit has a broad selection of drifts, pilots, and sleeves to cover most bearing sizes seen on full-suspension bikes, but the parts are made of acetal rather than expensive machined aluminum. That helps to make the price a fraction of that of more sophisticated press kits.
While it won’t stand up to the demands of a shop environment, I’ve been using the acetal Alt/Alt Basic Bearing Press kit to replace crunchy frame bearings for over two years without any issues to report. Alt/Alt also offers an aluminum version and more comprehensive kits and bearing extractors if you’re looking for something more sophisticated.
Overall, the Alt/Alt Basic Bearing Press works very well, is reasonably priced, and is a far less frustrating alternative to finding some combination of sockets and washers from the hardware store. I’m a big fan.
BLISTER+ Membership
MSRP: $395/year
Luke Koppa: Yeah, I might be just a tad biased on this one, but gifting someone a BLISTER+ membership has the potential to not only save them a ton of money, but also make their time outside more enjoyable.
For starters, a BLISTER+ membership comes with our outstanding outdoor injury insurance — members are covered for up to $25,000 per incident for dozens of outdoor activities, all with $0 deductible (and that $25,000 coverage can be used to pay your regular health insurance’s deductible).
On top of that, BLISTER+ members also get access to tons of our exclusive content, including our Flash Reviews, Deep Dive comparisons, and our annual Winter Buyer’s Guide. And there’s still more to it — exclusive deals on gear from dozens of great brands, the ability to talk one-on-one with our reviewers about your gear questions, and more.
If you want to gift a BLISTER+ membership to someone else, here are the steps:
(1) Create an account on the Blister website using the name and email of the person you want to get covered with BLISTER+.
You cannot purchase BLISTER+ for someone else using your own name or email; BLISTER+ outdoor injury insurance is assigned to the name and email of the account that’s used when placing the order.
(2) Using the account of the person you want to get covered, purchase a BLISTER+ membership.
(3) After completing the order, we (Blister) will send an order confirmation email to the email of the account used to place the order. Within this email is a link and instructions on how to access all the benefits of BLISTER+.
Abbey Bike Tools Hanger Alignment Gauge (HAG)
MSRP: $205 USD
Zack Henderson: Abbey Bike Tools has achieved a cult-like following among the mechanically-inclined, showing up in the curated tool kits of World Cup mechanics, on the walls of well-appointed shops, and in the garages of tool-appreciating home mechanics like me. The Hanger Alignment Gauge — or HAG, for short — is a beautifully made tool crafted by Abbey in Bend, Oregon for straightening your derailleur hanger.
The HAG is quite compact, with a telescoping steel shaft mated to an aluminum outer housing that holds the aluminum alignment feeler. A steel T-handle threads into the derailleur hanger, turning remarkably smoothly on a brass bushing. Once mounted up, you simply use the aluminum feeler relative to the rim to identify whether and where the hanger is out of alignment, and push or pull the tool like a pry bar to bend it into shape.
While SRAM’s new T-Type derailleurs kill the need for a hanger alignment gauge, the HAG works with any derailleur-hanger-equipped bike. Hanger alignment has a huge impact on shifting quality, and hangers can come out of alignment more easily than you might think. This is not a tool that everyone needs in their toolbox, but it’s an absolute pleasure to use and works very well.
The HAG is a shiny and expensive way to straighten your derailleur hanger, but what the hell, it’s the holidays — I promise that you (or the lucky person receiving it) will look forward to using it every time it’s needed, and often even when it isn’t.
David Golay: I don’t have a HAG yet, but I plan to buy one when Abbey’s annual sale rolls around later this month. I already have a handful of Abbey tools, including some bottom bracket sockets, the Crombie and matching chain whip, and their Modular Bearing Press — all of which are top-notch. I’ve yet to try an Abbey tool that I wouldn’t recommend, and while there are cheaper options out there, Abbey’s stuff stands out for being exceptionally well-built and easy to use. The higher price tag feels a lot easier to swallow for stuff that I can expect to use for the rest of my life.
(I’m also trying to convince myself that I don’t need their Decade Chain Tool, but we’ll see how that goes when it comes time to order the HAG.)
A 3D Printer
David Golay: There aren’t a ton of things that I miss about my prior career as a mechanical engineer, but having easy access to a machine shop is definitely at the top of the list. Hopefully, I’ll have the space to put together a little one of my own someday, but in the meantime, I decided to get a Bambu Lab P1S (MSRP: $699, currently on sale for $549), and it’s helped me scratch the itch to design and make stuff a bit. More importantly, it has let me build some genuinely useful stuff, from ski binding toe shims to tinker with ramp angles, to bolt-on fenders for a couple of forks that don’t have factory versions, a brake hose barb press that makes installing those way easier, and a whole bunch more.
There are certainly cheaper options if you want to dip your toe into the 3D printing world. But, in keeping with my philosophy on springing for Abbey tools (as laid out above), I opted for the P1S due to its reputation for being very streamlined and easy to use, and because it lets me print some trickier materials that more basic printers can’t handle. The P1S has delivered on both fronts.
3D printers can be finicky, and while I’ve still had the odd clog and one or two minor and easily fixable issues (mostly when testing a new material), the P1S has been quite reliable and easy to use. The print quality is very high, and Bambu Lab does a good job of making small repair parts readily available for reasonable prices. If you’ve got an at least moderately mechanically inclined tinkerer in your life, a 3D printer can be a lot of fun and a great tool for building useful doodads. I’m glad I finally made the leap.
A Bucket-List Trip
Luke Koppa: Maybe this isn’t all that original, but maybe it’s the push you need to go for it. Trips with friends and family are almost always far more impactful than a new bit of gear. Whether it’s an airplane ticket, a booking for lodging, or anything else, initiating the trip-planning process is often the hardest but most necessary step that some (again, myself included) are hesitant to take.
Need an idea? If you have a skier or snowboarder on your list, bring them to this winter’s Blister Summit! It takes place from February 23rd through February 27th in Mount Crested Butte, Colorado; at the Summit, attendees get to test tons of gear (including unreleased 25/26 products) from dozens of brands. You’ll also get to hear from industry leaders in our interactive nightly panel sessions, take laps with our crew and pro athletes, explore the surrounding backcountry with local professional guides, and a whole lot more. Registration is $400 (or $300 for BLISTER+ members), and if you want to hear more about what makes this event so special, check out this video from Blister Summit 2024.
Suspension Service
David Golay: I’ve included this recommendation in “In the Garage” roundups in years past, but I’m doing it again because I still think it’s a good idea. Shiny new stuff is always fun, but getting the mountain biker in your life a proper suspension service can offer a big performance upgrade if they haven’t refreshed things in a while — especially if you work in some custom damper tuning, bushing sizing, or other upgrade work in while you’re at it. Plus, it will prolong the life of the suspension they already have by replacing seals, freshening up the oil, and giving everything a good cleaning and inspection. It’s an important maintenance task that many folks overlook, and there’s no better time than the winter offseason to get it done.
Simon, do you have an opinion on the Kickr vs. Kickr Move vs. Kickr Core? How nice is the angle adjustment on the core? Do you ever wish you had the movement from the move?
You left out bourbon.
Hey Mark, I have tried the Kickr Move, and I’ve decided I don’t need the more “natural” movements it creates. For me, I’m still riding a trainer inside and so I’m not trying to duplicate an outside riding experience, therefore I’m perfectly happy with it being locked into position. With that said, I have friends who prefer the Move.
I also have the Kickr Climb, which initially was really pretty cool, but once the novelty wore off, I just don’t use it much anymore — back to what I said about not needing to duplicate an outdoor riding experience.
I haven’t been on the Core so I can’t comment there.
Zipfits are the only piece of ski gear I have ever purchased that have been a game changer. Can’t understate the impact and they last forever!
I have thought about these but it seems a pain to have to put them on and then put them into the shell each time. Why do you find them a gamechanger?
I’m surprised carv 2 didn’t make the list! I’m interested in grabbing them and coulda sworn y’all had a discount code but I haven’t been able to track it down.