Downhill racing drives mountain bike innovation like nothing else, and my Gear of the Year 2024 comes straight off the gnarliest tracks on the circuit. I’m talking about e*thirteen’s revolutionary new Sidekick hub, it decouples the drivetrain, reduces chain growth and makes my suspension feel so good it was almost ‘chainless’... Yes, e*thirteen’s Sidekick does what it says on the tin and makes my bike feel smoother, faster and more like it has that chainless feeling when you’re not pedalling.I slotted a set of Sylvan carbon wheels with their Sidekick hub onto a Santa Cruz Tallboy and it seemed to give that short travel machine extra travel. And most impressively of all it felt like the rear wheel tracks better under braking too. This final part gives loads more control on steeper tracks where any shorter travel trail bike usually feels most hamstrung by less suspension capability. It’s a great have-your-cake-and-eat-it feeling because you still get to ride around on a peppy, tighter-feeling bike that gives all that trail bike energy I really enjoy.

From the first lap, the Sidekick hub significantly changed my Santa Cruz Tallboy’s ride feel, it clearly delivers that chainless feeling. It also makes the bike roll noticeably faster, my favourite test track was smoother and quieter down the first fast straight, one that’s absolutely laced with roots and square edge hits. With Sidekick, the Tallboy shrugged off one particularly big root on my test track that’s always impossible to go light over. No tyre bottoming out, no violent clanging of the rear tyre hanging up and no jabbing at the feet.The rear wheel just seemed to ride straight through it and over it, which was a shock having ridden this section on most test bikes I’ve had in recent years. None have absorbed this particular section so smoothly and quietly, regardless of how much travel they have or whether they are light and human powered or heavy and electric-assisted.