On the trail it can be the little things that make the biggest difference - a few extra PSI in your shock, a little less in your tires. A twist on the rebound dial or a quarter-inch of scoot back on your seat. 3T has taken this thinking to heart with their new XIDA cross-country flat bar.

The carbon bar has some subtle, but important, tweaks that make it incredibly versatile. At 640mm the bar has a whopping 240mm of attachment space for shifters, brakes, lockouts and even GoPro cameras if you desire. With our crowded cockpits, this extra real-estate is gold. They do this by keeping the 31.8mm clamping area to a minimum. Even with this 3T has kept the bar incredibly stiff thanks to in-depth analysis of the orientation and lay-up of the high-mod fibers.

XIDA has a slight 3.5-degree back sweep, but a neat trick makes this very adjustable. Thanks to the bars concentric orientation to the clamp area simply rotating the bar allows for significant up sweep if desired.

At 139-grams for the entire 640mm width, cut it down to a svelte 570 and you will have one of lightest XC bars around. The Italians ask $129 for the bar and you can get more info here: www.3tcycling.com