I noticed on the XC Racer website the other day the lightweight gas/pump combo ‘Second Wind’ that I have been after since my puncture disaster at the World Champs Middle race last year, and at only 
£14.29, I quickly ordered one. It even comes with a gas cartridge ready to go. It means that you have a preloaded CO2 cartridge ready to fire but a backup pump too!
When the package arrived there was a message from Ant, who runs the XC Racer shop and a kind donation in my quest to shave a few grams off my race bike.
Ant is bringing a new name to the market in weight weenie mountain bike kit called ‘MOUNT ZOOM’.
In my package were a pair of bonkers light bar ends (47 grams
for the pair), a headset top cap and carbon spacers that barely registered on the kitchen scales.
Apparently a new website will be online soon but in the mean time he has a ebay shop at http://stores.ebay.co.uk/MOUNT-ZOOM-Racing
Thanks MOUNT ZOOM Racing
Silly question but how do these gas pumps work?
I can never get my tyres as hard as I would like them, so would this do it for for me? Is it easy to use, or are they not really suitable for a relative beginner (who may try his first MTBO race at Stafford).
There are various gas options. Most are just a valve you screw or push a canister of CO2 onto. It just means uyou can get a very hard tyre very quickly after a puncture.
Running tubes people sometimes get a second puncture through a snake bite if not inflated enough.
This device has a manual backup pump.