The Wese is billed as a road race pump and has a cover over the Presta-only valve connector designed to keep out water and dirt. The cover, not the greatest fit in the world sinc eit relies on a protrusion that fits inside the valve adaptor to stay in place, is shaped to match the form of the pump-handle end, giving the Wese the air of a well-fed caterpillar when fixed to the bike using the rubber straps provided.

In practice these are a less effective way of securing the pump than the more conventional clips under a bottle cage. The straps only work as long as the pump is aligned with the tube to which it is mounted and it tends to slip sideways at any provocation.

A third means of securing the pump in the form of a clip-on – er – clip for a pocket is provided.

The labelling on the side of the Wese promises 144psi, which is none too shabby from a pump weighing just 115g. Whether it will reach 144psi in most hands is debatable; perhaps classics specialist and 2004 Tour of Flanders winner Steffen Wesemann himself was the one who managed it. We did get more air into a tyre inflated to 110psi, which will do nicely for the purposes of establishing whether or not it works at all.

Getting anywhere near 110psi will take a lot of pump strokes but then that is the price paid for using a light, small and unobtrusive pump. The grips are comfortable and the pumping action smooth.

SKS Wese Roadrace pump £15.99