blur LT

S&M Mad dog, the first rider owned company to break away from the factory team nylon uniform days of BMX.

Awesome frame-rode everything on it-raced it, street, trails.

Also a MK1 Chameleon. The first frame to give me that BMX feel I'd been looking for in a mountain bike. Upto the Cham it had been GT Zaskars that were the closest I could find but the Cham took it to another level.

5

My Trailstar LT. The Rockhopper I had before it was lighter and faster but nowhere near as confidence inspiring. Learned to jump on the Trailstar which has been a huge boost. Now I just need to start trying some bigger drops 🙂

SS inbred – taught me to pedal efficiently and carry my momentum.

orange 5 without a shadow of a doubt

+1 for 2004 Enduro.

However the bike that's totally re-ignited my passion for riding is – wait for it – my Marin Wolf Ridge.

Haven't had one that's done that yet. 100% mince here.

303

The first bike I built by myself for myself. Got the build spot on first time and while I ride my 456 more often, the Pace still puts a bigger smile on my face everytime the trail gets twisty or starts descending.

Meta 5.

This

2004 Enduro for me too. It boosted my confidence immensely, and going back to a hardtail I realise it's made me a fair bit faster.

United forte, 2nd bmx frame, but the first was far too big. It's taught me how to jump properly, and alot more…

Ribble winter training bike for me.

Has improved my fitness, hence I enjoy it more when out on the trails.

bought a turner burner back in 1998 and still trying to ride it properly.
also a genesis 531 frame last year that is absolutley lovely to ride- not ridden proper steel before.
a mates titanium on one, amazing.

patriot sweet as , absolutly fab

Blue pig

kennyp – Member
2004 Spesh Enduro

Me too, fab bike, still kind of regret getting shot of that one. New bikes aren't always better.

Turner 5 Spot.

Switching to full suspension reignited my passion for mountain biking.

Mountain Cycle San Andreas in 1998,I could then ride the lines that before I had only imagined riding.

Specialized Rockhopper. Humble compared with most machines listed but my first suspension bike. Re-awakened an interest in offroading 🙂

Unfortunately also inspiring me to get something 'better' 🙄

Nic Helius FR '05

My fixie track bike, the O'Donovan 753t.
I actually sold it to buy my first mountain bike, back in 1987, but it taught me how to pedal efficiently and smoothly, and how to handle a bike that never, ever wanted to stop moving.

Rode it off road occasinally too; that WAS an education!

Spesh S-Works FSR 120, first full sus.

It actually felt pretty horrible at first until I stopped trying to ride it like a hardtail and realised just how much faster I could go

Ragley Ti, transformed my confidence and speed on gnarlier stuff after ten years of riding all sorts of full sussers and hardtails. Not the best for trail centres imo but who wants to ride those anyway. Fantastic.

2004 spesh enduro for me aswell first full susser and its still going strong

I keep thinking about selling it and getting somthing newer but then i go on a difficult ride and it proves how good it is and makes up for my lack of skill

my Patriot has me trying stuff that I'd usually chicken out of

a lot of it has to do with my mood on the day though

People more than bikes. You know who you are 🙂

Turner 6pack, it gave me the confidence to start doing big drop offs and hitting really steep stuff, the skills have passed over to lesser bikes I've owned since.

One of these. The Raleigh Burner Ultra

On it I could jump 6 kids lying down on a 8 bricker jump.
(thats a scafold plank with eight bricks high support)

Can't do that now!

2010 Soul for me.

Has allowed me to do all of the things that my 5'' full squish used to do without the weight penalty.

Really confidence inspiring stuff.

Wonder how many people just listed their latest bike?

Can't make my mind up.
fisher montare (once I'd put bombers on it), nowt spesh was just a lickle HT that I learned to hop, manual (a litle), drop off and go down steep stuff on.
or
Heckler (5" '03 i think) cos of the silly stuff I can ride down and how fast it makes me go.

Surely it's something like your first mountain bike or BMX?

A slightly lighter/bouncier bike is hardly going to change your riding that much.

Being able to get up steep hills then back down with decent brakes was a plus of my first MTB even if it did weight 19 tonnes.

Tiger – we did the same (6 kids was my max too) all kitted up in BMX gear. RAD MAAAN! Surprised no one got hurt though.

hmmm.

mates xc bike. clip pedals, high saddle, uphills. not my usual style.

i dont think i`m any better a rider for owning it but the skinny bars, long stem, no grip and death brakes makes for fun (read damn scary!) riding.

Brompton….

got me cycling again after a too long non cycling break

Chameleon, Heckler and DB Alpine. All taught me how to chuck a bike about a bit more each time.

Stillwaiting for the one that makes me ride as well as I'd actually like, though…

My bikes tend to evolve and bits get moved from old frames to new etc, rather than buying complete new bikes.

But of particular note are;

My Inbred with Pace RC31 forks, it made me relearn how to choose lines and just how much difference suspension and fat tyres can make.

Turner Flux (TNT). It's meant to be an XC bike but on my first ever trip to Whistler it seemed more than happy in the Bike Park. Sure I wrecked my RS Reba forks in the process, but it's a frame that will take literally anything you throw at it as long as you can hang on. It really opened my mind to new riding possibilities beyond standard UK XC.

2008 Orange Five with Fox Van 32 QR15 forks and nice fat 2.35" Kenda tyres. This bike in this setup has blown me away, it just eats up any terrain and over the past couple of years the rate of progression in my riding has been huge. It's the ultimate skill compensator….until I find one with even more travel that is still rideable up hill 🙂

A slightly lighter/bouncier bike is hardly going to change your riding that much.

Not if a bike gives you the confidence to try new things or helps you discover a new way of riding, or even just gets you out significantly more and speeds up your progression, which are then skills transferable to riding other bikes…

demo 9

Islabike Rothan

Transformed me from a mountainbiker into a commuter & pootling-along-family-trails-er