British Cycling National XC Series Round 2: Rock UK, Newcastleton

Hannah Collingridge and Joolze Dymond are this year’s commentators for the British Cycling National XC Series. They’re also bringing us a race report from each round, with a bit more...

Nanduro – Slowing Down To Catch Up

Amanda finds out she has inherited more than just good sewing skills from her Nan. Bikes are in the blood. This feature was produced in association Sonder I knew my...

Weight weenies rejoice! Canyon releases updated Lux and Exceed for 2022

Canyon releases details of the 2022 Canyon Exceed and Canyon Lux, no new frames but new lightweight builds! If your idea of a good ride is one where you power...

First Look – The Sonder Dial gets a SID Ultimate and costs just £1699!

In the spirit of supply chain issues, our test bike has come with a Reba, but still… the Sonder Dial looks ready to race! The Sonder Dial XC is a...

Hope XCR Pro X2 Review

Hope XCR Pro X2 Review | How good can 199g brakes really be?

Fresh new Hope XCR Pro X2 stoppers for XC racers or trail bike riders wanting to save on weight, but do they offer as much power as the competition? While...

Wilder

Making XC Cool Again? New Santa Cruz Blur and Juliana Wilder

Now before you all shout ‘but XC has always been cool!’, the whole shizzle with this bike launch seems to be about being a bit of an XC renegade here...

hope xcr first look

First Look: Hope XCR 199g XC/Trail brakes

Hope releases the ultra-lightweight Hope XCR weighing at a feathery 182g per end, and we have a first look. Fans of Hope brakes, but those not needing the all-out stopping...

2021 Merida Ninety-Six updated for the XC and Downcountry crowd

Merida’s lightweight Ninety-Six is updated for XC race and down-country larking about. Had you told me this time last year that I would be looking at 120mm travel bikes with...

Reynolds 309/289 XC

New Reynolds 309/289 XC Series Wheels – with heritage turquoise option

Reynolds today introduces a new range of XC wheels, the 309/289XC. These carbon wheels are aimed at the demands of modern XC racing, and come in four build levels to...

Roval Launches New Control SL Wheels – ‘The Lightest In The World’

We brought you the story of Roval’s super-light, super-limited Team Edition Control SL wheels back in March. Back then, they were the lightest production mountain bike wheels in the world,...

Orbea Alma

Orbea Alma | Superlight hardtails from £799!

The latest Orbea Alma hardtail offers impressive race ready weights at a price to suit every pocket. Orbea gets 1/3 of its revenue through its XC bikes, so it should...

New Orbea Oiz | Now even lighter than before!

The latest update to the Orbea Oiz is revealed, and it uses a new OMX carbon which results in what Orbea claims is the lightest frame in its category. The...

YT IZZO Pro Race First Look

First look: YT IZZO a trail bike from the masters of gravity

YT Industries is known for aggressive gravity bikes, but the new YT IZZO signs a departure from the norm and we’re loving it. I don’t know about you, but when...

Canyon Neuron CF: New 2020 model gets even lighter

Canyon has announced an addition to the Canyon Neuron CF line up: a super light Canyon Neuron CF SLX. Weighing a whole 250g less than the previous lightest model, this...

National Champs 2019

British MTB National Championships | New Champions And Old Faces

The British National Mountain Bike Championships took place this weekend, with the Downhill event at Revolution Bike Park in Wales, and the XC National Championships taking place at Cannock Chase....

hunt carbon wheels

HUNT All-Mountain Carbon H_Impact wheel set released for just £789

Wheel wizards, HUNT, have released a new set of carbon rimmed all-mountain wheels with a lifetime crash replacement warranty and low £789 price tag. The £789 HUNT All-Mountain Carbon H_Impact...

Decathlon Rockrider XC 900 S

This carbon fibre, full suspension, 29er, XC bike is just £1690… in France

XC riders living in France can now walk into their nearest Decathlon store and pick up the all-new Rockrider XC 900 S for just €1899! B’Twin, Decathlon’s own bicycle brand,...

The New 2020 Ibis Ripley – Even Better Than The Ripmo?

Chipps gives us the lowdown on the brand new 2020 Ibis Ripley The new 29er from Ibis, the Ripley, Mk4, is a degree slacker, half a pound lighter and a...

crank brothers synthesis xct wheels

Crankbrothers Synthesis Tuned XC Wheels Launched With Industry Nine Hydra Hubs

Crankbrothers launched its tuned carbon wheels for the hard hitting end of the market back in October last year. ‘Reinventing the wheel’ headlines abound, with the news that the rims...

Skinny Dipping #003: British mud, South African dust and Brazilian firsts

From the mud of northern and middle England to the dust of South Africa and Brazil, we’ve got it here in this month’s round-up of XC and endurance news. Rain……

Skinny Dipping #002 – Kielder, Courtney and the Cape

It feels like 2019 has got off to a galloping pace. Not only are we already on our second edition of our XC and endurance news, the year’s second 24……

Skinny Dipping #001 – ‘Puffer’s done, the rest of the season’s to come

In the modern MTB world of bike parks and 160mm full sussers it’s easy to forget that there are many other ways to ride and race mountain bikes, some of……

canyon lux

Review |Canyon Lux CF SL 8.0 Pro Race – Mile-Muncher For Mortals

The Lux isn’t just Canyon’s latest XC ripper – it’s also the lightest and most advanced full suspension race bike that the German brand has ever produced. We put one...

Team Rumours Part 2: Miller, Atwill, Agassiz, Gwin, Harrison, Atherton and more 2019 team news

We’re in the thick of 2019 Team Rumours, with riders finally announcing that they’ll be leaving current contracts and are heading to pastures new.

santa cruz blur fox 34 wil

Review: With a 120mm fork, the Santa Cruz Blur is a pocket rocket trail bike

As far as contemporary XC bikes go, the latest generation Blur from Santa Cruz Bicycles ticks a lot of boxes. Plugging an important gap that the Tallboy left behind as...

Vitus Gets Its XC Race On With The 2019 Rapide Alloy And Rapide Carbon Range

Vitus has launched a revamped range of bikes for 2019. Some are old favourites with a few choice updates, while others are completely new models. For its XC range, we...

mondraker f-podium rr sl

Meet The £12,799 Mondraker F-Podium Carbon RR SL

Possibly one of the most head-turning bikes of the 2018 Cycle Show was this, the Mondraker F-Podium Carbon RR SL 2019, it also won our award for the least sexy...

Dan Jarvis

Interview: Dan Jarvis – it doesn’t take much to sell women’s racing, they’re the ones serving up the drama

Dan Jarvis has been involved in promoting women’s mountain biking for many years, first through his university club in Brighton, then as the head of the BN3 DH team, and…

2019 Mondraker Chrono Carbon Announced With 1,150g frame

If you’re a privateer XC racer looking for an ultra-lightweight race-bred ride for next season then cast your eyes over this. Now, we’ll be honest when we say that not...

Review: Simplon Cirex 120 – Slammed and svelte, but not just for suffering

As I’m sure everyone has noticed, there’s been something of a change in mountain bike geometry in the last few years. The longer-lower-slacker trend has become de rigueur, and aside...