Best Author – Singletrack Reader Awards 2018 Finalists

Whether it’s an epic tale of derring-do, a bit of thoughtful reflection, a humorous take on life on wheels, or even a technical review, we love a well written article. In a slight change to previous years, this year we looked for nominations for best author – recognising that sometimes it’s not just a single article that stands out, but a whole body of work. Web and magazine content were eligible for this category – here’s what made it through:

The Finalists

• Barney Marsh
• George Thompson
• Tom Johnstone

Voting instructions are at the end of this article. Read on to learn more about these finalists.

Barney Marsh

Our former staff writer has freed himself from the confines of writing Fresh Goods Friday and is now able to spend more time with his family. He’s loving it so much that he took them bike packing. This entertaining tale of calamity and fear of wild toileting is just one of the many improbable stories brought to us by Barney. Making every ride sound like a day out with The Famous Five, Barney can be relied upon to bring us lashings of knowledge and insight, under a veneer of folly and near death comedy. Read Barney’s full online works here, or Tyke Packing here.

George Thompson – #MakingUpTheNumbers

George brings us our injection of downhill race action – full face radness among our usually quite sedate rides. Inspiring us to at least think about giving downhill racing a go, George’s race reports are guaranteed to be funny, self deprecating and appreciative of MrsMakingUpTheNumbers for having let him spend yet another weekend away from home breaking bits off his bike. Everyone loves a trier, and George is still racing…we think he’s trying to get on a podium, though we can’t be sure. Maybe it’s all just for our entertainment. You can read all of George’s #MakingUpTheNumbers race reports here.

Tom Johnstone

Some time ago, Tom wrote an extremely popular web story about the importance of mental health and looking after your friends. This year’s nomination results from another thoughtful article, in which he takes us on a trip of a lifetime through Iceland, while giving us an honest insight into the highs and low of such an isolated trip. Coinciding with the anniversary of his wife’s death, the account of his trip and his internal struggle to deal with all that he encounters can’t fail to move the reader. You can read Internal Struggle, originally published in the Premier Section of Singletrack Issue 118, here.

How to vote

The voting page opens at midnight Saturday 15th September. Come back after then to..

Cast your vote by clicking this link

Click here to see all our other categories and finalists

Mark Alker

Singletrack Owner/Publisher

Mark has been riding mountain bikes for over 30 years and co-owns Singletrack, where he's been publisher for 25 years. While his official title might be Managing Director, his actual job description is "whatever needs doing" – from wrangling finances and keeping the lights on to occasionally remembering to ride bikes for fun rather than just work. He's seen the sport evolve from rigid forks to whatever madness the industry dreams up next, and he's still not entirely sure what "gravel" is. When he's not buried in spreadsheets or chasing late invoices, he's probably thinking about his next ride.

More posts from Mark