Cat Eye lights have been around since before Singletrack was born and let’s face it, we’ve always been here. Chipps and Mark once wrote a feature in a long lost magazine about the Cat Eye Stadium light, one of the first really useful off road…
September 2024
Havok Bike Park Weekender report & pics
Different just-for-fun races, session spots on different features on the hill, there was plenty of chance to get involved and try things out. Just a couple of rain showers across the whole weekend, the Havok Bike Park dig crew struck it lucky for their Weekender…
Readers’ Rides: Roland L’s Curtis AM9
For this edition of Readers’ Rides, Roland Lovell shares his Curtis AM: “it was bound to happen eventually”. There’s not a whole lot of deep detail in this submission but we’re overlooking that this time because… well, look at it. It is Peak Hardtail Perfection.…
Forestry England’s Cycling Strategy: A sign of things (not) to come?
Forestry England published its first Cycling Strategy a few weeks ago. Big organisations need this sort of thing so that everyone knows what they should – or shouldn’t – be spending their money on, and what their goals are. On first reading, I got pretty…
502 Raffle Winners – Vallon Fjallraven/Specialized
Did you win? If you didn’t buy a ticket then you definitely didn’t. If you did though.. Well, you need to watch this to find out. Yeah, we could just write your name here but then you’d not watch our video. So, you know. There’s…
Fresh Goods Friday 724: The Elastomeric Edition
Welcome one and all to this week’s Fresh Goods Friday, so much better than Old News Monday. This edition brings you full circle. All will be revealed. On with the show! Bontrager G-Spike Team Issue Tyre ‘Tis the season. The Season Of Spike. Mud spike…
OneUp’s 1% Giveback reaches $1million donated
OneUp Components’ 1% Giveback Program has just ticked over $1 million dollars donated since 2013. As well as making arguably the best dropper post on the market, OneUp’s Giveback Program donates 1% of its revenue to environmental groups, bike charities and mountain bike trail associations…
And the best biking spot in the UK is… Cambridge?
New research from GoOutdoors claims to reveal the best mountain biking destinations in the UK. The Tweed Valley doesn’t make the cut. Swindon does. The study looked at factors such as the number of trails in each UK region, as well as the number of…
Lauf Elja is a 120mm single-pivot (without a Lauf fork)
Say hello to the new Lauf Elja. A full-suspension mountain bike from the brand you may know from the Lauf Seigla gravel bike and leaf-spring Lauf Grit forks. Lauf Elja in a nutshell Lauf press release in full: Lauf Elja is not a Minus-Bike* *Minus-Bikes…
Fox Live Valve Neo: more fast, less faff
The new version of Fox’s auto-adjusting suspension is here. And it claims to be 20 times quicker than its “closest competitor”. By “closest competitor” we’re going to take that as meaning RockShox Flight Attendant. Regardless of response speed, the aspect we’re most interested in is…
Interview: Joe Breedon – chasing the fractions of seconds
While at the Saddleback House Show, I had a chat with Joe Breedon, who was there with his bike and team mate Lou Ferguson. I stopped him for a chat about some of the more eye catching additions to his race bike. Your bike has…
Readers’ Rides: Luke B’s Scott Spark
For this edition, Luke Bradley shares his Scott Spark: “they’re very popular and with good reason – it’s lightning fast.” Bike brand and model Scott Spark Why this bike? While some Singletrack Forum members will know me for riding up big Scottish mountains, I race…
Route Assembly – making UK manufacturing more than a Pipedream?
A few weeks ago there was the announcement that Pipedream Cycles had been bought by Route Assembly. Who or what is Route Assembly and what do they plan to do with Pipedream Cycles? I caught up with new owner Ian Byrne for some more information…
Fresh Goods Friday 723: The Big Strapping Edition
We are a relatively broad church here at Singletrack World and this week’s Fresh Goods Friday is testament to such. Droppers ‘N’ strappers. Video ‘N’ rubber. Flatties ‘N’ sunnies. Let’s get it on! KS Lev Circuit Wireless Dropper Post We’ve been waiting a long time…
Vali Höll: ‘It’s mountain biking, it’s not Formula 1’
In this episode the 2024 Elite Women’s World Champion and World Cup Champion, the YT Mob’s Vali Höll, chats with George, Jack and Emi about equal pay, three-peats, and MTB Reform… There are so many great insights into what she’ll be up to in the…
‘Anytime’ – New Freeride Movie With Old Skool Vibes
Anytime, the latest Red Bull and Anthill production, is now available for viewing on Red Bull TV. For those that recall the ‘Down’ series, it’s got a bit of the old skool vibe to it – featured riders, a whole lot of riding, and not…
Interview: Kade Edwards in Anytime BTS – ‘I’m not going to get any better in the next 10 minutes’
I went down to Dyfi Bike Park for a day of riding followed by a UK Premiere of ‘Anytime’, the latest film from Anthill and Red Bull, that celebrates freeride. As you’d expect, it’s a feast for the eyes, with stunning scenery and a load…
Our go-to winter riding apparel
We were asked to list one item of clothing that we always pick out of the pile for a wintery mountain bike ride. Here’s what we picked. Following on from our Make winter riding actually fun article from last year, we thought we’d slightly revisit…
Can You Find Any of British Cycling’s New Places To Ride?
There’s a whole host of new places to ride now available in the UK thanks to legacy funding from the UCI Road World Championships in 2019 – only it’s rather difficult to find out where – or what they actually are. Help us fill in…
Specialized Stumpjumper 15 Alloy announced
The very metal Specialized Stumpjumper 15 Alloy starts from £2,750 and yes, it has cable routing for mechanical drivetrains. We brought you the carbon fibre Specialized Stumpjumper 15 review a couple of months ago, so it will probably come as not a great surprise that…
Make Your October Better With Singletrack Magazine
As we prepare to slip out of our summer shorts, through the nettle defence trousers, and into something thermal, keep your mountain bike juices flowing with an injection of inspiration, amusement, and information to make you sound interesting on the long evenings by the fire.…
Details of the new Santa Cruz Hightower 4
A quick look over the new Santa Cruz Hightower 4; a bit slacker up front, a bit longer out back but the main rejig is in the VPP rear suspension kinematic. Santa Cruz Hightower 4 bullet pointed Santa Cruz Bicycles press release: THE HIGHTOWER. MORE…
Bike Check: James Love’s Cotic Cascade
Mr Love, formerly of this parish, dropped by via the back roads of Calderdale. ‘You look like Jeremy Corbyn with that stem!’ cried our Benji. Cue much excited jabber about geometry, back road meandering, and the merits of planning your bike rides around top notch…
Best bits from Saddleback Show: Trickstuff, Abbey Tools, ENVE, Silca & much more!
We bobbed down Brizzle way earlier this week. Amidst plenty of charming retro guff, there was plenty of super modern stuff on display too. Here’s the highlights… Trickstuff No big product updates here – the news is all about increased availability. With Saddleback as the…
Interview: Lou Ferguson on ‘being alive and being happy’
Lou Ferguson was at the Saddleback House Show with her bike, freshly cleaned from Loudenville. We had a good long chat about her season so far, what next year might look like, plus some of the details on her bike. She’s very bright and chatty…
Leaked document reveals MTB World Cup plans for 2025
In a leaked document titled ‘2025 MTB Reform, Evolution of Mountain Bike Racing’, the UCI and Warner Brothers Discovery (WBD) set out proposed changes for the racing year ahead. Now, obviously this document has been leaked to us, and perhaps it’s a ‘pre-production prototype’ to…
Podcast: Racing, Reform, and Rumours
George, Jack and Emi are joined by Intense Factory Racing’s Joe Breeden to discuss the racing that’s gone down since the mid-season break, the leaked Warner Brothers Discovery MTB Reform document, before closing out the show with some #teamrumours. Loudenville Gallery Listen to the podcast…
502 Club Raffle no.5 Vallon, Specialized Fjällräven Bundle Worth over £750
We may have only just picked the winner of the last raffle but we already have the next one ready to go for you, and this bundle of top tier products from Vallon, Fjällräven and Specialized is going to make one of you look absolutely…
Fresh Goods Friday 722: The Autumn’s Done Come Edition
In case you missed the memo, it is now officially autumn. And yes, autumn does not get a capital letter. Even though it is every right-minded person’s favourite season. That’s just how it is. We don’t make the rules. We just enforce them. On with…
Freight Worse Than Death? Slopestyle on a Train!
Prepare to see physics in action, and perhaps take a travel sickness pill. Dawid Godziek’s latest video has him riding a jump line on a moving train. The video doesn’t even have a clever/rad/high stoke title – it’s just ‘Riding A Bike On Top Of…
This is why you should have gone to The Merida EX Enduro
Those who know things know that The Merida Ex is probably the best enduro experience currently available in the UK. Next year then..? The Merida Ex Enduro press release: THE MERIDA EX ENDURO presented by Shimano: Race Report THE MERIDA EX presented by Shimano is…
Red Bull Rampage: Changes and Location Revealed
The drip, drip, drip of news from Red Bull Rampage continues, this time with updated rider lists, plus details of the venue location and format for the men’s and women’s competitions. The men will be returning to the 2018/19 site for their dig days, while…
New Gee vid alert! ‘Ridgeline V: Resistance’
Gee Atherton and his with the latest Ridgeline episode. Filmed in the frankly stunning surrounds of Engelberg-Titlis, Switzerland. Atherton Bikes press release: Gee: “From the start, the Ridgeline Series has been about taking mountain-biking to the limit… exploring what’s possible on a bike and creating…
Welsh Cycling Industry Unites Against Welsh Trail Centre Closures
Over 90 separate Welsh cycling organisations have today co-signed a letter to Welsh Deputy First Minister and Cabinet Secretary for Climate Change and Rural Affairs, Huw Irranca-Davies MS, concerning the NRW Proposal for Organisational Change and its impact on communities across Wales. (Irranca-Davies is Welsh…
Loudenvielle World Cup DH results, report and highlights vids
The DH World Series returned this weekend for the penultimate round of competition and the stakes couldn’t have been higher. RACE HIGHLIGHTS | Elite Women Loudenvielle UCI Downhill World Cup RACE HIGHLIGHTS | Elite Men Loudenvielle UCI Downhill World Cup DH World Cup Loudenvielle results: Elite…
Hattie Harnden and Richie Rude win Enduro World Cup Overall Titles
Harnden and Rude crowned Overall Title Winners in challenging conditions at final round of UCI Enduro World Cup in Loudenvielle-Peyraguides. Press release from ©️WHOOP UCI Mountain Bike World Series: The finale of the UCI Enduro World Cup was billed as a battle royale with both…
Retrobike Check: Isla Rowntree’s 1993 Race Bike
At the Retrobike Show and Shine at the Malverns Classic, this yellow and red bespoke racing machine was on display. It’s one of Isla Rowntree’s own personal bikes, built to meet her precise ideas about what makes a good race bike, and a bike that…
Funn Upturn 55mm High Riser Handlebar review
How high is too high? We check out of these lofty 55mm rise Funn Upturn handlebars perform on the trails. The may be high but are they mighty? Pros Cons What is one indication that the bike industry has not yet reached ‘peak geometry’? What…
Interview: The Word According To Landosteezy
If you’re on any kind of social media, you’ve probably seen Leo ‘Landosteezy’ Smith bringing his BMX style to the world of MTB. Now riding for Calibre, you might also have clocked him exploring the north of England by gravel bike. It’s all bikes, and…
Fresh Goods Friday 721: The Stitching Up Edition
Good day to you all and welcome to this week’s edition of Fresh Goods Friday. The end is nigh. By ‘end’ we mean end of the year. Well, it’s not that nigh really. Unless you work in publishing or retail where, like us, you’re already…
DH World Cup Rd 6 – Loudenvielle – Preview & How to Watch
Are Vali Holl and Loic Bruni safe? Or do they still need to watch out for resurgent Tahnee Seagrave and Amaury Pierron? Here’s what to watch for this Sunday. Elite Women – Current standings Elite Men – Current standings What points are available? Position Qualification…
Saracen Mantra Race LSL review
The Saracen Mantra Race LSL sports some typical Saracen geometry: it is long AF. The reach on this L is 490mm, which will ride longer when sagged. Pros Cons I grew up on hardtails. I was the last of my mates to move to a…
Spotted: Wonder Woman and the KeeWee Cromozone
I’d barely arrived at the Malverns Classic when we were rolling through the camping field and spotted the kind of freak bike collection that no self-respecting bike nerd can walk past. Plus a 100% rusted car. It was too much to resist after the drive…
Issue 156 Editorial – A curated taste
Chipps gets to put together a menu of rides. Does he start bold? Or subtle and build to a crescendo? I had some riders in the village this week. Not friends or friends of friends as is often the way, but four Brits who’d looked on a map to find somewhere they’d…
How To Read The Latest Issue of Singletrack World
The August issue is out now – here’s how to read it If you receive a printed copy of the magazine each issue you should be happily working your way through it by now. If it still hasn’t arrived please email us and we’ll sort out sending…
Retrobike Barn Find Bonanza!
It’s the collector’s dream: you enquire about a single bike, end up discovering a whole collection of bikes – and the person that owns them wants rid. That’s what happened to Oliver when he got talking to a seller on eBay. I took a moment…
Lazer Chase KinetiCore Helmet review
The Lazer Chase KinetiCore is a downhill rated helmet with a comparatively reasonable price tag (well, it’s under £200). Pros Cons The Lazer Chase KinetiCore is a downhill rated helmet with a comparatively reasonable price tag (well, it’s under £200). The helmet comes with all…