It may the most clock watching ‘working’ day of the whole year but we’ve still found time and inclination to bring you Fresh Goods Friday. Swinging the lead “was a nautical practice where a sailor would swing a lead to generate momentum for a cast,…
Ben Haworth
185cm tall. 74kg weight. Orange Switch 6er. Saracen Ariel Eeber. Schwalbe Magic Mary. Maxxis DHR II. Coil fan.
Editors’ Choice 2024 – All our fave stuff of the year
The Singletrack Team pick their favourite products and bicycles from their year of riding. Benji’s Picks “Time to tally up. And it’s been another good year for keeping on keeping on. Bicycles continue to be rad. Riding them is even radder. According to my files,…
Editors’ Choice 2024: WTB Judge & Verdict tyres
WTB have rejigged their casings and their compounds. We had the new WTB Judge and Verdict for a few months now. And they’re excellent. Benji: “I’ve been a longtime fan of the previous WTB Verdict Wet as a winter slop front tyre but the brand’s…
Editors’ Choice 2024: Madison Roam Windproof Jacket
The Madison Roam Windproof is a stretchy fit, wind resistant jacket that is easily compressible and packable and can be stuffed into its own pocket. A lightweight ‘Lake Blue’ layer from Madison. A stretchy fit, wind resistant jacket that is easily compressible and packable and…
Fresh Goods Friday 735: The His Master’s Choice Edition
This week has seen us begin the annual onslaught of end-of-year looking backnesses. Kicking things off is our Editors’ Choice 2024 selections. Following on from this we’ll soon end the voting for the Reader Voted Singletrack Awards, so if you want to get your vote…
Vote Now! Best Image – Singletrack World Awards 2024
This is a simple concept: what was the best image published in Singletrack – print or web in the past 12 months? Thanks for all your nominations, now comes the hard part: choosing your winner! Singletrack Issue 152 Cover Photographer: Amanda Wishart “The Hope WMN Enduro…
Vote Now! Best Article – Singletrack World Awards 2024
Best article… a fairly simple one! The best piece of writing you’ve read this year, either in print or on this here website. Thanks for your nominations in this category. Here are the finalists… Spanish Bikepacking Diaries By Amanda Wishart UK Adventure: Chariots of Rust…
Fresh Goods Friday 734: The Most Popular Owl Edition
We may be deep into The MegaSack Period now but that won’t stop us from throwing out our regular round-up of new kit. Fresh Goods Friday is like Christmas every week; you don’t get quite what you wanted and it doesn’t feel as fun as…
Vote Now! Best UK Riding Destination – Singletrack World Awards 2024
Put simply, where do you think is the best place to ride in the UK? Thanks for all your nominations. Here’s the list of finalists. Dyfi Bike Park dyfibikepark.co.uk The Forest Of Dean komoot guide to The Forest Of Dean The Golfie komoot guide to…
Hunt Wheels sale ends today: up to 35% off + extra 10%
Today’s the day. The last day that you’ll be able to bag yourself a bargain set of wheels for MTB, gravel or road (if you’re that way inclined). The Black Friday Sales must come to an end at some point. And that point is the…
Vote Now! Most Desirable Mountain Bike – Singletrack World Awards 2024
Which bike do you most lust after? Which is the coolest mountain bike machine released in the past year? Simple, huh? Oh, if only it were… These aren’t the bikes that you dreamt of when you were a teenager, these are the bikes you can…
Fresh Goods Friday 733: The Bottled Flies Edition
Yes, it’s everyone’s very favourite day of the whole calendar year: Black Friday. And yes, we have an offer on (see below). But that’ll do. It’s undeniably a good day to purchase something that you genuinely need (or just want) so do that if you…
Extra 10% off Black Friday Deals at HUNT Wheels
Another Monday mood lifter: HUNT Wheels has sweetened its Black Friday offer with an extra 10% discount on sale wheels With the discount code BF-EXTRA10, customers can save an extra 10% off wheels already reduced in the HUNT Black Friday offer. This covers wheels in…
Fresh Goods Friday 732: The Gripping Death Edition
It’s that time of your mountain biking week again: Fresh Goods Friday! Let us all gather ’round the cyber hearth and sing digital songs of mirth and joy. How do you like your grips? DMR Deathgrip 2 grips The King is dead! Long live the…
New Atherton S.150 launches today from £4,499
Hot outta the inbox is the news from Dyfi Valley that the Atherton S.150 trail bike is launching today. Here’s a quickie Press Relase. The S.150 starts from £4,499.00 (€4,480.25, $4,742.70) for a full build. Atherton Bikes launch the S.150: A hard-hitting, confidence-inspiring bike for…
Merida eOne-Sixty 875 review
We test out the Merida eOne-Sixty 875 AKA The Big Batteried Bomber AKA Heavy Metal Thunder AKA The Bendy Bus. Pros Cons This is a very full-bore e-mountain bike. There is nothing ‘mid’ or ‘SL’ about it. It’s a metal machine with big travel and…
Up to 35% off Hunt Wheelsets during Black Friday season
HUNT is offering up to 35% off wheels for their Black Friday promotion with some big deals on their lightweight XC wheels in both carbon and alloy. The complete list of HUNT XC Wheelsetsa Black Friday Deals: HUNT XC Wide Save 25%: £479.00 £359.26 “The…
Fresh Goods Friday 731: The Humpty Dance Edition
Friday is the new Wednesday. Although Wednesday has always been the old Friday here at Singletrack. It’s complicated. Whatever you choose to have your hump day, good luck getting over it. We’re here to help with the Frinesday’s Fredsh Goods! Dig in… Privateer 161 Gen…
Cotic Rocket first ride review
The Cotic Rocket looks like nothing else. Don’t like it? Do like it? Either is fine. Shall we talk about how the bike actually handles? Yes, let’s. Pros Cons Although I only had a few hours playtime on the new Cotic Rocket, I have a…
Singletrack World Awards 2024 now open for nominations
This year’s Singletrack World Awards are now open for your nominations! Your voice remains just as important as ever. Last year we merged the Award categories voted for by you and the Award categories voted for by us into one big end-of-year event. You’ll get…
Free carbon wheels worth £1149 with Privateer complete bikes
For the ‘Black Friday’ season (now until early December basically), Privateer x Hunt Wheels offering a Proven carbon wheel upgrade on all complete Privateer Gen 2 141 and 161 bikes. Anyone who orders a complete 141 or 161 will receive the latest HUNT Proven Carbon…
Readers’ Rides: Will’s Fat Chance Yo Eddy
For this edition of Readers’ Rides, Will shares his 2020 Fat Chance Yo Eddy complete with “Custom painted Thompson Elite stem”, obvs. Bike brand and model Fat Chance Yo Eddy Why this bike? Having started biking as a teen in the early 90’s, I blame…
Fresh Goods Friday 730: The Fingers In Ears Edition
Nope. Not going to talk about it. Don’t know what you’re on about anyway. Everything is fine. Everything is fine. La-la-la! As if to prove such, here is a particularly potent edition of Fresh Goods Friday for you. Everything is fine. Cotic Rocket Following on…
Amflow PL Carbon Pro: first ride review
“After more riding, I was pretty convinced that this is the best ebike motor out there, and by some margin” – Benji gets blown away for a day by the Amflow PL Carbon Pro. Pros Cons Earlier this year it felt like the bike industry…
Readers’ Rides: Back On A Bike With This Bird Aether 9
For this edition of Readers’ Rides, a forumite shares his Bird Aether 9: “the STW forum helped me a huge amount with returning, including pointing me towards this bike which got me hooked again.” Bike brand and model Bird Aether 9 Why this bike? First…
Fresh Goods Friday 729: The DJI E-dition
It doesn’t happen very often in the modern era, but this year there has been a bike released that will probably go down in history as one of the key game-changing bikes in off-road cycling. In case you hadn’t guessed, the bike in question is…
Manitou have made the FS again. No really.
A statement piece – a concept bike, if you will – that is equal parts nostalgia and innovative passion project of a few cycling industry insiders made into a reality: Manitou FS II. Press Release in full… LOOKING BACKWARDS TO SEE FORWARD: MANITOU FS II…
Fresh Goods Friday 728: The Fairy Tale Edition
Once Upon A Time in a land far far away… well not that far away, actually kind of in the middle of the UK actually… there were some people who rode bikes and wrote words about them. Except that it was half term, so they…
The SiLent Type: Scott Voltage eRIDE 900 Tuned review
Scott Voltage eRIDE is essentially the electric version of our Bike Of The Year, the Scott Genius. Does adding watts into the mix move more mountains, or just muddy the waters? Pros Cons Oh man, I hated this bike. I hated that I loved it.…
The Midpower Marvel: Orbea Rise LT M10 review
The Orbea Rise LT M10 may have a full-fat motor but it’s still the lean, mean, mile-munching mid-power machine that it always was. Pros Cons Arguably the Mummy of Midpower, the original Orbea Rise models were pretty much the benchmark that a whole swathe of…
New Cotic Rocket is a steel frame ebike with external battery
Now this is going to be one heck of a polarising pushbike. Kudos to Cotic for continuing to plough their own furrow. I, for one, am really pleased to see an external battery. I’ve been telling anyone who’ll listen this for the bulk of this…
The Fullest Fat: Giant Reign E+ 3 review
What is this Giant Reign E+ 3? It’s a very eMTB [sic]. Full power motor. Massive 800Wh battery (with the option of running a 250Wh range extender for £349). Pros Cons The Reign E+ sports 170/160mm of suspension. Super progressive geometry. It’s full-on headfirst dive…
The Bossnut is back! Calibre’s bargain bouncer goes 29
After a total of five incarnations as a 27.5in bike, the new Calibre Bossnut rolls out on 29in wheels front and rear. And a bit more travel to boot. 2025 Calibre Bossnut in a nutshell Let’s start with the end, as most of you will…
eBike Week: Existing eBikers and E-Curious Surveys
This week will be a lot more electric than usual. Our first ever eBike Week will have reviews, buying advice, maintenance tips, riding hints and – kicking things off – your thoughts and experience. Why now? We’ve decided to do eBike Week for a couple…
Fresh Goods Friday 727: The East 17 Edition
Alright, alright, everything’s going to be alright. That’s what the chaps from Walthamstow say anyway. And who are we to argue? This past week has seen Singletrackers in the desert and in the snow. All part of the rich pageantry of mountain biking. Next week…
Dear Bike Industry, make this e-bike
As a bike reviewer in 2024AD I am unsurprisingly asked the same question quite a lot. The question may vary slightly in the words used but essentially it is always: “so, which e-bike is best then?” And now is the time of year when everything…
Triple-clamping an enduro bike: Privateer 161 edit
Nice vid documenting the fork options of the Privateer 161 with Ferg Ryan. Some inspiring scenery and trails found in British Columbia on both a single- and dual-crown forks. Privateer Bikes: “Making the trip from the South of England, Fergus Ryan found himself in videographer…
The Grinder 157: Granite Quiver, Madison DTE jacket, Feedback Sports Pro HD Repair Stand and more
Tried and tested by the Singletrack Crew, gear to help you survive a day in the hills – or the workshop. Granite Design Quiver Tool Roll This is marketed as a next generation saddlebag, but I’ve not used as such because… well, as a mountain…
Scott Ransom: The Super Trail Bike
There’s a lot going on with the new Scott Ransom. But in a nutshell it is a mountain bike with 170mm of travel, progressive geometry, and a 6-bar rear suspension layout. The Scott Ransom comes with 29in wheels as standard, but if you fancy a…
Fresh Goods Friday 726: The Chain Damping Edition
No, it’s not called dampening. You can dampen something. You can damp something. But dampening is not a thing. Well, apart from a gerund or present participle verb. But it’s nowt to do with the restraining of vibratory motion. That’s quite enough from Dictionary Corner…
Readers’ Rides: Brian E’s Kona Process 153 DL
For this edition of Readers’ Rides, we dug one out from behind the sofa. Here’s Brian Evans’ “glorious purple” Kona Process 153 DL. Your Name Brian Evans Bike brand and model Kona Process 153 DL Fork Dt Swiss 535One Shock Fox DHX2 Suspension Set Up…
Fresh Goods Friday 725: The Enduro Wolsey Edition
Hello there little buddies! Welcome to the end of the week. We hope the week hasn’t treated you too badly. And if it has, go for a bike ride. It can only help. The good ship HMS Singletrack World has been struck down by a…
NBD: Starling Beady Little Eye, Carbon Wasp Truffle-120, Norco Sight VLT
A quick mop-up of a trio of the most interesting new bikes to land in our collective inbox this past few days. Something for everyone in this dirty triad. Starling Cycles press release: The Starling Cycles Beady Little Eye is BACK! The Beady Little Eye…
2025 Mountain Bike World Cup Series calendar revealed
7 months, 10 Downhill events, 10 Cross-country events and 7 Enduro World Cup rounds. Europe, North America and South America. WHOOP UCI MOUNTAIN BIKE WORLD SERIES 2025 CALENDARS Downhill Cross-Country Enduro Warner Brothers Discovery press release: WHOOP UCI MOUNTAIN BIKE WORLD SERIES 2025 CALENDAR UNVEILED…
Santa Cruz goes 4-bar for new Vala e-MTB
The move to a Bosch motor means the Santa Cruz Vala has done away with VPP suspension and adopted a pretty trad 4-bar arrangement. Santa Cruz Vala in a nutshell Santa Cruz Bicycles press release: A NEW NAME IN TOWN Introducing the new Santa Cruz…
New Bosch CX: same power, less weight, more sensors
The new more sensor-tive [sic] Bosch Performance Line CX claims “more dynamics on climbs, more agility on trails, and more smoothness”. New Bosch Performance Line CX in a nutshell Bosch press release in full: Power meets control: Bosch sets new standards in eMTB with latest…
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.…
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…
