Santa Cruz Hightower 3 is designed for all-terrain riding. Up, down, along, around and over on trails, tracks and anything fun.
Ben Haworth
185cm tall. 73kg weight. Orange Switch 6er. Saracen Ariel Eeber. Schwalbe Magic Mary. Maxxis DHR II. Coil fan.
Granite Design Stash RT: ratchet in your steerer
New version of the Granite Design Stash RT fits more forks, has a better pop-out function, and can mount Garmin/Wahoo/Bryton devices.
Transition Relay with removable Fazua Ride 60
Transition Relay is a lighter-weight powered bike with a removable battery. 160/170mm travel. Full 29 or mullet. Fazua Ride 60 system.
Singletrack Issue 143 Bike Test: Party At The Back
Have we swallowed the marketing hook, line and sinker, or is there something to the mullet trend?
Review: Geometron G1
GeoMetron is essentially Chris Porter. If you don’t know who Chris Porter is, do a Google. Just make sure you have a brew ready before you dive in.
Review: Santa Cruz Bronson
Maybe the Santa Cruz Bronson does need an introduction. The latest Bronson is a massively different beast to the Bronson Mk1.
Review: Starling Twist Trail
Starling Cycles is Joe McEwan. Joe used to work as an aerospace engineer and build bike frames in his shed as a sideline.
Marzocchi Bomber Air shock: first ride review
Benji has had a Marzocchi Bomber Air plumbed into his RocketMAX for the past week or so. Here's how he feels about it. Yes, the piggyback reservoir is supposed to…
Mountain Bike Hip Pack Buyers Guide – Kit Essentials
Benji tests out some modern hip packs that can cater for all but the furthest adventuring of riders. Words Benji Photography Amanda The return of the humble water bottle and…
Review: Bontrager Rapid Pack Hydro Hip Pack
This Bontrager Rapid Pack Hydro hip pack is reviewed as part of our Kit Essentials grouptest from Issue 143 of Singletrack World Price: £94.99 Capacity: 1.64L Bladder: 1.5L Included From:…
Review: Deuter Pulse 3 Hip Pack
The Deuter Pulse 3 hip pack is reviewed as part of our Kit Essentials grouptest from Issue 143 of Singletrack World Price: £50.00 Capacity: 5L Bladder: 1.5L (not included) From:…
Review: Patagonia Ultralight Black Hole Mini Hip Pack
The Patagonia Ultralight Black Hole Mini hip pack is reviewed as part of our Kit Essentials grouptest from Issue 143 of Singletrack World Price: £25.00 Capacity: 1L Bladder: No From:…
Review: PNW Rover Hip Pack
The PNW Rover hip pack is reviewed as part of our Kit Essentials grouptest from Issue 143 of Singletrack World The PNW Rover is a tough, sturdy pack that is…
Review: Polaris Aquanought Waterproof Hip Pack
The Polaris Aquanought Waterproof hip pack is reviewed as part of our Kit Essentials grouptest from Issue 143 of Singletrack World Price: £47.99 Capacity: 3L Bladder: No From: Polaris, polaris-bikewear.co.uk…
Review: Rapha Trail Hip Pack
The Rapha Trail hip pack is reviewed as part of our Kit Essentials grouptest from Issue 143 of Singletrack World Price: £60.00 Capacity: 3L Bladder: No From: Rapha, rapha.cc Colours:…
Review: Thule Rail 4 Hip Pack
This product was selected for our Editors’ Choice Awards 2022, as published in Singletrack Magazine Issue 146 Benji: “This Rail 4L from Thule was the first bumbag that I didn’t…
Issue 143: Things that are important on a bike, in order.
Benji is here to persuade you not to spend lots of money, except where you should. Words: Benji This feature is intended to be a helpful guide – or reminder…
How to pick the best mountain bike for you
While there may not be such a thing as The Best Mountain Bike, there are certainly bikes that will suit you more than others.
Rockrider ST 700 Rain Jacket review: £70 brilliance
At around 500g, the Rockrider ST 700 Rain Jacket is not lightweight but when the conditions are harsh, comfort and morale are everything.
Bike Check: Benji’s Cotic RocketMAX Mullet
4th generation RocketMAX from Cotic is here to serve as our testbed for the harder hitting equipment we need to thrash.
Things you’re no longer allowed to like in mountain biking
This is a rundown of all of the things that the Mountain Biking Illuminati has recently outlawed. Cancel culture MTB, if you will.
FGF 602: We Mean It Maan Edition
Please try and keep those forelocks untugged for a few more days as we delve into the People's Republic of Fresh Goods.
All new RockShox… everything, pretty much
For 2023, RockShox has rejigged the Pike, the Lyrik, the Zeb, the Deluxe, the Deluxe Coil, the Super Deluxe and the Super Deluxe Coil.
3 Things Thursday: Riding Glasses
Hannah and Benji sit outside in the relative sunshine to discuss the whys and wherefores of riding eyewear.
Singletrack Unscripted – Talking About… Tyres
Know the complexities of thought that go into tyre choice, what makes a good tyre; why one might be good sometimes and not others.
Ridgecrest Waterproof Gilet review
Not a waterproof jacket. Not a windproof gilet. The Ridgecrest Waterproof Gilet is something of a unique proposition.
#NewTyreDay: Specialized Cannibal rubbers revealed
The Buttery Brothers (explanation below), Loic Bruni and Finn Iles, have been riding this new Specialized Cannibal gravity tyre.
FGF 601: Fort Bill is Back Edition
We're all just clockwatching today - yes, even more than normal - because it's Fort William Weekend once more!
Details of the new Cotic RocketMAX Gen4
The headline news about the Cotic RocketMAX Gen4 is a move to new way of frame sizing. Or at least a new way of naming frame sizes. Cotic RocketMAX Gen4…
Atherton AM.150.1 first ride review
Does the 150mm travel Atherton AM.150 mountain bike offer something that's unachievable via more traditional construction methods?
Long-awaited Glentress development begins next week
A bit of a heads-up about some restrictions that will be in place as of May 16th. And a quick reminder about what's in the pipeline.
FGF 600: At Least We Made It This Far Edition
As real life feels more and more like the opening fifteen minutes of Threads (sorry!), let's console ourselves with some product gawping.
Follow Joe Smith’s build-up to Red Bull Hardline
The video below is the first episode in a series of edits. Follow Joe as he goes through the off-season and into the race season.
Race Face Aeffect R flat pedal goes bigly
At a whopping 110 x 115mm the new Race Face Aeffect R flatties are 25% larger than the regular Aeffect. Ten pins per side. Six colour choices.
New Danny MacAskill edit: Do A Wheelie
Danny's always worth a worth isn't he? The MacAskillster's latest vid is called Do A Wheelie. We would if we could.
Hoffman and Hart win at Fort William National DH Series
With less than two weeks to go until the MTB World Cup hits Fort William (May 21-22), here's how this weekend's racing went down.
Fresh Goods Friday 599: Democracy Inaction Edition
We hope everyone (in the UK at least) is recovering from the white heat of excitement that comes with taking part in western democracy.
Still riding North Shore in her 70s
Back in 1993 Betty Birrell had a go at mountain biking. She was 45 years old. Now she's 73 and can still more than hold her own.
Do you agree with this tyre pressure calculator?
Goodyear have some new tyres out - the Newton MTF and the Newton MTR. They've also got a new online tyre pressure assistant. From our preliminary messings about, it seems…
50 years of Merida pushbikes
Who doesn't love a good ol' trip down a mountain biking memory lane, hey? Let's look back over the last 50 years of Merida...
Fresh Goods Friday 598: Bluebell Search Edition
Hannah is back from the USA in body but not mind. She keeps waking up in the night convinced she’s still camping out in some California woodland, or jerking awake…
YT Capra Core 2 review: doing it for the lolz
After the carbon launch models, then the aluminium Uncaged versions, here is the more affordable alloy YT Capra Core 2.
£290 saddle: Specialized Power Pro with Mirror
The new Specialized Power Pro with Mirror is not for inspecting your undercarriage at leisure, it's a honeycomb 3D printed saddle.
Switchcraft Cycles: simple but not ordinary
Switchcraft Cycles is Jakub Junek. Hailing from the Czech Republic and specialising in steel machines with really short back ends.
Canyon Strive CFR: Shark Attack’s hacks maxed
EWS beast and all-round ace human Jack Moir has been a big influence on the new Canyon Strive CFR. His race mods have all been 'made flesh'.
Santa Cruz Megatower 2 joins the downtube storage gang
The new Santa Cruz Megatower 2 remains a big travel 29in wheel enduro bike with the most progressive geometry to date. And a Glovebox.
Review: Adidas FIVE TEN Freerider Pro
This review featured as part of the Kit Essentials grouptest in issue 142 of Singletrack World. Predictable winner that still has few real rivals Price: £130.00 From: adidas.co.uk Tested By:…
Review: Bontrager Flatline Shoes
This review featured as part of the Kit Essentials grouptest in issue 142 of Singletrack World. Never mind the grip, feel the feel Price: £124.99 From: trekbikes.com Tested By: Benji…
Review: Endura MT500 Burner Flat
This review featured as part of the Kit Essentials grouptest in issue 142 of Singletrack World. Sturdy, sticky and race-focussed Price: £119.99 From: endurasport.com Tested By: Benji There is plenty…
Review: Ride Concepts TNT Shoe
This review featured as part of the Kit Essentials grouptest in issue 142 of Singletrack World. The flattie fan’s winter boot Price: £145.00 From: silverfish-uk.com Tested By: Benji Though I’m…
142 Bike Test – The Big Short
Benji ponders the meaning of ‘short’ as he rags these three not-long travel bikes round his local trails. What is short travel? Too short? Short enough? Shorter than what? What…