[Closed] Farewell Singletrack Magazine - I won't be buying again (Goodbye content!)

@ Chris s...

It does and it doesn't I think the writing does sort of play up to the general stereotype of "Daaahnhillaaas" as barely literate meat heads, I know they are very into the sport which is great, but it has to be said in many cases they do lack basic writing skills..
Yes it has some lovely photos but then so does the interweb if you look about…
and I find many of the Dirt articles read like a poor stab at philosophical musings by someone with same IQ as a turnip, kit reviews and their long term kit reviews are good though...

The layout is often truly atrocious black text run over the top of dark areas on photos, white text run over light areas of pics, I know it’s supposed to look like some sort of quirky “Lo-Fi” production, but it just looks like they’ve employed a gibbon and sat him in front of Quark or Illustrator and hoped for the best…

Nah, there are better (and worse) [u]free[/u] PDF mags about save your fiver and spank the broadband and works laserjet…

I recommend you get a pair of panaracer rampage tyres... 😀

I find many of the Dirt articles read like a poor stab at philosophical musings by someone with same IQ as a turnip,

I know it’s supposed to look like some sort of quirky “Lo-Fi” production, but it just looks like they’ve employed a gibbon and sat him in front of Quark or Illustrator and hoped for the best…

I take it your not planning on bumping in to any of the people concerned in person anytime soon then 😀

ChrisS - Member

I find many of the Dirt articles read like a poor stab at philosophical musings by someone with same IQ as a turnip,

I know it’s supposed to look like some sort of quirky “Lo-Fi” production, but it just looks like they’ve employed a gibbon and sat him in front of Quark or Illustrator and hoped for the best…

I take it your not planning on bumping in to any of the people concerned in person anytime soon then

And just how are they going to know who I am?

It would require a fair bit of trolling to identify and acost me at a race or uplift (when I have the time to get to one), nope the writers of Dirt have one thing right, they do view all the blatherings on various forums as bellow contempt, I doubt my quips about them will register, and if they do I think it's largely water off a ducks back...

You're joking, right? People who ride singlespeeds aren't a special breed, they ride a bike with one gear, it's no big deal.

No!! joking ? Humour ? on here ? Single speeders are earth bound gods sent to dust everybody except other SS riders. 😉 Some may call us freaks but we are brothers and all part of a dark new order of thing to come......

Excellent thread.

My "f*ck off" was meant to be a lightheared, jovial "f*ck off". I buy the magazine once or twice a year, usually out of desperation ahead of a train journey etc - I don't find that magazines offer me anything the internet can't provide in terms of articles, reviews and ride guides etc.

In no way would I ever have even thought that me not buying the magazine might lead to the demise of the website. But realistically, I wouldn't be that bothered if it did. Would you? Really?

There always comes this point in threads like this where people start chucking suggestions around for what to include, so heres mine:
- articles on realistic (for the masses) bike trips. Last mag I bought had two articles on riding around in 3ft deep snow in Alaska or somewhere which has no relevance to me and as such, made me fall asleep reading it.
- much more UK based riding stuff. Its a UK magazine. I'm not fussed about the inclusion of clown bikes, 29ers, singlespeed, hell, even CX but 99% of the readership I suspect will never ride abroad and if that 1% do, I suspect they'll be heading straight for the Alps more than likely (which IS worth an article or three).
- less of these random 'columns' from people who just seem to use it as an excuse to talk about sh*t for half a page. If these stay, can I have one because I have issues I'd like published too.

Cheers
Dave

I think this:

And just how are they going to know who I am?

and this:

they do view all the blatherings on various forums as bellow contempt,

are possibly related.

The joys of keyboard warriors.

lol @ you lot

[img] [/img]

cockeaa (see what I did there) [i] I think the banner ads and the mugs with a “P” next to their usernames are probably the main source of it’s funding[/i]

I'm a mug because I subscribe to a magazine that I read? hmm..

that girl has a big bum. not good.

ANYWAY...

it seems i owe mr chipps an apology. he searched his emails yet couldn't find anything from me as regards offering to write for singletrack.

sorry, mr chipps. i was wrong.

i'm about half way through my piece of humble pie. do i really have to eat it all? it tastes absolutely foul

They should devote an issue to some of the 'special' people that contribute to here. I'd buy it!

STW had an offer on at Enduro 6 last weekend, a free T shirt, the current issue and the next year's worth of issues delivered for £15, so I am now a premium print & on line subscriber.

Wha? Why did nobody tell me? Is it because I'm not some super-fit racey type biker? I'd go for that!

[i]You're joking, right?[/i]

LOL! Right! 🙄

not that some of us mightn't like arsey singlespeeders to do their thing far far away from us 🙂

nicko, didn't you see the STW tent at the end of the trade stalls ?
They had two posters up, one for the £15 offer and one for the free T shirt.
I asked if the two offers were combined. They said they were, so I went for it. They also threw in the current mag as my subscription doesn't start now until the next issue.

Single speeders !!!!! Arsey ? who was it I will have a word. Every SS freak I ride with is a warm, broad minded indvidual with a slight habit for beer, beards and a floral frocks. I met the SS Knights of Niche at a cheese party once. Oh did I say that "singletrack is brilliant" Now where did I put that fishing rod. You got to laugh and its friday YAHOO !!!

Every SS freak I ride with is a warm, broad minded indvidual with a slight habit for beer, beards and a floral frocks

eeeeeeeeeeeek, run away, run away 🙁

Damn Straight I’m a Keyboard warrior!!! STW is the place to be for such interweb stupidity…

Cockeaa 😆 😆 😆 Mercy... the comedy never stops on here...

eeeeeeeeeeeek, run away, run away Tut tut !! We are just different and not scary, honest. We could come and trot in your bog ? if you would let us ? "Singletrack Mag" best mag in the world. What about a section on "single speeders and pub ridding" ? Start at pub A, ride a bit to pub B, ride to pub C etc etc

Thats just a pub crawl with bikes.... Excellent idea!!

mugs with a “P” next to their usernames are probably the main source of it’s funding

but i don't think it's ever been in ST's remit to change to suit it's audience

I hope that's not true 🙁 Or are you saying they always know best ?

If you're that disenchanted, they're more likely than not uninterested in your opinion.

so much for feedback...

No its an athletic event that just happens to have a few stop offs at pubs. As we are SSers and thus Gods, we can drink a bit and still ride hard. If its a saturday ride we could window shop at the best "Yorkshire Frock Shop" in these parts. 😯 "Singletrack feature" ? Best all mountain frocks ?

No I'm saying if they just followed audience trends, they'd be MBUK. Independence has always been the point I think.
And by not bothered in your opinion I mean, if you're that far away from liking it, you're probably not the target audience.

I think singletrack this month was good, i'm an occasional climber and like the idea of including other sports in the magazine, i also find most of the articles of interest which can not be said for MBUK. and as others have said, if it wasnt for the people who buy the magazines and the mugs with P next to their names this forum and the websites content would not exist.

I'm just glad I can open the back door of the truck and throw a bike in with no hassles.

I'd always thought that them racks looked like trouble, and this month's review only served to deepen my feelings about them, I neither need, nor want a rack, in fact I dunno how I'd fit one on my bus, but I found an increasingly grotesque fascination in reading those reviews ... each one seemingly becoming more horrid / annoying than the last.

Still, that's what you get for having a car I guess, rather than a van.

😉

i read the mag & enjoy it,but i think he is entitled to his opinion.
he pays for it why not.

plus were all in the shit if conservatives get anywhere near power.

i refuse to scan my own shopping at tesco on principle.some people will find it pathetic i find it essential.the ****ers will have me stacking shelves next before i can buy.

the irony of someone freeloading on a website supported by magazine sales - you folk are like the doleys us workers - subscribers- support. Then you come on here to lord it up too no wonder Mark got so pi55ed with peoplelike you. They could send me an empty envelope and I would still subscribe to support the website. Thought it was an ok one tbh
Seriously wtf do you think pays for this website but mag sales ?

well [b]Junkyard[/b] there appears to be a chain reaction ad just below the latest post - I suspect that is just there because people at ST are nice?

I am a ST subscriber and like the mag and its less technical/nerdy and more rounded look at MTBing and what it means to us all. But fair play to the OP for stating what he/she didn't like. If editors don't get feedback, how are they to learn? I get one ski mag as part of a membership deal where the editor has been writing the same old tosh for years. Just doesn't listen to complaints on the associated forum and doesn't seem to worry that he has almost zero newsstand sales.

do you think the forum makes money or cost money os the real question. I suspect it costs money anyone know?
Does anyone really think the mag could stop and the froum continue?
Criticism is fine but every issue someone says something why not e-mail them they may actually read it /reply

Really I'm not getting why there's so much vitriol poured on people in this thread. Opinions are fine, it wasn't rudely put nor personally insulting to the STW guys so I'm at a loss to undertand why it's got so ugly.

It's a boring mag for boring SS 29er riding bores who love to bore poeple with facts about how the SS 29er scene is where it's at and how the new developments in steel frames have revolutionised the cycling industry.
But somehow the wesite and forum seems to have evolved into a hive of activity surrounding the latest news and burning topics in the MTB universe.
Q. "What tyres should I use for a trip to the shops?"
A. Round black ones.

you folk are like the doleys us workers - subscribers- support.

the internet is founded on free stuff, on non-monetisation, which is highly democratic as lacking money doesn't deny access. I see value in STW, so I support it with a subscription, but I have no problem with others not doing the same. Share and enjoy :o)

TBH, I have allways seen it as being a bit too much of an excersise in poetry rather than factual stuff.
Maybe a few route guides thrown in would help.
Having said that, it is so long since I bought it that things could well have changed.

FWIW, the best series of articles Ive read in bike mag were MBR's weekends away. UK rides, where to stay, the decent pubs and curry houses. I think they reflected what people actually did. (well, me and my mates anyway)

I have allways seen it as being a bit too much of an excersise in poetry rather than factual stuff.

*Yeah, i do realise that we're a long way from bike mags but i'm just going with the metaphor okay?

I found the climbing article mercilessly dull, not as bad as the pedal cars one but there you go. There'll always be some noise and some signal. On the whole, all things considered, Mercury in retrograde, ST is the best of the bunch. And they don't have that much SS stuff anymore, that novelty tie containership sailed a while ago ;-p

Singletrack "Brilliant Mag and a Brilliant forum" just needs much much more single speed stuff. I would be willing to write free stuff for Mr Chips and heh keep up the most excellent work. Next months top features.. "Single Speed Riders, a tale of gods on earth" and Single Speed Weekender",beer,racing,beer and a bit of cross dressing perhaps 8)

Didn't this topic do the rounds last month?

Found this months mag better than last months, didn't mind the climbing article (but I don't climb), the bike rack review was OK (as OK as bike rack review can be.....) and it was filled with the usual "editorial" type 2-4 page articles. Found it useful to read about 29'rs as they've devloped during a hiatus that I've had in mountain biking, so reading the whys & wherefores of 29'rs is useful for someone like me. DOn't think I'd ever buy one though!
Still peeed me off that the magazine appears in the online archive before subscriber copies land on the door mat though, and it's the second month where there has been a local/urban type route article.

I haven't read the mag for a few months and I'm a bit out of touch.
I'm really concerned because I don't know what width bars I need to be running at the moment.

I liked this month's issue, particularly the Trail Tetris article. 😀

Bah, I don't [b]have[/b] my issue yet, but looking forward to reading the climbing article because I do, though at grade 4's.
Someone mentioned the Man and Boy article - sums up Singletrack for me. Got a questionnaire thing through with MBR (?) I think this month asking me what my fave mag was and why. ST wins on photography (I'm so sick of seeing the same stock looking photos in MBUK), epic aspirations (pass storming) and it's not just about riding bikes. Or at least, I don't think it's just about riding bikes. It's about soul, and laughter, and post ride analysis down the pub, about inspiration (that girl who road across the US pinged something inside me), it's not just about the technicality though it's there, not just about the gear, though it's there...
Oh I don't know. Love it to bits, there you go.