[Closed] Open letter to the management: Why so much CX stuff in a MTB mag?

I expcet the mag to have a bit of a theme each time and it being CX is within what I would expect. Sometimes I like the theme some times I don't. But I like the madazine

But I have to say I'm a bit anti CX at the moment. Not CX bikes for CX racing but CX bikes as the latest must have

I think i have 3 problems with all this. Yes they are my problems, not real world problems.

Firstly I think the word touring has become so untrendy that the world now walks round it inlarge cirles. Hence we have Bike Packing and Bivi Biking. You mean touring don't you, possibley off road touring, but touring

Secondly we have the cx bike as the versatile road bike that you can spin off down a lane etc. Well thats what touring bikes always have been, but we wouldn't want a bike with that deeply un trendy word. The Croix de fer has rack mounts. In what universe would some one want a rack on a bike they are going to run with up a muddy hill. Its a cx capable touring bike

Thirdly no one will ever admit that the solution to the less challenging off road ride or part on road part off road ride could envolve flat handle bars. No one would dare put flat bars on a CX bike or or 38 mm tyres on the 29 er as then they would be riding a hybrid. Which is the least trendy thing in cyling.

Exit rant mode

I agree with many of ampthill's comments.

I enjoy the mag and have no problem with the cx 'supplement'.

I liked Tom's bike build article and the ride in Fife on cx bikes in particular. There is some level of familiarity of the (perhaps perceived) unsuitability of the cx bike off-road and many an early mtb.

I actually quite like the idea of one as a winter bike but the hassle of selling my Allez road bike and then perhaps my Kona ht, which would both basically become redundant, puts me off.

That said, I do agree that the drop bars would make for a challenge on certain parts of my local riding too but wouldn't think of flat bars on it so I guess image plays a part over function as mentioned in the previous post.

Seeing Cycling Plus also push the cx bike this month did undermine things slightly though and I can see why, to some, it can all feel a bit marketing driven.

All in all though, I applaud ST for the varied articles in the mag.

Seeing Cycling Plus also push the cx bike this month did undermine things slightly though and I can see why, to some, it can all feel a bit marketing driven.

Mags always feature CX bikes in early winter/CX season?
I like CX bikes. Not so much the all-out race ones, more the 'do some country lane miles and see where that bridleway ends up and even find fun new trails sometimes' kind. CX is just a wide-ranging tag now, like MTB covers rigid 29ers and DH bikes.

But I have to say I'm a bit anti CX at the moment. Not CX bikes for CX racing but CX bikes as the latest must have

I've had a CX bike for 7 years (and been using it for exactly the sort of "touring/commuting/off-road-capable allrounder" that you describe). I'm SUCH a trendsetter. 🙂

@ Jameso
I appreciate that. I think it was more the '2 guys on cx bikes do a ride often where mtb's are used' article rather than group tests I meant.

I have no problem with them, as I said I like the idea, the Genesis CDF in the front cover caught my eye. Even a similar colour to my 1990 Fisher mtb!

An interesting foray but hopefully not a regular feature.

What is CX exactly?

What is CX exactly?

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I appreciate that. I think it was more the '2 guys on cx bikes do a ride often where mtb's are used' article rather than group tests I meant.

They'll never keep us all happy will they )

Comments like "CX bikes are crap for riding off road" demonstrate exactly why magazine should have more coverage of them.

On some "MTB" trails, like a great proportion of the ones you get at trails centres a CX bike is the faster option.

I don't have any problem with CX being in the mag I think the guys & gals that do CX deserve respect as I wouldnt fancy riding around a very muddy slippery field on a bike with drop handlebars, scary enough on the road 😯

Ampthill I've done dalby red on cx and have 40mm tyres on the 29er does this mean I'm a bad person :'(

Last December: ST = 116 pages
December before that = 116 pages

This year 148 pages. 18 featuring cx.

MTB content is higher in this December issue than it has for, well, ever.

Is that 32 extra pages of articles or 32 extra pages of adverts. One is cool and makes for better value, the other is a necessity.

Haven't read the mag for a few years so genuinely don't know the answer.

I'm with ampthill, a good old steel tourer does everything your non-racing cx bike will do and more but you won't be "bang on trend" riding it which is the crucial difference for too many folk.

Similarly bikepacking with frame bags and bits strapped to your handlebars is apparently the shizzle, compared to having a rack on my "rigid hardtail dropbarred steed" aka. my surly disc trucker tourer.

I think it's good to have ones eyes opened to all different forms of cycling.

So, yes, I am very much enjoying the latest issue. 8)

@ampthill - generally agree with what you're saying.

Had a lot of fun on my 'cross bike in my Calderdale days, but they're not quick descenders. These days, my back won't take drops very well, and I want better braking than cantis can offer, so I'm building it up with swept back flat bars and V-brakes.

I give you: The Cybrid. It IS the new niche.

Actually knowing that makes me want to go out and buy it! There are no CX specific mags out there anyway so its good to see a bit of variety from the usual articles.

Dirt magazine also recently had a feature on cx racing and as you can imagine that brought some controversy. Still some were open minded enough and enjoyed the article. (and that comes from a bunch of downhillers!)

Ampthill I've done dalby red on cx and have 40mm tyres on the 29er does this mean I'm a bad person :'(

No it means your a cyclist and I mean that in the best possible way. It means you take the bits off the shelf and end up with what you want. Rather than following fashion

You would go up again in my estimation if your prepared to post

"I find my hybrid ideal for trail centres"

Just remembered I can download it 😳

Anyroadup there aren't any CX mags, and judging by the recent turn out at races CX is quite popular among MTB'ers.

It looks fun and I want to try it! I mean look at the Rapha Super X series who doesn't want foam pits and tequelia shots in their races?

Blimey O Reiley had a look and what's the beef? Some blokes riding off road on crossers. More akin to me and my mates, a bit of MTB and CX. Conversely downhill bores me to death and I wouldn't buy a mag loaded with it. That said I know shed loads of people love it, so I simply accept it.

I agree. As most CX bikes are not raced they should be called "roughstuff" bikes . Now we could have lots of those in the ag couldn't we.
Bagsy the T shirt if its used. 😆

Ampthill I probably would but I no longer go to them as I prefer natural stuff these days , plodding along taking in the scenery

errm, isn't the Magazine called "Singletrack"? Well I ride singletrack on my CX bike as well as my MTB's so isn't it well within the remit of the magazine? Actually it's a lot more relevant to me than reviews of the latest 160mm travel machine which is pretty irrelevant for most UK riding.

So 116 pages in the previous two Decembers and 148 now. And how much more are we paying for those extra 32 pages.

I like my CX bike cause I can have a roll-up while waiting for my mountain biking friends to catch-up, mind you it's a bit monster, now there's an idea for an article?

Oh behave yourself. You can't compare the latest issue with the one from Christmas 2 years ago. There's more to it than page numbers.

Poor effort at trolling. 0/10

EDIT: bah.. should have looked through the thread first.. being unoriginal on a Sunday evening is so gauche.. 😳

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I like my MT bike cause i can have a swiss roll while waiting for my cross biking friends to catch up after the downhill bits.......... 😉

Never really considered CX before this months mag but found the articles interesting.
Can't see me buying a CX bike , though..............no, no, really. 😉

jezandu - Member

Dirt magazine also recently had a feature on cx racing and as you can imagine that brought some controversy. Still some were open minded enough and enjoyed the article. (and that comes from a bunch of downhillers!)

Thought it was a great article- partly because of the Dirt approach. Flat pedals? Why not. Kneepads? Damn right, we're expecting to crash our brains out.

Still making my way through STW but it does feel a bit like it's cross bike articles written for cross bike riders, rather than cross bike articles for mountain bikers and the cross-curious, if that makes any sense?

Even though it doesn't appeal to me I have no problem with a bit of CX stuff in the mag every now and then.
But I feel it's so much closer to road biking than mountain biking that it doesn't warrant a regular inclusion.

mattsccm - Member
I agree. As most CX bikes are not raced they should be called "roughstuff" bikes . Now we could have lots of those in the ag couldn't we.
Bagsy the T shirt if its used.

Here's hoping your t shirt says "I LOVE ROUGHSTUFF" across the back. 😯 😆

Soooo, as well as CX bikes and 29ers being essentially the SAME bikes.

Current CX bikes are the also the SAME as MTB's upto the mid-late 90s, geometry wise etc, thinner tyres admittedly, but how many of us used to thrash around on 1.5 wide mtb tyres?

So what exactly is your problem op, too narrow minded to accept anything that doesn't fit your preconceptions!

My mountain bike is a cyclocross bike. I'm confused, should I be angry or pleased?

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Edit: (or what the Doctor said seconds beforehand)

Look what they've done to that poor gate... 😉

Mind you, 'part from the stupid handlebars, perfect or the chilterns about now

Shoot, I own a pompino and a mountain bike, can I write to the BBC and complain or something?

Mattsccm 'roughstuff' is even less cool than touring.

I'd like more Cyclocross please! 🙂

All the cross riders I know are road riders, MTBers, tourists, trackies. You know, just cyclists.

I love cross. Can't wait to get back on it next season.

Wonder how readers of a road biking mag would feel if they started reviewing and featuring 29ers (and by 29ers I mean stuff like an Inbred, Genesis, Solaris etc etc but any of you pedantic t**ts start).

I was under the impression that Singletrack is/was a mountain biking magazine whether they dropped the strap line or not. So I'd expect to open it and see mountain bikes and articles about mountain biking.

Stopped reading Dirt ages ago because I thought it'd become a bit too MBUKey. MBR is just generally shite IMHO so I was left with Singletrack and I was actually glad when the missus got me a subscription last xmas. But, this new format seems to have brought with it even more mindless drivel articles - just articles for articles sake. I'd rather read a magazine with half the pages rather than read the crap Steve Worland comes up with and a page which I assume is meant to be an article about switching from SPDs to flats? Reviews (more than a handful of pages and more than 3 bikes), articles about actually riding your bike - routes etc is what I'd like please.

As it is, ST seems to have crawled up its own arse in the last 10 months. Of course, thats simply my opinion and the magazine just doesn't seem to suit my needs anymore which is cool. Sure a load of people love it especially given the CX bandwagon which everyone on here seems to be jumping on.

As it is, I'll be waving goodbye to my little 'P' next to my name very shortly as the renewal letter went in the bin yesterday.

But cyclocross isn't road biking

That three peaks article is ace. And it's about proper nails off road cycling for seriously tough people, including some like Nick Craig who is pretty damn handy at both MTB and CX.

Some people ride ST on CS bikes. Its' off road (going places) cycling, Perhaps I'll try one one day, and I can see the crossover from what I do.

But jumps and hucking (and all the "this week's hero-worship marketing business model that goes with it")? Yawn yawn yawn yawn.

just articles for articles sake.

All magazines are "articles for articles sake". What were you expecting?

boriselbrus - Member
errm, isn't the Magazine called "Singletrack"? Well I ride singletrack on my CX bike as well as my MTB's so isn't it well within the remit of the magazine? Actually it's a lot more relevant to me than reviews of the latest 160mm travel machine which is pretty irrelevant for most UK riding.

160mm bikes are pretty relevant to all my uk riding, its all i own

i cancelled my subscription a few months back because i dont see any articles about what i like to ride that dont sound like ones ive read before