[Closed] This months magazine

May I second that? I too enjoyed the longer features/tales of woe and unifying theme in the mag this issue.

Funny, I thought it was a bit lightweight this month. I did enjoy the bonking stuff but i'm not interested in CX, and I found the slovenian blokes article almost unreadable. Seemed to get through it a lot quicker than usual. Suppose they're never gonna please all of us every month.

Yes a good issue, with less of the middle age shoe staring "why can/can't/should i ride my bike" type stuff.
Nice one

I enjoyed all the bonking stuff.
Much better than the usual boring magazine 'I rode along here and the trails were great, then I rode here and the views were great and at the end it was a great day' articles.

my sub copy hasnt arrived yet so could you all be quiet please
ta very much

There's a magazine?

Eh?

darrell,

01706 814397 that's our subs number and Sarah will sort out your missing copy for you. They all get sent in one huge batch in order for us to get the necessary postal discounts so the most likely explanation is it's gone missing in the post. But regardless we'll get a new one sent to you as soon as you make contact.

I was hoping to read more background on the thing we mustn't talk about, you know, that thing...

I'll only like it if I win the competition.

I was a little underwhelmed with this month's, although I haven't had a really good sit down with it yet.

Obviously it's a bit of a balancing act getting the right amount of reviews / editorials / ride guides etc in and what pleases some one month won't please others.

I've subscribed though so I must think that more often than not they get it round about right and for every mag which makes me go meh, the next one will probably get read from cover to cover.

We all like different things 🙂 I found the umpteenth article on bonking a bit dull tbh. One or two articles, fine.. but 17 pages (plus another 5 for the arctic-conditions-race story which was in the same vein)!

My partner does not like Singletrack, too much for blokes with all the dodgy titles such as "Joy of Bonking" and all the pseudo names rider like to be called. She said it's like a bunch of kids talking at school and really wonder how many girls read the mag and appreciate it. But no worries, I'm buying it so no need to target a new market.

shame i cant buy it anywhere then!!

i'm yet to properly read it.
got it last week, looked at the pictures, glanced at some of the bonking tales, read the altura jacket review (and subsequently bought one as i'd been umming and ahhing about it for months!) then put it down on the coffee table... but yeah, so far i'd have to agree that it looks like a good one.

[i]She said it's like a bunch of kids talking at school[/i]

Nothing like the forum then

Was good this month - a couple of duff articles, but I liked the "bonking" theme

(That just reads sooooooo badly.....)

The joy of finding it in Halifax Tesco soon turned to dismay at the worst copy I've ever read. Reviews of 3 freak bikes, not a lot of kit and a load of stories about people not eating adequately before/during riding. Oh and an article about riding road bikes off road.

I think its now reached the point where there are NO bike magazines I (thats me, not you) like. I want to read about mountain bikes and kit and trails that us normal UK types can ride. I don't want to read about bonking, riding around in Morocco where, judging by the pics, the trails look rubbish, riding around in -40, CX and other seemingly pointless ramblings that you generally find here on the forum.

Love you lots, DBW x

I'm sorry but ST is doing a very good job of finding new themes for their articles and that's make them different from the other lots.

[i]I think its now reached the point where there are NO bike magazines I (thats me, not you) like.[/i]

So suggest something. An article, a feature, somewhere to ride, a 'challenge' or event that you'd like to see covered. Submit some pics.

She said it's like a bunch of kids talking at school

My wife thinks it's a load of self-indulgent tosh, largely because of an intro page a while ago where the editor was going on about how he's better than his friends because he's 40 but isn't married and still rides his bike.

Have to admit, I couldn't really argue.

I thought this one was particularly good too.

I particularly liked the story about thrusting £2 at an old man for food with dandelion leaves hanging out of your mouth.

I was not too sure, sort of got use to short-ish articles on a variety of topics in each issue. As a result gave the magazine a quick skim and put it down.

However, with a couple of hours to kill on the train East Anglia to Bristol last week I started to read the magazine. Must say the time just flew by even found myself reading on the tube, missing watching all the people who enjoy living in London looking so happy.

Despite my apprehension the ‘bonking’ article was very good, not that I am interested in CX again good, although the CX, and I agree with ‘Richyb Slovenian article almost unreadable but I found the nutrition article very useful.

When did it come out? Didn't find it in my local shop 🙁

great mag this month - with aspects of riding that most of us can relate to. have to say last month's wasn't great but definite return to form with the curent one. keep up the good work chaps.

Interesting split of opinion.

I thought that it was the best issue for some time - I'll admit that I had been considering not continuing my subscription as I felt that the last few issues had seemed a bit like deja vu, just feeling that the articles weren't particularly attention grabbing and seemed a bit samey compared to previous articles/issues.

The current issue just seemed to get back to what the mag had when it first came out - ie good writing about the mtbing that we (I!) love - the bonking theme was great I thought - it's something that most of us have experienced and being able to relate to the short (mainly) articles (which were well written) was great. I though that the equipment tests were better than they have been too - just more interesting than another bunch of bikes that are essentially nothing new or even all that different fundamentally despite most of the marketing. I guess that's what I felt that the mag did well at the start - it didn't just do the mainstream but rather looked at different bikes (and this isn't about nichemongering - it's just more interesting IMO hearing about new developments/ideas). On that note, I'd love to read a review about internal drive bikes (eg Rohloff, Alfine, Sram?) if any of the editorial team are reading.

On the strength of this issue, I did renew my subs (and I like the free hip flask 🙂 ) so I'm hoping that this is the start of a continued return to form.

I thought it was a good theme given a large number of the articles covered endurance events and riders who had failed! It's a nice change from "overcoming the odds" type stuff. Problem as always is the varying standard of writing, it seems as if an article will make it based on theme/pictures rather than actually being a decent read.

So those who liked the "bonking" theme didn't feel that 17 pages was overkill for what was, in effect, one article (the boundaries between the articles we're blurred to say the least).

Bonking hurts, bonking hurts, bonking hurts, drink more water and eat more carbs. And then for a change, bonking in the snow hurts and riding 'cross hurts.

Reading about bonking hurts...

Realising theres another article about it hurts...

one could argue that all cycling is just pedal, pedal, pedal, freewheel, brake, etc... Doesn't make it boring.

Hit the North was mentioned again, so I'm happy 😉

I want to read about mountain bikes and kit and trails that us normal UK types can ride. I don't want to read about bonking, riding around in Morocco where, judging by the pics, the trails look rubbish, riding around in -40, CX and other seemingly pointless ramblings that you generally find here on the forum.

I think I'd consider myself a "normal UK type", but I am probably quite likely to bonk, ride in Morocco, possibly at -40C and I might even give CX ago at some point.

OK, let me know when you have and I'll retract that statement.

Gotta say it but MBR seems more suited to what I want out of a mag these days!

Gotta say it but MBR seems more suited to what I want out of a mag these days!

What, you believe that you need a 6" Spesh full susser with riser bars and body armour to ride any offroad trails? 😉

I've said it before and I'll say it again - a price tag north of £4 is too much for me, regardless of how nice the paper it's printed on is. Please print it on cheaper stuff and make it cheaper to buy. £4.25 buys a whole book, giving far more reading time and is far more attractive when so much of the content in a bike mag is available over the net (although Singletrack is not as bad an offender as D1rt or MB*K are at this)

Well realistically, its more adequate that a road bike with knobbly tyres and drop bars or a clown bike with odd sized wheels and one gear surely?

What, you believe that you need a 6" Spesh full susser with riser bars and body armour to ride any offroad trails?[i]

Towpaths surely?

Daveyboy... heads up for you.. I'm afraid I'm currently arranging to pay a visit to Ben at Kinetics in Glasgow to spend a day riding off road recumbents with him as a fish out of water feature. I'll give you plenty of notice when that issue is due so you can avoid it. We'll be calling that issue our 'not all mountain biking is restricted to just what you do week in week out' issue. 😉

towpaths are offroad 🙂

Can you cancel my sub issue for that one too, Mark 😉

lol sure.. 🙂

printing on lower weight paper won't decrease the price that much - perhaps a few pence per issue. The cost of printing comes from the printing process, trimming, collating and delivery. The price of the paper is a fraction of the whole cost

A few pence per issue would be a start - how does it manage to be that much more than other mags? (ok only 20-30p, but quite a chunk on an item of that price)

Cheers Mark - that issue will fill me with even more anger than clown bikes and road bikes off road. 😉

As for the person who suggested I submit some ideas - I might just do that. Chipps/Mark/Matt etc - expect a mail off me sometime!

I enjoyed this months mag - even though it's bi-monthly its still the only mag I buy. WMB/MBUK are just a rehash of whatever shite the other one put in the previous months/years issue and so to a degree does MBR.

Keep it highbrow

As an idea, why not try some of the DIY stuff that come off the forum, Ghetto tubeless v Stans/UST, homebrew/Trout LED's v something stupidly expensive.

"Road bikes off road? Heresy! Burn them at the stake, I say! Road bikes shouldn't be on the road let alone off it!".......An angry Daily Mail reader wrote today.

I like the cyclo cross stuff but then I use my crosser for off road riding a lot and often in preference to my mountain bike. Cross has been an occassional visitor in the mag and featured in issue 1 if memory serves in an article by Chris Duncan, now of Endura.

I'm looking forward to the look of terror on Mark's face when he rides a recumbent off road on some of the more "interesting" trails which are close to Ben's shop..............Hee! Hee!

I bought this months issue for the first time in 2 years and I loved it. Stories were great, I liked the -40 one especially. Who would I contact in particular about ideas?

Please print it on cheaper stuff and make it cheaper to buy. £4.25 buys a whole book. (although Singletrack is not as bad an offender as D1rt or MB*K are at this)

Disagree strongly, I think the price is fair and I like the quality paper.

I think MBUK has loads more content than any other bike mags, and covers the whole sport better than any other. It's just not really aimed at you lot.

So anyone ridden any of the alternative Cwmcarn (area) routes yet?

A few pence per issue would be a start - how does it manage to be that much more than other mags? (ok only 20-30p, but quite a chunk on an item of that price)

The paper cost is a bit more than a fraction of the cost. About 37% of the total print cost so the 11% paper price increase we've just absorbed is pretty significant. The reasons we are 20-30p more expensive than the other mags are many.. here's a few of them..

The other mags are printed by large companies with a portfolio of mags they can send to the same printer and therefore they can command a larger quantity discount on printing. We are a company that prints one mag.

Our paper is far superior to ALL the other bike mags. It's part of our USP (Unique Selling Point) and we don't want to give that up.

We have a policy of no more than 33% of the mag to ever be held over for advertising as compared to between 45 - 60% in the other mags.

Our paper is FSC approved (from renewable and environmentally managed forests) and that makes it more expensive. See our 'Not Easy Being Green' link at the bottom of the page.

In light of all that dropping the price to equal or less than our competitors would do very little to our sales figures but would have a disproportionately large and negative affect on our revenue.

£4.25 is the price of a decent innertube

Loved the mag, but now I've read it (thoroughly) so today I bought MBR. Oh dear 😥

[i]£4.25 is the price of a decent innertube [/i]
I run UST.

Roly Lambert stuff is sh1te, sorry.

Used to like reviews of kit, so I could think "what would I buy next if I had any cash?". But now it seems I'm more interested in stories about people than stuff. OK, there are differences in bikes and if you're spending lots of cash you don't want to waste it, but there isn't much really bad kit around these days, so I get a bit bored with "this bike has a soul!" etc.
...but people, especially when they are trying to buy food whilst eating dandelion leaves, are far more interesting.
...and John Stamstad, a legend - he was asked about training food, in the days when endurance racing was even less of a lucrative career move. "Donuts" was his reply, "they're the cheapest source of calories you can buy!"
Can we have a full article on his career with an interview please?

[i]I think its now reached the point where there are NO bike magazines I (thats me, not you) like.[/i]

I think this is a phase or state of mind rather than a reflection of the magazines. There is a limited amount of things to write about, and any individual has a limited amount of interest in reading about the same thing repeatedly. This is not too much of a problem if the individual is intent on buying the latest new thing, you can read endless reviews of tyres if that's what floats your boat, but when it's basically discussions about the nature of the activity then there is limited mileage.

I used to enjoy MBUK, then went through a ST and Dirt phase, then had a couple of Rouleurs. I haven't bought a mag for months, but have read a book on African history or politics every couple of weeks in that time. The mags haven't (pretty sure!) got any worse, I've just read of most of what there was to write about mountain-biking once over for the moment and am having a breather!

🙂

So suggest something.

I have reached similar conclusions to those of Mr Dummy (although quite independently of his, I might add).

ST has improved in my eyes recently - I have previously been an outspoken critic. However, i find the best thing to do is to pick and choose articles. Magazines are there to be dipped into - that's why they and their articles are short. Just diping in and out of the odd thing makes the experience more satisfying.

It also makes me happier ignoring some bits altogether (Ferrentino), and focussing on the arrticles that capture my interest - chipps' CX article. He consistently shows himself to have a better writing style than most other contributors.

It's no Rouleur or Ride, but I'm happy for it not to be. In fact, I'd be more than happy if it openly came out as a magazine about more than just mountain biking.

Well, I really like the Ferrentino column. Ok, he got one fair point and try to stretch it over 2 pages, but I enjoyed it. I like the guy from Torq article's but somebody has to tell him that he's not funny and he should stopped using too many parenthesis with bad jokes in it.

I also thought it was one of the better ones - enjoyed what I have read so far. Couple of articles to go still.