[Closed] Do YOU even buy Singletrack?

No. I can't stand it.

I don't read it- I'm not the target audience and while Matt, Sim and Jon seem to ride trails how I do, the mag has always been focussed on middle aged fat knackers rather than people like me that are more interested in going as fast as possible everywhere.

I used to subscribe, about 10 years ago when it had a lot of homemade charm, but I used to be a bit of a mincer and as my riding has progressed I find it has a lot less relevance to me.

The article about the Lakes in the new Dirt on the other hand...

No

Nope

I do. Much improved since the re-launch.

I find that I need a quiet hour or two and read it all in one go. I don't bother with the reviews as I have enough kit and I'm skint.

No, I don't like any mtb mags really. Always seem to be full of the latest bling and overpriced clothing that I have no interest in. The only bike mag i've considered a subscription to is The Albion, bmx is still for more interesting to me.

I've bought it a few times in the past but not often. Just got a digital sub though - enjoying it so far.

No sign of the email about my free t-shirt though!

Last time I bought a bike mag was 1998. In fact it may have been the last time I bought any magazine.

Been a subscriber since almost the start (issue 2 IIRC), considered giving it up in the dark years when I stopped riding, but never got around to it... and then it chipped away at me until I dragged the bike back out again!

It is the only cycling mag I still bother with.

I do, recent subscriber after 4yrs away from biking and i wouldn't describe myself as middleaged fat knacker.

Good mag imho, used to subscribe to Bike and Dirt Rag as well, prob will resubscribe to them pretty soon as you can't buy them locally (within 60odd miles anyway).

I'll chase that t-shirt for you tomorrow Grum.

I'm sad to say that I don't. I tried for a few years as a subscriber but, as above, I'm not the target audience. I couldn't stomach the flowery poetic stuff about biking to be honest.

I have the digital sub ........been waiting for my t-shirt for months .... 😐

Used to buy it many years ago.

I am a little afraid to say this, as I got banned from this site last time I said it, but IMHO its not a very good magazine.

Fully paid print sub here, I have to say since the change to new paper the quality is outstanding.
I quite like travel writing so the style of article appeals.

Dirt represents my interest in mountain biking more, other than reminding me how inadequate everything I own actually is. I occasionally buy STW though, mainly for its inspiring images and occasionally provoking features. Well written magazine in my opinion. Reminds me of the days when I used to write for Dirt (right at the beginning - Jerry Dyer days) when I used to write features to, at the very least, inspire readers.

I did buy and did subscribe, but I found myself reading fewer and fewer articles. Can't remember the last copy I got.

I must try it again as I do like the guys at stw and would like to support them

Middle aged fat knacker here who subscribes. 😀

I am not a subscriber, but thinking about it, are their any of the t-shirts still available?

I love all bike mags, some more than others. I have to admit Dirt is my favourite, followed closely by Singletrack.
I also buy every climbing magazine. I just love em 🙂

Didn't realise it had changed recently, will go and get a copy to try it then!

Bought one a year or two ago and was well miffed that an article was cut short because you had to get the rest of it online and you had to be a premium subscriber or something. If you want to provide extra for more money that's ok but to rub it in my face that I only got half the interview was a bit annoying. Do they still do that?

Yep, love it and will continue to for the foreseeable future 🙂

I'll chase that t-shirt for you tomorrow Grum.

Cheers. 🙂

There's a magazine?

Print subscriber here. Normally read around 50% of it but that is the norm for all magazines that I buy.

I want to - flick through a copy in Smiths every month but nothing much of interest. As soon as Mint Sauce makes a move i'll subscribe!

Digital subby here, I have so many old mags that the digital option only works out well.
I discovered single track when stuck in a tent in snowdonia, thought it was a good read so ditched mbuk, mbr etc.

Bored with the whole scene. Cancelled my subscription, the same with Privateer
thats an uplifting post isn't it 😐

I still like the banter on here though...yaa 🙂

I subscribe to ST and Privateer. Currently get WMB but thinking about packing that in, and did used to get MBR. Can't stand MBUK.

Andy

No - I find the content good but the typography deeply unpleasant. Perhaps my small brain just doesn't appreciate taste.

<oblig.>There's a magazine?</oblig.>

premier subscriber like the mag since thr relaunch the only bike mag i read used to read mbr but got very annoyed 👿 with the way one certain brand won every test 👿 picked up a copy singletrack in smiths that month 3years later still think it covers the types of riding that iam more intrested in 😀

Singlecrack I'll highlight this for you.

For future reference anyone with any problems contact this email or number.

Missing orders or queries – despatch@singletrackworld.com – 01706 813344

Cheers.

I subscribe to ST.

Was going to get a umbrella but haven't got around to it as the £6 P&P was a bit off putting

I only started MTBing again about 2 - 3 years ago and hadnt got a clue.

My Best Mate got me into it and I remember nodding like the Churchill dog when he was going on about Hardtails & Full Suss coz I didnt want to look like a idiot but I really didnt understand anything.

So I started buying MBUK and I subscribed to it which got me a basic knowledge of what stuff is about.

Eventually got myself a decent hardtail and now find MBUK too much like a "Boy Racer" magazine for my liking.

I was the same with the car magazines I used to get and stopped buying Max Power and bought Performance VW.

STW is spot on for me. As you can tell Im a Subscriber but the type of riding I do can be classed as pottering. I get out on my bike to escape day to day life, to find new and interesting places and to keep the weight off.

I do read the reviews as Im one of them who buys stuff to last so want to know mw hard earned is spent well.

I subscribe, or rather, my OH does. I like it TBH, it's something a bit different to the general mags that seem to be aimed at horny 14 year olds. As a horny 40 year old, I want something a little better produced.

premier subscriber here, but these days just to support em really as i think they deserve it.

family problems, work etc mean i havent been on my bike in over a year now, but the amount of help, either bike related or real diverse stuff, ive had on here over the years has been priceless.

the latest mags still remain unopened, and i mean to start reading them again soon, see if i get my mojo back, but for now im happy to just pay the subs and still be a part of the forum 🙂

I used to buy three a year in smiths but I haven't had one since the first revamp. I would never subscribe to a mag

I would never subscribe to a mag

Why not?

Subscribe to Singletrack and Dirt. Between then they seem to cover everything I like about biking.

I get it on subscription - saves me getting socks for christmas from the outlaws

oh, and

...people like me that are more interested in going as fast as possible everywhere.

Read? sometimes, look at pictures - always! 😉

Actually, i like the writing style, the writers don't take themselves too seriously, don't try to ram down your throat how gnar or rad they ride, don't spend too long just reviewing new stuff, and generally give me 10mins off just daydreaming about riding in the places they show (even if i have no real intention of flying off and doing the same).

In this respect, and call me old fashioned here, i really do preffer the print edition, something with a quality feel you can hold in your hand, rather than peer at on some monitor or other (also safer to read in the bath after a long dirty ride..............)

I've subscribed since issue 1 with a year or so off around 2004 IIRC.

It's varied over the years from being brilliant to being pretty average (It's going through a good phase at the mo IMO). I stick with it because I know that it'll get better when it's meh and I also consider it my contribution towards keeping the forum going (in addition to the brilliant content I post...).

Ive been a subcriber for donkeys years...pretty much from the start. Do the Premium 'thing' now. I have to admit i was close to cancelling until about 3 issues ago, when there was finally something worth reading...for the first time in about a year. It had turned into boring, pretentious shit, though it has improved a huge amount since number 73/74. So i'll stick with it a while longer...im kinda fond of it so i give it more slack than any other mtb mag out there - which is why i cancelled my MBR sub ages ago...cos that REALLY is a dreadful mag these days (since Specialized stopped paying them for nothing but 10/10 scores by a remarkable coincidence 😉 😯

Did for ages, then stopped...

Signed up for a sub - got a free t-shirt 😆

Found I was only looking at the pics and adverts... so stopped again... for now!

Print +digital here too. I remember when MTB Pro folded, all the comments in the back of it stating why 'they' ride-it's not changed one bit (for me). This mag is along the same lines as MTB Pro and that's why i like it. I'm not 'rad', i don't 'roost' anywhere. I just ride and i like to hear about others who do and their experiences (the pics are pretty).

If i'm honest, this forum i can take or leave. I keep coming back because it's funny and interesting, generally people are helpful too. However, sometimes i see trends on here of the worst of current society too, like intolerance and negativity. Still, it's a cross section of people and it is the interwebs after all.

I like it.

Used to subscribe but started to develop a pile of unopened plastic covered mags on my shelf so stopped, also lost my mojo so to speak and stopped riding bike but I've just bought a new one and will have a look at the new styled mag when I get a chance.

Used to get a subscription many years ago and forgot to renew it. Always been lurking on the forum and now getting back into biking so decided to go for the digital subscription. Means I get to read the latest mag anywhere my phone is and I support the guys and the website.

I have subscribed since issue one but if I had to buy it every time I would probably have missed a few. I get what Sadexpunk says about supporting the STW team. At the outset when they needed 500 subscribers to make it viable I signed up and it rather felt that we were all involved. It creates a form of loyalty that makes you stick with it through issues that might not have been so good.

Dogsby

I don't buy the hard copy mag, but I subscribe and read the PDF's

Yes buy the mag makes good bedtime read at work n rest of team seem to enjoy it too,share canoe mags etc too.

I do. Maybe I'm not that demanding, I subscribe to all the UK mags 😉

I go and buy it every month from a shop, which seems pretty daft. Was intending to do the t-shirt and a tenner thing the other month, but missed it. Hoping they'll do another similar offer before Christmas.

I'm a digital subscriber but find that I never actually read the PDF mag.
I use the forum and the rest of the site but I don't actually enjoy reading the magazine on an iPad.

I'm trying to decide whether to go back to a print subscription, at least that way I'll be reading the mag!

I read it. Much better since the revamp. Also buy MBR sometimes but I prefer the columns and features in ST.

@Wisepranker: exactly why I went to print and digital, I found reading the digital edition on a tablet a chore.
The print edition is lovely to read (and in fact lovely to hold too).

I subscribe. Probably the best written bike mag on the market.

I have to agree with the "dislike digital copies" comments above, it just doesn't feel right to try and read it on my ipad never mind view it on my monitor, i subscribe to a few other mags not related to mtb'ing and they all seem to offer this service but i've never read books nor magazines on my ipad - never will either, but then again i also dislike reading books to the point of i'd rather buy the actual physical book than read it on the screen for a fraction of the price.

There's something comforting about handling a magazine or book in one hand wi a big mug of tea or coffee in the other.

Nope! Won't pay the prices they ask for mags these days, just not worth ot IMO

Plus, i'd rather ride hrough trees than read print off something im gonna throw away after a few weeks

Do YOU even buy Singletrack?

sometimes - i quite like it.

but it's not good for me - i can't afford any of the kit/bikes/clothes/tyres/helemts/bitsnbobs they review - and then i get depressed.

Singletrack is/are no worse than any other mags for only reivewing really expensive stuff.

(how about a review - which forks for less than £200?)

but the other mags are either crap, or unreadable, Singletrack is really quite good in comparison.

I have bought every single copy since the very first issue.

Imo it's very interesting as a lot of the articles are written by a women, which is good from my point of view.

However the grammar isn't too good (get your act together boys, seeing as Mark used to be a teacher).

My copy lives in the bog. Had a couple of years subscribing but let it lapse - just forgot about it. It was always read cover to cover. I missed the American writer's articles (sorry, name escapes me) - really well put together, thoughtful pieces.

Flaperon - Member

No - I find the content good but the typography deeply unpleasant. Perhaps my small brain just doesn't appreciate taste.

I do subscribe and have bought every copy since the first but I agree with above. I struggle with the typeface every so often, and it's one of the few mage I have to remove my glasses to read.

I read the the forum when I'm bored and find that it often has very little to do with actual mountain biking. I sometims wonder why a lot of people post on here - why they found this forum - when they are patently not keen MTBers. However, thats not the question asked.....

I [s]couldn't stomach[/s] can't get enough of the flowery poetic stuff about biking to be honest.

IMO it makes a mockery of the other mags..

Everything else on the shelf reminds me of that spotty MTB wierdo in the pub who tells cringeworthy stories about how rad he is, with his floppy hair, his infantile mates and boring boring sense of humour, and their dead eyed vacuous girlfriends with two expressions and horsey laughs..

Everything in them reads like Barry Scott the Cillit Bang seller is reading it out loud to you while furiously tossing himself off in a ski lift..

Singletrack was the first mag I read that advised you to try and make do with what you've got rather than advising trying to buy a lifestyle..

Ironically I can't afford to buy a copy any more though..

Can't find anywhere to buy it anymore. Is it subscription only?

Used to be a print subscriber, but it ran out a couple of months back - will prob get a digital sub before x-mass.

I subscribed pretty much from the beginning until 2011 when I was threatened with a ban for being rude on the forum so I picked up my ball etc.

There was a bit too much lauding of being unfit, living up north, coffee, absurdly expensive bikes as well as some really dull articles such as the ST team reviewing their faves for the year such that every advertiser got a positive mention at least once. How was that ever meant to make a good read?

Over the ten years there was a lot of good stuff as well and some inspirational travel stuff.

Just digital for me, I don't like the clutter of loads of magazines around the house.

I bought the first 'redesigned' magazine but thought the printing was a bit poor, I thought it was pitched like "the ride" or "Privateer" quality but it was just a less glossy cover stock and horrible standard internal pages. If it was a nice piece of print I'd buy it. I download it and read/skim through it on my iPad, but really just subscribe it to support the forum.

I subscribe to ST and Privateer, although I never seem to get round to reading them both properly....

I mainly subscribe to ST to support the guys at STW Towers as I think this forum is such a great resource.

Nope

Subscribed following a Christmas gift subscription - what a pleasure that year was...emails, phone calls killed the gesture.

Delayed delivery
Missed months

Blah blah

Gave up on the paper copies as it was just too expensive for non UK folks for the amount I read. However I love the digital version as the price is way more manageable and the extra stuff in the app version is great. I got into it initially as I like the way the the equipment reviews never too effusive and at the end you usually came out with an accurate idea of whether or not you would like it. That dissappeared for a while but seems to be back now.

The flowery writing is a bit difficult because you really have to sit and read it to get into it but sometimes it pays off and the writer has managed to capture the moment well.

Would love to see more on uk based builders - frames, kit, bikes, trails even if they have been done before. It's nice to see how stuff progresses.

So yep - getting it and enjoying it for the mo

Subscriber and now digital viewer as well, always been best mag out there IMHO. The relaunched mag has made it even better and I like reading everything that Jenn Hopkins writes, she has been a great addition to the team.
I subscribe to Dirt Rag and Bike digitally also, so much cheaper and much easier to get hold of than the mags.
Also subscribe to Privateer but I'm still unsure with it and will probably stop soon.
Only buy Dirt regular of the other mags and it is of decent quality but the font/printing on strange colour backgrounds still annoys me as I find it difficult to read.

written by a women

However the grammar isn't too good

Coughs.

Yeah I subscribe. Slightly older than middle aged and not too much of a fat knacker. Also take Privateer but that is going to stop soon as I find less and less to read in it. Singletrack mag just suits me; bit of travel, good photos and decent reviews, plus I like the new format.

brack - Member

Nope

Subscribed following a Christmas gift subscription - what a pleasure that year was...emails, phone calls killed the gesture.

Delayed delivery
Missed months

Blah blah

I feel left out. I've never had a single email or phone call. [b]Why don't you care, STW?[/b] 😥

[quote=mefty ]written by a women
However the grammar isn't too good
Coughs.

typo != grammar

I only buy dirt, steve jones is the hunter s thompson of bike journalism.

I [s]mainly[/s][u]don't[/u] subscribe to ST to support the guys at STW Towers [u]i click on a few of the adverts on the right instead[/u] as I think this forum is such a great resource.

😀

the mag never passes the WHSmith test, i.e. could I not finish reading anything that's interesting in 5-10 mins browsing in smiths

typo != grammar

That's what Singletrack always say, never understood what they meant.

I subscribe to Dirt Rag and Bike digitally also

Is Bike any good now? I've been reading some 1990s issues I found in the loft and it was ace.

And yes I subscribe to ST mag (and Dirt and MBUK), enjoy all three - although the last one mainly for the free hats, gloves, socks and buffs.

I wasn't even aware there was a Singletrack magazine. I've never seen it in a Supermarket.