It’s about this time of year I look into a magazine print subscription, usually suggested to a family member for a Xmas pressie. For the past few years though the magazine just hasn’t spiked my interest like it used to. I should say, first and foremost I still describe myself as a Mountain Biker, even though the only action the mtb has seen this year was during total lockdown where I did a couple of Ryan Leach classes. Apart from that, Strava says I’ve done 4000km on my gravel bike and the rest on an indoor trainer. I am missing the mtb…lots, but a combination of Covid and a young family means I can’t afford the time to put the bike in the car and head somewhere.

So what’s my point? My gravel bike has had most bang/buck of any bike I’ve ever owned. It’s been brilliant. Ride from my door, with ex roadies(now gravellers) and be out and back by the time I’m half way round my nearest decent mtb loop. So I really want to support The magazine again, but it’s relevance has largely gone, and I can’t be alone in thinking this. Is it not time to combine both Grit & Singletrack into 1 mag and give more emphasis to MTB but add a load of regular gravel type content?

They’re trying to earn a living, and twice the magazines equals twice the ad revenue (oversimplified I know, but you get my drift)

I pretty much binned my subscription last year (bought mag since issue 8) cos I was in a similar situation to you and wasn’t riding much, and there’s a little too much non MTB content already. I keep thinking of re-subscribing, but tbh if there was more gravel content, then I won’t for sure.

2 magazines would also be double the costs and ad revenue has fallen as ST have said…
Also there is probably too much competition in that space from other quarters, like Off Road magazine and the mass of decent online content; would ST be contributing anything different to that to gain a readership/subs revenue that would make them a profit? I’d doubt it.

I’ve asked for a sub for xmas in the hope the MTB’ing wont get watered down further – that was the reason I stopped subbing a couple years ago but I also want to support the team once more.

I loved the old Grit CX magazine, and it was a shame when that ended. I’m similar to the OP (although have ridden the MTBs lots this year) in that my gravel/CX bike is far more used, so a few (extra) pages per issue given over to bike-packing, the CX and gravel scene, and relevant bike/component/kit reviews would certainly pique my interest.

Whether that’s enough to bring in new readers, or to offset the hardened MTB-only’s who might not renew, who knows …

Would be good to get some views from the STW towers team.

Historically, combining two subjects/niches in one magazine title tends not to work. What happens is the core audience of topic a) sees that space is being allocated to a topic b) that they have little interest in and the net result is they perceive the mag now offers them less than it did before. Those that are interested in topic b) see that very little space is being offered to their favourite niche in the mag and deem it not worth while investing in.

Check out snow mags (that are left) they tend to be either ski or snowboard. Few manage to succeed as both.

There was a title 20 years ago called “On the Hill magazine”. It covered everything from mtb , walking to climbing. It last under a year and then closed because it couldn’t find an audience.

We all miss the printed grit.cx but it never made us a penny. It was a large loss making enterprise for many reasons. Combining two rather distinct niches in one printed title is not something I particularly relish.

There was a title 20 years ago called “On the Hill magazine”. It covered everything from mtb , walking to climbing. It last under a year and then closed because it couldn’t find an audience.

It found me 🙁

I continue to subscribe but I don’t always get round to reading it until weeks and sometimes months later.

I wouldn’t partly fill it with cx or gravel either way.

Maybe I’m time poorer than when I first got a sub over 10 years ago but I think as a long termer when you’ve read so many wonderful pieces about so many places you’ll eventually get to a point of seeming repeat. That’s not to say the articles aren’t still of the excellent standard we’ve generally had over the years just they start to seem familiar.

I will keep the sub going regardless because it supports the forum and supports a business that’s brought much pleasure over the years.

We’re very careful to not repeat things if we can. Our routes, stories and locations are all planned to be as widespread as we can make them – given the writers and resources we have available. And suggestions are always listened to too. Often we’ll get pitches or suggestions and I’ll look back in the archives and say ‘Hmm, we did that idea, or visited that location in issue 67, is that long enough ago?’ and unless there’s a new take on a theme, we’ll not repeat it.

As for gravel, it’s a funny one. There were howls of complaint when we added a free 16 page section to the magazine dedicated to cross/gravel, though also many shouts of support – which is why we embarked on grit.cx AKA our very expensive cyclocross publishing hobby… That then didn’t get enough readers and advertisers to warrant the money we were pouring into it, so we stopped. Cue lots of ‘Ooh, I was just about to subscribe/advertise’ cries.

While I’m a fan of gravel bikes (surely it’s all off road, knobbly tyre riding, isn’t it?) I’m aware of how much it bizarrely offends some hardcore mountain bikers. I think you’ll see gravel bikes appear in the mag, now and again, but without making a fuss about them – in the same way that some features have people on ebikes, or singlespeeds, or fat bikes. They’re all mountain bikes to me and (unless it’s a bike or product test) we’ll concentrate on the stories and the great places that off road, knobbly tyred bikes, whatever the shape of their handlebars, can take you.

I’m aware of how much it bizarrely offends some hardcore mountain bikers

Personally I’m not offended by CX, gravel, e-bikes etc but I have little interest in them so for every page dedicated to them I

perceive the mag now offers them less than it did

Can’t keep myself away from the bloody forum though, I’d get the shakes if that ever disappeared 😀

Can’t believe no-one’s said it already…

“There’s a magazine??”

I’m aware of how much it bizarrely offends some hardcore mountain bikers

Same as RB, offends is a bizarre word, uninterested is my preferred reference tbh.

There was a title 20 years ago called “On the Hill magazine”. It covered everything from mtb , walking to climbing. It last under a year and then closed because it couldn’t find an audience.

Interesting points. I’d like to read about cycling in general rather than one aspect of it. Filter it by attitude or emphasis rather than product. But that’s just me, I get the A-B thing. Is that more the issue where product comes into it? Sidetracked does OK (I think?) as an adventure magazine perhaps as it’s about the experience and people, not the product. It’s what I’d look for in a perfect bike magazine (partly because I get the product aspect 9-5 and like to get away from it in my own time). And Sidetracked is a slightly different kind of publication isn’t it.
Either way, don’t take this as a ‘what you should be doing is…’ from me : ) I think ST does a good job in content balance.

I think Cycle Offroad has headed for the gravel niche, let’s see how they get on

I never knew there was a STW Grit magazine, I thought it was just another forum / website….

Obviously I knew about STW magazine.

Cyclist magazine is always advertising their Gravel variant – not tried it though.

Historically, combining two subjects/niches in one magazine title tends not to work.

I dunno, apparently E-bikes are a thing we should be interested in…

What would maybe make sense to me would be to occasionally sprinkle a Gravelish type article, and/or maybe one round up review of gravel bikes a year in ST.

Singletrack is an MTB mag, but as anyone watching this Forum or their local towpaths will know a fair few MTBerists have strayed from the true path now, and I think it’s reasonable for ST to at least acknowledge the existence of curly barred off-road bikes…

Perhaps the interest/uptake wasn’t quite there a couple of years ago with ‘Grit’ for a whole mag dedicated to Gravelly things. But as a sub-niche of “off-road cycling” there’s definite crossover scope for an MTB mag to have the odd Gravelly article… (IMO)

I dunno, apparently E-bikes are a thing we should be interested in…

as long as its E-MTBs, E-gravel and road bikes can do one! 🙂

We were probably a few years to early with Grit, the printed magazine…

As for slipping in the odd gravel thing, I think that this will be happening now and again. If all that differs between a rigid hardtail and a rootin’ tootin’ gravel bike is the bendiness of the bars and the orientation of the brake levers, I don’t see much of a reason to fuss.

But as a sub-niche of “off-road cycling” there’s definite crossover scope for an MTB mag to have the odd Gravelly article… (IMO)

+1

I like the Gravel stuff as much as the MTB – fairly bike genre agnostic.

Have gravel bikes replaced the light xc hardtail? I’ve been looking for an hardtail for things like the SDW/King Alfred way and there isn’t an awful lot out there

Try racing xc on a gravel bike and you’ll have your answer

Is xc racing still a thing?

And I didn’t say xc race bike

Okay, try rooty and rocky techy singletrack and you’ll have your answer.

They’re far more suitable to replace a road bike, or if you like riding miles of dull forestry roads, which to be fair even light xc hardtails are overbiked on. 😄

I have no interest in ‘grit’ or ‘gravel’ or whatever it’s called. I don’t mind the odd article if it helps sell the mag, but if it became 50/50 or anything like then it would lose a lot of relevance for me. The clue’s in the name.!

“Is xc racing still a thing?”

Na not at all

I think so, seems to be on red bull at the same time as the DH.

Try racing xc on a gravel bike and you’ll have your answer

10 years ago there was probably not a lot in it.

XC courses seem to have adapted quite a bit to full suss bikes eg Olympic courses add in lots of artificial technical sections to challenge the riders a bit more. All the NPS races I did back in 2000s would have been pretty fine on a Gravel bike as would all of the Welsh Trail Centres, Mountain Mayhem etc. You might have a gone a bit slower on some section for want of a suspension fork, but you’d have gone faster on other bits.

Back then most of the best XC riders (I knew at least) all honed their skills on CX and it showed on muddy courses, they were so smooth. Liam Killeen used to finish first and be the cleanest rider in the entire pack, not a spot of mud on him!

I think singletrack mag should stay MTB. But the website should continue with grit.cx which is a very under developed resource that websites like advntr and others do much better and take the potential advertising revenue away.

Gravel/leisure bikes along with E is the growth area at the moment and ST should tap into it but with a fresh approach rather than the old formulaic and template like reviews that have become the industry norm over the last few years

I’m sure no-one wants to see STW fail so we should be pitching ideas to how we want the mag & online stuff to be.

Agree with all of that RD.

Bicycle Quarterly if you’ve got a gravel bike/Touring/Audax itch it’s the one printed I bother with now..

Gave Rough Stuff ago and wasn’t keen.

I really, really liked Grit.CX but then again I did get paid for writing a bunch of features for it. 🙂

Also having worked in publishing for more years than I care to think about I can see the reasoning behind not wanting to dilute the content of a title, I too have seen what happens when you try that.

I’ll stick with my digital sub and if I want more diverse content I’ll go buy it where I can.

I think singletrack mag should stay MTB. But the website should continue with <span class=”skimlinks-unlinked”>grit.cx</span> which is a very under developed resource that websites like advntr and others do much better and take the potential advertising revenue away.

I really agree with this. The way life has turned out these last couple of years has meant that I’ve gone from mountain biking every weekend to riding my road bike, and I have just sold my full sus and bought a gravel bike to try and recapture the joy of knobbly tires.

I still read and enjoy the magazine very much, and I’ve cast around for good gravel content as well. I read the Cyclist Off-Road thing they do quarterly, and look at Advntr and Bikepacking.com but they don’t do it as well as Singletrack does mountain biking. So yeah, I could stand to see a bit more of that on singletrackworld.com if reality allows for it.

paino
Free Member

Is it not time to combine both Grit & Singletrack into 1 mag and give more emphasis to MTB but add a load of regular gravel type content?

If it’s extra content, then aye I guess as long as it doesn’t distract at all from the mountain bike mag. Otherwise, I’d cancel my subscription and I’d expect a lot of other people would do, it’d just be a case of no longer getting the content we pay for.

Magazine combinations ime work badly more often than they work well. You usually end up with the main moneyspinner diluted and damaged, and the “now featuring” magazine underserved and too small to actually attract readers.

I think singletrack mag should stay MTB.

I don’t think the Mag should cease to primarily be an MTB mag, but I do think there’s room for Gravel stuff in it as a reflection of the wider readerships broadening scope of interest…

Maybe one way to cover gravel by stealth is to denote where the most technical bits of the ride routes are and add an alternative route for the ‘less hardcore’ bike ?

As someone who doesn’t own a mountain bike any more, adding gravel to the magazine would not make me buy it.

Someone said above, there is already lots of online gravel content from the likes of Pannier.cc / Advntr.cc / bikepacking.com all with their own twist. Honestly I don’t think Singletrack could compete with them.

Cyclist Offroad is now the only print publication I buy. I’ve been buying MTB mags since 1989 and by now there are very few features aren’t a rehash/resemble something I’ve read before, so I end up skipping half the pages and this doesn’t really represent good value. Gravel is relatively new to me so I quite like reading about races in far flung places, new kit and rides in the UK.

Id say that perhaps Grit.cx in print was a bit too early to really capture peoples imagination. Unfortunately I kind of forget its there now as it doesn’t seem to have the same editorial output as something like ADVNTR.CC

I stopped subbing a couple years ago but I also want to support the team once more.

Just get a digital sub then. Cheaper for you, saves STW having to print and deliver a mag you probably won’t read (saving on pollution and costs for them) and if there is a few articles you are interested in then you can read them online.