What would you like in a mag?

Following on from the interesting what do you read and why thread i thought it might be interesting to know what people want from a mag?

I’ll start:

1. I’d like less info on the routes but more than just the directions and map. a page full of pics and a brief description of the trails (ie rocky, rooty, loamy) and what conditions it will stand up to. I dont want a story book about who said what to who and that they decided to stop for a banana and a pee cos the wind was getting up a bit!

Not to say i dont want ride ideas but a few pics and a few hundred words should surfice. I agree its good to ride other places, but i want facts and figures not a story.

2. a bit more real world tests and opinions please. MBR this month have slated singlespeeding and they have called a 32lb £1500 150mm bike a budget trail bike. Now i dont know anyone who would call £1500 ‘budget’, or anyone that would call 150mm ‘trail’, or anyone who would want to ride a 32lb bike with that much travel for more than 20mins where i live in the Peak District. And if anyone from London tries telling me i ‘need’ 150mm for their local trails then they need shooting. I grew up in london and ‘cut my mtbing teeth’ in london, riding north and south downs, epping forest and the like and there is no way that much travel is needed. in fact there is a guy i see from time to time in the peak who rides a fully rigid singlespeed. and if you can ride that there, then you can ride it anywhere. I went to the Alps with a hardtail with ‘only’ 120mm forks. and that was on some really rather nasty stuff around Les Gets.

3. More new products pages. I could swear there were more new products and stuff like it only a few years ago, but recently the trend has gone away from that.

4. more product tests. fewer full bike tests and more product tests. I dont know about you, but once i have a bike i like i dont think about changing the whole bike for something else, i only think about upgrading or at least changing parts.

5. get rid of the ‘workshop’ page where it tells you how to fit a tubeless tyre. This page used to be really good but since the internet became a popular item in most people’s houses, this can be used as a tool for ‘how-to’s and it only takes a few mins to find what you want. this also gives me a sense of a job well done when i have researched it, repaired/fixed/fitted what it was and relaxed at the end. havig 12 random items a year aint really providing anything extra is it?

I quite like the readers letters and the question pages. i like the product tests that most mags put out and can see their place in the market. I like some of the bike tests but i would rather see bikes tested individually and honestly than matched up against 3 other bikes that may have been designed with something else in mind just to see which is ‘best’ when who’s to say that the one that receives the lowest marks might be the one best suited to my riding.

so in short i would like; facts and figures about routes not stories, a bit more of a ‘real world’ perspective, more new products, more product tests, and lose the workshop pages.

Pictures of naked women would be nice… :0)

constructive! but very interesting and one i am all in favour of!!

More real-life product stuff (a-la The Grinder), less ‘this is what I did on my holidays’ features.

Gotta disagree bigtime about the “product”. I like Singletrack because it’s not just a bunch of rehashed press releases posing as content as per the news section of most mags. I think I remember one of the guys saying that they decided to leave that stuff out because it dates so quickly so it’s made redundant by the internet, and I definitely agree. As for reviews, the Grinder is ace because it doesn’t just feel like a list of features with a rating at the bottom.

Naked women? Well, only if it’s tasteful* 😉

*Note – chatline ads in the back pages do not qualify

Naked women? On bikes? Lesbians more than welcome, especially if they like men 😉

. This page used to be really good but since the internet became a popular item in most people’s houses, this can be used as a tool for ‘how-to’s and it only takes a few mins to find what you want.

By that theory the whole magazine format is useless as everything you are suggesting can be found online. Which is exactly what Exchange and Mart are doing, as they are ditching the paper version and going internet only.

I’m with you on the routes.

Don’t try to cram so much in. Maybe use the same space for just one route, but give proper directions like you’d get in a guidebook and provide a proper OS map on the other side so the page can be cut out.

I’d tend to agree with most of your ideas, Defo too many bike tests.

I’d also like to see more of the training plans n stuff that pop up now and again (can’t remember the guys name from torq), nutrition, post and pre ride (recipes etc).

Bigger gallery, more british pics, defo less of the alpine gigs.

But the biggest consideration would be to become NOTHING LIKE MBR OR MBUK OR WHATMTB!!!!

Our policy on routes and why we do them like we do perhaps needs some explanation.

Firstly, pull put route maps are very expensive. We’d love to do them but we can’t justify the expense, especially when we take into account our other reasons for doing routes as we do…

We don’t think that anyone should be going out to ride a route they need help navigating with a page torn out of a magazine as their only means of route finding. We think if you are going out to ride a route you need to take a proper marked up map with you. So the maps we publish in the mag are good enough for you to use as a guide to mark up your own map but not good enough to be torn out and used to actually navigate from.

Similarly we like to think that our readers are savvy enough when it comes to riding new routes to be able to navigate from a line drawn on a map, and so our navigational instructions are brief. We’ve never aimed to be a mag for beginners or novices and so we think we can credit our readers with enough knowledge and experience to be able to navigate a route based on our maps. Any points of particular note are included in the details section or in the text of the feature that goes along with the route guide. We also think that having a feature/story that accompanies the maps and details widens the appeal of the feature as it gives all readers something to read rather than being only of relevance to the relatively small number of people who will actually go and ride that route.

That’s our theory behind our route guides. Our intention is to credit our readers with the intelligence we know they have and it also makes us different from the other mags.

All our routes are now featured in our Trail Guide section now and the maps can be downloaded and printed out much larger than they appear in the mag if anyone actually does want to use them to navigate from. And we will be adding tracklogs data for gps users asap.

For me, the thing ST’s routes do better than any of the other mags is to nail the atmosphere and feel of a ride and the area – I’ll enjoy reading the article even if the route is at the other end of the country and I’m unlikely to ever ride it. And if it is anywhere near me then I’m already hooked on the idea. The tab-A-into-slot-B navigation stuff can come later – having a play with a marker pen and an OS map is a valuable part of the ritual in itself too!

Agree with swoosh, except for his/her claim that a 32lb bike can’t be ridden for more than 20mins, you’ve been reading and taken in by too many mags!.

Up until recently a 30lb-33lb bike was a hardcore trail bike, now acording to the likes of MBR you couldn’t possibly enjoy a decent ride on anything less than 30lb. So, were they lieing to us 2 years ago?

One thing is for sure, my old 1990’s GT Timberline mountain bike weighed
+30lb and we went on some epic old skool rides together.

I like road trips. Epics. Biking as the excuse with the story based on drug fuelled hedonism and old-fashioned stupidity.

swoosh – Member
anyone that would call 150mm ‘trail’, or anyone who would want to ride a 32lb bike with that much travel for more than 20mins where i live in the Peak District.

I ride a 160mm travel bike for all day rides in the peaks, and it weights 34lbs

Do i get a prize?

I think they should have a project – make a lardy unfit bugger going through a hard time into a properly fit, svelt mountain biker type.

They could use me as their test subject 😉

(Not that I am struggling with Fat Club – but hey, life through me a real blind sider shiteness episode that is just so wrong I won’t even bother trying to explain it).

Other than that – quite liking the mag at the moment. Less foriegn trips would be nice and more about getting out riding where we do – local. The odd trip abroad is interesting, but there have been a few too many of late… and its getting a bit too “look what I did, I am so much better than you”.

That may be a bit harsh… but it’s getting a bit irrelavent to 90% of the readership (at a guess… probably).

Agree about bike tests – don’t think of some bizarre reason to test a group of bikes. Just ride them and tell us what they’re good at and what’s not so good. (ST does this quite well, but the best I’ve seen is Dirt)

The other thing I’ve enjoyed recently is the articles about revitalising older frames with more modern equipment. It mostly reflects what I like to ponder about given that I now have a collection of aging frames that are too good to get rid of, but are dated in terms of performance.

I quite like the grouptest articles, but unfortunately the frequency which I buy new forks/saddles/disc brakes means that often the review only becomes relevent to me 2 or 3 years later when products have moved on. If these articles continue I think it would be best to limit them to consumable items: tyres, brake pads, tubes for instance (which if I think about it ST mainly does anyway).

LOVE to ‘try something new’ type articles (bivvying etc).

How about reflecting some of the ‘homebrew’ ideas that crop up on the website? (LED lights, homemade dirtworkers etc)

Cheers,

Ben

Inspirational writing, please. Someone. Anyone.

Neighbour’s wives

Route guides for further flung places. Alps, Pyrenees, USA. I get the feeling that many of the readers are fairly independant sorts so would not need to hire a guide in eg Chamonix or Moab. What I’d really want is knowing which route to follow on which map. GPS logs or access/ links to them would be an added bonus.

I stopped subscibing to the mag a while back because I felt it had become too elitist. It seemed at the time that if you didn’t ride a British steel bike (pref SS) in the Peak or Pennines then you weren’t welcome. My opinion.

I love the slightly OT stuff- bivvying, bothying, BOBs and Whisky- fantastic. I started a ‘rainbow of mud’ collection, so far I have Orange, Yellow, Ochre, Brown (lots!), Black, White and Grey. Promises/ leads of purple and green too.

I really enjoy the letters sections of most mags- but hate the ego-massaging ‘I really love your mag, it inspired me to…’ type ones. Far to sycophantic for me.

And how about a disasters section? Like when I set my freehub on fire. Or the time my bike sank. Or when six punctures in 25 mins almost made me cry- but I couldn’t afford to lose the water.

I like Singletrack because it is different. MBR and WMB are stuffed full of bike/kit tests and to be honest a lot of it is guff. At least with the Grinder you feel someone has tried the kit out. I may be one my own but I like the balance of reviews and writing/musing about riding bikes anywhere in the world. I loved the article on the race in Nepal 😛

In my opinion, MBR and MBUK would do well to make their mags more about the ride, and less about the equipment. I don’t buy these mags that often, but I do occassionally. They’re better than they used to be in fairness, but there’s still a lot of hang up over the equipment sometimes. I actually bought the current edition of MBR cos I was interested to read about the Pitch Vs Prophet (sorry, now I’m contradicting myself, but I’ve not seen anywhere else that’s compared contrasted these 2 excellent hard hitting trail bikes), but have flicked through the rest of the mag too. The response to the guy asking about Singlespeeds was a bit off if you ask me. Personally, Singlespeeding isn’t for me, but the guy obviously knows it is for him so why waste print by telling him not to bother? Still too many elitist views coming through if you ask me.

At least MBR now recognises you can have as much fun, if not more, on a good £1500 bike as you can on one costing 3 times as much! Hallelujah. Cos yes, to most people, £1500 is a lot to spend on a bike still, whereas they see it as budget!

For what it’s worth, I think Dirt manages to capture a few things very well, and it’s certainly a lot broader spectrum than it was years ago. They have become more about the just getting out and riding, cos it’s fun, than the mainstream mags. But Singletrack still wins IMHO.

That’s not saying I’d not change anything in Singletrack, but it would be slight refinements rather than total overhauls. On the grouptests of equipment, maybe a little more technical info, and any test results, could be included as each review is very subjective rather than being objective in my view. I appreciate that might take more time and effort to review products and report them in this way though, but it would be good.

Another thing I think could be improved as I feel it lost its way a bit is the “Fish out of water” articles. This was always the first bit I’d read, it’s interesting reading about someone doing something totally alien to them. Again, I appreciate there’s only so many things a small group of people can do, but open it up a bit, ask the forum users for ideas, hell even volunteers, I’d be up for it! Christ, I’d have a go at pretty much anything, and I’m sure writing about my poor attempts at trying something new would make for funny reading for most!

Also, one thing I’d like to see perhaps is more “rides with readers”. Perhaps every month, one forum regular could show someone from STW towers round their local trails, and the STW guy/lass could report back on what they found. Certainly I’m sure there would be no shortage of willing volunteers, and it could only serve to strengthen STW’s reader base?

Get more readers to review products too. I don’t think that Intense Tracer VPP has had a long enough review yet, give it to me for a few months, I’ll fill a few pages about it 😉 (This is a joke by the way, and again I’m aware of the contradiction with my opening statement. I’d just like a free Intense Tracer for a few months please!)

Am I the only one that actually likes Singletrack as it currently is?!

All the suggestions covered above seem to be in the mag at some point during the year, how could they fit more of everything in all the time? my main suggestion would be to carry on as the mag is, I think the balance is just right!

I’d quite like to see some technical articles – why a certain sus design works a certain way; something to do with LEDs maybe for those who are too dim to ride with an “average” light output (hey guys, it’s meant to be dark!); something on 1 sided forks; the possibilities are endless.

MBR had an appalling infomercial from Trek/Speah about E2 steers which said *absolutely* nothing beyond “these are the future” which wasn’t even backed up by the figures they supplied – but it was interesting to read despite that as I’d personally have no real idea on just how the things work/look/weigh/etc.

Oh, and use weights of things on test please – just can’t get out of the habits of 1992 I’m afraid ;o)

I buy and read ST because it’s not all about kit reviews and skillz – there’s a lot of stuff about just getting out on a bike, and quite a few of those articles never mention the hardware but talk about the experience. Admittedly some of those articles may not be that brilliantly written but my view on that is put up or shut up – the editors work with the submissions that they get, so if you think you can do better then go ahead and try! FWIW I’ve had one article published in a diving mag, which went through a bit of editorial tweaking to get from my version to the printed page, but I haven’t done anything of consequence on a bike so am in no position to throw stones.

By the way, if you think some MTB mags are holiday brochures interspersed with reviews written from press releases then you would hate the scuba diving press!

Isn’t the answer: anything that inspires me to ride my bike!

I miss the Bike Porn even though sometimes I fail to see why a particular bike deserves that status. Most are groundbreaking in some way or other.

I hate biased reviews. In some magazines Santa Cruz (for example) would win every review even if the frame fell apart while others will fail because of the colour of the grips. Objectivity.

I hate somebody telling me that my current style of bike is dead and i should buy a new one. According to WMB hardtails died about ten years ago and everybody will be riding full suss. Really? What planet did that happen on?

I hate long drawn out articles that are written as literary exercises and have little or no place in a bike magazine. I love inspirational writing but keep it relevant.

What about more long term tests. A lot of components are excellent when you buy them and for the first few months then go pear shaped. Real people (as opposed to product testers) pay real money for kit and expect it to last more than the duration of a test.

Atmosphere. Why makes people ride? Why do they ride where they do? Articles that make me want to push my own personal boundaries.

I think Mboy’s idea of ‘rides with readers’ is an excellent one.

Down-below hair is pretty gross, less of that.

B.A.Nana – Member
Agree with swoosh, except for his/her claim that a 32lb bike can’t be ridden for more than 20mins, you’ve been reading and taken in by too many mags!.

Up until recently a 30lb-33lb bike was a hardcore trail bike, now acording to the likes of MBR you couldn’t possibly enjoy a decent ride on anything less than 30lb. So, were they lieing to us 2 years ago?

ok, so maybe 20mins was a bit of an exageration, but i wouldnt want to ride a 32lb bike around all day, especially if i had forked out £1500 on it. up until about 18months ago i did have a full susser that weighed just under 32lbs and had 4-5-6″ travel. and from personal experience i wouldnt want to do that again having changed to hardtails that are about 27lbs. I’m not a weight weenie but i dont want to lug about excess weight if i can help it and i beleive that my 27lb hardtails will not fail on me and cause me injury.

good point about the change in ‘pigeon holing’ bikes into categories. but… is that not just a change in the way the market is? Surely as technology will trickle down from the top end, all bikes in all categories will become lighter and/or sronger?

Im sad, but Id like to see some more technical articles explaining in more detail (with tech drawings) how, say, a new damping circuit in a RS fork works, or showing axle path diagrams for comparing the latest rear suspension designs, or how an inertial valve or blow off threshold works in a pro-pedal shock. Maybe something on manufacturing and fabrication of our favourite components (visit to shimano factory was a good start but not enough detail). Not granny egg sucking how-tos like in the other mags, but something that isnt dumbing down and maybe assumes a certain amount of technical knowledeg (or at least the wit to understand through common sense).

But like I said, I’m sad, and I dont expect my idea to be taken seriously 🙂

Also, one thing I’d like to see perhaps is more “rides with readers”. Perhaps every month, one forum regular could show someone from STW towers round their local trails, and the STW guy/lass could report back on what they found. Certainly I’m sure there would be no shortage of willing volunteers, and it could only serve to strengthen STW’s reader base?

This is quite a common suggestion when these type of threads spring up. I for one think it’s a great idea.

swoosh – Member
ok, so maybe 20mins was a bit of an exageration, but i wouldnt want to ride a 32lb bike around all day, especially if i had forked out £1500 on it. up until about 18months ago i did have a full susser that weighed just under 32lbs and had 4-5-6″ travel. and from personal experience i wouldnt want to do that again.

I hear what you say there. The way i look at it is that yeh 34lbs is heavy, but riding that, i’m putting alot more effort in, getting fitter, and having a huge smile when i can beat people on a XC race bike 😉 Then when i hit the downhills, i have such a big smile i look like the bloody joker.

Now to get on topic. I love the mag, i think it captures a certain feel to mountain biking, which other mags just don’t. I used to be an avid MBUK reader about 3 years ago, i think of MBUK as a sort of Max power of the bike mag world.
I agree about the idea readers rides, that is a brilliant idea! IIRC i’m sure a mag did this at one point…

Quality english. Something that has the level of a good book or an good article in a proper news paper.

“Stoner – Member
Im sad, but Id like to see some more technical articles explaining in more detail (with tech drawings) how, say, a new damping circuit in a RS fork works, or showing axle path diagrams for comparing the latest rear suspension designs, or how an inertial valve or blow off threshold works in a pro-pedal shock. Maybe something on manufacturing and fabrication of our favourite components (visit to shimano factory was a good start but not enough detail).
“

Yep, i’d agree with all of that. there is some technology that i just dont understand but with some helpful images that show what happens step by step would probably help me to understand it and also to know if its gonna be a good thing for me or not. Axle path would be good to know what happens at what stage of the travel. it will help me to know the difference between all the different types of full sus linkages, ie four bar, faux bar, treks evo link, horst link, DW, VPP etc…

Consistent quality writing. I think the photo’s in ST are consistently good but the same care isn’t always applied to the articles. Some just seem like space fillers.

quite like ST the way it is, as with all mags (bike and non bike) it has good months and bad ones. The less it is like MBR the better (too many reveiws, too much opinion on bikes, not enough objectivity)

my favourite artivcles this year have been the hangmans loop (was that what it was called?) abd the bivvying features.

I’m of the opinion that its the balance of articles in a magazine that makes it a good read.

Having said that due to personal reasons I don’t want any more “off abroad” features 😐
I think the Grinder reviews give much more insight into living with products as in most of the pictures it looks like the stuff is covered in good old muddy grit 🙂

As for this 30lb bike nonsense!!! I get the feeling these weights are for the smaller models as those of us in the 6’3″+ range probably feel a bit cheated when we weigh our bikes and find they are nearly 2lbs heavier than expected.
My lightest mountain bike (ss excepted) is a full XTR Ti Hardtail and that’s 26lbs

I’ve moaned before, but shan’t again.

Of the points above, I like:

1. Improve the quality of the writing to that of the photography.
2. Detailed technical articles (whether tecnology or nutrition or training – the latter was better addressed in the recent series).
3. Reviving an old frame – i.e. something a little more real world than endless bike tests.
4. Rides with readers. I liked the “local” thing done a few issues ago. Like that, but expanded.

ourmaninthenorth – 100% spot-on

Honestly? Female models modelling bikes, kinda Testubebaby cheeky style.

Say a 21yr old blonde sat on a Commencal at the end of a test. No Im not talking the scratters of old MBUK ads (coughs into bin)

More articles about the Big Bike Bash would be good in my opinion.