Just a musing, someone up there said product reviews can only be done for so long, surely ride guides can only be done for so long. Our most precious resource is the earth, barring trail centres, there’s not a new lot of trails every year…. products however: we keep on re-designing the wheel.

However product reviews don’t feed the soul (someone used these words up there as well) (well they do Cotic’s I suppose!), and that for me was why I bought Singletrack: it was good writing, it made one dream of adventures, not of the new flibblewidget that I must get to replace my old one because it got rubbished in a ‘shoot-out review’. I would still buy singletrack if it was available in print in my supermarket or newsagents, but it’s not here in France. I guess I could subscribe….but I prefer to dream about trails that I could conceivably ride, not exclusively about trails that are at best a day away. I do feel guilty about not supporting STW though. I would be gutted if it was no more.

Chipps is a great example of doing this right I think- he’s a solid, normal rider. And when he writes, it’s as a solid, normal rider, no bullshit. That angle’s really more valuable to more people than some superhero of downhill.

I’ll take that, Northwind, thanks 🙂

Sorry to see WMB go away. Ironically it was the emergence of its ancestor, Total Bike that heralded the closure of MTB Pro/Mountain Bike World which in a roundabout way caused the formation of Singletrack…

£1.49 for a month!

😉

chipps – I work here

I’ll take that, Northwind, thanks

I wasn’t sure about posting that, it’s potentially the most offensive compliment I’ll ever make 😆

I like MBUK and they get me hook to the WC downhill which i thought I will never be interested in the past as I’m too old. Can’t wait to watch it this coming week end.

I do more miles than most mountain bikers but haven’t read a magazine in over a decade.

#humblebrag lol

However product reviews don’t feed the soul (someone used these words up there as well) (well they do Cotic’s I suppose!), and that for me was why I bought Singletrack: it was good writing, it made one dream of adventures,

but this is exactly the reason I stopped buying STW, as I have no interest in the cycling lifestyle, but do like seeing (not buying much) shiny stuff. Will see how MB-UK turns out and probably stop subscribing.. as it’s an easy xmas present from the g/f.

Shame.

It was excellent at what it did.
Funny too.
The writing and photography were always excellent and I felt I could trust the writers.
I liked the route guides and pre internet the maintenance stuff was a godsend.
Not bought it for ages, you can only read so many reviews, but always enjoyed it.

Hadn’t bought it in years, mbuk had become too gnar rad matching helmet and shorts combo too.

As I get older I prefer much more realistic stuff, some of the blogs linked to recently on here have been ace for example.

Also, take a load of the DR200 write ups, you’re going to have more affinity with the story of someone that took twelve hours on their old CX than someone who took eight on their product placement titanium bike with free lauf fork. As long as they can write an interesting story of course.

Northwind

I have to agree that Chipps is as shite at riding as I am

That’s a tragedy. I aways feel that real, printed words have more value than digital ones.

Someone who took eight on their product placement titanium bike with free lauf fork

To be fair to bruce that’s the muck common cheap alu tripster :p

Northwind – Member
I wasn’t sure about posting that, it’s potentially the most offensive compliment I’ll ever make

You’ve damned me with fainter praise than that before, I’m sure.

When I was first getting into mountain biking I bought an MBUK and was nearly put off MTB magazines for good. They just didn’t seem to be talking about anything I recognised. MBR (fall all its failings at the time) and WMB appeared to relate to a more typical MTBing experience than MBUK did. However since then (about 15 years ago now) MBUK has at times appealed to a broader audience so I’ll give it a shot when my subscription shifts over.

I stopped buying WMB when they said steel frames go baggy with age.

Mark – Resident Grumpy
£1.49 for a month!

It was kind of inevitable I guess! I’ll be back online tomorrow to sign-up.

Down to lack of advertising revenue since all print mags survive on this rather than actual sales.

You do end up wondering how come they cost nearly as much as a good book then. Take out the ads and these often not a lot of actual copy.

Shame;(

Think it was wmb 58 that featured the kilpatricks and mugdock. Got me out exploring the hills round Glasgow.

Loved their bike reviews.

They possibly hampered sales by never featuring any wimmin on the cover. That’s where the disposable income is nowadays.

ninfan

All sorts of factors to why a mag costs more than a book…

Production and layout is much more complicated
There’s a high colour content in the print
Mag paper is generally much higher quality than print (novels at least)
Much larger print runs of books so economies of scale on plates/setup etc.
Wider distribution channels

It has been a while since I bought a copy but I kind of feel WMB’s time had passed. The world had moved on and it still seemed to be largely the same mag it was a decade or more ago. I loved it back in the day when you had to scan through a whole page of components for a mail order advert (who remembers the Merlin Cycles adverts with all the components and variations on the MALT specs listed out and the little grid of wheel prices?).

It is a shame for all involved and I hope those affected find a path through it all.

As someone who makes books:

Production and layout is much more complicated
There’s a high colour content in the print
Mag paper is generally much higher quality than print (novels at least)
Much larger print runs of books so economies of scale on plates/setup etc.
Wider distribution channels

nope, nope, nope, nope and nope.

As for WMB, sadly I struggle to see the point of a magazine of reviews in the era of free, unbiased, aggregated reviews. If I want to read real-world reviews of a fork, a bike or other component, I can easily google it. The future of print magazines has to be in the likes of The Ride Journal – good stories, great art.

People on the internet commenting on the loss of a printed magazine !

Is Maximum Mountainbike still going? Haven’t seen that in WHSmith lately.

heebyjeeby – Member

Whilst I still maintained my sub they had a facelift maybe a year or two ago which seemed to take it further away from what you would expect a magazine called What MTB to include….

One quarter of the mag was devoted to recommended kit that did not change from month to month (year to year if that).

I emailed them about that a few years back. They had those categories of best trail bike best race bike etc but they were never updated so to me were just a waste of time. They replied saying they thought nobody read those bits! But still kept it in for 15 pages or so!?

I like variety, so every mag that goes makes me sad.

Trimix – Member

People on the internet commenting on the loss of a printed magazine !

Yes?

I’m gutted , to me WMB was the most relavant. MBUK has matured a lot in the last 5 years and is readable. The trouble with it is that it tends to repeat its topics too often. I’ve been reading it for as long as I can remember ( 25 years) and think I’ve seen each article many many times! For me it’s stale now.

I find I want to shout at STW. Every article seems to be about riding in some far flung exotic destination that I will never be able to afford to go to. With the occasional token article about riding in Yorkshire

I’m gutted , to me WMB was the most relavant. MBUK has matured a lot in the last 5 years and is readable. The trouble with it is that it tends to repeat its topics too often. I’ve been reading it for as long as I can remember ( 25 years?) and think I’ve seen each article many many times! For me it’s stale now.

I find I want to shout at STW. Every article seems to be about riding in some far flung exotic destination that I will never be able to afford to go to. With the occasional token article about riding in Yorkshire. The vibe is great and the photography is amazing , I just can’t relate to it 🙁

I wish there was a magazine about local people riding local spots reviewing affordable gear. Somewhere other than West Yorkshire or the Cairngorms . Maybe mixing mtb with road or cx. I maybe the odd one out here but I mix road and mtb as does everyone I ride with . A credible mag covering all would be fantastic .

Now that we’re discussing mbuk, does anyone miss their proper adventure bike touring features of yore? Cycling along the Silk Road, panama to Puerto Rica, etc.

geologist – Member

I find I want to shout at STW. Every article seems to be about riding in some far flung exotic destination that I will never be able to afford to go to.

Todmorden?
Edit – Burnley too, that’s in Lancashire.
🙂

I like Singletrack because it is still relevant to me.
Even after reading it for years, the soul is still there.

I don’t need expensive bike reviews.
I tend to keep stuff and whilst I love bikes, my tastes are pretty simple and low rent, so little reviewed is of interest.

But adventure and fun doesn’t need to be expensive and I don’t get the impression that many of the people who contribute to the travel articles are loaded.
🙂

You can have just as much fun in the Peak as you can unicycling through Borneo and I’d rather read about either than another £5000 bike/£20 brake pad review.

But the Cairngorms are local!! *

* to me

Is Maximum Mountainbike still going?

And where did my MMB socks go? That’s what I want to know.

You do end up wondering how come they cost nearly as much as a good book then

Authors often don’t really make a living out of books, but magazines generally have to pay people’s wages or there’s no point to them.

greatbeardedone – Member
Now that we’re discussing mbuk, does anyone miss their proper adventure bike touring features of yore? Cycling along the Silk Road, panama to Puerto Rica, etc.

My theee favourite MBUK articles:
1). MTB’ing the Pennine Way
2). Munro Bagging
3). 3 Lads on the trandem crossing the desert

Now that we’re discussing mbuk, does anyone miss their proper adventure bike touring features of yore? Cycling along the Silk Road, panama to Puerto Rica, etc.

Regular reader here, and have been for 25+ years, some really good travel/adventure stuff in there these days – Dan Milner is a regular contributor, so multi page epics in unexpected places with stunning pics. New issue has a big piece from him as it happens. Cast aside the prejudices or what some grumpy poster on here may have told you and pick up a copy. You’ll probably find yourself very surprised – the mag has matured with the sport and readership.

.Turns off the ads and supports the forum, and you get a magazine which is sometimes good. That’s not much of a hard sell but it’s good enough for me

Correct answer. I can’t wait to see how many things, moan and complain when STW goes belly up, but never paid a couple of quid a month.

The lack of P posters on here astounds me

😀

£1.49 in fact 🙂

Seriously, support the mags you like by buying them or subscribing. Or they will close.

I can’t wait to see how many things, moan and complain when STW goes belly up, but never paid a couple of quid a month.

The lack of P posters on here astounds me

Presumptuous and sanctimonious in one, well played. I’m quite happy to continue buying the magazine from my LBS, supporting both the magazine and the shop at the same time.

But you just carry on being astounded if I have the temerity to post, I really don’t mind..

Northwind – Member
athy62 – Member
Go on then folks, persuade me to take out a premier subscription to STW instead rather than rely on the free stuff of their excellent website.

Turns off the ads…..

live and learn had no idea – just been and gone and done that

I’m quite happy to continue buying the magazine from my LBS

Issue 112, page 12, 1st word? 🙂

Just bought the MBUK mentioned above, will read it over the weekend. I’m nothing if not open minded.

humblebrag: an ostensibly modest or self-deprecating statement whose actual purpose is to draw attention to something of which one is proud.

So not that then. Point I apparently failed to make – been riding a long time, committed, do enough miles to require constant spending as stuff wears out. The industry, via the media, should be engaged with people like that, but in many cases is achieving the opposite effect.

Paying for a forum? Yep, they’re useful, I could go for that – if tech-savvy enthusiasts didn’t come up with a free alternative. Which they probably would.

(Quickly scans post to make sure there’s nothing that can offend or outrage STW’s sensitive readership). No, good to go!

Is Maximum Mountainbike still going?

And where did my MMB socks go? That’s what I want to know.

You mean these? I wear mine for retro rides.

Just bought the MBUK mentioned above

Nope, still haven’t made it past the first 10 pages of full face helmet ads and pictures of people (I believe the term is) Schralping Berms™.

I’ll try again now it’s started raining.