Are you beating the clock or beating yourself up? Vicky struggles to get into a healthy race mindset. Words by Vicky Balfour Trudging along, pushing our bikes up a narrow, muddy sheep track, like extras in a low-budget zombie movie, Sonnie and I are moaning…
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Issue 154 Away Day: Farmer Johns MTB Park
Amanda, Benji and Mark go for a trip out to Farmer Johns bike park to see what’s there, what to wear, and which bike to take. Farmer Johns (yes, without the apostrophe) is a downhill-oriented mountain bike park with ever-growing dirt jumps and downhill trails.…
Issue 154 Last Word: Schrödinger’s Stans Monsters
Chipps gets existential in his tyre swapping. Perhaps those new tyres you had on backorder have finally come in, or you’re simply putting in that pre-summer maintenance where you swap worn brake pads and bottom bracket bearings for new ones. And now, your attention turns…
Crossword: Very British (MTB) Problems
Ah, this green and pleasant land. No bears or wolves or poisonous killer spiders. Just miles of trails, free of hazards of any kind. Roll along, taking in the view, don’t trouble yourself with thoughts of mountain lions or brown snakes. Sigh. It’s all so…
Philly Bike Expo 2024: Gallery of WANT
The Philly Bike Expo is a hand made bike show in Philadelphia, USA, that’s known for being more than just a display of shiny things. It’s got a history of being progressive, maybe political even, with workshops and scholarships aimed at helping frame builders beyond…
Bikemon Go! Your March Ride Inspiring Download
Back in issue 153 in February, Hannah proposed an alternative approach to measuring rides. As part of that, we gave you a set of ride ‘achievements’ to collect in the month ahead. Here’s your next seasonally appropriate set of ride goals. Enjoy!
Is It Time For A Shakeup In The MTB World?
We can’t pretend that mountain biking is green. Riding your bike instead of getting in a car is green, but that’s not what mountain biking is. Mountain biking is play, and activity. But by getting us out and about into nature, it can encourage us…
The International Variations Of Faff: What Do You Call It?
Last week’s Weekly Word newsletter was about ‘faff’. Here in the UK, we are very familiar with faff – but what is it called elsewhere in the world? Take a read, see if you recognise its symptoms, and offer up your versions of it. Faff…
A-Z of The Singletrack World Forum
If you're new to the world of mountain bikes, you might find it an unfathomable world of tech jargon, incompatible standards, and marketing babble. To cut through it all, you might go in search of advice, from other humans that ride bikes. Maybe you find…
Issue 153 Editorial: Always Meet Your Heroes
Chipps encourages you to seek out and praise your heroes. However, they might not be the people you first think of. Doesn’t the saying go ‘Never meet your heroes’? Is that because you’ll get to meet them and discover that they’re just normal, boring folks…
Issue 153: Peaks of the Balkans
Jerome Clementz takes an optimistic ride into the forgotten reaches of the cursed Balkan mountains. Words Jerome Clementz Photography Jérémie Reuiller While it seems that the focus of bikes these days is on each millimetre of travel, degree of frame angle or tyre tread for…
Issue153 Interview: Flying Under The Radar
Joey Gough has been so busy riding her bike that she’s flown under the commercial radar in an industry that’s just catching up. Words & Photography Geoff Waugh Joey Gough is riding the big new line at Twisted Oaks Bike Park in Suffolk. She deals…
The Grinder: Wolf Tooth pedals, DMR cranks, Ceramic Speed SLT bearings, USE bar, Madison bib-trouser, Leatt knee pads
The only lateral stiffness is in our backs; real-world product reviews from real-world riders.
Issue 153 Classic Ride: Surrey Thrills
Despite Hurtwood being one of the UK’s busiest riding spots, its trail network relies heavily on the continued goodwill of landowners and volunteers. Adele takes a ride to find out more. Words Adele Mitchell Photography Paul Mitchell The Hurtwood in the heart of the Surrey…
Issue 153 Bikepacking: Spend Time Not Money
Amanda and Rhys spend their summer holiday discovering that cheap really can be cheerful. Words Amanda Photography Rhys Wainwright & Amanda In summer 2022 we crammed two enduro bikes and two gravel bikes into our VW T5 and headed for the Alps. For just over…
Issue 153 MTB Culture: Minority Rapport
What is it about women’s rides that is proving so attractive? Fi Spotswood has been trying to find out. Words Fi Spotswood Photography Credited I’m ashamed to admit that when I was younger I rarely questioned where all the women were. The races I did,…
Issue 153 Tech Head: When It’s All Your Own Fault
A custom-built bike is a dream for many, but how hard is it to choose (and then live with) your exact, perfect machine? Words As told to Chipps Photography Credited For some people, commissioning and speccing a custom-built bike is a fantasy indulgence, for others,…
Issue 153 UK Adventure: Britain’s Lost Rainforests
It’s not just the Amazon rainforest that’s at risk. Here in the UK, our own temperate rainforests are vanishing too. Words & Photography Pete Scullion I know what you’re thinking. Britain… Rainforest… What on earth is this guy on about? Much can be gleaned, however,…
Issue 153 Last Word: Weights and Measures
Hannah proposes a new system of measurement, putting quality over quantity. Miles covered and feet gained seem to me an inadequate measure of mountain biking. Kilometres and metres likewise. Hours and minutes are useful, to a point – but what takes you an hour might take…
Issue 152 Editorial: I went into Publishing and all I got was this awesome magazine
Words: Chipps Thirty years ago, at the start of January 1994, I walked into the Future Publishing offices in Bath to begin as technical editor for the recently launched MTB Pro magazine. My deputy editor Richard Howatt showed me around the basement office we shared…
Issue 152 UK Adventure: South Glen Shiel Ridge
James Vincent rides possibly the best descent of his life in the North West Scottish Highlands. But is it worth the steep price of admission? Words & Photography James Vincent A pleasant surprise greets Luke and I as we crest the first summit and Munro…
Issue 152 International Adventure: There’s more to Europe Than Mountains
Hannah explores the hillsides of Tuscany, where European mountain bikers are busy having their holidays without you. Words by Hannah, pictures by Hannah or as credited. In my mind’s eye, Tuscany is where middle-class families go for summer holidays in villas. Parents in crisp white…
Issue 152: Salmon Fishing in the… Feshie
Pete gets his feet wet in a search for that iconic Scottish image: the leaping salmon. Words & Photography Pete Scullion Returning from overseas to find most of Scotland underwater, including my home village of Aberfoyle, I wondered whether the falling waters would be the…
Issue 152 International Adventure: Icy Trails And Fairy Tales
Martin Bissig makes the most of a week in surprisingly snow-dusted Cappadocia. Words & Photography Martin Bissig Unexpectedly caught in a snowstorm on a biking trip in Turkey, I found the transformed landscapes so captivating that it turned our adventure into an impromptu photo shoot.…
Issue 152 Classic Ride: Riding the Dyfi
The Climachx trail in the Dyfi Valley offers a day out for those looking for an alternative to the Athertons’ neighbouring descents.
Issue 152 International Adventure: Choosing The Right Path
Jonathan Kambskarð-Bennett took on unseasonable Moroccan weather and unfriendly dogs in order to get a glimpse of the vast Sahara Desert on his bike. It wasn’t a simple journey. Words & photography Jonathan Kambskarð-Bennett Morocco was supposed to be straightforward. A leisurely bike ride across…
Issue 152 Last Word: Start Something
Hannah says just get started. It doesn’t matter where you finish.
Singletrack Issue 151 Editorial: Especially average? Or averagely special?
Words: Chipps Does anyone ever aspire to be average? Surely, statistically, most of us must be average at most things? Look around, though, and all talk is about the fastest, the biggest, the raddest, with occasional glances towards the terrible for balance. You’ll never really…
Singletrack Issue 151: Borneo Singletrack
Steve helped plant the mountain biking seed in Borneo a decade ago. Visiting again for the first time, he wondered if it had taken root and flourished. Words Steve Chapman Photography Steve Chapman and Maria Clayfield Many moons ago an opportunity came up for me…
Singletrack Issue 151: A Clarion Call
Hannah examines the rise of a new type of cycling club: the collective. Words Hannah photography as credited Some of the earliest cycling clubs were formed by people with a shared philosophy who wanted to cycle together. Way back in 1894, the first Clarion club…
Singletrack Issue 151 Classic Ride: Pendle Pootle
The STW team ride in the shadow of Lancashire’s Pendle Hill, site of many a 17th century witch trial. However, they didn’t find any witches; just mellow trails and tasty café treats. For us here at Singletrack World, anything in and around Calderdale feels like…
Singletrack Issue 151: Ydyn ni bron yna?
Chipps wonders what happened to the Welsh Government’s promises for a more accessible outdoors for all. Words Chipps Photography Amanda *Ydyn ni bron yna? = Are we almost there? A few short years ago, the mountain biking public was hopeful that it would soon be…
Endurance Cross-Country Kit Essentials
Trial and error (and a bit of grumpy lying on the ground) has seen Amanda find her way to the ideal kit to keep on going, and going, and going…
Singletrack Issue 151 Purposeful Adventure: Friends in High Places
Pete goes in search of the dabs of colour that cling to life in the Scottish mountains. Words & Photography Pete Scullion Heading north and west into a little-known corner of the western Highlands, I was off on a solo adventure up a mountain I…
Singletrack Issue 151: I ❤️ My Night Riding Gear
Hannah brings you the clothing and hardware that keeps her spinning through the long winter evenings. Words Hannah Photography Amanda Night riding… it’s something of a necessary evil in the UK. Or a bonding activity to set you up for the contrasting joy of ‘summer’.…
Singletrack Issue 151: Finding The Flow
The full member paywall on this article has been removed in association with Endura Skipping school and heading to the woods might get some kids a telling-off. Ina de Smet discovered it was exactly what her sons needed. Words Ina de Smet Photography Nils Bussink We’ve all had…
Singletrack Issue 151 Last Word: Favourite Meal
Amanda recalls a favourite, awful, meal. Food is a very important part of riding bikes. Not only for the basic fact of us needing the fuel, but it often can be the motivator for a bike ride. Café rides are characterised by the destination being…
Singletrack World Issue 150 Editorial
It gives me great pleasure to welcome you to issue 150 of Singletrack World Magazine. Whether you’re a new reader in print or online (or both), or an old hand who’s been around since our first issue back in 2001, I’d like to thank you…
Issue 150: Limestone Cowboys
Can you really enjoy the delights of a new country when you’re racing through it at high speed on a stage race? There’s only one way to find out… Words Franky Simmons Photography As Credited If you have been lucky enough to have ridden mountain…
Issue 150: Full Time Tinkering
Steve Chapman talks to the man who makes your suspension work better than when it left the factory. Words Steve Chapman photography Sarah Barratt I’ve been harbouring a secret for a long time and I feel like I want to get it off my chest:…
Issue 150: A Few Feet Away
Anders measures the gaps between doubts, dreams and delivery. Words & Illustrations Anders Engberg When I was five years old my dad built a 25ft sailing catamaran in the living room of our apartment. Other kids’ parents were dodging Jurassic Park figures and pieces of…
Issue 150: Purposeful Adventure – Land Lost
Pete Scullion looks at some of the industrial scars that mark the ‘unspoiled beauty’ of England’s Lake District. But it’s not all bad… far from it. Words & Photography Pete Scullion For this latest Purposeful Adventure, I find myself undergoing the trial that is trying…
Issue 150: The Three-Wheeled Amigos
Antony finds out the unique challenges that taking a trike around an event like the Dirty Reiver poses. Words Antony de Heveningham Photography As Credited We’re in a van heading up to Kielder Forest, and my mate Rik is a tad stressed. He’s the manager…
Issue 150: Chipps’ Summer Ridewear
Chipps gives his top kit tips for those summer weeks (or foreign trips) where the temperatures hit ‘scorchio’ and beyond. I’ve had a long-running debate with American (mostly Californian and Coloradan) bike, clothing and shoe designers about designing mountain bike gear that only works in hot, dry lands, as they clearly have no…
Singletrack World Classic Ride 150: Ben Mac Do It
Each year my friends and I take a trip to Scotland for a week during May bank holiday to enjoy the freedom of wild camping, the right to roam and Empire Biscuits. The tradition is to visit new places and our list was a healthy…
Issue 150: ‘Who died and made you Keeper of the Peak?’
Hannah chats with Chris Maloney to find out what keeps him giving up his free time for the benefit of mountain bikers. Words Hannah Photography Alastair Johnstone / as credited I have a standing joke with my American partner: he asks where something is, and…
Singletrack World Issue 150 Celebration
It’s not always new tyres and perfect corners, OK? Singletrack World Magazine is 150 issues old. That’s no mean feat, and we wanted to celebrate it by bringing you a few of the behind the scene stories from the years from some of the team…
Issue 150 Last Word: How did we get here?
In his Editorial, Chipps says you don’t ‘do mountain biking’, you just ‘are a mountain biker’. I wonder though, how many of you thought you were becoming mountain bikers on those first rides. Was there a definite line crossed where ‘riding a bike’ became ‘mountain biking’?…
Editorial: Work up to the widdly bits
Chipps reminds us not to try to skip to the end... When I was about 16 I borrowed an electric guitar from a friend, with the usual teenage ambitions of becoming a rock star in the ensuing weeks. Obviously, this still hasn’t happened… I already…
Beinn Dorain: Scotland’s Great Pyramid
Ever seen that big pointy lump of a hill on the way to Fort William and wondered how it rides? Pete Scullion goes to find out. Words & Photography Pete Scullion Anyone who has headed north after sampling the chips at the Real Food Cafe…
I ❤️ My: All-Season Ridewear
Amanda shares with us the kit that gets her through ride after ride, day after day, through all the seasons. I’m a big fan of layering and I like to travel light when mountain biking. In an ideal world I would have one set of…