I’ve been waiting for a while for Seb to send me something from the Santa Cruz bike launch in Sedona, but to no avail. @Dan Barham, @calamitystrange, @garyperkin and @2Flat have been Twittering up a storm and every other website on the planet has posted… More ›
There has been a great deal of anticipation surrounding the release of the new adidas Evil Eye Halfrim Pro glasses. The full rim version has long been a classic line in the adidas range, and a favourite among riders. The new half rim style has… More ›
If I were to define fun, rarely would it contain words like singlespeed or hardtail. These may have been fun for me over ten years ago, when hardtails were pretty much your ticket to ride. But now that suspension bikes have come so far and… More ›
I’ve never owned a lightweight cross-country wheelset; I’m not light weight and I’m not a cross-country racer. But I figured that if WTB riders Mark Weir and Jason Moeschler could race a bunch of French enduro events on the cross-country race version of WTB’s new… More ›
WTB makes good tyres, and recently the company has been on a roll, releasing a few new and revised treads and some pretty cool tyre technology. The 29 inch Bronson ticks the first box (new tread) but not the latter. The 26 inch Bronson is… More ›
I like gloves, and I like getting free gloves, but ABD’s new Flat Out glove has honestly earned the moniker BGE (best glove ever). I can’t see us parting ways, like Nicole and Paris, anytime soon. This glove won’t be for everyone, but if you’re… More ›
Cool, a trail bike designed with DH legend Nico Vouilloz. It’s sexy, curvy, low slung and aggressive looking, with some rad features that put it in a class of its own. Check it out: a carbon rear mech guard, a shock sag meter, massively flared… More ›
I decided to try out a set of XT brakes on the strength of the XTRs I’d used on a few test bikes, and have been a fan of Shimano disc brakes for years. I’ve always been impressed by their performance, the incremental innovation (all… More ›
The guy who designed this shoe obviously wore Lake MX165s back in the nineties, took racing far too seriously for a while, and doesn’t mind a hike-a-bike for elevation gain. He has designed a shoe that demands you stay on the bike whatever the gradient,… More ›
“Strong, light, cheap. Pick two.” That’s the famous quote that came from Keith Bontrager, I believe. Even though Keith works with Trek, RockShox certainly had his wisdom in mind when creating their Sektor range of forks. Back in issue 39 I was pretty impressed with… More ›
On the face of it the role of a chain guide appears simple: keep the chain on the chain ring, no matter what. It really is that straightforward. Therefore any old chain guide should be able to do the job, right? Unfortunately that isn’t the… More ›
I’m a little confused. All these bike labels—enduro, all-mountain, trail, freeride—have me in a spin. Never before has buying a bike been so confusing, with so many models intended for so many different purposes. With all these categories bouncing around my noggin I set about… More ›
In 2010 Avanti announced their return to the design and manufacture of dual suspension mountain bikes with the launch of the XC/ Race Vapour and the Trail/All-Mountain Torrent. Both bikes are well thought-out and offer great performance and value. In fact I still consider the… More ›
Yeti is a name so synonymous with highperformance mountain bikes that it has spawned a cult-like following under the banner of ‘Yetifan’. Its downhill reputation is well proven, as is its crosscountry pedigree. In the all-mountain/trail category, the 575 is highly regarded by weekend warriors… More ›
You know when you’re onto a good piece of kit. It’ll be the first thing you look for when you are getting ready to ride, and if you can’t find it you’ll be digging it out of the wash and giving a quick sniff-test to… More ›