Innholdsfortegnelse for Issue 165 i Australian Mountain Bike

Riders: Graeme Mudd Photographer: Nick Waygood “Another summer of shredding is upon us and Thredbo welcomes the masses once again. The opening weekend kicked off with a double dosage of rain and shine but that didn’t deter a swarm of riders descending the trails. I caught pro downhill rider Graeme Mudd as he ignited his summer season. Quickly up to speed hucking through the fast straighaway that exits ‘Snakes and Ladders’ into ‘True Blue’.” Riders: Lachlan McKillop and Sebastian Jayne Photographer: Dominic Hook Falls Creek is becoming the pre-eminent summer mountain bike playground in Australia, but in spring they also run the most unique mountain bike event in Australia – McKayos. With a mass start on snow, riders plunge down the ski slopes of Falls Creek, through the village, and…

Australia has seen great success in cycling disciplines from road to BMX – and also from our own little dirty corner of the sport. We’ve had world champions in downhill, on multiple occasions, and great success in cross country, 4-Cross and recently enduro. Aside from the success, all these disciplines have seen a good number of Aussie riders head to Europe as privateers and slug it out mid-pack, while ‘living the dream’, and hoping of one day making it. But there is one MTB discipline that has been a tad neglected in the eyes of Australia’s elite mountain bikers. And that is marathon - the art of going full gas for a lot longer than you want to go full gas! In Australia, the marathon racing scene is reasonably strong,…

The plane lands only briefly after having taken off. The shortest flight of our lives lasts a mere 15 minutes and takes us from San Miguel, the largest island of the Azores, over to Santa Maria. About 5,000 people live on this island. Two of them are Andre and Miguel, who welcome us at the airport with a Landrover and a minivan. With us is Luis Melo, who knows the island like no other. The enthusiastic teacher works in tourism now and wants to further develop mountain biking on the Azores. On the way to the hotel my travel partner Jenny and I learn that there are over 20 trails on the island. Andre tells us that the Pico Alto is the highest point with 587m and that we surely…

Nothing is more iconic than an Australian backdrop of golden beaches or suburban backyards littered with plastic cricket bats. Although as a mountain biker, you might have had different icons as a kid. Most of us had posters of towering ridgelines, the best riders plastered against its backdrop with the mountains seemingly spiralling into the picture itself - the image preserving a moment in time that only something in print can do. There was time to pause and appreciate the effort in how that image came about - and the interaction we had with the photo helped to inspire our next day’s adventure, ride or race. It is becoming difficult to capture a moment in time like we did previously. Social media, in all it’s wonderful glory, brings with it…

Today’s Merida bikes are the result of German engineering being fused with Taiwanese manufacturing. Its lineage dates to a time when Taiwanese bikes were cast off as bad quality products that bike shops wouldn’t event touch. Now, Taiwan is arguably the hub for bicycle manufacturing, and throwing in a bit of German engineering before you spit out a bike frame will no doubt put you in good stead. Merida’s latest foray to land on the testing desk is the One-Sixty 6000. Its enduro specific frame is adorned with big and burly parts that are begging to smash just about any trail on the hill. So, let’s go see what it can do! INITIAL IMPRESSIONS Murdered. The all-black paint job of the One-Sixty stands out. And it does so by not…

Congratulations to Chris Jobson who proved to have the sharpest tongue to win our online photo caption competition. Chris Jobson bagged himself a set of ONZA AQUILA tyres designed by Aaron Gwin thanks to our friends at Link Sports for suggesting the following witty caption to our image of Chris Panozzo completing a look back in Alpine Victoria: ‘CRIKEY - BRIDGE IS OUT...!’ To be in with a chance of winning our next caption competition, simply log on to facebook.com/AMBmag or our Instagram page from January 15th to view a new picture - and post your entry in the comments section. Good luck!…

Tasmania seems to be growing its trail network faster than men around Australia are growing facial hair, yet lately there seems to be a bit of a shortage of XC events to tempt riders down to the Apple Isle. Lucky for those who are XC inclined, 2017 happens to be an odd-numbered year, which meant it was time to grab a partner, book flights to Hobart and get a ticket to the Hellfire Cup. The event village and campground (optional – there is cute farm accommodation available all over the place) is located in the area of Kellevie, about an hour’s drive from Hobart. Riders and racers quickly settle in to the relaxed and social atmosphere, supported by live entertainment, a Moo Brew beer tent, some great food options and…

The ever-popular Lasseters Easter in the Alice will kick-start the 2018 MTBA XCM Series. The first stage of the three-day event will also be the opening round of the series. But whether you’re out there for the challenge of the series, the natural flow of the hand-crafted singletrack in Alice Springs, or to take in the wonder of the red centre – we guarantee you will have a good time. Central Australia Rough Riders run a great event, and the down-to-earth nature of the club belies their ability to run a national standard event, and pick a good course to boot. With accommodation discounts available from the title sponsor Lasseters, why not look at making a holiday out of it and visiting Alice Springs this Easter for a very social…

What is it about Australians and Tall Poppy Syndrome? Talking about it recently with a friend who did a large part of his youth growing up in the USA, we both find the concept baffling. “Everyone loves a winner over there, success is celebrated. Even the f#$%ing Mathletes get props from the jocks for their arithmetic skills. People are just stoked on people who are good at things,” he explained. Not so here in Australia, it seems, as winners and leaders are chastised as we strive to bring them down - as if they’re not worthy of their achievements. Everyone loves a story of rising up against the odds, but alternatively we relish a ‘fall from grace’. Tall Poppy Syndrome began to thrive during convict times in Australia. The strong…

The 2018 route for The Pioneer is tracing a completely different course across the topography of New Zealand’s South Island. The original 550km route followed a course from Christchurch to Queenstown, taking riders seven days, and pitching them against 15,500m of climbing in the Southern Alps. The original route was intense. With rugged trails, steep climbs, wild descents that lasted 20 minutes, and race camps with million dollar views – it really was a special experience. The Pioneer event team have encouraged riders to ‘ride beyond’ in the first years, with the promise that you would find character, find welcome and find stunning. The pairs race pitted riders against some challenges in the beautiful South Island which could equally test and consolidate friendships and the love for the sport. There…

NOT EVERYBODY WANTS TO BE A RACER, THIS IS THE BIKE FOR THE WEEKEND WARRIOR OR ANYBODY PLUS SIZE CURIOUS. Eight years ago Reid entered the market with a single model - fast forward to the present and you will see a company that has expanded into one of the main companies in the Australian market. With a keen eye on the price tag, Reid established a loyal customer base for those looking to upgrade to their first proper mountain bike. 2018 sees the expansion of the wildly popular 27.5+ (Plus sized) range to include two full suspension models. Still offering the same sharp pricing that Reid has become renowned for, these new models have undergone intensive R&D on home soil to ensure they are up to the task. The…

Fi’zi:k’s new Luna X5 saddle hit the shelves in October. Part of a new range of saddles from the ergonomics specialists at Fi’zi:k, the Luna X5 is designed specifically for women and for off-road riding. Recently, Fi’zi:k have introduced channels into their saddle designs, with their Versus men’s saddles featuring a long, depressed central channel, and their Open men’s saddles sporting a cut-out centre - like the Luna X5 we’ve tested here. Fi’zi:k tell us that cut-out saddles often lose structural integrity - in other words, when you make a hole in the centre, a saddle will lose some of the stiffness that supports your body weight for efficient power transfer. To overcome this, Fi’zi:k have designed cut-out saddles like the Luna X5 around a laterally strong, carbon, co-injected nylon…

Bunny hopping is hands down one of the most important skills any mountain biker can develop. Not only is bunny hopping useful in its own right to clear gutters, logs, rocks or anything else on the trail, it’s also critical as a gateway skill in learning to jump and pre-jump correctly. Those are key skills for any intermediate level trail and above – especially when you throw racing (or Strava if you are so inclined…) into the mix. There’s no doubt that clip in pedals make the process a whole lot easier, but relying on having your feet clipped in is certainly the wrong way to go about it. If you really want to learn how to bunny hop correctly and effectively, buy a cheap set of flat pedals to…

Australia’s Mountain Bike future is looking very promising. The recent win by Cameron Wright in the Under-19 World Championships, along with two other top 21 placings by Australia’s U19 men, shows that our nation is starting to produce world class cross country mountain bike riders. There has been a marked increase in the popularity of mountain biking within the junior categories across Australia in recent years. For example, at the 2017 National Championships, the U17 men and women’s fields had the most competitors. With higher participation numbers, the level of competition has increased dramatically and will no doubt continue to do so. So how do we best support the development of our younger generation over the coming years? In my opinion, it is so important to get the right balance…

There’s a new addition to the Australian mountain bike scene, as Ironman have launched the Reef to Reef, expanding on Australia’s oldest mountain bike event – the RRR. The new four day mountain bike stage race in Tropical North Queensland will run from 9-12 August, on terrain that ranges from the jungle trails of Smithfield, to the fast and dry trails at Davies Creek on the Atherton Tablelands, through the outback trails of Mt Molloy and the Kuranda Range, and finally on the infamous Bump Track with a race finish in Port Douglas. The RRR (Rural, Rainforest and Reef) still remains as a single day option with the 35 and 70km options both starting at Wetherby Station. The new full course will tackle 4,000m of climbing over the four days,…

We’re back in 2018, and with Rocky Trail Entertainment we’ll be running another edition of the AMB100 at Mt Stromlo in Canberra, on April 15. The cooler temperatures of April were greatly appreciated by all this year, and with prime trail conditions and a cracker of a course set by Event Director Martin Wisata, it was a great day in the nation’s capital. And 2018 looks set to be better than ever, with Fox Australia on hand for suspension tuning assistance. Rocky Trail Entertainment will once again deliver a great course, it’s just up to you whether you line up for the one, two, three or five lap variants. See you there! rockytrailentertainment.com…

There are always periods of time that we look back on fondly - memories that have imprinted themselves so much into our psyche that, for better or worse, may come to define us in our later years. And when you look at some of the more veteran riders out there, it’s clear to see that if you’re a mountain biker, you never grow up. We are only really just starting to see the beginning of a generation who grew up riding bikes down hills now follow the yellow brick road into the Masters category. That isn’t to say that the category hasn’t been full of old boys giving it the berries on any given Sunday - apart from the juniors at club level, Vets and Masters are some of the…

Money spent on learning about bike mechanics can easily pay off in the long-term, as well as getting you back up and running if things suddenly go wrong out on the trail. That’s where a company like BMTI (Bicycle Mechanic Training Institute) in Sydney’s west comes in - offering short courses in bike maintenance, servicing and repairs. “Do you want the bike to tell you that it’s broken and needs to be taken to a bike shop to be fixed? Or do you want to be able to do the preventative maintenance and servicing and just take it to the shop for the most serious problems?” says BMTI founder Kevin Silvy. “And when you think that people spend a lot of money buying a bike, maybe even as much as…

Mountain biking could exist without mountains, but what visit to the mountains feels right without a mountain bike? Big peaks, deep valleys, long descents and panoramic vistas are inextricably part of what makes mountain biking great. Images and stories from high places draw us in, as bikes and riders are dwarfed by the scale of the landscape in which they play. The Alpine Issue celebrates big mountains, and Australia’s alpine areas are alive in summer with people who enjoy the outdoors by bike and by foot. Big rides in these places leave us more vulnerable but also reward the planning and preparation. Whether you’re considering a trip to one of the great alpine bike parks, or looking to put together something even more epic – read on and enjoy our…

Whyte often slip under the radar, with just a small international racing presence and only a handful of continental racers with a passion for going fast. Yet they remain the darling of the world’s mountain bike media, their bikes often highly praised, and also making their way into the garage of an editor or two. Not to miss out on such a trend, I bought a T-130 a year ago and I love it. The geometry is spot on, it’s fast, it’s sleek and it’s a lot of fun. But, like many T-130 owners, I’ve Frankenstien-ed my ride. Wider bars, 140mm forks, grippier tyres, beefed up rear suspension. “Why’s that?” you may ask. Well, there is no 150mm option within the Whyte range, and there hasn’t been since the 27.5…

Scott bikes might be best known for their race-winning pedigree thanks to stars like Nino Schurter, who won every World Cup XCO race this year, plus the Cape Epic and World Championships. Scott were also the bikes that our own XCO National Champions Bec Henderson and Dan McConnell raced in 2017. Scott also sponsor gravity riders like Remy Absalon and Brendan Fairclough. But away from timed runs and racing elbow-to-elbow between the tape, the Swiss bike company based out of Freiburg have always made great riding bikes for finding your own adventure. The Scott Genius name goes back a long way. Almost 15 years ago I owned a Scott Genius RC, with 90mm of travel. The Genius MC was the long travel version with 120mm of travel. Both bikes, of…

A family that cycles together stays together. That’s what they say, right? Riding bikes together is a fabulous way to get kids active and into sport, as well as spending some quality family time out in the fresh air. If you’re taking the kids out on their bikes though, it’s important to remember to fuel them as you would yourself so you all get the most out of the ride (no hangry moments that will ruin the day…). Try these quick and easy nutrition tips for the whole family (kids and big kids alike). 1. COVER YOUR BASES. Make sure your kids have a good balanced diet off the bike with a mix of fruit, veggies, dairy, meats or other protein and whole grains. Keep processed foods to a minimum…