Innholdsfortegnelse for June 2023 i Mountain Bike Rider

Getting your kids into riding (and not football!) is a life’s work for some of us. It’s only natural, you want the next generation to get as much out of riding as you have, stay away from computer and phone screens, and head out on the trails with you in tow. And ideally, you want them to get really bloody good at it so you can live out your dreams vicariously. The best way to make that happen is obvious, you’ve got to get them out on the bike. And the way to do that is to make it easy and fun, with the right kit. A bike heavier than an e-bike isn’t going to cut it, nor is the old Styrofoam helmet you used as a youth that’s been…

BADGER DIVIDE 338.8km (210.5 miles) Starting in Inverness and finishing in Glasgow some 339km later, the intriguingly named Badger Divide is a proper adventure in the big country. Passing through some of Scotland’s most beautiful areas, you can expect bens, glens, lochs and more wildlife than you can shake a bar bag at. Luggage is something you’ll want to carry on this ride as shops and other conveniences are few and far between, and being self-sufficient is a very good idea. The fastest known time for the Badger is an almost unbelievable 24 hours but you’re much better putting aside a minimum of three days to actually enjoy the ride. GPS download bit.ly/BadgerDivide SANDSTONE WAY 192.4km (119.6 miles) The Sandstone Way is a 193km route that links the Nortumbrian towns…

A summer’s evening, a pub with a beer garden and a bunch of bikes stacked up against the wall. It’s a familiar scene for most riders, the inevitable conclusion to the mid-week razz around the woods with your mates. In amongst the usual post-ride buzz, beers and chatter, a topic gathers momentum. What’s the thing that you love most about mountain biking? For some the answer comes to mind immediately, for others it requires a bit more thought, and a bit more beer. Considering everyone sitting around the table is in agreement that they love mountain biking, everyone’s ‘thing’, it turns out, is different. Sure, there are elements of mountain biking that are towards the top of everyone’s list of loves, but when it comes to pinning down the one…

£7,400 • 29in • specialized.com THE RIDER JAMIE DARLOW Position Front section editor Mostly Rides Surrey Hills Height 6ft 1in Weight 82kg THE BIKE ■ Lightweight e-bike, splitting the weight difference between the full-power Kenevo and regular Enduro ■ Less than half the power of a full-fat e-bike, with 240W and 35Nm of torque, and a small 320Wh battery (with optional 160Wh range extender) ■ Entry-level Turbo Kenevo SL gets Fox Performance suspension, Fox Rhythm fork and SRAM GX drivetrain, but retains the full carbon frame ■ Progressive geometry and sizing makes the Kenevo SL a full-blown enduro bike Brakes, drivetrain and dropper post aside, I’ve changed pretty much everything that came stock on the Kenevo SL. This is extremely naughty, certainly not in the spirit of the long-term testing…

HOPE 155MM EVO CRANKS £255 without chainring SPECIFICATION Weight: 555g including axle (602g with chainring) • Colours: Black, red, orange, silver, purple and blue • Options: Axles to suit a range from Boost, fat bikes and Super-Boost • Contact: hopetech.com Hope initially made short EVO cranks for extra clearance on e-bikes, and ended up experimenting with even shorter lengths after seeing some additional benefits. The brand settled on 155mm as a sweet spot, using the same second-generation, self-extracting, 7150 alloy arms and oversized 30mm splined 7075 axles across a variety of fitment widths. Being shorter means the cranks are lighter and stiffer, but Hope also champions extra ground clearance, a more centred rider stance, extra stability and faster cadence as additional benefits. The stability is due to more centred feet…

£3,250 Now that the Mettle full-suspension bike has disappeared from the range, Identiti has become a small but dedicated hardtail brand. So small in fact, that there are currently only two models on offer: the Dr Jekyll dirt-jump bike and the AKA trail hardtail tested here. At first glance, the aluminium AKA frame looks much like any other trail hardtail; with its boxy seatstays bypassing the seat tube and running straight into the low-slung top tube. The frame also has a tapered head tube and ISCG tabs on the bottom bracket shell, with Identiti making full use of the mounts by fitting an MRP chain guide. No bad thing, given how much the rear end, and ultimately the chain, gets bounced around when you have no suspension on the rear…

Reading Sim’s feature (p50), about what makes us tick as mountain bikers, got me thinking about why I ride. Without spoiling it, it seemed that every rider he spoke to had a single thing that really motivated them. But for me, my 'thing' might just be everything. Well, except fat bikes, I draw the line there – sorry all you fat bikers. And I think this capricious attitude is what’s kept me so passionate about riding for 30 years now. Usually it’s the thrill that satisfies me. Going fast (relatively) and staying upright is immensely satisfying, as is trying to find ways of unlocking speed on trails you’ve ridden a hundred times. Puzzling engages the little grey cells, while trying to put those theories into practice keeps the motor neuron…

Most brands like to pick a material for a new bike, then stick with it. And until now, Andorra-based Production Privée was one of those brands, happily making hardtails and a full-suspension bikes from MCS 4130 heat-treated steel. The new Shan 5 changes that; it keeps the steel-framed front triangle and swaps in a carbon rear end, the idea being to save weight and increase stiffness. “The Shan was already a good bike, but we wanted to reach a good ratio in terms of mechanical performance and excess weight,” explains Damien Nosella. “We chose carbon composites for the swingarm and dropped the weight to 840g from 1.6kg.” A lighter back end with less sprung mass makes for better dynamic suspension behaviour and an increase in actuation of the bike, Damien…

It won’t come as a surprise that even professional riders, whose careers often depend on their race results, find it difficult to maintain the motivation to train. And that’s simply because effective training can be really tough. It doesn’t help either, that the fitter you are, and the more advanced you are as an athlete, the harder it is to keep making progress. It’s the simple law of diminishing returns. And when progress stalls, the desire to jump on a static bike and do a painful high-intensity interval session can be too much to bear. Factor in driving to the gym or other friction points and the next thing you know you’ve missed a couple of training sessions and your fitness and motivation are on a downward spiral. Now, if…

Whether you’re looking to compete in your first race, or get the edge on your rivals, this new series is all about preparing you for the start line. And to help you do it is Innes Graham – both a Dirt School performance coach and EDR racer. As well as competing at the top level internationally, Innes also helps deliver Dirt School’s BASE Mountain Biking course, so he’s well-placed to communicate the lessons he’s learned in the heat of battle. Over the next few issues we’re going to take a look at what it takes to ride at the top level. We’ll layer complicated techniques on top of basic ones, look at what goes through a racer’s head when they are on the clock and how they do what they…

THE RIDER JAMES BRACEY Position Freelance writer Mostly rides South Wales Height 6ft 1in Weight 75kg THE BIKE ■ 29er enduro race bike with 165mm rear travel married to a 170mm-travel fork ■ Four frame sizes, all with proportional chainstay lengths ■ Flip-chip and an angleset-friendly 1.5in head tube offer plenty of adjustability ■ Ready-to-race Pro spec with Fox Factory suspension, DT Swiss wheels and Maxxis EXO+ Assegai tyres I’ve finally got the Firebird’s suspension components back and fitted and, as suspected, the Fox X2 shock was cavitated due to a faulty seal that separates the oil from the gas charger in the damper. On the initial couple of rides back, the bike and suspension certainly feel better. Much more plush and controlled in the travel and back to giving…

New wheels offer some of the greatest potential performance gains of any upgrade. Along with the other crucial part of the system – tyres – wheels drastically affect how your bike accelerates, changes direction, and also influence the speed it rolls along a trail. The basic ingredients of a wheel are an extruded alloy or moulded carbon rim (usually 29in or 27.5in diameter), laced to a central hub (110x15mm at the front and 148x12mm at the rear) by tensioned steel spokes. Spokes can be different gauges (thicknesses) to give differing ride characteristics, and are often butted to save weight. The hub usually runs on sealed cartridge bearings and the freehub is normally modular in case you want to run a different cassette. All told, they’re a vital ingredient in your…

£2,499.99 The Nukeproof Scout started life as a burly, dirt-jump/four-cross bike. But over the years the Scout has broadened its horizons, maturing into a capable trail bike, without ever losing sight of its more playful past. And with the latest round of frame revisions in 2022, the Scout is more capable than ever before. It’s also bang up-to-date. The new alloy Scout frame gets a tapered zero-stack head tube and an equally low-slung top tube. There’s a bottle mount on the slender down tube for hydration and a second set of bottle bosses under the top tube for attaching a tool wrap, or whatever you need close to hand on your regular rides. With bridgeless stays, the rear end of the Scout is every bit as streamlined as the front…

What beats descending the Lakeland fells on a mountain bike? Doing it directly into an ethereal golden sunrise atop a cloud inversion. These rides feel more like dreams than reality. It’s a drag waking up early, but it’s images like these that help me stumble out of bed and head for the hills in the half light. Because that morning might just be one of these. I always like to motivate myself with the phrase ‘Don’t go - won’t know’. Here’s to many dawn raids in 2023. Tristan Tinn Vedangi Kulkarni and Maya Atkinson took the new Canyon Neuron on a bike-packing discovery between Oswestry and Dolgellau in North Wales. Being mid-winter, the weather was patchy, daylight was in short supply, and the trails were sometimes disappointing, but there were…

MOST WANTED VITTORIA AIR-LINER LIGHT €59.95 Tyre inserts are beloved of enduro riders and downhillers alike for their rim and puncture protection: But for XC racers, down-country riders, and all the rest of us, they’re overkill and may even impinge on the ride quality of the bike. After all, upwards of 200g of rotational mass per wheel is a really big deal and the very reason riders upgrade their rims from alloy to carbon. Vittoria’s solution is the Air-Liner Light; it weighs a meagre 50g but still offers great puncture protection, all the while remaining imperceptible to the rider without impinging on agility or handling. That’s the big claim anyway, and Vittoria’s been using some high calibre test dummies to prove its point, with BMC, Santa Cruz FSA and KTM-Vittoria…

LIV INTRIGUE X ADVANCED E+ ELITE £8,999 • 29/27.5in • liv-cycling.com NEED TO KNOW ● Giant claims it is the lightest full-power e-mtb on the market at 18.8kg in size Small ● Uses Yamaha’s SyncDrive Pro2 motor with 85Nm of torque powered by an EnergyPak Smart Compact 400Wh battery ● Travel is 140mm at the rear, with a 150mm-travel fork, and it runs a mixed-wheel configuration, with 29in up front and 27.5in out back ● Gets a full Advanced carbon frame and carbon rocker link ● Wireless SRAM GX Eagle AXS groupset with SRAM Code R brakes A women’s e-bike that slashes weight to the bone and does everything other than ride itself The new Liv Intrigue X Advanced E+ is a new take on the lightweight e-mtb, weighing in…

I’m eating an apple and waiting for Gee Atherton to turn up. My laptop pings and GeeMan’s face blinks into life in front of me, five minutes earlier than our scheduled Google Meet. “Sorry, I’m still eating lunch,” I splutter. “No worries, I’ve just had physio, a crumpet and a cup of tea.” He’s just back from a session at the gym with his long-time strength coach Alan Millway, so I’m guessing he’s had more than a couple of fluffy cakes to keep him going. Gee’s keen to dive straight in and talk about the crash three years ago that almost killed him, though. He rattles off the injuries like most people talk about their shopping. Pints of blood lost, five ribs snapped, two punctured lungs, one broken femur and…

£2,899 • 29in • alpkit.com THE RIDER SEAN WHITE Position Freelance writer/tester Mostly rides Forest of Dean, Mid Wales Height 6ft 2in Weight 87kg THE BIKE ■ Handmade 4130 steel frame with size-specific chainstays and up-to-date trail geometry ■ Cane Creek Helm air fork upgrade comes with 130mm travel – the sweet spot for a 29er trail hardtail? ■ Full SRAM GX Eagle drivetrain with a super-wide 10-52t cassette ■ Hope Fortus wheelset, an upgrade over Sonder’s house-brand hoops and a solid choice for 12 months of heavy use MONTH 13: Sean bucks the trend for short stems on XL bikes, and not only does it look right, it feels right… For the first time in almost 10 years I’ve fitted a longer stem to my bike. Yes, you read…

£4,499 • 29in • privateerbikes.com THE RIDER BEN SMITH Position Art editor Mostly rides Forest of Dean Height 5ft 9in Weight 76kg THE BIKE ■ Progressive trail bike from UK direct-sales brand with 141mm travel, coupled with 150mm-travel fork ■ Special-edition bike features Öhlins RXF36 M.2 Air fork and TTX2M coil-sprung shock, and tougher wheels and tyres ■ Long, low and slack sizing and geometry with proportional chainstay lengths ■ Shimano SLX/XT drivetrain and Magura MT5 brakes offer no-nonsense performance without sky-high pricing What attracted you to the Privateer? The yellow bits, obviously. Seriously, though, the 141 is a really progressive UK-built trail bike and with the upgraded Öhlins suspension, and burlier build kit, it looked like Privateer had turned the fun factor up to 11. Also it’s a seriously…

TESTED THIS MONTH What happens when you throw financial caution to the wind and get high-end hardtails from three British bike brands? Well, the budget instantly goes out the window, and given the current financial climate it’s probably not what Money Saving Expert Martin Lewis would recommend. But that’s exactly what we’ve done for this month’s test and the results are both insightful and surprising. We have the latest bikes from Identiti, Nukeproof and Whyte and while all three are UK brands at their very core, none of the bikes in this test are actually manufactured here on UK soil. That’s a direct result of our more service-focused economy, but it doesn’t mean that these UK brands don’t have a very different spin on what the humble hardtail is capable…

£3,500 Now, you are probably thinking, £3.5k for a hardtail and the frame isn’t steel or carbon? Well, we thought the exact same thing when the 909 X arrived, and even joked that maybe the X was shorthand for eXpensive. So what exactly does that kind of money get you from the brand that’s synonymous with great British hardtails? In short, you get a seriously cool bike. Obviously, at this price, the specification is top-notch, and includes a 130mm-travel RockShox Pike Ultimate fork and wireless SRAM GX AXS drivetrain, but it’s actually the 909 X’s alloy frame that’s the standout feature here. And it’s the exact same frame Whyte uses on all three models in the 900 series Enduro range. So if £3.5k is too much for you to swallow,…