Innehållsförteckning för September 2023 från Mountain Biking UK

It’s always exciting when you watch a rider rise up through the ranks and then suddenly break through, as Charlie Hatton has. We’ve featured the former Forest of Dean local quite a few times over the years, from a debut Trail Crew appearance in 2014 to more recent pieces on trail building and his love of track cars, but I have to admit, I didn’t expect him to win the flippin’ Downhill World Championships! Neither did Charlie, judging by his stunned reaction. Of course, his victory wasn’t just a validation of his own skill and hard work, but of his Atherton bike and the siblings’ gamble on launching their own innovative brand. Suffice to say, the party in the Atherton Racing pits went off! It’s great to be able to…

FREEZE FRAME LET THERE BE LIGHT “As a photographer, I’m constantly chasing the light,” says snapper James Vincent. “In the studio, I’m able to manipulate strobes and softboxes to craft my vision, while outside I’m at the mercy of the elements. Sure, I could lug portable strobes up a mountainside, but it can sometimes be much more exciting to roll with the punches and see what mother nature has in store for us. “On this evening, we were buffeted about on our hike up to the ridge, bikes slung awkwardly over our shoulders. Upon reaching the summit, we had to fight the wind once more to get our flapping jackets on. Summer? Yeah right! With clouds racing across the landscape and dancing shafts of light poking through gaping holes to…

OUT FRONTMy SCARIEST Moment “The standout moments for me are actually off-bike situations from my early days of racing. I’d have been around 18 years old, and back then downhill was in its beginnings. The top riders in the sport were big names, and a lot of fun was had on and off the bike. “One of my most vivid moments of fear was at a lavish after-race party in Canada. We had a lovely silver-service dinner on big round tables. After we finished, the guys started whipping off the tablecloths to see if anyone could leave all the glasses standing. Well, that obviously didn’t work out, and next thing it was a mass slinging match of wine glasses across the room. I took cover, then got out of there…

REVISED SID KIT FOR RAPID RIDERS RockShox’s revised cross-country forks and shock are their most capable yet NEED TO KNOW For 2024, RockShox have updated their SID and SID SL forks, along with their SIDLuxe shock. An all-new ‘Charger Race Day 2’ damper in the top Ultimate and Select+ forks offers three-position low-speed compression damping adjustment (‘open’, ‘pedal’ and ‘lock’). This can be tweaked on the fly using the revised TwistLoc remote, which alters the shock damping simultaneously. A two-position damper is available, too. The SID also gets a new ‘DebonAir+’ spring (the SID SL doesn’t), with 50 per cent more negative volume and 16 per cent more positive volume, to make it as supple as possible. There’s a new top-out spring and bottom-out bumper, too. Longer upper tubes and…

GOING DEEP WORLD CHAMPS A BRITISH WINNER in the downhill was just what we needed to turn the inaugural UCI Cycling World Championships in Scotland from a pretty big deal into an event that’ll go down in UK mountain biking history. Then we got golds in the XC and in MTB trials, too, sending these World Champs off the scale! And there was more to the event than just the action between the tape. From the crowds to the tracks to the tech, and just the general atmosphere, it was one hell of a show! DOWNHILL 8 THINGS THAT MADE FOR AN EPIC DH WORLDS HATS OFF TO HATTON! Charlie reflects on his incredible win Did you have any inkling that it was going to be a special weekend for…

Plenty of downhill bikes now use mid- or high-pivot suspension designs. These allow the rear wheel to move backwards as well as up when you hit a bump, in theory giving a smoother-feeling ride and more grip and speed. But those benefits shouldn’t be reserved for DH racers. Surely, enduro, trail and even, to an extent, XC riders would all benefit from better suspension? Surprisingly, then, high-pivot bikes designed for pedalling are few and far between. In a bid to find out why, we’ve taken two examples with differing amounts of travel and tested them head-to-head. But first, how does a high-pivot design work? On a low-pivot bike, the main pivot (or, on linkage designs, the ‘instant centre’) sits right behind the top of the chainring, on the upper chainline…

The pub, the Ahsoka TV series and that Barbenheimer double bill all have their place, but nothing rivals being on two wheels armed with a pack full of snacks and just the open trails and mountain views for company, right? And yet, if you’re struggling for inspiration or tech guidance, you’ve come to the right place. Over the next 50 pages, our roving explorers offer the essential advice for powering your next adventures, from the best destinations and events (from page 6) to an array of trail-storming bikes (starting page 21) and the best kit to keep you dry, warm and safe on your off-grid excursions. We’ll see you on the remote tracks of the Scottish Highlands……

01 Schwalbe Wicked Will EVO Super Trail £62.99 Fast-rolling tyre with enough bite to have some fun Schwalbe tyres have a well-earned reputation for fast rolling speeds at equivalent grip levels to rivals, and this new Wicked Will is no exception. It permits close to XC racing pace while offering enough bite to push on at speed on more aggro trails. The 850g Super Trail version has good sidewall support and durability for aggressive riders slashing berms and jumps, too, without taking too much away from the energetic and zippy feel. It isn’t quite as comfortable and bump-erasing as the Maxxis Rekon, though, nor as grippy on dry hardpack or over wet rocks and roots. 02 Specialized Purgatory GRID 2Bliss T7 £37.50 Stable and grippy all-rounder, if not the fastest…

When it opened in August 2013, BikePark Wales was by no means assured of success. The plan to try and replicate the success of Whistler Bike Park, in British Columbia, in the somewhat less spectacular environs of Merthyr Tydfil, in the Welsh Valleys, had its merits. But with no chairlift, less than 500m of elevation and just a couple of old downhill tracks to build upon, the founders had their work cut out. Not to mention, they somehow had to raise millions of pounds in funding. Fast-forward 10 years and BPW is one of the most popular riding spots in the UK – a place of pilgrimage for both punters and pros, where the uplift service is booked out weeks in advance, the car park is rammed even on weekdays…

MONDRAKER F-PODIUM DC RR £10,999 Rapid-rolling downcountry machine Although it’s rumoured that Mondraker will be shortly announcing an updated F-Podium, we’ve tested the 2023 model. If the current bike is anything to go by, the new one should be a blast to ride. That’s not to say it’s perfect, but if you’re looking for a lightweight rig that’ll handle its fair share of abuse on more technical terrain, this is a bike well worth considering. Here’s why… THE FRAME The full-carbon F-Podium is built around 29in wheels. In its ‘DC’ (downcountry) guise, tested here, it uses the same lightweight frame as its cross-country focused sibling, but with a longer-stroke shock bolted in place to give 115mm of rear-wheel travel. It also gets a longer-travel 120mm fork, which helps to rake…

I’ve known many talented riders in my time, but when it comes to racing, some don’t deliver the results they, or others around them, expect. They hound you down the trail when not up against the clock, but when they’re between the tape, their runs and results don’t live up to what you know they’re capable of. Why’s that the case? It often comes down to racecraft. Racing downhill (as opposed to riding downhill) is an art in itself. Take five-time world champ Loïc Bruni, for example. He doesn’t have this many wins because he’s far and away the best bike rider in the world, but because, when it matters, he’s often the best bike racer. Let’s dive into the art and craft of DH racing and find out how…

1 BLUE LAGOON CHALLENGE Reykjanes, Iceland The Blue Lagoon Challenge (June 2024) is an annual mountain biking race through the volcanic scenery of Iceland’s south-western Reykjanes peninsula, just south of Reykjavík. The 60km off-road route heads from Hafnarfjörður to the famous Blue Lagoon resort, via gravel roads, brutal inclines and slippery lava rocks. A post-race recovery dip in the lagoon’s mineral-rich, volcanically-heated waters is the reward. There’s also The Rift for gravel riders (July 2024), which tasks hardy entrants with riding 200km in a day across the vast lava fields, active volcanos, snowy peaks, glaciers and waterfalls of the SW highlands. bluelagoonchallenge.is/en/ 2 TRAWS ERYRI/TRANS SNOWDONIA Machynlleth, Wales Cycling UK’s latest route kicks off in Machynlleth and finishes in Conwy, passing through some of Wales’s wildest landscapes along the way.…

GRAVEL RACING I’VE BEEN MOUNTAIN BIKING FOR OVER 30 YEARS, for much of which time I could regularly be found between lines of race tape. The events in question varied from Lycra-clad cross-country slogs to white-knuckle downhill races, along with some multi-stage enduros thrown in for good measure. But not once, in all those years, had I ever raced a bike with a drop bar. Until, that is, I agreed to enter the Dirty Reiver. For those not in the know, the Reiver is a timed gravel event on a 65km, 130km or 200km course through Kielder Forest, which spans the border of England and Scotland. Just how different could it be? And what, after three decades of racing mountain bikes, could I learn from 130km (yes, I didn’t do…

There’s always a sense of thrill, excitement and anticipation on the first uplift of a visit to Morzine. The novelty of riding in gondolas and chairlifts surrounded by towering mountains never wears off. For as long as we can remember, a pilgrimage to the Portes du Soleil – the network of bike-friendly resorts spanning the French-Swiss border, which also includes Les Gets, Avoriaz and Châtel – has been a rite of passage for UK mountain bikers. In fact, the first permanent downhill track (which was also France’s first public DH trail) opened here in Morzine way back in 1997. Over the past 26 years, the area has come on in leaps and bounds. Except for the locations of the ski lifts, the town layout and the route of the Mt…

GRAVEL BIKES Adventure means different things to different people. To a leisure rider, it might be exploring the local towpaths, while to an experienced road cyclist, it could be exploring backcountry gravel tracks. Meanwhile, to a mountain biker, it might mean swapping groomed bike-park trails for epic rides on natural singletrack and wild-camping overnight. These riders have very different needs when it comes to bikes, which is why we’ve included a broad range of machines here. However, all adventure-ready steeds share certain things in common – tyres designed for more than just tarmac, fixtures for carrying supplies, and a degree of built-in comfort, without sacrificing too much rolling speed. Whatever your budget and fitness, you should find something to suit you, from a light ‘all-road’ bike that’ll double up…

Alpkit Koala 13L with Exo-Rail £89.99 & £21.99 A robust seatpack plus nay-sway frame THE KOALA IS handmade in the UK from a waterproof three-layer laminate and tough 1100D Cordura. The seams aren’t taped but Alpkit’s Airlok Tapered dry bag (£15.99) can be used inside it. The Koala has the usual pair of nylon straps that loop over the saddle rails and attach at the rear of the stiffened base, and three compression straps by the rolled opening. Two Hypalon straps secure the pack to the seatpost. An upper sleeve allows the Koala to slide onto the Exo-Rail mounting system, whose 6mm stainless steel frame reduces sway and bounce. Together, the Koala and Exo-Rail weigh 434g. Quick fit Fitting the saddle rail and seatpost straps is quick. The Exo-Rail fits…

ADVENTURE TIPS 1 Take the path less trodden The trails that are most appetising to me are those that appear to go nowhere. They tend to be the ones that take you to the most inspiring places and are the most interesting to ride – a double-whammy no-brainer! For me, the backcountry almost always takes the upper hand over more populated areas. The trails are more exciting, the views more jaw-dropping and the people both happier and more hospitable. The only downside is the absence of street food. So, take the path less trodden and pack plenty of grub – who knows when the next village will be? 2 Keep your wheels rolling Wheels are important. I cannot emphasise this point enough. If you’re descending some godforsaken mountain…