Innehållsförteckning för February 2025 från Mountain Biking UK

In a magazine that goes on sale in January, it’s customary to tell readers how to have their best year ever and lose that festive puppy fat. But I’m throwing out the rulebook for 2025! I think it’s much more interesting to hear how four-time world champion Greg Minnaar feels he “never really got on top of the sport” and “didn’t have the skill other riders have” (see p30). There’s certainly plenty you can learn from the GOAT’s long career, whether you’re into racing or not – although I’m afraid that doesn’t include the ‘secrets’ to post-festive slimming. This issue we also catch up with another world champ, the ‘Redcar Rocket’ Danny Hart, and check out the trails where he honed his skills, at Hamsterley Forest’s Descend Bike Park (p80).…

WELCOME TO THE WORLD OF MOUNTAIN BIKING Finland may not be one of the first places that comes to mind for a mountain biking holiday, but perhaps it should be. With summers in central Europe becoming increasingly hot, and unpredictable weather patterns making planning difficult, now is the perfect time to consider an alternative, underlooked destination. This Nordic nation doesn’t boast towering mountain ranges or steep descents, but its pristine nature, fresh air and breathtaking scenery make the riding very enjoyable, and leave you feeling refreshed and recharged. There’s so much to discover beyond the expanding MTB scene too, and you can easily fit these adventures around your daily rides. It’s also more affordable than you might expect, and most Finns speak English, making it easy to connect. During my…

MEET THE TESTERS ROBIN WEAVER TECH EDITOR IN CHIEF With three decades of MTB experience, Rob can identify the kit that works TOM MARVIN VIDEO PRESENTER XC/trail/enduro rider and tech wizard Tom gives his gear a proper hammering ALEX EVANS SENIOR TECH EDITOR Years of breaking bikes means Al can give ultra-reliable buying advice WILL SOFFE WORKSHOP MANAGER/ WRITER From downhill to downcountry, Will’s hard on parts and gear WHY OUR TESTS ARE THE BEST! Our technical-editor-in-chief Rob Weaver gets new products in as soon as they’re available and coordinates all the testing through our team of tech experts, who have unrivalled knowledge and experience. Every test starts with a detailed product check in the workshop. Next, we hit the trails… hard! We test in real riding conditions, incorporating feedback from…

Hardtails are a great winter option for riders who want a machine that’s easy to clean and maintain when the weather gets grim. For plenty of others, they’re simply a way of life. There’s something deeply satisfying about bashing around with no rear suspension isolating you from what’s going on at the ground. On a rigid frame, you can forget all about damping, spring weights, leverage curves, anti-squat and anti-rise numbers. Put some power down, stomp hard and the bike charges forward, with zero loss of efficiency. In the colder months, this can be a real godsend – who wants to take any more time than necessary getting from A to B when the thermometer is displaying single digits? As hardtails have evolved over the years, so have a few…

WHAT DOES A TYPICAL DAY LOOK LIKE FOR YOU? “I’d wake up at around 8am, nothing too crazy, and try to get an e-bike spin in, pretty much until the battery dies! Hopefully, some downhill laps as well, followed by the gym later. On another day, I might head to the motocross track for some laps. This off season, I haven’t actually taken much time away from the bike, as the gym and structured programmes don’t really start until November. I think I’ve ridden bikes more this October than any year!” WHAT GETS YOU STOKED TO RIDE? “I’m always excited to go out on the bike. If the weather is terrible, I’ll take the e-bike, but it’s always craic for me to be out.” FIRST RIDING MEMORY? “I had the…

“When I first flew out to Dubai to film a recce with Visit Dubai and Red Bull, they said they’d love to get someone out there to showcase the city and its surroundings. They took me up onto the Burj Al Arab hotel and asked if we could film there. Jokingly, I said: ‘Yeah, if you build me a ramp and get a helicopter, I’ll jump out of it, and I’ll also land it, jump over the railing and land on the red carpet.’ I really thought it was all a joke and they’d never actually do it. “I REMEMBER ALMOST BEING SICK HANGING OUT OF THE HELICOPTER. I THOUGHT I WAS GOING TO DIE. IT WAS LIKE GOING INTO A TORNADO, IT WAS HORRENDOUS” “Two weeks later, I got…

The theme for this issue’s routes may conjure up images of a rider with a tent and tons of other luggage strapped to his or her bike, but don’t be put off if you don’t like sleeping under the stars and burying your poop. I’ve planned these journeys carefully to enable you to enjoy the ‘luxuries’ of a campsite or even a soft bed and cooked meal. So, why not make use of these long drawn-in nights to get planning a spring or summer overnighter? Head to p90 for more help with this. Our first ride is in Scotland, starting from the bustling little town of Aviemore, on the northern fringes of the Cairngorms National Park. It begins with some fun trails around Loch an Eilein. After venturing deeper into…

When Greg Minnaar announced his retirement from World Cup downhill racing this summer, it came as a surprise, but not a complete shock. After all, the South African had been competing at the highest level since the late ’90s, continuing long since peers such as Steve Peat had hung up their clipless shoes. But how did the Greatest Of All Time stay on top for so long? And what will he do next? We caught up with Greg at home to let him know he’d won our 2024 Lifetime Achievement award, and grabbed the chance to look back at his illustrious career and ahead to his future plans. “I’ve always felt like I never really got on top of the sport,” says Greg, when we ask how he’s managed to…

Ever got the dreaded ‘bonk’ while on a long ride or found your legs just don’t have enough juice? Without proper fuelling, your body won’t be able to perform at its best (or at all!) and you won’t enjoy the trails as much. While a pack of jelly sweets and a pork pie might look good on paper, there are better (read ‘more energy-dense’) ways to get fuel in, without filling your pack or pockets with crumbly pastry and cellophane packs that split, leaving you rummaging through a sticky mess. At the most scientific end of things, energy bars condense a lot of calories into a chewable format. But, let’s be honest, many of them aren’t very appetising. So, in this test we’ve gone for a halfway house and searched…

THIS MONTH’S NEW BIKE YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT Swiss brand Scott have updated their Patron e-bike for 2025. They’ve moved its hidden shock from the underside of the top tube to the seat tube, which improves the bike’s centre of gravity and gives the frame a sleeker look, and have reduced travel by 10mm. Bosch’s new, quieter fifth-generation Performance Line CX motor provides the power, with battery capacity increased by 50Wh. Also, geometry has been tweaked, with the effective seat tube angle made steeper and, unusually, the head angle too. However, perhaps the most interesting update is the Bosch-Magura collaboration ABS (anti-lock braking system) fitted to the top-spec Patron 900 and Patron ST 900 Tuned. This is designed to improve braking control and power, while not letting the wheels…

ESTABLISHED 1991 CRUD PRODUCTS Based: Near Robin Hood’s Bay, North Yorks Key products: Crudcatcher (1991), Dave’s Chain Device aka DCD (1993), Crud XL Fender (2019) Current line-up: XL Fender, Crudcatcher Mk3, Raceguard XL Rear, Roadracer Mk3 Pete ‘Mr Crud’ Tomkins could be considered one of the godfathers of the British mountain bike industry. An avid rider since the pre-suspension days, he tells us how he got into riding. “I rode my mate’s MTB in spring 1985 and knew I had to have one. I bought a second-hand Ridgeback while living in Brighton and, shortly after, my wife and I moved to Whitby with the babies, and my priorities shifted from surfing to MTB,” he explains. Rebalancing his boards with his new passion for riding bikes, Pete soon saw opportunity coming…

You may have heard of Danny Hart. The ‘Redcar Rocket’ has been around the downhill scene for the best part of 20 years now and is still only in his early 30s. He’s the only British male rider to win more than one Elite DH World Championship, and he learned all the skills needed to get so damn good at a bike park in Hamsterley Forest, County Durham. When Danny was a little kid, riding here all the time and honing his talent, it was just called Descend Hamsterley. But his connection to the place is so strong that several years back, when the lease came up (the bike park is on Forestry England land), it seemed obvious to take it over and put his name to it. Today, Danny’s…

BLUFFER’S GUIDE ‘HIDDEN’ REAR SHOCKS Finlay Anderson explains this growing trend and weighs up the pros and cons Mountain bikes with ‘hidden’ (aka integrated or internal) shocks are becoming increasingly popular, with Scott and Bold Cycles leading the charge and rolling out the sleek, futuristic-looking design across most of their ranges. But why is this trend gaining momentum and is it even a good idea? WHAT ARE HIDDEN SHOCKS? Traditionally, the rear shock on a mountain bike has always been external. Brands use different suspension layouts, and this dictates exactly where the shock is located and how it connects to the front triangle at one end and the swingarm or linkage at the other. Sometimes it even passes through a ‘tunnel’ in the seat tube, but the shock has always…