Singletrack

Issue 39

Features:

• Editorial Chipps sings the praises of wearing stuff out, rather than breaking it.
• Trail Swap, Part 2 Faye Stewart travels from Bristol to Yorkshire in the second part of our trail- swap feature. How will she fare in the north?
• Riding the GR5 James Astbury and his dad rode the 450mile GR5 trail from Geneva to Nice this summer. Not bad for someone who’s not done his GCSEs yet..
• Bike Porn: Klein ‘Cross Bike Caroline Alexander’s mid-‘90s Klein cyclocross bike. Klein never even made ‘cross bikes, so this is quite special. Or a bit of a bodge. You decide.
• Interview: Scot Nicol He’s the owner of Ibis, learned to framebuild from Joe Breeze and Charlie Cunningham, yet you’ve probably never heard of him.
• Long Termers A year ago, we showed you the bikes we’d be riding in 2007. Here we show you how we got on with them.
• Through The Grinder Nine pages of products gently sanded down by Yorkshire gritstone.
• Column: Roly Lambert Roly lies off jumps and through the air in his imagination, but when faced with real mounds of earth, it’s a slightly different story.
• Editors’ Choice What products have really excited us in the past 12 months? These are the bikes, products and places that get our vote.
• Column: Philly D. Some ride to the trails, some drive, but Philip Diprose is one of a third group. The Railway Children, who get the train to the trails.
• Singletrack Reader Awards. The only bike industry awards with 100% of the votes by the public. You nominated your products, bikes, events and people of the year. Now vote for your favourites.
• Column: Julian Birch Julian takes a detour from one of his regular routes and ends up in a new wonderland.
• Gallery Six pages of great shots to keep you going until the days start getting longer.
• Competition We have £1200 worth of Mavic wheels to give away! Two pairs, one to suit the XC racers and one to suit the all-mountain stompers.
• Column: Alex Leigh Home isn’t always where the heart is. It can be where the favourite riding is. In Alex’ case, this can only ever mean the Peak District.
• Propaganda The Singletrack product elves have been busy getting in lots of goodies that you’re going to want to get someone to treat you to.
• Members’ Club There are many reasons to subscribe to Singletrack. You not only get our eternal gratitude, but you also get lots of cool discounts.
• Sauze D’Oulx ‘Sauzay Doolx’ has a network of XC and mountain trails to rival anywhere, yet not many riders have heard of it. Get there before everyone else discovers it.
• Blame the Dog Mike Ferrentino’s regular column looks at the wonders of the forum user group mentality. What would a bike designed by a bike forum look like?
• Subscribe to Singletrack Yes, you can. It’s easy and everyone will love you for it.
• Singletrack Fitness – Survive Christmas! Matt Hart from Torq is here to help you limit the damage you’re inevitably going to do to yourself over this Christmas period.
• Route Guide: Masham and Nidderdale Ben explores the bit between the Yorkshire Dales and the North York Moors that has all the good riding and gets little of the exposure.
• Column: Steven Menmuir Ever been stuck in a physical or mental rut? With mountain biking it’s possible to be both. Steven tries to get himself out of one.
• The Abha Trophy, Six Days in the Desert Chipps takes on the unknown quantity of a six day stage race in Saudi Arabia. And he does so without the aid of a suitcase.
• Riding British Columbia Dan Barham documented our 2007 reader holiday to Whistler, Pemberton and other choice bits of British Columbia. Jealous? Us?
• Outro Some crazy pictures and some thoughts on those bits of bikes you’ve lost over the years.