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As Specialized’s in-house wheel brand, the Roval name is most commonly spotted doing circle work on Specialized road and mountain bikes. Thing is though, the wheel specialist offers a pretty comprehensive range of complete wheels for the aftermarket too. And with Specialized’s R&D might and mass production capabilities behind it, Roval wheels tend to be […]
As Specialized’s in-house wheel brand, the Roval name is most commonly spotted doing circle work on Specialized road and mountain bikes. Thing is though, the wheel specialist offers a pretty comprehensive range of complete wheels for the aftermarket too. And with Specialized’s R&D might and mass production capabilities behind it, Roval wheels tend to be […]
Under-rated steeds. Merida bikes have never quite nailed the sex appeal thing. Maybe it’s a deliberate strategy, but with model names that read more like a barcode number and straight-down-the-line infographics aplenty, Merida is a brand that seems to appeal to the analytical rather than passionate customer. Maybe their recent fun video to launch the […]
See the Merida eOne-Sixty in action here! The bike that changed a brand forever. Merida’s explosion into the eMTB scene was a huge turning point for the brand in Australia. Their reputation in Oz was previously for being very XC-oriented, but the eOne-Sixty changed this forever, with a combination of big travel e-bike tech, in […]
The Cube Stereo Hybrid 140 Race 500 27.5 has an interminable name, though much easier to ride than pronounce while climbing a steep hill. The Stereo Hybrid uses a finely finished aluminium frame with sharp angles and a robust, industrial presence, 27.5” wheels wrapped in meaty 2.6” Schwalbe tyres, and the excellent Bosch Performance CX […]
Warburton is a name that plenty of Melbournites will be familiar with. This little town is the endpoint of one of the country’s most popular rail trails, and its surreal riverside setting and cute Main Street make it an ideal weekend getaway for folk looking for that small-town feel without having to venture too far […]
We’ve witnessed Bright grow from a sweet little town with an untamed labyrinth of pine forest singletrack, to hosting many national level races, formalisation of signed and mapped trails, to the construction of the impressive Hero Trail. Using much of the land beneath a working forest, the trails often have to shift their location to […]
Watch our full video review of the Pivot Firebird 29 below! This is a bike that gets lots of attention. Chris Cocalis, the bossman at Pivot, has a reputation for strong opinions, a zero-compromise attitude and obsessive attention to detail. It’d make him a hard first date, but it means he designs a very good bike. […]
This isn’t the first time you’ve ridden this bike, right? Correct. We attended the launch of this bike last year, but we always prefer to test bikes on home soil in Australian conditions. We went deep on the tech details, so make sure you take a look at our First Impressions piece and video […]
For a first entry in the world of e-mountain bikes, Norco have delivered a cheeky headbutt to a lot brands that have been in e-bike realm for a number of years. The Sight VLT has raced straight to the head of the pack, leaving very few areas for improvement. That sounds pretty positive, why […]
So, Jasper, how did this whole project begin? The plan began with Simon French of Maydena Bike Park and Rhys Ellis floating the idea that we should create a film together for Dirt Diaries showcasing Tasmania and Maydena to the world. So with the support of Maydnea Bike Park, we committed to making a film […]
You will not go wrong with a Stumpjumper. The name has been around for 30 years, and this model’s pedigree is one of continual refinement. We always enjoy riding a Stumpy, though we’ve spent more time on the 29er versions over the last few years. Riding the smaller wheel option had us taking a very […]
Perhaps during the gold rush, those dedicated folks were searching too hard for gold, and the answer was always right in front of their noses, golden terrain for mountain bike singletrack, of course! Yackandandah is home to classic, old-school singletrack. It is janky, twisty, narrow, fun and in just one lap of the extensive network, […]
Derby is the place on everyone’s minds when it comes to travelling to ride, of course, it is it’s amazing. The super-sweet trails don’t need any introduction, but it has always tended to be a little vague when it comes to ‘other things’ to do. Now the little Tasmanian town of Derby seems to have […]
We were in Maydena attending the Mountain Bike Destination Forum, which was brilliant event bringing all kinds of people connected to mountain bike destination development together in one room for two days. But either side of the forum, we managed to cram in a bit of riding. Here’s what we gleaned. More trails. Lots more […]
It’s hard to miss this young fella’s unmistakable blonde dreadlocked hair, cheeky attitude and likeable demeanour. We assumed Miles was just a local ratbag washing hire bikes for pocket money, but when photos and videos surfaced of this kid shredding the Derby trails with killer skill and speed, we took note. Watch Miles and Gus […]
Planning a trip to Derby late last year we were faced with a tough call to make, what bike should we take for someone who’s never been there before? The Fjord Lord, our friend from Terrengsykkel, Norway’s best mountain bike magazine was visiting, and he’s a great photographer and keen adventurer, but he was bike-less […]
Highlights please? The handling. The way this bike sticks to the ground when you need it to, but still keeps a directness and precision that belie its 170mm of travel, is impressive. Focus have nailed the balance of this bike, both in terms of weight distribution and suspension. The use of narrower, stouter tyres had […]
What makes the SAM2 standout? Focus are all about making their e-bikes handle, as much as possible, like a regular mountain bike. You’ll notice that the geometry of this one is fairly compact out back, with a rear-centre of 455mm, certainly on the short side in the world of eMTBs. That’s music to our […]
Who is this bike targetting? There’s a bit of a conundrum with e-bikes. They’re a fantastic way to get new riders into the sport, but because of the technology involved, even an entry-level e-MTB is up over $4000 at present. With that obstacle in mind, brands need to woo potential buyers with a good looking […]
Giant are incredibly strong here in Australia, and so the arrival of a new year’s range is always watched very closely. For 2019, itt’s a bit of a mixed bag on the mountain bike front, with huge developments in some areas and only slight tweaks in others. Obviously e-bikes is the area where we’ve seen […]
A mountain bike race is much more than the sweat, dust and suffering that happens while the clock is ticking. In fact, a race can be an intrinsic part of the community, and its success and survival can have far-reaching impacts that most participants would never stop to consider. The cancellation (and subsequent re-birth) of […]
So, what are the new bikes? Giant have released four new bikes for the Australian market, the Trance SX E+ Pro that we tested as well as three ‘regular’ Trance E+ models. The differences between the two models are in the areas of fork travel, geometry and componentry, with the SX model coming with a […]
G’day Samara, tell us a little bit about where you are from, and where you currently call home? I was born in Clyde (Central Otago, NZ) but Windy Wellington is home for me in NZ. After I finished school in Wellington, I joined a sports academy in Rotorua while I completed a Diploma in Communications. […]
See our day one and three adventures here: Atherton EP:1 Atherton EP:3 Flow’s in Atherton, in Tropical North Queensland for three fun days of riding, swimming, eating, drinking and everything in between. Three days of this? Sounds terrible, let’s get to it. After splitting our time on and off the bike on our first day, […]
$10 million for the Thredbo Valley Trail Now this is exciting stuff. NSW Deputy Premiere John Barilaro has just announced a whopping $10 millions dollars has been allocated for the completion of the iconic Thredbo Valley Trail. Yeeha! Watch the video here. This funding will see the grand vision of a continuous trail from the […]
NAVEL GAZE-ING Holy hell, the last five minutes of the men’s MTB race at the Commonwealth Games was a pointed reminder that XCO racing can be very bloody exciting! While the women’s race lacked any real fireworks, the last lap showdown between Kiwi men Anton Cooper and Sam Gaze was sensational. You can watch the […]
The riding in Yackandandah is gloriously simple; you don’t need a shuttle, you don’t need a map, you don’t need to psych yourself up, or even be that fit. These are trails built for the pure enjoyment of it all, not for scaring yourself or finding your limits. You can lose yourself (metaphorically -the […]
We spent Five Rad Days in Rotorua catching all the action of Crankworx, shredding mind-blowing trails and going Full-Kiwi-Adventure-Mode! Day 1 Day 1 in paradise was spent shuttling the trails of the Whakarewarewa forest, zip-lining through the canopy and we wrapped it all up with a mountain bike trivia night. Day 2 After kicking off […]
We review the Giant Reign 2, Merida One-Sixty 800 and Norco Range A3. Enduro bikes are so hot right now, look at the latest 2018 models from the big brands like Giant, Merida and Norco, the componentry manufacturers are clearly throwing their weight behind the category and producing genuinely great parts for sub $4K bikes. […]
The 10th annual Shimano Bike Buller Festival saw an action-packed schedule of racing for all types of riders, including downhill, gravity enduro and cross country, sensational weather and almost 500 riders competing on Mt Buller’s world-class trails. Racing got underway on Saturday with the Thule Stonefly Circuit 30km XC race; complete with bluebird skies and […]
Peta Mullens and Jay Vine clinch King and Queen of the Otways titles The 12th edition of the Otway Odyssey and Great Otway Gravel Grind (GOGG) presented by Focus confirmed its status once again as one of Australia’s greatest and most challenging off-road bike races with over 1,400 riders from across Australia and overseas travelling […]
Kyle Strait partners with mountain bike apparel brand, DHaRCO, for 2018. For a relatively small Aussie brand, partnering with Kyle Strait seems a bit surreal. He’s one of our idols. Getting to know him and what makes him tick has been a great insight into why he’s such an amazing rider. He’s a genuine nice […]
Troy Brosnan returns as the anchor of the roster after a successful 2017 campaign which saw him depart from the elusive 1-win club by taking the win at the Andorran round of the UCI World Cup. This win vaulted him to a 2nd place overall finish in the UCI World Cup, a career best for […]
Some brands just ooze excitement and desirability. Yeti, Santa Cruz, Cannondale, Mongoose (ok, not Mongoose)…. We think it’s fair to say that Merida does not have the same sex appeal. While the brand’s image is drier than the silica sachets you get in your tortilla packet, the bikes are generally incredibly good, and very decent […]
Hooley dooley, it looks like a fire truck. What’s the Trek Powerfly 7 FS about? The Trek Powerfly FS is the e-bike e-quivalent of the Trek Fuel, in terms of suspension travel and intended usage. It runs 130mm travel at both ends, but rather than the 29″ wheels found on the Fuel, the Powerfly rolls […]
First impressions? This tread definitely looks promising. The siped side knobs are reminiscent of a Maxxis Minion DHF, and the lower profile centre tread that reminds us of a Specialized Purgatory, both of which are which are great tyres, so that’s a good starting point. The tyre is tubeless ready of course. The sidewall recommends […]
First impressions? This tread definitely looks promising. The siped side knobs are reminiscent of a Maxxis Minion DHF, and the lower profile centre tread that reminds us of a Specialized Purgatory, both of which are which are great tyres, so that’s a good starting point. The tyre is tubeless ready of course. The sidewall recommends […]
In this interview, I asked Rachel Atherton, the most successful female downhiller of all time, about her strategies for dealing with challenges when racing and training. Given Rachel’s challenging 2017 season, I was excited to hear how she uses her head to go fast. Does fast happen in the legs or the head – which […]
Germany, the home country of their Conti tyres, offered the two bike-buds some top-notch riding locations in Hamburg, Goslar and Berlin. They also got to switch their two wheels for four wheels and spin around the Contidrom test track facility in ultra-high performance cars as well as their old camper van. “Road trips are […]
The team with the most laps completed included old-hand and former 24-hour World Champion Craig Gordon from Wollongong and Blue Mountain’s up and coming racer Scott Reynolds. The pair locked in 36 laps for the line honours. In the solo classification, it was Newcastle’s Jason English who once again defended his JetBlack 12 Hour title, […]
It’s been 10 years since Brendan became part of the Commencal family and there have been few riders with whom they’ve written such a long story! “Brendan helped us create history with the birth of Commencal in Canada and back in the day, he was part of our Young Guns Program with Micayla Gatto, Casey […]
Now in its fourth year, Mt Buller, in collaboration with Flow Mountain Bike, is launching a revamped the program, this year designed around the themes Collaborate, Educate, Proliferate. The two-day event features a number of Australian and international speakers, presenting on a range of topics under the overarching themes. Exploring what ‘Collaborate’ means for the […]
Entries are open now for the new-look, more gravity-focused Shimano Bike Buller Festival, which will be held 10-12 March 2018. So what’s new? For 2018, the crew from Rapid Ascent have opted to make the most of Mt Buller’s seriously epic descending potential. They’ve shifted the event focus away from the longer cross-country formats, following […]
Mt Buller will host the fourth Australian Mountain Bike Summit on 4 – 5 December 2017, the only conference in Australia dedicated solely to the mountain bike industry. Presented by Mt Buller Bike Park, this year’s program has been curated by Flow Mountain Bike and features the theme of Collaborate, Educate, Proliferate. Group Marketing Manager for […]
After 660km over eight days, the 2017 MEPT – Crocodile Trophy finished on Four Mile Beach in Port Douglas. Two Canadian elite racers had dominated the field for the entire week – Andrew L’Esperance took the final stage win in the 30km individual time trial and Leandre Bouchard successfully defended his lead to claim the […]
This year five rounds will make up the event that starts in the Northern Territory and ends in Western Australia and will include the 2018 Marathon National Championships. MTBA CEO Shane Coppin said the change in format would hopefully encourage many more riders to participate across all five races. “We hope this condensed series and […]
“After years of dedication, hard work, training and resilience, he has already achieved so much. Sam puts in 110% at work, school and his riding. He has an amazingly supportive family and friendship circle. It’s no wonder he is smashing goals and getting the results he is. He is an amazing young man and we […]
The 4X (four-cross) world titles were awarded in Val di Sole, Italy, on Friday at the UCI MTB Four-cross World Championships. Australia and Sweden took the women’s and men’s titles, respectively. Val di Sole in Trentino, the northeastern region of Italy, played host to the event for the third consecutive year. The 4X track in Val […]
On the 13th of August 2017, GuiDe National Geopark partnered with the Qinghai Sports Association to hold the second TDRY GuiDe Geopark International Downhill Race. With over 110 participants from more than 12 different countries around the world invited, this event is setting a solid foundation for the future of gravity-based mountain biking in the […]
On the 13th of August 2017, GuiDe National Geopark partnered with the Qinghai Sports Association to hold the second TDRY GuiDe Geopark International Downhill Race. With over 110 participants from more than 12 different countries around the world invited, this event is setting a solid foundation for the future of gravity-based mountain biking in the […]
Enduro World Series #7 – Canadian Open Enduro presented by Specialized Perth’s Sam Hill kicked off Whistler’s EWS with a stage one victory over local Jesse Melamed, finishing the round in 2nd and further extending his overall lead in the series with just one round to go. A post shared by Enduro World Series (@world_enduro) on Aug […]
Over 180 mountain bikers from across Australia tested themselves on the technical trails and rocky single-track over the six stages which included 40-50 kilometre cross country racing, the ANZAC Hill Climb, an individual time trial and the 22km Night Race. After maintaining a stranglehold on the competition, it was down to the final stage today […]
Cannonball – RAW razz of his home trails James ‘Cannonball’ Hall can move dirt. Building and riding bigger jumps has always been high on his list. But he’s not just brawn, he’s also the brains behind the designs of mountain bike trails, jumps and pump tracks around Australia and North America. His industry experience is […]
Must Watch News of the week? Sam Hill won his first Enduro World Series round, and is now leading the overall with two round to go! You can see all the Aussie’s results here and the full highlights video here. A post shared by Enduro World Series (@world_enduro) on Jul 30, 2017 at 2:06pm PDT Giant […]
In these raw, sweaty, bleeding old vids, shot by Glen Jacobs and associated lunatics, the resounding attitude seems to be “let’s see if we can ride down that.” And in Cairns, where the mountain range comes crashing down from the tablelands to meet the sea, there’s endless potential to find steep things to ride down. […]
The 2017 UCI Mountain Bike World Championships are seeking volunteers for the World’s premier mountain biking event. The 6-day event will be held from the 5th to 10th September 2017 on the recently upgraded Smithfield Trails and will feature over 300 riders from 35 countries competing in the Cross-Country (XCO) and Downhill (DHI) disciplines. There […]
*UPDATE* Scroll down for final day photos and highlights video. All The Videos Course Walk 50to01 lads warm up and have first sends of the big ones Day 1 highlights Josh Bryceland’s GoPro POV Sam Reynolds’ POV – Watch his speed reach almost 90km/h! 2017 Highlights! The FEST is a series of rider driven invitational events. […]
Know where to look for final approach, and you can see the trails, including the famous downhill start gate with its views out to the reef. The sun strikes the window. I’d left the concrete of Sydney in the dark, and now I’m about to touchdown in a paradise seemingly never touched by cold. If […]