Enjoy reading this?
Get similar articles delivered directly to your inbox
Dressed in a down jacket and shorts, I’ve just spent the evening at one of Strahan’s few restaurants. Fine dining, local wines, a west coast sunset, sharing laughter and stories with friends I’d met over the last few days. I pause and turn to the right to take in the view of this quiet coastal […]
First-person video cameras, point-of-view action cameras, small wearable cameras – whatever you call them – have become infinitely popular in the last few years. One search on YouTube will yield enough MTB first-person footage to keep you viewing for a lifetime. GoPro led that charge and over the past few years others have followed, Sony […]
Well I’ve just signed with the Wiggle Honda Professional Women’s Team which is one of the most successful outfits on the European road scene in it’s second year. It’s the first female team run and owned by an Australian in current Commonwealth Games Champion Rochelle Gilmore, which is a big step for Women’s cycling within our country and […]
“Challenges are what make life interesting and overcoming them is what makes life meaningful.” – Joshua J. Marine Long distance riding isn’t something that I can say I enjoy. In fact, it wasn’t so long ago I would have rather rubbed my eyes with extra coarse sandpaper followed by a chilli infused eye bath than go on […]
It’s easy to forget just how far north Cairns is, situated way, way up the east coast of our gargantuan continent. What comes with being so far north is not just beautiful tropical climates, sweet mangoes falling from trees, blonde backpackers lounging around the streets, epic coral reefs to swim in or oddly dangerous flora […]
Well, the 2013 season is in the history books. After last month’s World Championships, I spent almost six weeks back home getting into the swing of a normal life and routine. It was tough getting motivated for this weekend’s EWS in Finale Ligure because I knew that my 2nd place overall was secure and that […]
The team had two busy days, everyone is relieved actually to be on the road now and today we camp on the shores of Lake Tinaroo. So far our boys are faring well – Peter Selkrig was right in the lead group up towards Copperlode Dam today and finished on top of the M3 podium […]
Welcome to the Soapbox – a place where we invite you to express your opinion, no matter how well or ill-informed. A chance to vent your spleen, sing your praise, or chuck a tantie. Got something to blurt about? Send it to crew@flowmountainbike.com, and we might put it online. All Soapbox submission must be […]
Welcome to the Soapbox – a place where we invite you to express your opinion, no matter how well or ill-informed. A chance to vent your spleen, sing your praise, or chuck a tantie. Got something to blurt about? Send it to crew@flowmountainbike.com, and we might put it online. All Soapbox submission must be […]
Flow caught up with newly crowned XCE World Champion Paul Van Der Ploeg at Durban airport as he prepared to fly home to Victoria via god-knows-where – “I’ve got like a 27 hour flight home. I was a bit of a tight arse because Worlds was costing me so much that I just booked the […]
Last weekend’s UCI World Championships racing confirmed that Australian’s are excelling in every discipline of mountain biking right now. Limited resources have meant some creative solutions have allowed them to get there. Like a lot of Australian mountain biking fans, we watched the World Champs this weekend from our computers and our phones. Instagram, Facebook, […]
In theory, riding should be as simple as grabbing a helmet, hopping on any old bike, and going for a pedal. But quality equipment often takes the simple experience of riding and makes it even better. While manufacturers are continually coming out with new improvements in these areas, every rider has a few favourite items […]
Unfortunately I wasn’t surprised when I woke this morning to see that VitalMTB had posted news containing allegations of cheating in the Whistler round of the Enduro World Series. Heck, I have had several off-the-record conversations with Enduro World Series competitors and it’s apparently rife. What does surprise me though is the seemingly lack of […]
Tory Thomas is the latest signing to an incredibly impressive roster at the Target Trek MTB team. As one of the most experienced female elite racers in Australia, she’s possesses a wealth of knowledge to impart upon the young squadron. Flow quizzed Tory about her role in the new team and why she joined the […]
Switching from one bike to another can definitely be a challenge. Even when it’s two similar bikes, there’s always that learning curve before you’re comfortable. Nothing’s ever just quite the same and the bigger the difference, the longer it takes to adapt. Most of us can relate through swapping from 26” to 29” wheels, or […]
When was the last time you went to a trailcentre, or popular MTB destination? Why, because everyone else goes there? It’s easy? Whilst mainstream and popular ride locations often guarantee at least some quality of riding, sometimes the best riding is the stuff you don’t read about, and often it’s really just there are requiring […]
Why? Seriously, it makes no sense. We have no big mountains to race down, our access to good downhill tracks is limited at best, the conditions here are incredibly different to those at World Cup races, and we have a relatively tiny talent pool for riders to come from. Still, year after year, our pro […]
In the week before the Willo Enduro I picked up Enduro Magazine’s compilation of James Williamson’s writing and sat down to have a read. I got to know Jimi while working with him at Enduro so, for me, reflecting on his life through his writing brings up other memories that are special too. In one […]
It’s 3 o’clock on a relatively hot Wednesday afternoon in Melbourne. I’ve just moved over from Perth and I’m staring at my fairly sparse apartment that’s still littered with packing boxes. Of course I have my priorities right, unpacking and setting up my apartment…but I can’t help gazing at my freshly assembled, but neglected downhill […]
It’s 3 o’clock on a relatively hot Wednesday afternoon in Melbourne. I’ve just moved over from Perth and I’m staring at my fairly sparse apartment that’s still littered with packing boxes. Of course I have my priorities right, unpacking and setting up my apartment…but I can’t help gazing at my freshly assembled, but neglected downhill […]
In Australia, we mountain bikers are lucky enough to be able to ride and race our bikes year round. Sure, the high country of Victoria and the likes of Thredbo are covered in snow and out-of-bounds for some of the year, but for the remainder of Australia temperatures and conditions allow us to enjoy our […]
In Australia, we mountain bikers are lucky enough to be able to ride and race our bikes year round. Sure, the high country of Victoria and the likes of Thredbo are covered in snow and out-of-bounds for some of the year, but for the remainder of Australia temperatures and conditions allow us to enjoy our […]
Part two of our interview with Neko Mulally, the young American downhill racer. If you missed it, part One of the interview with Neko is here. Favourite World Cup track? I think Mont Sainte Anne, I am familiar with the east coast soil type, and I feel like that although riding in the wet isn’t necessarily […]
‘My absolute mandate is that I want the three or four top male and female riders to be getting paid thirty to forty grand a year, plus all their travel and expenses, to race overseas.’ ‘Not many people know this, but I personally, from my own pocket, contributed over $60,000 to Dan and Bec’s Olympic campaign.’ No […]
‘My absolute mandate is that I want the three or four top male and female riders to be getting paid thirty to forty grand a year, plus all their travel and expenses, to race overseas.’ ‘Not many people know this, but I personally, from my own pocket, contributed over $60,000 to Dan and Bec’s Olympic campaign.’ No […]
Flow recently received the Clutch ISCG Chain Guide Adaptor to test. The simple outcome from the testing is that it works, and works really well. The introduction of pressfit bottom brackets without ISCG tabs on certain Giant bikes has been an issue for many riders. This design oversight does have an impact on rider experience […]
Enduro racing made its debut in Dunedin, New Zealand, in December when a field of almost 100 riders raced the inaugural Urge 3 Peaks Enduro. [SV_VIMEO id=”56219692″] The event, organised by former XC professional and Olympian Kashi Leuchs and Mountain Biking Otago attracted a field that included competitors from Chile, UK, Germany and the North […]
When Jessica Douglas decided to emerge from retirement just 12 weeks out from the WEMBO World 24-Hour Solo Championships in Italy last May, she didn’t leave herself much time to pack her bags, much less start the usual preparations for the physical and mental ordeal of 24hr racing. Nevertheless, Jess felt confident in her decision […]
Dopers suck. Everyone agrees with that. But as a pro athlete, dopers suck even more. In fact, in the wise words of Beavis and Butthead, I’d go so far as to say; “dopers suck more than anything that has ever sucked before”. I was once told that you need to ask “why” five times before […]
For years the flat pedal crew, ourselves included, have had two options – wear 5.10s or hack our shins up. The trouble is however, some find 5.10s that little bit too grippy. Enter the Links Mid. Mr in-between, light, grippy (but not too grippy) and stiff soled. If you aren’t so mid-top inclined, Teva also […]
Telling riding mates you’re spending July in France is a sure-fire way to induce envy, hate mail and, eventually, excited chatter about what you’ll do when you get there. ‘Are you going to watch the Tour?’ ‘Yeah, a mountain stage or two, for sure. And maybe a few more at the pub with locals after […]
Do you still remember the first time you raced? The nerves, the excitement, the anticipation – and even, the fear. Have you yet to make the leap into the world of mountain bike racing? Do you think it will be too hard? Do you worry that you won’t be able to make the distance? Flow […]
“Come to Cairns,” they said. “You will never ride anything else as steep,” they said. They were right. Cairns holds a special place in the history of mountain biking, especially within Australia. Lead by a group of hardcore, open-minded and adrenaline-filled individuals, who began taking quantum leaps forward to carve a new path in the […]
In the lead up to the 2012 World MTB Championships Flow managed to get a weekend in the backcountry with soon-to-be World Junior XC Champion Anton Cooper. This story and film captures the events of one of the coolest trail journeys we have been on yet with one of the coolest cats in MTB. [SV_VIMEO […]
The Australian Junior Downhill Team has a solid legacy. For the last 15 years, the team has consistently been at the top when it comes to country rankings for the Junior Downhill World Championships, and almost every Aussie pro downhill racer has been part of the team before hitting ‘the big time’.[private] I was a […]
Earlier this year Trek World Racing’s Justin Leov announced the 2012 World Cup DH season would be his last. The likable Kiwi has spent eight years racing World Cups at the highest level and collected almost 20 top-10 finishes. [private] The 27-year-old has won the Garbanzo DH at Crankworx and several Norba DH races during […]