Innholdsfortegnelse for Aug-Sep-Oct 2019 i Mountain Biking Australia

HELLO… …and welcome to another edition of Australia’s premier mountain biking magazine! Before we go any further I'd like to take the time to introduce myself as the new Editor of this fine publication. My name is Dominic Unwin and I'm very proud to be in charge of MBA. I'm a sports journalist by trade and am really keen to make MBA bigger and better! Our goal remains to serve up quality content that resonates with our audience. We are always on the lookout for ways to evolve however. We can't wait to see where MBA can get to across the print, digital, audio and video spheres and you'll be right there alongside us for the journey. I'll be upfront it’s been a little while since I've been in the literal…

My first memory of a mountain bike was back in the 90s, aboard a gleaming new Cr-Mo steel framed hardtail. Those were the days, with horribly basic front suspension, non-indexed shifting, cantilever brakes, narrow bars and 2.1-inch wide tyres that I thought were fat at the time. Despite all that it delivered plenty of fun to my teenage self, riding around the poor selection of trails we had at the time. Fast-forward to today and despite two decades of progress in the waves of alloy bikes along with capable dual suspension and then the rise of carbon, there are still brands out there building bikes out of Cr-Mo and other steel tubing. RATINGS IN THE STAND 7.5/10 ON THE TRAIL 8/10 OVER ALL 8/10 Surly is one such brand, using…

I didn’t expect it to be easy. I’d ridden enough rugged tracks and fire-trails in the mountains of South-Eastern Australia to know that. But the viciously steep, rock strewn track that lay before me was unlike anything I had ever encountered on a mountain bike. With the slopes too severe to ride, I accepted my fate: a ten-kilometre hike-a-bike. Looking skyward only added to my woes. The clouds had begun to cluster and bruise. Electricity, as the cliché goes, was in the air. Head down, I started my work. I was deep in the Victorian high country, inching my way into the Tingaringy Wilderness near the Snowy River. Narrow ‘benches’ had been cut across the trail every one-hundred meters or so. Designed to divert water and reduce erosion, they provide…

Each person tends to have their ‘go to’ modality which they swear by. In this article I am going to take an in-depth look at some of the more popular recovery techniques and a few of the more left field techniques to see what really works and figure out where we should be spending our time and money. Firstly let’s take a look at why we should be incorporating some form of post ride recovery into our daily schedule. To become a faster rider you need to expose your body to physical stresses. These may be in the form of riding, strength training or some kind of cross training but in all instances after these stresses the human body needs to recover. The ability to recover adequately allows for another…

Who could resist a ride called 'The Spirit of Gravel?' The idea had me hooked from the moment I was invited to join a small group of riders to scout out a new four day backcountry gravel loop in the North East of Tasmania. Spirit is a word with multiple meanings, each of which had its place on this ride. It could be the non-physical aspect of a being, entity or bike ride, its essence, emotions, character or soul. It could be the prevailing mood or attitude of a group or moment; five riders strung out along a climb, hammering along in a frosty morning paceline or bantering away the last kilometre before morning tea. A spirit is also the product of extraction, distillation and concentration, in this case a…

To instantly label the Cape Epic a bucket list item is a big call given the plethora of quality mountain bike trails and races around the globe these days. In fact, just look at the explosion of mountain bike parks in our neck of the woods – Blue Derby and Maydena in Tassie, Wairoa Gorge in New Zealand, new mountain bike parks in progress at Belrose and Glenworth in NSW and the $11 million mountain bike development around the town of Warburton in Victoria. The marketing hyperbole bills it as the 'Tour de France' of mountain biking. Most die-hard mountain bikers would take such a comparison with a huge dose of disdain. After all, mountain biking is worlds apart from road cycling! The truth is the phrase 'Tour de France'…

“There is a perception that the e-MTB is for people who are lazy but this just isn’t true. The point of the e-MTB is that it gives you more choice. You can go faster and further.” The e-MTB. A relative newcomer to the mountain bike scene, the electronic mountain bike has certainly divided opinion. Its in-built motor, capable of a slight boost all the way up to full throttle has revolutionised the industry and ignited a debate about its application. Merida are at the coalface of this burgeoning area. Merida is physically based in Taiwan but retains a creative and commercial presence in Germany. Earlier this year they announced a new platform, the updated e-One Sixty, to Australian audiences with the MY2020 platform coming a couple of months later. Mountain…

You may wonder why we’ve left our review of Shimano’s latest sunglasses to now (a few months since they launched) but given the shorter days, the likelihood your morning or afternoon ride will be rudely interrupted by that piercing light on the horizon has grown significantly. So this review couldn’t come at a more appropriate time. Now, in a break from convention I’m going to start with the price first just so readers know what we’re talking about. Shimano retail these at $99. Having a look at it you wouldn’t be able to tell. They look like the real deal and a glance at its counterparts doesn't reveal a whole lot of difference, well except from the price point. With most ‘pro’ cycling eyewear ranging from $130 to $250, the…

Good brakes will bolster your descending confidence and improve bike control. However they live a pretty tough life and the brake pads in particular have to deal with a lot; from heat to mud and abrasive grime. To get the most out of your brakes, the number one rule is to avoid contamination. If your brakes get contaminated – usually signalled by a sudden drop in stopping power along with a persistent howl – you’ll need to replace the pads. Of course the same applies if they simply wear out. While pad replacement is well within the scope of most home mechanics, there are a few things to remember if you want to do the job properly. STEP BY STEP 1. If you notice the brake lever pulling further in…

The Inca worshipped the mountains as protective deities. These 'Guardians of the Valley' were called Apu Wamani in Quechua, their native tongue. Recently a group of ambitious riders set out to conquer five of these legendary mountains to raise awareness of the history of these people that are no longer. I accepted an invitation to the last big mountain of this multi-year expedition. At 6739m, Llullaillaco is the third highest volcano on Earth. It’s also the highest peak with no glacial coverage, which is surely due to the fact that it sits enthroned in the most arid part of the Atacama desert in Chile. It lies hundreds of kilometres from any modern civilisation and is often surrounded by heavy storms with temperatures regularly dropping below minus 30 degrees Celsius. All…

RATINGS VALUE 7 FUNCTION 9 LOOKS 9 OVERALL 8.5 I feel like I’ve been initiated into a secret club of gear admirers. As I slowly put up a couple of social media posts about the latest product I picked up the messages start flooding in. “It’s the best,” they say. “Love mine!” Well, that was unexpected. I wonder what it is about this that makes people rave about it so much! Over the last little while I’ve been testing the latest and greatest dropper post from Fox. They aren't a newcomer to the dropper game, first releasing their D.O.S.S. dropper post back in 2012 and their Transfer post in 2017. Available in a huge range of different options including two diameters (30.9 and 31.6mm), four drops (100mm to a huge…

We reached the small cabins at 4200m two hours later. Finally at base camp, we could get out of the cars, stretch, cook and discuss tactics for the days ahead. The next day we packed for the high camps with only the bare necessities going with us. Fortunately we were able to drive the Jeeps up to the first camp at 4800m, tediously fighting the slopes of the volcano in first gear. The ride ended between large boulders where we grabbed our backpacks and headed off on foot. We wanted to get at least some of our gear up to the 5300m mark today. We made our way slowly on the loose volcanic rock, breathing heavily with each step. The thinner the air got the more spectacular the views became.…

No one is safe from the force that is online shopping. From books to food to furniture, retailers are grappling with how to transition into this brave new world. Mountain biking hasn’t escaped this but with most riders prefering to physically grasp any potential purchase, how does shopping online for bikes compare? I investigated one of the preeminent players in the Aussie market, Intense Cycles. Intense, California Headquartered in Temecula, California, Intense Cycles has been at the forefront of downhill and gravity since their origins in 1993. They’ve produced legendary bikes such as the M1 and M3 and lately the M29 downhill race bike now under Aussie downhill racer Jack Moir along with new team-mate Aaron Gwin. I had the chance to visit their headquarters earlier this year. While a…

Worn or contaminated pads will need replacing and you need to ensure the new pads are compatible with your callipers; every brand and model will be different. Aside from some new pads, you'll also need disc brake cleaner, bleed block or suitably sized implement for pushing the pistons home (we used some nylon tyre levers) and some general tools—allen keys, torx tools and so on. Other handy items include a set of verniers, a torch and some emery paper. COMPOUNDS QUANDARIES & BED-IN STEPS When it comes to purchasing new pads, you may have a choice between metallic and organic compounds. Consider the qualities you desire; organic pads tend to be quieter, offer better initial power and they transfer less heat through to the pistons and brake fluid. Metallic pads…