Innholdsfortegnelse for October 2025 i Mountain Biking UK

Creating the lightest bikes possible has always been the goal in road and cross-country racing, and that tradition managed to seep its way into downhill too. Does anyone else remember pro racers running three out of six brake rotor bolts in a bid to shave some grams? Terrifying. The idea of lightening up a downhill bike was to enable the rider to accelerate quickly from a standing start and get back up to speed fast after exiting a slow corner. But while there may be some weight (pun intended) to that theory, lightweight bikes come with drawbacks too, especially in downhill racing. So, why are racers and mechanics now slapping big lumps of lead onto these precision machines? THE E-BIKE PHENOMENON Adding a motor and battery to a bike makes…

MET’s Revo is a good-looking open-face helmet that’s packed with safety features. When it was launched, it scored a full five stars in independent testing by Virginia Tech. The US helmet lab’s test criteria has since changed, bumping the score down to four, but the lid is still as safe as it was before. It meets the stringent NTA 8776 safety standard, designed to replicate the extra forces that e-bikers may encounter in a crash. This means it should dissipate impact forces better than mountain bike helmets with an EN 1078 rating alone. The helmet extends low down to provide plenty of coverage. Inside is a Mips Air slip-plane, designed to deliver rotational impact protection. Other features include a Fidlock magnetic buckle and Y-splitter adjustable straps. The retention cradle wraps…

EXPERT WORKSHOP ADVICE SUITED AND BOOTED Why don’t manufacturers put suspension boots on modern forks? I think they’d extend service intervals and help keep suspension fresher for longer. Stefan Roussev Suspension boots were rubber sheaths that covered the stanchions on forks back in the ’90s. They’re occasionally still found on low-end forks. The main reason they disappeared was that advances in wiper seals (which ‘wipe’ the dirt from a stanchion as it enters the fork lower) have made them redundant. Made from a soft, flexible material, suspension boots inevitably got damaged. As a result, they let in and trapped the muck they were meant to be protecting the stanchion from. Not only are modern wiper seals better, but stanchion coatings are now tougher, so the upper legs don’t need to…

LOUISE FERGUSON FREERIDE TRAILBLAZER Lou’s the frontrunner for our Rider of the Year ’25 award, based on reader nominations – but who’ll win the final votes? Shortlists on p13 CHRIS PORTER MAN WITH THE MOJO The outspoken suspension guru talks progressive geometry, Honda’s RN-01 downhill bike, musical differences and more – p22 NICK CLARK SHREDDER AND SCRIBE BikeRadar’s big-haired staff writer takes a look at the MTB tech trends that took off, despite initial scepticism – p38 GEORGEA EVANS NEW TO THE CREW Please help us welcome creative designer Georgea to the MBUK team. She’s not a mountain biker, yet – but we’ll soon fix that!…

HOW IT WORKS NOW!Vote for your Rider and Newcomer of the Year using the QR code above 15 OCTOBERVoting closes, so don’t delay! 27 NOVEMBERExclusive awards ceremony at our Bristol HQ 30 DECEMBERWinners showcased in our December issue, MBUK 454 HURRY – VOTING CLOSES ON 15 OCTOBER Time to vote! Scan the QR code below or visit MBUK.com to vote for the riders you want to win The Shortlists We’ve sifted through your nominations – all 339 of them! – and shortlisted 10 mountain bikers in each of our three categories, so now it’s time to vote for your Rider of the Year and Newcomer of the Year. (The winner of the Lifetime Achievement award will be decided by our expert panel). All those who’ve made the cut are truly…

GIRO MONTARO MIPS III HELMET £159.99 Useful updates to an old favourite The original Montaro was an office favourite here at MBUK and this new version ups the ante with the inclusion of Mips’ latest Evolve Core slip-plane tech, designed to protect against rotational impact forces. While not quite as fancy as the Mips Spherical system found in Giro’s top Manifest and Merit open-face lids, this is said to offer an improved fit, ventilation and weight, compared to older versions of Mips. Other features include eyewear ports both front and rear, an updated Roc Loc Trail retention system with a bigger dial, an adjustable peak (between two positions) and a Fidlock magnetic buckle. As well as meeting CE safety standards, the Montaro III has NTA 8776 certification for e-bike use.…

HAYES DOMINION A4 £239.99 per end, not including rotor www.ison-distribution.com Designed for downhill, enduro and e-MTB as well as trail use, I had great expectations of this latest incarnation of Hayes’ four-piston Dominion A4s. During several months of testing on my 25kg enduro e-bike, they’ve been some of the most predictable brakes I’ve ridden with, offering good power, control and reliability. The first thing I noticed was the lever feel – it’s incredibly light and smooth, which helps keep your hands relaxed on the bar. Even with this easy stroke, once the pads contact the rotor, the feel is firm and reassuring. There’s a sharp bite point, which has instant power, and while it’s aggressive, it’s not grabby. Modulation is excellent, too – it’s easy to scrub off just a…

JAMES COSTLEY-WHITE GROUP EDITOR A rocky bridleway ride with my daughter underlined the importance up mixing up your riding – used to flow trails, she found it terrifying! JULIA BROUSSIER CREATIVE DESIGN LEAD Cheering the women on at Hope’s WMN Enduro in the Forest of Dean was inspiring. It’s brilliant to see such an amazing initative! WILL SOFFE WORKSHOP MGR/WRITER I’ve had some great e-bike rides at the bike park this summer and I’m excited for the beautiful autumnal colours and cooler weather ROBIN WEAVER TECH EDITOR IN CHIEF It’s been great making the most of the dry weather and putting some miles in on my longtermer, although I’m dreading the winter already ALEX EVANS SENIOR TECH EDITOR It’s non-stop shredding for me once again – I’m still off on…

From the humble beginnings of the single pivot, mountain bike suspension designs have moved on in technological leaps and bounds. The number of frame pivot points has multiplied to give engineers the ability to tune kinematics to within an inch of perfection, and increasingly complex layouts are now the norm rather than the exception. But where is there still room for improvement? Our tech team got together to give their opinions and explain where and how things could get better. ROBIN WEAVER TECH EDITOR IN CHIEF “In the short time mountain bikes have existed, they’ve come a long way, and we now have several proven suspension layouts – single-pivot, virtual-pivot, linkage-actuated single-pivot and four- and six-bar linkages. While brands still have scope to add their own spin on things, such…

YOUR MAIL, PHOTOS, IDEAS & RANTS Write to: MBUK Send it! Eagle House, Bristol, BS1 4STEmail: mbuk@ourmedia.co.ukVisit: www.mbuk.com STAR LETTER WINS... Stan’s NoTubes Tubeless Kit, Tubeless Sealant Injector and Tubeless Sealant (1l) worth £100 THAT’S GOTTA HURT WINS... ABUS MoDrop do-it-all trail helmet worth £90 SHOT OF THE MONTH WINS... DMR V11 pedals, DMR Stage 2 saddle and DMR Deathgrips worth £107 INSTA-BANGERS WINS... Complete Motul bike care range worth £97.50 STAR LETTER DEATH WALKS AMONG US I’ve been attending Ard Rock since ‘22, the first two years solely as a marshal, last year also taking part in the Intro on the Sunday and this year entering the Epic on the Friday. Spoiler alert – I nearly died! I wasn’t prepared (read, fit enough). The head marshal must’ve foreseen this…

STRAIGHT OUT OF THE BOX & ONTO THE TRAILS The Kado is Whyte’s newest carbon fibre e-MTB, fitted with Bosch’s latest Performance Line CX Gen 5 motor and an 800Wh internal battery – and it’s blisteringly fast to ride. Despite having less suspension travel than some e-enduro bikes (160mm front, 150mm rear), it has a planted and unshakeable feel on wild terrain, thanks to its low centre of gravity and not insignificant 24.31kg weight. This no-nonsense bike prioritises getting around as quickly as possible above encouraging you to fancifully flick, drift and change direction down the trail. This second-tier RSX model’s £7,499 price is justified with a carefully curated parts list, and Whyte provide a lifetime frame and pivot-bearing warranty. THE FRAME The Kado’s carbon frame looks sleek and smooth,…

The e-Cygnus is Andorran brand Forestal’s downcountry e-bike. It has a carbon fibre frame, 29in wheels and 120mm of travel front and rear, with pedalling assistance provided by a mid-power Bosch Performance SX motor and 400Wh battery. This bike impressed and frustrated me in equal measure. Its niche character – not many e-MTBs have this little suspension – means it suits some trails (or riders) exceptionally well. But its short travel and underpowered brakes are a speedrestricter on rougher descents. THE FRAME Built using Forestal’s ‘Alpha Box’ construction, the monocoque carbon fibre chassis features headset cable routing and a steering limiter to prevent the handlebar from causing frame or cable damage in the event of a crash, along with a bottle mount and an integrated mudguard to protect the linkage…

JULIA’S MERIDA EONE-SIXTY SL 8000 £7,500 Our creative design lead finds racing inspiration – and her riding mojo There are some good eggs in the bike industry, and Jake Ireland from Sprung Suspension is one of them. He’s always keen to help with my suspension-related woes, working his magic on my longtermers’ forks. I went to the British Cycling DH National Series round at Llangollen in August, just to spectate and soak up the vibes – no showers, portable toilets in the middle of a field and a poor night’s sleeps in a van, what’s not to love? Luckily, Jake was also there, to support racers with their suspension, so I decided to ask for his help yet again and tick off the first part of my plan to improve…