The latest issue of MBR is out now, packed full of inspiring ideas and route maps to help you find new places to get out and ride.

What about the magazine itself? Here’s a taste of what you’ll find inside…

MBR September 2018

On the cover: The Scott Ransom is reborn, Danny decides if it’s worth the payoff
Photographer: Roo Fowler

Ard Rock Enduro

So much more than an enduro race, it’s taken the Ard Rock just six years to attain its status as the UK’s most desirable MTB festival. We head along to sample the rocks, the wood fired pizzas and the after party.

Tweed Valley, Scotland

Take a step back for a minute and you’ll see that mountain biking is in its golden age — the sport it established and accepted, riding locations are sprouting like wildflowers and bikes get better every year. We head to the Tweed Valley where the Golden Age began in earnest.

Whyte G170 2

Whyte joins the 170mm 29er club with its biggest and baddest new bike, the G170 29 — take a look at the range topping Works version with carbon frame, Super Deluxe Coil shock and a price tag to make the internet brands quake.

First rides

Scott’s famous Ransom is reborn in a 900 Tuned version, we ride the Giant Trance Advanced short travel ripper with DVO suspension, Fox shows us the new Live Valve suspension system, and we try the Niner RIP 9 3-Star GX Eagle trail bike, and Riddick’s RD800 hardtail

Longtermers

It’s a biggy, with much excitement YT’s new Capra 29 CF Pro Race with 170mm travel and carbon frame is added to the long term test fleet, plus updates on the Canyon Spectral, Fantic XF1 e-bike, Lapierre Zesty and Trek Remedy.

Product

Is the Beryl trail fork DVO’s best fork to date? Find out in our tested section, where we also review Tool freak glasses, Fabric Cell saddle, Bluegrass kneepads, the latest Look pedals and more.

Tested: Flat pedal shoes

Five Ten has owned the flat pedal shoe market for a decade, but now there are some real challengers to its Stealth Rubber dominance, from Specialized, Bontrager, Adidas, Ion and Giro. There are 10 pairs on test.

Bikes for £1k

Where should your money go with a little over a grand to spend? Hardtails offer great spec and stellar performance at this price, while full suspension bikes dish out rear wheel traction and comfort. We’ve got two of each, the Boardman MTR 8.8 and B’twin Rockrider AM100S double squidgers, versus the Trek Roscoe 8 and Marin San Quentin 2 hardtails.

Bikes in this issue

• B’twin Rockrider AM100S
• Boardman MTR 8.8
• Canyon Spectral Al 6.0
• Giant Trance Advanced Pro 29 0
• Fantic XF1 Integra Enduro 160
• Lapierre Zesty AM 527 Ultimate
• Marin San Quentin 2
• Niner RIP 9 3-Star GX Eagle
• Riddick RD800
• Scott Ransom 900 Tuned
• Trek Remedy 8 27.5 Women’s
• Trek Roscoe 8
• Whyte G170 29 Works
• Yeti SB150
• YT Capra 29 CF Pro Race

Hairpin corners

Some of the trickiest turns on any trail are switchbacks, so Andy Barlow from Dirt School takes us round the right way (and shows us the wrong way too).

Learn to jump

With the basics out of the way last month, Andy Barlow (him again) shows how to handle bigger gaps, generate lift from pushing into the trail and stay in control on any lip and landing.

Regulars

• Big pictures
• Buzz: Rogate bike park in the South Downs gets a revamp and new owners, joining Windhill as part of the B1ke group.
• Mailbox: Your rants, raves and witty ripostes
• Afterimage: The next big thing to come up from Down Under is 23-year-old Dean Lucas – he’s been on the podium at the World Cup and we reckon he’ll win one soon.

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The latest issue of MBR is out now, packed full of inspiring ideas and route maps to help you find new places to get out and ride.