Whyte's bikes have been honed to perfection on some of mbr's very own trails; we head to the Surrey Hills to pick the brains of designer Ian Alexander.

Specialized Epic Comp Evo

The Specialized Epic is one of the most famous names in XC racing, right up there with that other Specialized racer, Ned Overend. This Evo model gets more travel and…

schwalbe hans dampf ii

Schwalbe Hans Dampf II is excellent on the rear now the tread is 50% bigger with more spaced out knobs for faster mud clearing and more bite.

msc gripper pro

At £38 for twin compound, All-Mountain casing, MSC Gripper Pro, the pricing is competitive. There’s also slurpier-edged triple compound model for £10 more.

bontrager xr5

The new Bontrager XR5 model we’ve tested in SE (Super Enduro) casing comes in 2.6in size with a lighter carcass under the ‘XR’ (trail) name.