In this Issue - AMB #176
Take a look inside our latest issue!
The latest issue of Australian Mountain Bike is out right now, but if you subscribe, chances are you've had it for a little while already. Our latest issue is chock full of product reviews, insights and stories from around and about – but we just hope it makes you more stoked to ride your mountain bike.
In the front of the issue, alongside some news and a glimpse at new bikes and products, we have a wrap up of the 2019 MTBA XCM National Championships that took place near Brisbane in June.
Cameron McGavin also managed to pin Glen Jacobs down for long enough to get some insights into the Wangetti Trail, and how it's moving closer to reality.
One of our trusted photographers Robert Conroy has taken up residence in Scotland, so he was on the ground in Fort William. You might have seen his coverage from practice and race day, but Rob also spent some time in the pits, asking the Australian riders what it is about Fort William that often brings better performances out of Australian riders.
Crankworx has been global for a while now, and another photographer, this time Dominic Hook, went to catch the action and join the party. But while over at Crankworx in Rotorua He spoke to a few people who are a key part of the fabric that binds an event like Crankworx together: Brett Tippie, Josh Carlson, Mikey Haderer and Rob Metz. Dom also shot the opening round of the EWS while he was there – you should check that out.
Port to Port is just one part of the Epic MTB Series, and for the first time it ran with a pairs category in 2019. So what did that mean for the event, and what was it all about anyway? Imogen Smith investigated what it's all about for a feature in our new issue.
Shimano released the big news in late May that not only would Deore XT become a 12-speed group set, but so would SLX. With a Shimano XTR 12-speed group set just fitted up to test, it seemed like a great time to put an article together on the key features of the whole 12-speed family. That's all in our new issue.
We tested a few cool bikes for our new issue as well. Ryan Walsch took the keys for the Pivot Shuttle eMTB, and he landed it on the front cover after ducking out for an early morning shoot with Nick Waygood.
The Merida One-Twenty 8000 is the range-topping short travel trail bike in Merida's range in Australia, and we asked Bradley Babel to test it out on his local trails. He had a whole lot of fun, but for good measure we asked Richie Tyler to take the same bike to Port to Port, with the only change being a set of Pirelli Scorpion tyres to gain some rolling speed. And Richie did ponder, is 120mm the new 100mm?
The third bike tested is actually a frame kit, a fairly boutique frame out of South Africa. The Momsen Vipa Ultra is aimed at stage races, marathons and cross-country racing – but it will really shine in the long multi-day events. We built the bike up with Shimano's flagship XTR M9100, plus some nice Fox 34 SC forks and carbon wheels for testing.
There's plenty of product reviews in the back of the mag, like the Schwlabe Eddy Current eMTB tyres. If you haven't ridden an eMTB you probably think that souns a bit silly, but really it is tyres that can really hold a lot of eMTBs back. But these are a bit of a game changer. You can see our first look at the Eddy Currents online.
There's skills info from Jared Rando about mastering a pump track on your trail bike, plus nutrition tips for women, a DIY class on waxing your chain from BMTI and we have featured Regnans Ride at Maydena Bike Park for Places that Rock.
As always, there's even more in the issue – and there's a great subscription prize this issue, where if you subscribe you can enter to win a set of Marzocchi Z1 Bomber suspension forks, and a pair of RaceFace carbon wheels! If you sign up to subscribe you can enter, and even if you don't win you'll still save money and probably get your magazines before anyone else too!
Issue #176 is on sale now – go grab a copy and let us know what you think.
