This month's MBUK is loaded with great stories – including travel adventures in Iceland, Kazakhstan and Morocco – and stacked full of talent as we introduce 10 of the UK's hottest riders to watch in 2019. We take a look at Starling Cycles' singlespeed steel downhill bike, hit up the Leeds Urban Bike Park, find out how good sub-£1,500 XC hardtails are and delve into the new YT Jeffsy. Plus, shedloads more. Grab a copy and take a look!
We’ve dived into the UK’s deep talent pool of young mountain bikers to bring you 10 of the hottest riders to watch in 2019. Find out who we believe will not only light up the results sheets, but also your social media feeds.
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We check out the depth of the UK's MTB talent pool and introduce you to 10 of the hottest riders to watch in 2019. Photo: Sven Martin
Earth, Wind & Fire
Manon Carpenter and Monet-Rose Adams, two environmentally-conscious 'geology and bike nerds', head to the rugged volcanic wilderness of Iceland, to take in its other-worldly landscapes and discover how mountain biking can be sustainable in the highly sensitive ecosystem.
Manon Carpenter and Monet-Rose Adams take in Iceland's beautiful yet sensitive landscape. Photo: Samantha Saskia Dugon
Lean-and-mean XC racers
Cross-country mountain biking is ripping through a revival, due in part to the extremely exciting World Cup racing, but also to the latest advances in tech that are making XC bikes more capable and comfortable than ever. We put four sub-£1,500 XC hardtails from Bianchi, Trek, Cube and Specialized to the test to see just how solid, fun and fast these bike really are.
Check out our bike test to see how fast, fun and capable four sub £1,500 hardtail XC bikes are. Photo: Mick Kirkman
Leeds Urban Bike Park
You don’t have to head deep into the rural wilds to discover mountain biking. Leeds Urban Bike Park is located right outside the Yorkshire city's busy centre, and there's a trail to suit every rider. We spent a day with the locals to find out more about the riding available.
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We have a blast discovering you don't have to ride in the mountains to go mountain biking. Photo: Mick Kirkman
Nature's playground
Red Bull athlete and freerider Pavel Alekhin joins snapper Alexey Shabanov to take a trailblazing trip into the deserts of Kazakhstan. Their goal? To ride this once-underwater landscape that time has turned into a natural mountain bike playground.
The Kazakhstan landscape makes the perfect playground for freerider Pavel Alekhin. Photo: Alexey Shabanov
YT Jeffsy 29 CF Pro Race first ride
Check out our thoughts on YT's newest bike, the revised Jeffsy, which we rode at their launch event in Madeira. Plus, we throw our leg over the Norco Aurum HSP C2 downhill bike and the Specialized Enduro Comp.
We get a first ride on the latest YT Jeffsy – find out what we thought of it in the mag. Photo: Johan Hjord
What else you’re missing
We’ve stuffed our new issue with page after page of great content – including a column from the Athertons, bike-rafting through Greenland, a look at Starling’s Sturn downhill bike, misty mountain shredding in NZ and much, much more!
We take an in-depth look at the Starling Cycles Sturn. Photo: Andy Lloyd
Cover gift
We’re giving away a perfectly-timed microfibre cloth from Silverline as our gift this month. Don't let the winter weather stop you getting out on your steed, and keep your bike, helmet, goggles, shoes, tools – or anything else – clean and dry.
Our cover gift this month, a Silverline microfibre cloth. Photo: MBUK
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Luke Marshall is a technical writer for BikeRadar and MBUK magazine. He's been working for both titles since 2018 and has over 20 years of mountain biking experience. Luke is a gravity-focused rider with a history of racing downhill, previously competing in the UCI Downhill World Cup. Educated to a degree level in engineering and with a penchant for full-throttle speed, Luke is more than qualified to put every bike and product through its paces to bring you informative and independent reviews. You'll most likely find him on a trail, enduro or downhill bike riding the off-piste tracks around south Wales and the south west of England. He often makes an appearance on BikeRadar's podcast and YouTube channel.
