Everyone knows tubeless tyres are fantastic once you get ‘em mounted, right? Fantastic that is until a rogue rock or sharp pointy thing causes air inside to rush out when…
Mick Kirkman
Contributor/tester
Follow Mick Kirkman
I’ve tested hardtails for over 20 years, Whyte’s new Secta RS is the best bike out there under £1,500
Renowned for its forward-thinking approach to bike design, British brand Whyte has been on a bit of a mission of late to launch new bikes and tech. JD reviewed the…
Smith’s Forefront 3 is about the comfiest helmet I’ve ever strapped on, but it’s not as breezy as the cheaper Payroll
Smith’s Forefront 3 Mips helmet is about as premium as it gets, and while £250 for an open face is top dollar you do get more features and tech than…
The six best bikes I spotted at Ard Rock 2025, from Zerode’s belted downhill bike to a modernist retro trail bike from Manitou and Gamux
Yeti ASR 40th Anniversary Edition Hands down, this Yeti was the coolest bike I saw at mountain biking’s best bike festival… and that includes the 12 things I really love…
The Specialized Status 2 is the perfect holiday bike for Alpine tourists or bike park weekends: it’s cheap, fast and fun, but ultimately safe and composed
Californian and sun-kissed, the Specialized Bicycle Company is a bit of a bike-industry Golden Child. The brand has an enviable reputation for performance, an S-Works range that’s a top choice…
Bored of Jelly Babies? The new Torq Energy Jellies deliver a punchier energy hit and taste delicious, but they’re not cheap
I bumped into Richard from Torq up at a cool gravel bike event called Dalby Grit, and like some dealer of illicit substances, he hooked me up with my first…
Vittoria’s new Mostro is right up there with the Maxxis Assegai for supple trail damping, but you won’t believe the weight of this thing
Italian tyre brand Vittoria is massive on the road bike side of things, but yet to make it big on dirt, where Maxxis, Continental and Schwalbe make some of the…
I spotted Deviate’s new Kurgan e-bike hiding in plain sight at the Ard Rock enduro: with a high-pivot suspension design and 165mm travel it could be Scotland’s answer to the Forbidden Druid CorE
Deviate is about to launch its first ever e-bike, called the Kurgan it gets 165mm travel via a high pivot idler suspension design, Bosch CX motor with the new display,…
I’ve been to Ard Rock for 10 years now, here are the 12 things I love best about the UK’s biggest bike festival, and why I’ll be going back in 2026
1. Ard Rock is one of our 7 best MTB events to try in 2025, and it’s because of things like this: A new one from last year, Peaty’s Pub…
OneUp’s new Wave pedal is great for new riders who need help dropping their heels, but I found the quirky shape less than ideal
I’ve tested flat pedals for decades now and thought I’d seen it all. Concave or convex, big or small, plastic, alloy, magnesium… magnetic, even. And too many bearing and axle…
Endura’s latest MT500 waterproof jacket is lighter and easier to move in than the original, but the latest regulations mean it’s just not as good at shedding water
This hardshell jacket is the latest version of Endura’s flagship MT500 mountain biking waterproof. Around for years, the MT500 has always been the brand’s go-to for maximum protection from the…
Silt’s Enduro wheels offer just about the best price to performance ratio of any hoops I’ve tested, at £380 there’s no need to pay more
Silt’s entire thrust is putting together complete wheels offering top performance for a sensible price. Plenty of others are trying to do a similar thing too and product the best…
“It grips like stink” – the new Specialized Butcher gets more rubber, more weight and more damping, but it’s still amazing value
Specialized’s Butcher has been around for well over a decade, but is now a very different beast to the first generation. It started life with an all-round tread much like…
I tested the original Giant Trance 20 years ago: the latest Trance X has the same peppy feel and it’s one of the smoothest and fastest trail bikes around
For almost as long as I’ve been testing bikes – quite a while, as my aching bones regularly remind me – the Trance has been Giant’s go-to trail bike. It…
After 20 years testing, Yeti’s SB140 Silverfish is the one bike I’d actually buy… and with cheaper models in the range you don’t HAVE to spend £9,000
Colorado-based Yeti is one of the true OG American bike brands, having been around since George Michael and Wham were Careless Whispering in 1985. It’s not overstating anything to say…
Every packless rider should know about Topeak’s Nano shock pump: it’s cheap, pocket sized, and perfect for suspension tweaks
If you’re anything like me, you’ll have long ago ditched carrying a pack, and now I’m even at the point of ditching the hip belt, if I can help it.…
The most supple Öhlins RXF fork I’ve ever tested: the latest M3 update is a true rival for RockShox and Fox
The Öhlins RXF 36 is the Swedish brand’s mountain bike suspension fork with, you guessed it, 36mm stanchions. It gets 140mm, 150mm or 160mm travel (170mm with a 27.5in wheel)…
I rode down an active volcano to test the new Ghost Poacha freeride bike, and one thing really surprised me
Ghost’s new Poacha is a freeride and bike park bike, it gets 180mm travel and is the launch vehicle for the German brands more gravity-focussed attitude. The Poacha is a…
The new Santa Cruz Bullit made me feel cocky enough to try chasing Steve Peat, but I’m worried the small battery won’t keep me satisfied for long enough
Wind the clock back to last year and one of the biggest stories in mountain biking was Santa Cruz throwing out its own rulebook and a 20-year history by ditching…
The Race Face Era carbon bar is my pick for riders over 80kg, it’s well damped without being flexy, and has the perfect natural shape
The fashion for low or high bars swings to and fro as frequently as the trend for skinny or flared jeans, and right now we’re squarely in high bar country,…