Mountain Biking
Archive
Venture to Verbier, Switzerland, and be spoiled by high-alpine singletrack.
Earlier this year, adventurer Patrick Sweeney teamed up with professional mountain biker Rebecca Rusch to attempt something that's only been done once in history: climb and descend Mount Kilimanjaro on mountain bikes.
Our mission was to climb up and bomb down Africa’s tallest mountain, unsupported. As far as we could determine, Rebecca Rusch and I would be the first people to do so since two British cousins, Nicholas and Richard Crane, earned the first ascent in 1985.
These guys made a mountain bike video in Cairngorms National Park in Scotland—in the dead of winter.
By European standards, Ireland’s County Donegal, tucked into the country’s far northwest corner, may as well be Mars. But for adventure travelers, it’s a hidden frontier packed with wind-bitten landscapes to mountain-bike, rowdy coastline to surf, and 500-foot sea stacks to climb. That is, if you’re brave enough.
These trails in New Zealand are straight out of the stuff dreams are made of.
Seriously, you won't find trails like this in North America.
Turn your mountain bike into a long-distance machine with these well-designed haulers
Love it or hate it, people are whipping around dirt courses on bikes with motors. Last weekend, the Sea Otter Classic, an annual event in Monterey, California, that celebrates the arrival of bike season, held the first-ever large-scale eMTB race.
The new POC Tectal helmet brings us backcountry search and rescue technology.
Women learn from the pros at the VIDA Mountain Bike Series
In our new Play Now series, we give you a slice of the action through thrilling POV shots—each one minute or less.
Mountain bikers, these videos will help you shake off the winter blues and get back out there. You can thank us later.
The people who work to build and maintain trails deserve universal kudos.
This short film by Trippin convinced us that packing mountaineering and mountain biking into a single day is the making of a perfect day. Rider Oe Nagan takes us along as he goes into the heart of Cairngorms National Park in Scotland. With his bike strapped to…
In July of 2015, pro mountain biker Mike Hopkins and a crew from Freehub set out to ride a 26-mile section of Montana's Continental Divide Trail.
The NBA great is as competitive on the trail as he was on the court
Upgrading your grips is arguably the best, cheapest way to boost a bike's comfort. Don't skimp on them.
In the summer of 2015, the guys behind Filme von Draussen teamed up with Ride magazine and hit some of the best mountain bike trails in Switzerland. In this short video, the riders summit the peaks of Regitzerspitz and Pizalun and then enjoy steep downhill…
In the fall of 2015, pro mountain bikers Eric Porter and Jess Pedersen planned a bikepacking trip through the final sections of the Colorado Trail, from Silverton to Durango. They stashed provisions at the halfway point of the route, caught a train to the trailhead, and took off on the…
As we've written before, the Flint Hills region outside Emporia, Kansas, is rugged, remote, and surprisingly ideal terrain for the booming cycling discipline of gravel grinding. In 2006, Jim Cummins and Joel Dyke organized the inaugural Dirty Kanza, a 200-mile bicycle race on the gravel they'd been riding…
So you want to start mountain biking? Bravo! Whether you’re a roadie looking to play in the dirt or just upgrading a daily commuter, the decision to ride on trails could be the best one you’ve ever made.
Mountain biker Steve Storey and his friend Danny Martins spent two years building their dream trail in the backcountry of British Columbia—far from prying eyes. In 2015, Storey finished the final stretch of the trail, dubbed it Salsa Verde, and invited filmmaker Mike Gamble out to capture…
Hidden in the Jura Mountains, a sub-alpine mountain range along the France-Switzerland border, are stunning sections of singletrack. To share his experience of riding these trails, filmmaker Joonas Vinnari rigged up a camera and drone—the controller strapped to his chest—and self-captured the incredible footage seen in this…
To celebrate the release of Diamondback's Level Link suspension platform, pro mountain biker Mike Hopkins and his team set out on trails across the American West with a simple goal: film the most beautiful locations in the best light possible, and create the sense of…
For the past seven years, Lael Wilcox and her boyfriend have been semi-nomadic, spending roughly half the year exploring the world by bike. Last fall, she decided to enter one of the most unforgiving mountain bike races on the planet – the Arizona Trail Race. …
Sedona, Arizona, is known for some seriously technical mountain bike trails like Highline, Hangover and White Line. There are also a few hiking trails that most people consider unrideable, like Cathedral Rock trail. Watch as rider Simon Bosman proves them wrong. …
Friends mourn the loss of an enduring icon in the slopestyle mountain bike world.
A custom tailgate made just for hauling mountain bikes
The only problem you’ll have in the planet’s ultimate adventure mecca is deciding what to do first
Mountain bikers and wilderness advocates have buried the hatchet and created an alliance in the Appalachians—but will the Forest Service back their plan?
An American mountain biker narrowly avoided drowning when he took a spill trying to cross a rushing river. Here’s what he did right.
Hunting is growing beyond its hook-and-bullet roots, thanks to outdoor inventions like the fat bike
The Trail to Kazbegi is the latest film from adventure filmmaker Joey Schusler, Yeti Cycles, and Smith Optics. Terrifying lightning storms, raging river crossings, mind-melting descents, and tense encounters with over-zealous border patrol guards became the norm for four riders as…
A small team of mountain bikers went on an expedition to the Simien Mountains of northern Ethiopia. The stated goal was to summit the country’s highest peak, 14,928-foot Ras Deshan, and ride back down.
A great mountain biking trail is a truly special thing, and linking routes for a multi-day trip requires a lot of know-how. That's where guys like Ash Smith, founder of the Mountain Biking's wildest race, the Mavic Trans-Provence, come in. As he puts it, “Yes, you're looking…
America’s Wilderness areas have been off limits to mountain bikes for decades, but a new draft bill seeks to change that
Once a year, Johannesburg-based Wilderness Safaris organizes its Tour de Tuli, a 300-kilometer (186-mile), four-day MTB ride through the Tuli Block of southern Africa, connecting Botswana, Zimbabwe, and South Africa.
In his new film, Cam Zink: Reach for the Sky, director Ryan Cleek follows professional mountain biker Cam Zink as he rises to the top of the freeride world. It features a behind-the-scenes look at Zink's 2013 and 2014 Red Bull Rampage campaigns, letting viewers into the secrets…
142 Miles from Monday is a short film from Alex Witkowicz about following your passions and connecting with nature to find meaning in your every day life. The story follows 3 friends who set out on the Kokopelli Trail—largely considered to be one of…
The feds want you to shred—and that's a major shift in policy
There was no better bike for this 116-mile gravel race though the back roads of Vermont
Collin Schaafsma, the founder of Matter Cycles, got his start the way a lot of bike builders do: by building rides for himself and his friends. Three years later, the Boulder, Colorado-based company has three bikes in their lineup. With names like SlayRide, BeneFat and WolfBeard, it's easy to see they're a…
A user's list for all the travel, fun, and affiliated delights you can cram into a year
Putting in big miles on dirt roads? This is the kit you need.
The world's first MTB tire with graphene achieves a holy grail of characteristics we thought impossible: grip, durability, and speed
Overcoming histories of poor reliability and performance, these revamped mountain bike parts are worth another look
A nationwide survey of riders suggests that they aren’t as crafty as you might expect
Escape San Francisco to play in the booming East Bay
Well yeah, we're convinced.
Testing mountain bikes is always fun, but add an epic destination like Iceland into the mix and it reaches a whole new level. That's exactly what happened when Yeti Cycles sent photographers and filmmakers Joey Schusler and Craig Grant, and pro rider…
Last Saturday, I lined up with ϳԹ online editor Scott Rosenfield and 369 other riders for Giro’s inaugural, a 60-mile race-ride hybrid in the mountains above the tiny logging town of Quincy, California (population 1,728).
Believe it or not, you can ride fat tires in the Big Apple and beyond.
The secret? Leaf blowers, peat moss, and cornstarch.
A dropper seatpost that’s easy to install and simple to switch between bikes
Every fall, the world’s best mountain bikers assemble at Red Bull Rampage to hurl themselves down cliffs in search of fame and fortune—if they make it down in one piece.
The data behind elite performances
The new film from Sweetgrass Productions shows you what it's like to pedal through a rattlesnake-infested desert—in the middle of the night
Darklight is the latest project from Sweetgrass Productions. The crew took their award-winning concept from Afterglow and applied it to mountain bikes. Look for the full film in October 2015. …
Up your fat-tire game with these tips from eight of the sport’s very best
Dirt duds are better—and more specialized—than ever
These systems are worthy of your attention. Get your wheels spinning.
One day our computers will revolt. Until then, they’re making our mountain bikes ride better than ever.
After a terrifying brush with death two years ago forced the Canadian free-rider to confront his inner demons, a new film seeks to chronicle his spiritual journey
Those who enjoy seeing nature on two wheels are increasingly conflicted about legislation that would protect it
Two days in the city should be enough to convince you to make the move
Electronic shifting comes to mountain bikes. Hallelujah?
Riding from Durango to Moab on a mountain bike isn't easy: you cover around 215-miles, climbing 3,500 feet a day, some of it probably during a lightning storm or through thick mud, with temperatures ranging from forty to 115 degrees and plenty of route-finding involved.
Telescoping front forks and articulating rear frame triangles that absorb bumps and shocks.
Glaciers! Trained grizzlies! $3.25-million dollar cameras! An inside look at the hottest bike flick of 2015.
A full-suspension 27.5+ built expressly for bikepacking? Who’da thunk?
Meet Josh Kato, who last week set a blisteringly fast course record on the 2,745-mile, self-supported Tour Divide
A conversation with the new women’s record holder on the world’s hardest mountain bike course
From easy, flowy routes to steep singletrack, these are the trails that belong on your bucket list
With two 1970’s VW camper vans filled with supplies and pro mountain bike riders, Camilla Rutherford set out for two weeks of shredding and shooting the world’s most beautiful playground.
Our favorite kit for trail riding and racing.—Aaron Gulley Our favorite kit for trail riding and racing.—Aaron Gulley (Michael Karsh) Leatt 3DF Air Flex elbow and knee pads Finally, guards made for all-day…