Christmas is just a few days away, and for the busy gift-buyer with a mountain-biking-significant-other it’s getting a bit late to order a pair of shoes or helmet, or shop around for kit in just the right sizes… Never fear! MarathonMTB.com is at the rescue with a bunch of fabulous biker gifts that you can buy instantly online, but still show you’ve put more thought into your purchase than a generic gift voucher might otherwise indTraining tools – $10+
Training tools for your mountain biker – $10+
If your mountain biker is already using a GPS computer and tracking their fitness from time to time, a subscription to training software is a great gift to provide a huge boost in motivation and training results for those 2017 goals and resolutions. Today’s Plan costs $199.95 for a year’s premium subscription, and cheaper monthly options are available. A six-week training plan for $29.95 is a great idea if your mountain biker has a big event coming up. Training Peaks, likewise, offers annual premium subscriptions for $USD119. Chances are your special biker is already signed up to behemoth social riding platform Strava. Strava offers premium subscriptions for just $USD6.99/month, with heaps of tools to track progress and improvements. Check your gift recipient doesn’t already have an account with these platforms before going ahead and setting up a new one!
Today’s Plan offer great training and coaching packages for your data-loving biker
Magazine subscription – from $50
Ok, we admit to a bit of bias here, with MarathonMTB.com founder Mike Blewitt also editing Australian Mountain Bike and Bike Australia magazines: we are a bunch of print media lovers at heart. In all honesty though, an annual subscription to a great MTB mag is a gift that keeps giving. From about $50, a fresh, shiny new magazine will arrive in your mailbox every couple of months and keep your MTBer entertained for hours, if not days.
One-on-one skills coaching – varies – $100+
One of the best investments the team at MarathonMTB made in 2016 was in their advanced bike-handling skills. One-on-one coaching makes for a great day or days out, and the improvements your biker will see in their performance will have them thanking you every time they lean into a corner or nail a drop-off for evermore. We had a fantastic experience with Ride Technics, based in Canberra, Australia, but ask around in your area and you’ll be sure to find a qualified, reputable skills coach to suit your rider’s abilities and goals. Many outfits will offer gift vouchers via their websites.
One-on-one coaching is a fantastic gift for any mountain biker
Race entry – $120+
Nothing beats a trip away with a bunch of like-minded shredders for a few days of riding, great food (and wine), and hard competition. Australia has a great range of fabulous events at all times of the year and all over the country. Consider a stage race entry for a deluxe gift for the special mountain biker in your life: Aussies might look at Port to Port (held in May around Newcastle), with entry starting at $440 for the full event or $120 for one day’s racing, and if you’re MTBer’s been extra well behaved this year, total travel packages at around the $2k mark will look after absolutely everything, including flights and transfers. Also consider Easter in the Alice – a grass-roots mountain bike event showcasing some of the country’s best singletrack in incredible desert landscapes with entry at just $170 ($140 if you enter before December 31), or The Lumberjack in Tassie in late April, for its loved-up race atmosphere and a huge variety of racing for $225.
Lasseters Easter in the Alice. (c) Tim Bardsley-Smith
Bike fit – $300+
An hour or two hooked up to a bunch of sensors, watching data come up on a big screen and having someone attend to every tiny measurement to get the bike millimetre perfect is the equivalent to a day in a luxury spa retreat for your favourite mountain biker. Make sure you find a bike fitter that comes recommended by riders you trust, and preferably has a tonne of experience with the special demands of MTB riding. We had a great experience with Bikefit Studio in Brisbane in 2016.
Custom paint job – about $500+
Bike custom paint jobs start from a few hundred dollars, depending how special you want your ride to look. There are a bunch of businesses in Australia that offer this amazing service that transforms your ride into a unique work of art. We recommend Paint my Bike in Brisbane – at least give them a follow on Instagram to see some incredible frame art.
@paintmybike
OR…
Leave pass – free!
This can be the best gift of all – a guilt free leave pass for your mountain biker to head out and hit the trail. You can devise how many, how big and how often. Maybe it’s a week off for a stage race, a couple of weekends away at special events, or a weekend morning every week – it’s your call. Write it on a card and decorate with glitter. There’s no value that can be placed on the gift of time!
There’s no gift like trail time.