About 12 months ago, Shimano released a much-anticipated version of XTR – the new 12-speed M9100. It offered what so many people wanted – a wider range from Shimano, and they delivered with a 10-51 cassette. But they also delivered a 10-45 cassette, 4-pot XTR Trail brakes and a lighter Race brake, a new crank […]
Trek and Pivot release new XC bikes
Trek and Pivot have just released updates to their cross-country full-suspension bikes, and the trend towards longer travel, longer reach, slacker head angles and all-round more capable bikes doesn’t look to be slowing down. We think this is another great step, with more companies building bikes that probably suit their world-class riders, but really do […]
On test: Camelbak Ultra 10 Vest
The world of marathon and stage racing has some unique demands on equipment, especially when weather, nutrition and self-sufficiency come into play. After Mike raved about the Camelbak Octane 10, it was time to find a large but light pack for myself. The Camelbak Ultra 10 is superlight at just 280g for the bag, and […]
Swiss Epic release their 2019 route
The Swiss Epic is the European cousin in the global Epic Series, and under that larger umbrella it has taken a slightly different shape. The Flow category is gone, and the 6 day race is now 5 days, with no opening prologue. But while those changes were already in effect in 2018, the big change […]
Australian XCM Championships to Bayview
After many rumours starting to spread, Mountain Bike Australia (MTBA) have announced today that the upcoming Cross-Country Marathon (XCM) National Championships will no longer be held in Townsville, but in Bayview near Brisbane instead. “Mountain Bike Australia (MTBA) along with the Townsville Rockwheelers Mountain Bike Club wish to advise that regrettably due to the recent […]
First rides on the 2020 Norco Revolver
The Norco Revolver FS has been the bike of choice for the MarathonMTB.com Team since 2016. After we finished racing on Bianchi mountain bikes when they were no longer available in Australia, we needed a bike that climbed well, was light, and easy to service. The Norco Revolver 29 FS was all those things, with […]
Cape Epic 2019 – the Finale
Former winners Nino Schurter and Annika Langvad on Sunday completed their objectives of guiding two Absa Cape Epic newbies to victories in the gruelling eight-day race around the Western Cape. Multiple World Champion Schurter and his Scott-SRAM MTB-Racing partner, European Champion Lars Forster, wrapped up a tense week of racing in which they had to […]
Schurter and Forster claw back time at the Cape Epic
Crashes in both the leading teams at the Absa Cape Epic could not unseat either from the top of the overall standings, but the top men did have their lead more than halved during Thursday’s 43km Time Trial stage at Oak Valley. Minor crashes for Annika Langvad from Investec-songo-Specialized, the leading Women’s category team, and […]
Cannondale Factory Racing take Cape Epic lead
Much speculation had been made around a clean-sweep of wins for the men’s Scott-SRAM MTB-Racing and women’s Investec-songo-Specialized pairs ahead of Stage 3’s 107km out-and-back loop from Oak Valley Estate in Elgin; but this is the Absa Cape Epic and it’s not often that a story can be concluded prior to the crossing of the […]
Leaders consolidate at the Cape Epic
Stage 1 of the Absa Cape Epic was a day of consolidation with both the top men and women growing their leads significantly after a tough 111km day which started and finished in Hermanus on Monday. Prologue winners Annika Langvad and Anna van der Breggen (Investec-songo-Specialized) increased their lead in the Women’s race with a […]