[dropmachine]

So another thread got slightly derailed by this very topic.

Who do you read for bike stuff? Whos reviews do you trust? Is there anyone you absolutely hate? Whats the worst kissass review you've seen?

Super curious about people responses to this. I'll even go first.



MBA: I can't read it. I just can't. Besides it being the mountain bike version of The Enquirer (BEST MOUNTAIN BIKE EVERRRRRRRRRR????? GAIN TEN SECONDS WITH THIS SIMPLE TIP!!!! 10 MISTAKES MEN MAKE IN BED!!!WTF) its just blatantly a sponsor ball gargle fest.

DIRT: Love dirt, I really do. Reviews seem odd and sometimes biased and vague sometimes, but the stories and photos just rock.

PINKBIKE: sigh.

 

[norbar]

MBA: I can't read it. I just can't. Besides it being the mountain bike version of The Enquirer (BEST MOUNTAIN BIKE EVERRRRRRRRRR????? GAIN TEN SECONDS WITH THIS SIMPLE TIP!!!! 10 MISTAKES MEN MAKE IN BED!!!WTF) its just blatantly a sponsor ball gargle fest.

DIRT: Love dirt, I really do. Reviews seem odd and sometimes biased and vague sometimes, but the stories and photos just rock.

PINKBIKE: sigh.

I agree with you on all 3 cases. The reviews of the bikes in dirt relly too much on the components and Jones seems not to really take that into consideration. I love the mag though.

I also tried MBUK but its close to MBA in sponsor mumbo jumbo though it looks better and is a bit better read.
German Freeride is obsessed with weight and components. Their reviews are always strange for me.
Czechs have a nice Mag. Dont rember what it was called but they add a full movie to it every year or so.

 

[Eastern States Cup]

Sicklines.com - Best most honest reviews by far.

Dirt for WC action

 

[bullcrew]

MBA: I can't read it. I just can't. Besides it being the mountain bike version of The Enquirer (BEST MOUNTAIN BIKE EVERRRRRRRRRR????? GAIN TEN SECONDS WITH THIS SIMPLE TIP!!!! 10 MISTAKES MEN MAKE IN BED!!!WTF) its just blatantly a sponsor ball gargle fest.

DIRT: Love dirt, I really do. Reviews seem odd and sometimes biased and vague sometimes, but the stories and photos just rock.

PINKBIKE: sigh.

X2
I like decline as well as dirt and the reviews are pretty decent with a pretty good working knowledge of what they are reviewing. Plus the new products section is pretty cool. Good layout etc...

Without @$$ kissing your wheel review was pretty bad@$$ as well...

Agread with Norbar on MBUK, great to look at and product envy but thats the extent of it...

 

[IH8Rice]

i read magazines for the pretty pictures (dirt & decline), reports on races/events and never for a review. they are all biased in one way or another (dirt & mba come to mind first).

if i want a review on something, ill pick through the riders who post online w/ first hand experience and pick out what seems believable or not.

i wasnt able to ride the last 5 DH bikes before i bought them, but all turned to ride exactly how i expected and wanted them to. (thankfully)

 

[Mike Buell]

Dirt and Vital are my go to sites!
Sometimes decline or siclines when I'm craving more...
I'll try and sell stuff on Pinkbike when I feel like punishing myself with turning down trades for X-boxes and skateboards.

 

[aaronjb]

Many years ago, the conservative MBA publisher forced references to "VooDoo" to be removed from the magazine. A VooDoo bike was reviewed, but stripped of all branding. Why the entire staff didn't quit en masse is beyond me.

Niche markets where reviewers rely on manufacturers for test samples generally don't have real journalism; it's more of an "enthusiast press." The cycling industry is quite incestuous anyway, and the chances that you're reading an actual review in any large publication is slim. Some magazines still take payola for positive review space.

 

[bullcrew]

Dirt and Vital are my go to sites!
Sometimes decline or siclines when I'm craving more...
I'll try and sell stuff on Pinkbike when I feel like punishing myself with turning down trades for X-boxes and skateboards.

Damn man all I got offered was a rc car....

 

[big-ted]

I don't really mind the equipment reviews on Pinkbike. I mean , I don't find them significantly worse/better than anything else out there. It's the comments/forums that drive me absolutely insane.

 

[djjohnr]

I haven't bought a mag in years, but I browse through Decline and Dirt at Borders on my lunch hour sometimes.

Online -

Sicklines: They have the best reviews, but I wish they put up more content.

Pinkbike: Good amount of daily content. Formerly had annoying brown nosing reviews. Lately they have reviews of gravity bikes written from an XC perspective, also annoying.

NSMB: Decent reviews, needs more content.

Vital MTB: Also has a good amount of daily content. Doesn't seem to do a whole lot of reviews.

 

[captainspauldin]

MBA: I can't read it. I just can't. Besides it being the mountain bike version of The Enquirer (BEST MOUNTAIN BIKE EVERRRRRRRRRR????? GAIN TEN SECONDS WITH THIS SIMPLE TIP!!!! 10 MISTAKES MEN MAKE IN BED!!!WTF) its just blatantly a sponsor ball gargle fest.

DIRT: Love dirt, I really do. Reviews seem odd and sometimes biased and vague sometimes, but the stories and photos just rock.

PINKBIKE: sigh.

Agreed.

DECLINE: Reviews were very "vanilla" didn't seem to be like MBA where everything is awesome, but also didn't bash any products..

 

[KavuRider]

I hate everything

 

[dump]

In the 90s, I used to read Mountain Bike, Bicycling and later Bike magazine. I was new to mountain biking and it was the best way to find out what was going on, keep up with the races and learn about training and technique. I also liked VeloNews even though I didn't ride road at all. When I began racing, I read Dirt Rag religiously... loved that magazine.

Now, I don't buy or read any magazines. For product advice, I rely on personal experience or advice from trusted friends.

For everything else, there is the web. The stuff I read is usually linked from here.

 

[SylentK]

I tend to trust actual feedback from people I know or know I can trust. Sometimes it is from members of this or other online discussion boards.

Magazines and online feedback is great for researching and narrowing down possibilities. It is more of a porn thing, too I guess. Just like Adam Sandler in Billy Madison, I too look forward to "Nudey Magazine Day"!

Dirt's 100 is easily Playboy's Collegiate issue.

 

[bikerpunk98199]

Decline reviews are interesting, they say what the bike is actually like, but in a very round about way. When they reviewed the GT Fury, they said it gave you trail feed back, having owning a Booot'r (similar suspension design as the fury), I knew they just meant that this bike is very harsh to ride and puts every little bump on the trail through your hands. The same goes for the VPP bike reviews, they are glued to the ground, meaning you cant bunny hop these bikes to save your life, but they go fast.

 

[HAB]

I get all my info from moarshimz.com

 

[dondon]

Decline reviews are interesting, they say what the bike is actually like, but in a very round about way. When they reviewed the GT Fury, they said it gave you trail feed back, having owning a Booot'r (same suspension design as the fury), I knew they just meant that this bike is very harsh to ride and puts every little bump on the trail through your hands. The same goes for the VPP bike reviews, they are glued to the ground, meaning you cant bunny hop these bikes to save your life, but they go fast.

Sorry to derail this thread, but please before you make absurd deductions get your facts straight. The GT does NOT have the same suspension design as the Mongoose. No way Beaumont could win on one of the toughest World Cup courses if it did.
And when last have you ridden a VPP bike. I have no problem bunny hopping my bikes nor does Minnaar (have you watched him ride in any videos???)

 

[monkeyfcuker]

I buy Dirt religiously but rarely read it, I scan through the pics/reviews and then leave it in the canteen at work. Buy it every month 'cos I feel like I'm supporting the excellent web content they provide.

 

[bikerpunk98199]

Sorry to derail this thread, but please before you make absurd deductions get your facts straight. The GT does NOT have the same suspension design as the Mongoose. No way Beaumont could win on one of the toughest World Cup courses if it did.
And when last have you ridden a VPP bike. I have no problem bunny hopping my bikes nor does Minnaar (have you watched him ride in any videos???)

Sorry, similar suspension designs. Yes i believe he could. Look at Needles, he did alright on a Mongoose, not great but did alright. I had a socom, I could bunny hop it, it wasn't sweet by any means. Just saying that it vpp sticks to the ground, it may not be as playful as a single pivot or other designs out there.

Who's Minnaar? Is he related to a minotaur?

 

[Inclag]

Dig downhill and riding content so much respect to those out there putting out said content.

Really enjoy what Dirt does along with their internet content, however the only reviews that I seem to be able to extrapolate any valuable information from are their "shootouts" which typically pit 4-5 trailbike/hardtails/4X bikes together. The other reviews, especially DH bike reviews always seem vague, cryptic, and sound like they are basically reading off the geometry and specs and then come to a conclusion based off of that. Would be interested in seeing them do a DH bike shootout.

Also, a big fan of Vital. Awesome photography.

Digging PB more and more each year. I stay away from their forums but they've been on it with content and reviews lately. Their reviews tend to be very in depth, and the videos attached with them are cool too. However they always seem to be positive and more along the lines of marketing tools.

Decline, haven't read one of those in many years.

MBA, haha probably a decade on that one.

Sicklines, has a decent amount of content but just seems amateur'ish to me for some reason. Occasionally come across incorrect information or statements on their site, and I'm not a big fan of their reviews. For example, the Intense 951 has a craptacular rear suspension rate yet their review says it's "not a plow bike" and it's "harder to push through all the travel". Just seems like the kind of review you would expect from someone that spent $2500 on a frame that they aren't happy with. Aka, a typical RM review

 

[dondon]

Who's Minnaar? Is he related to a minotaur?

Sorry, on Ridemonkey he is referred to as Minaar, or Minnar but never Minnaar, sorry for confusion, carry on.

 

[IH8Rice]

I had a socom, I could bunny hop it, it wasn't sweet by any means.

sweet bunny hops do make a bike moar better!

 

[ROTFLMAO]

As someone who is trying to develop and promote a worthwhile review/community site this is a thread I'll need to pay attention to.

What do you want to see? Gobs of content for sure but what specifically? I don't have the budget to buy multiple bikes and components each season so the reviews will make up only about 35% of the site for awhile. I'm hoping the social networking side of the site takes off. The software has so much potential and I want to see it put to good use. As far as the reviews are concerned I was thinking of going to a video format over a written review. I want to give you the feeling that you walked up to me at a trailhead and asked, "Tell me all about that bike (frame, component, whatever)". That's where you get the honest answers (unless you're asking a sponsored rider LOL). Quantitative data is best communicated in written form but the qualitative data might be more interesting if done in a video format.

So to make this thread even better, tell us what you want to see.

I should also mention that I do this as a hobby and make no money from the site, it actually costs me a decent amount of money. I'm just obsessed with making it work and having the satisfaction that I created something successful.

 

[leprechaun]

I read Vital every day and RM every few days. I read Decline, they admit they're not trying to be the review kings in terms of detail. They would rather just show you new product and offer some insight, and lots of riding.

I love to read MBA! That and MXA!! it used to make me sooo angry but now i just laugh out loud! I'm gettin a Titus Racer X with a 29er front wheel and Titus Carbon FTM!!!!! Oh and a 18. 9lb Niner asap!

 

[Inclag]

Oh yea, and Dropmachine.com

 

[Tayrob]

For the internet,for me, it's always...
Vital-AMAZING slideshows/race coverage is what they got going for them.
Dirt-Same thing.Dig the 5-a-days and the race coverage.
Sicklines-Good reviews is their thing,just read the review on the Podium,great timing too since i've got my eye on one.

For print it's mainly just Dirt.Awesome pictures,up-to-date news,awesome stories and I like the monthly articles from Cunny,Bryceland,Seb Kemp and so on.Only thing I don't like is how basically every bike review/shoot out/whatever,no matter what bike is good,it's never as good as an Orange.

I can't really read Decline anymore.Too much slopestyle and all-mountain stuff.Bike reviews are always exactly the same no matter the bike.MBA is terrible,through and through.Bike is good for pictures.

 

[Routier07]

I find that VitalMTB is hard to beat as far as race coverage goes, and sometimes has features "Answer the Machine" that no one even thinks of which is pretty cool.

Sicklines is just that... SICK!! they always have the latest and greatest and they also put out awesome Interbike and Eurobike coverage that again no one else has.

Pinkbike despite the forums has some really great content and coverage.(Tippie interviews, bike tests & product tests)

I dont buy magazines since they cost too much for what content im actually interested in... Decline was a good read but at over 10$ for a copy at the local book store its just too much! MBA is a joke and than-some. MBUK and DIRT are about 15$ before tax so again... not interested.

Scary as it is, I get alot of info from here and MTBR that in my opinion is useful... Based a couple significant buys from advice or opinions ive gotten from forums.

 

[Uncle Cliffy]

The only magazine I read is Dirt. Saying that, all the magazines have shown their true colors in regard to brand-favoring, but Dirt just has the best editorials and photos. I'll add to this by saying Decline needs to research and investigate who they use for freelance content...

Online it's also Dirt/Mpora. After that it's Vital, Sicklines, and lastly Pinkbike. Pinkbike's forums make me want to punch my computer in the balls, and lately MTBR's forums as well. Strangely, RM not so much.

There are many other sites I check too, but believe it or not I get most of my news from Facebook now. It seems every site out there posts content in the news feed so I get it all from one place...

 

[toodles]

Socket's suspension reviews are biased and crap. I asked some kids on Pinkbike and they disagreed with everything he said.

 

[djjohnr]

As far as the reviews are concerned I was thinking of going to a video format over a written review. I want to give you the feeling that you walked up to me at a trailhead and asked, "Tell me all about that bike (frame, component, whatever)". That's where you get the honest answers (unless you're asking a sponsored rider LOL). Quantitative data is best communicated in written form but the qualitative data might be more interesting if done in a video format.

Qualitative via video and quant written might be interesting to the user, but if you'd like to see profit off your site I'd stick to text; video content isn't search index-able and most of your site traffic will be driven by search.

 

[ROTFLMAO]

Qualitative via video and quant written might be interesting to the user, but if you'd like to see profit off your site I'd stick to text; video content isn't search index-able and most of your site traffic will be driven by search.

That's exactly what I was worried about actually. Might have to do both...

 

[Pete..]

I read EVERYTHING with a grain of salt. I only trust the words of a few friends.

 

[WBC]

I love Dirt and Vital.

Both sources have great content, outstanding photos, clean style and a good sense of humor. The editorials/journal entries are great, the race coverage is awesome and they have lots of fun stuff on the side (like Friday randoms).

Jonesy is wicked biased on lots of his reviews, but if you have read his articles for long enough, I think it's fairly easy to look between the lines. That said, some of the other dirt reviewers are completely spot on, and lay it down as it is. Case in point: the V10/D8 comparison, where they fully admitted there is absolutely no reason at all the buy a D8. They've had some other good ones as well.

I am not sure that I've ever learned anything from a Vital review, but I like the rest of the website well enough to not worry about it.

I read reviews solely out of curiosity, but I haven't used one to make a buying decision in prob 6+ years. Like someone mentioned above, if you're in the game long enough you can guess pretty well how something is going to ride before you ever swing a leg over it (if it's a well-known brand)...and if you guess wrong, you can pitch that pile-a-sh*t and hop on something else.

 

[demo 9]

I like RM, not that i have a vendetta against any of the magazines, but (surprisingly) i find out alot of good stuff here, alot of my frames were picked based off RM opinions, granted not all of them are good non biased opinions, but i learned for example that the DWDHR i was going to buy, wasnt a good idea at the moment, and that the evils were not as good as initially thought. I think a community is real helpful, especially when you know everybody in a "personal" (as good as the internet lets you) manner, for example, i know Ih8Rice, rides similar terrain and has decent input that will help me, compared to bullcrew in cali.

Let the east vs west fight begin!

 

[bullcrew]

compared to bullcrew in cali.

Let the east vs west fight begin!

Ahhhh LOL I see how it is....


I do agree there is ALOT of guys that know there stuff in one arena or another on here for sure.... Especially suspension and the modifications that go on on this site as well as conversions and frame/gear box builders...
There is definently some people on here that really up the anny and make this a great site.....

 

[MarkDH]

I check the Dirt website most days just to get the news and videos. I used to buy the magazine every month, but haven't done so for at least a year now. The photos are excellent, but the content varies from OK to poor. In fact, I'm not going to beat around the bush, the reviews of DH bikes are sh*te. They seem to think they can get away with basing a review around a couple of runs on a borrowed pro's bike that's the wrong size and has the wrong weight springs on it. I know they're not all like that, but the Yeti 303 review of Blenki's old bike comes to mind. As for the written review itself, drivel; pseudo-intellectual nonsense that tells you heehaw about how the bike rides.

MBUK is good for thorough reviews of bikes, parts, clothing etc., but it is a bit cheesey and not DH specific. Pinkbike can be alright, they had Ali Maclennan doing kit reviews and he knows his stuff. I actually bought a Nukeproof wheel off the back of a Pinkbike review and it's been as it was described.

 

[Steve M]

Dirt - love their style of writing in the sense that it usually makes hardly any sense, is full of in-jokes that I sort of think I get but am not actually sure of... and is still somehow very entertaining. The mag (and website) has a very distinct character, and their reviews have come along leaps and bounds over the years (except that they keep reviewing the D2 and 5.10s... FFS we've known about those products for the best part of a decade!). The only thing that irks me about the mag is that the reviews, whilst not "biased" per se (IMO), seem very dependent on the rider's preferences and expectations, however over the last few years they have at least become quite consistent with that, which I think is a good thing in spite of the vagueness and somewhat new-age descriptions of the bikes they're testing. I also think they go a bit silly with some of the trailbike tests - first thing they seem to do to every long-legged XC bike they get is put a 50mm stem and DH tyres on it and take it downhilling. Everyone would tell you that you're retarded if you put 2.1" singleply Crossmarks and a 100mm stem on your DH bike and reviewed it as an XC bike... Anyway those minor gripes aside, it is still the ONLY magazine I ever buy. They have tons of content, tons of online stuff (including awesome videos), they relate well to the average punter like myself through the character of the mag (including the rider/opinion columns - Seb Kemp's hatred of the internet notwithstanding), the photos are always amazing, and the one thing I really REALLY love about them is that they caption EVERY SINGLE PHOTO. They are very much the benchmark for DH related media.

Decline - pretty much yawn. A bit too much focus on slopestyle/freeride stuff that's not accessible/relevant to the average rider in my opinion, almost seems like it's aimed at kids sometimes. Reviews are pretty bland, and all the other columns seem full of yo-bro in-jokes that I don't really get. Nice photos though and I like the generally upbeat persona of the mag.

Vital - awesome. Between them and Dirt online, race coverage is, well, covered. Lots of content, no wank, interesting random bits and pieces all the time.

Sicklines - rarely visit it anymore but their reviews are unquestionably the best, especially if you're after thorough and accurate listings of technical details. I found some of their ride reviews to disagree with some of my own opinions but one of the best things about Sicklines is that they're very good at distinguishing between opinion and fact. Opinion: this bike rides nicely, is balanced, blah blah. Fact: this bike weighs 38.48lbs. If you're going to model reviews on anyone else's stuff, Sicklines is the one to be checking out.

MBA - burn it with fire. ****ing worst quasi-tabloid piece of **** publication in the entire bike industry. Written by wankers, published by republican happy clappers, read by zombies.

Pinkbike - their reviews are becoming surprisingly good, they have a lot of content and reasonable depth to most things they publish, but I think they could stand to be more critical of crap products. As long as you never venture near the forums and don't bother reading the comments under each photo or article then it's pretty good overall.


End of the day though, I get most of my news via RM. As long as you've been here long enough to know who to listen to and who to put on your ignore list then it's a goldmine of information.

 

[dhmike]

decline and vitalmtb .

 

[Sandwich]

I started reading mags back when MBA was semi-legit, Bicycling was still Mountain Bike, and Bike mag had the best photos.

Now MBA is screwed entirely, Mountain Bike occurs once a year as a pamphlet attached to Bicycling, and Bike mag has the best photos.

I don't really buy mags anymore, since there's nothing you can't get from the interwebs, but if I were to subscribe, it would be either to Dirt or Bike. I love bike mag since they cover all aspects of dirt riding. Dirt is great for DH. Bike has great reviews, and they're always pretty impartial. Dirt seems to have a strong bent towards UK bikes and riders. There's nothing terribly wrong with that, but if there's ever a shootout, the bike closest to the UK will win...

Anyways, I base most of my opinions on this and other forums, plus what I know I like in a bike. You can buy into the hype a little too much, and then end up with a cracked frame in the first month or two of use...

 

[SuspectDevice]

I love advertising.

I buy the highest-circulation magazines from the US and the UK and read them front to back every month. I like to look at the ads and scan the editorial content to figure out what the flavors of the month are. It's hard to know what the hot ano colors were three months ago without reading MBUK, for example.

Internet users are only a small part of the buying public. Exposure to a product in a print magazine these days is usually the gateway to a consumer doing research on the net and often message-board hot-topics influence editorial content in print. Media is a whole big baloon these days. I don't visit CyclingNews.com every morning like I used to, because I follow their twitter feed. Content is bit-sized and amorphous these days, but it will never replace print.

It's hard to get stoked on anything on the web besides Vital and Dirt.
I race and sell all sorts of bikes, and I've got to say that Dirt has the best web presence of any of the bike mags out there no matter what the discipline. Singletrack's website is great too, atmo.