Reviews

If you remember the heady days of mountain biking around the turn of the millennium, then you’ll certainly remember the classic Z1, the Shiver, and of course - the undisputed heavyweight champion of bicycle suspension, the Monster T. 

The Wild Enduro MH is part of a revamped, faster rolling and lighter Michelin enduro lineup that’s still designed tough enough for racing and hard charging.

Norco really kept us on our toes! Although the new Fluid VLT light eMTB was unveiled last year, there weren’t any rideable specimens to get hold of until now. 

Michelin has revamped the popular Wild Enduro tire with brand new models including this MS (Mixed Soft) Racing Line model.

Norco’s newly updated Range VLT is one of the most aggressive eMTBs to hit the market yet, with a big and burly frame and high-pivot suspension design. We were intrigued if this downhill focus would come with significant drawbacks to its general trail manners and climbing performance, so were excited to have it in the mix amongst the 14 eMTBs in this year’s Shootout.

When Michelin relaunched their Wild Enduro range they claimed they’d found the holy grail of tyres with faster rolling, less weight and more grip.

The new Michelin Wild Enduro tyre is completely new for 2024, it’s lighter than the generation is replaces and there are also claims it rolls faster too.

Ever hear the saying, “Buy once, cry once, or buy twice and pay the price?” Well, that’s the angle that Race Face is playing with their new Era chainring.

Race Face has a very deep lineup when it comes to cockpit components, with offerings spanning the gamut from the light and stiff Next carbon offerings to the bombproof aluminum of the Atlas series.

Fox has updated their Transfer dropper post lineup for 2025 (yes, it's still 2024; that's just how years work in the mountain bike world), overhauling the internals to increase the durability, reducing the force required to lower the post, and adding in a travel adjustment feature. 

The Birzman Chain Whip is a simple and effective tool that offers more than enough leverage to remove stubborn lockrings.

In this week's GMBN Tech Show, Anna Cipullo is joined by Blake Samson to talk about the new Norco and their new high-pivot trail bike. In the rest of the show, we look at a new suspension fork from Push Industries, Cranks Brothers' new shoes and your usual favourites including your wonderful Bike Caves and much more!

In this week's EMBN Show, Steve Jones is joined by Rich Payne to take a look at the new lightweight Norco Fluid VLT. In the rest of the show, we look at a new affordable hardtail eMTB from Aventon, and your usual favourites including what’s locked away in the Bike Vault, we get social in #GETTINGSOCIAL and much more including some new segments!

This premium Fox gravel fork gets the slick gold Kashima coating on the 32mm stanchions, seen on Fox’s mountain bike forks. 

When it comes to downhill mountain biking, a helmet is one of the first purchases you should make.

The Birzman Tubeless Repair Kit has the same form factor (and threaded end) as a CO2 canister, so you can add it to a canister mount if you have one on your bike, or just sling it in your toolkit.

It’s been more than four years since we’ve seen a Norco for sale in the UK, after distribution through Evans Cycles fell apart, but now in 2024 Norco is back with two new analogue bikes, the Sight and Optic.

Norco's Optic created a lot of buzz for being a short-travel ripper with aggressive geometry when it last underwent a redesign in 2019

Norco aren't strangers to the world of high pivots – the Aurum HSP downhill bike kicked things off over six years ago, followed by the Shore and then the Range.

Does a high pivot rear suspension design work on a trail bike? The new 2024 Norco Optic should provide the answer. With its 125 mm of rear suspension and progressive spec, it promises not only to be a fast climber but also a rowdy trail ripper. 

After a 10-plus-year hiatus from making high-end mountain bike tires, Michelin returned to the World Cup downhill paddock in 2019 with the MS Mondraker Team.

It’s the time of year (at least, in the northern hemisphere) when bike-cleaning sponges and cloths become something of an endangered species.

Race Face’s ERA crankset is claimed to be the strongest, stiffest and most durable crankset the brand has ever created, with the carbon fibre crank arms being reinforced with stainless steel wear plates.