AMB latest edition

[sam705]

Just picked up the latest edition of Australian Mountain Biking and have just found time to sit down and get hooked into it.

I was extremely impressed with their write up on Whistler. This included advice on where to stay, plane ticket, luggage, where to ride, jobs whilst over there ect..
With a trip on my mind for the distant future i will definately be reffering to this as a guide. I recommend it to those planning trips to "the mountainbike capital" of the world.

I am only half way through the magazine but could not resist reading the interview with Sam Hill near the tail-end of the magazine. Included is also the 2008 DirtWorks catalogue which is an added bonus i guess!

I was also surprised with there hydro brakes test...
Avid Juicy 7's a winner over the like of Hope Mono's, Magura Marta's, Avid Ultimates..


All this for $8 bucks!

I recommend legging it down to the local newsagency and picking yourself up a copy!

[Ham]

Just picked up the latest edition of Australian Mountain Biking and have just found time to sit down and get hooked into it.

I was extremely impressed with their write up on Whistler. This included advice on where to stay, plane ticket, luggage, where to ride, jobs whilst over there ect..
With a trip on my mind for the distant future i will definately be reffering to this as a guide. I recommend it to those planning trips to "the mountainbike capital" of the world.

I am only half way through the magazine but could not resist reading the interview with Sam Hill near the tail-end of the magazine. Included is also the 2008 DirtWorks catalogue which is an added bonus i guess!

I was also surprised with there hydro brakes test...
Avid Juicy 7's a winner over the like of Hope Mono's, Magura Marta's, Avid Ultimates..


All this for $8 bucks!

I recommend legging it down to the local newsagency and picking yourself up a copy!

yeah its okay but they have done a whilster write up before and its not really full of content i rarely buy mags and when i do i normally buy ride mag but thats more road oriented.

[hayd]

This edition is a vast improvement from all the others that I've read, and really the only one that I've enjoyed. It looks like they've put a lot of effort into into it. I have to agree that the Whistler article and Sam interview are the standout sections. The writers and editors of AMB should be proud of this issue, and I hope they continue move in this direction.

[Pebble]

It's got my thumbs up. A good read and a bit more content this time, the Sam Hill feature is most definitely a seller. I must say I really like the little charts they show for their bike reviews so you can have a look over the geo & weight of the rig.
The dirtworks catalogue is a good thing, helps bolster up the thickness and makes the mag feel more full of content too! Advertising like this is good when it's relevant, I can see myself referring back to it for pricing & product info from time to time.

It still feels like it needs more though, more product features (even advertising with some extra info to it).

[Ivan]

. I must say I really like the little charts they show for their bike reviews so you can have a look over the geo & weight of the rig.

There star rating follows no logic though, and should be trashed. They use different criteria for each bike, and they gave a hardtail 4 1/2 stars for pedalling efficiency....:confused:

But I thought the latest issue was an improvement.

[gravityjunkie93]

I have just subsribed to this magazine and got the latest issue which i found very enjoyable and informative. Definately the Sam Hill article was the best and the Dirt Works section is awesome. Hopefully all the magazines will be this good, keep up the good work AMB.

[morto1980]

Another thumbs up for the Whislter article. After just returning from a (short) riding holiday in NZ my interest in these sorts of things has been piqued.

Perhaps they could focus on doing this sort of article a few times a year from different places around the world?

I remember reading something about the angry doctor which I think was in this issue & that was really interesting too. Just seeing pics of track features / reading about them is quite interesting.

[alchemist]

The Dirt Works catalogue is a good thing,

No this is a bad thing! So many bikes, so little money/time. ;)

[sundy]

I thought the Whistler article was great too. Especially as I also did the China Airlines via taipei route in August this year. The overnight stopover is an interesting experience - half an hour through the slums (or what looked like slums) in a minibus from the airport to arrive at the oasis that is the Jack Nicklaus designed resort golf course. Funny stuff.

Only problem with China Airlines was, a few days before I was scheduled to come home, I read on the front page of a Canadian newspaper that one of their aircraft exploded into flames on the runway in Japan. Nobody was killed, but they all made it out with only a couple of minutes to spare.

That freaked me out. I cancelled my flight, and came home with Air NZ instead.

[_Ajax_]

I get AMB all the time. It has really good reviews, its one of my favourite mags:cool: by far.

[chu]

[QUOTE=Ivan;1194764]There star rating follows no logic though, and should be trashed. They use different criteria for each bike, and they gave a hardtail 4 1/2 stars for pedalling efficiency[QUOTE]

bahahaha idiots:)

[nickhagee]

It still feels like it needs more though, more product features (even advertising with some extra info to it).


i think its one thing that amb have hit the nail on the head. too much advertising is bad. After all who wants an aussie version of mountain bike action??? eww not me thats the most terrible mag ive ever read because of the way there is way to many ads for those online stores. also amb gets more personal with there testers/editors... you know them in a way so you know you can trust what they say. BUT back to point amb have got the right amount of advertising!!

[scratchy]

No No No, you kids are doing this all wrong. It comes out every 2 months, so every 2 months you get on here and say how Dirt/Decline whatever has more DHing in it. Then pan it without looking at it.

It's OK though your new to Farkin, we'll let it slide... ;)

[scratchy]

[QUOTE=Ivan;1194764]There star rating follows no logic though, and should be trashed. They use different criteria for each bike, and they gave a hardtail 4 1/2 stars for pedalling efficiency[QUOTE]

bahahaha idiots:)

Not really. A really stiff Ally frame will transfer more power than a frame badly designed or made out of another material.

[FR Drew]

I read it first and then once I'm properly informed I pan some of it.

This issue was better than many have been for the last couple of years but it aint Dirt or DirtRag.

You know the school reports where your teacher used to write "Little Johnny is obviously trying hard and has improved in some areas but could still do much better..." I always find that I have that feeling about it. (actually, that's more in reponse to the better issues, sometimes I swear that I'll never waste the money again)

[Mahoney_007]

I bought it for the interview with Mr Hill, the article on Whistler (Crankworx 08 here I come), I'm in the market for a short travel AM bike, so that section was good, and also to gawk at the latest from dirtworks. (yum)

The problem they have is mentioned right at the start, they are trying to give the mag a "all over" feel to it, and trying to cram all disciplines of riding into 130 pages must be pretty bloody tough. This issue I thought was rather well rounded, and pretty good for somone who has only been riding for 6-12 months. (Shift like Sid, I mean c'mon ditch those gears kiddies lol).

Stoked that fella got his computer back at Gungin, good work Pertherts!!




PS Why cant I meet a girl Like Niki Fisher????

[Ivan]

QUOTE=chu;1194920]There star rating follows no logic though, and should be trashed. They use different criteria for each bike, and they gave a hardtail 4 1/2 stars for pedalling efficiency
[
Not really. A really stiff Ally frame will transfer more power than a frame badly designed or made out of another material.

Nope, gotta disagree with you there. Rating a hardtail on pedalling efficiency is just stupid. I know you can "feel" a difference on Alloy frames but the actual efficiency difference would have to be minuscule. Maybe they should have just mentioned that it wasn't as "stiff" as Aluminium frames. I think their reviews are a little short. Sometimes you read the review and think it would have achieved a low score out of 10, then you notice they gave it a 8.5 and a good talk-up in the summary. meh!

Whilst I am bagging it out, I did buy it and read it before I mentioned anything. And, I did say that overall I was impressed. However, that said I probably spent more time reading the DW catalogue than it took me to read the rest of the mag.

[FR Drew]

Yeah, they said that aside from a little bit of brake jack the Tomac was an awesome bike to ride and went like a whippet on crack but then gave it a 7.5 (second lowest for the test) too.

Don't know if they just pluck random numbers out of a hat, there certainly didn't seem to be much in the test to warrant them giving is a score as low as they did.

[jimmy_22]

that was the best edition of amb ive ever read! the article on whistler was the best aswell as the one on sam hill.

top read

[Greg P]

Is it just a coincidence that the two lowest scores in 5 inch trail test were awarded to the only two bikes in the test that didn't advertise in the magazine?
Both the Chumba and the Tomac reviews were full of praise, but the AMB points system had them beaten by bikes with flexi rear ends, head tubes not welded straight and blown up shocks.
It looks like AMB's scoring process is biased to companies who advertise with them, so if you factor in the reviews their content/advertising balance is way out.

[Pebble]

I'm not so sure on the advertising / reviews link.
It just makes sense that as a company who knew their bike was being reviewed in a magazine you would take advantage of the exposure by putting your ad's in that particular issue (even if they don't already regularly do so) - probably on the very next page if possible. After all it's the primary reason they give the bikes out for review (exposure & marketing / advertising).
Maybe I'm just naieve, I know it could happen very easily but I have doubts that say BigS is paying more for AMB to say only nice things. In my opinion it would be more of a case of editors or writers maintaining political correctness not to offend anyone all round.

In reality they can test the bikes all they like, people who already own the model will either agree on a bad review (in which case you have to ask why they're still riding it) or just write it off as personal opinion and not true, but potential buyers could be made weary. If they were 100% honest, no bullshit they would get flamed from all sides. If they keep in neutral they still get flamed (cash for comments sounds familiar:rolleyes:). Ah I don't know, but I still like reading it!

[kyleman]

I really liked it.
I loved the article on sam hill.
Also the dirt works catalogue was an added surprise :)

[tupper]

when i have read AMB before it had seemed a little to XC orientated for my liking but i read this one at school (they have them in our library) and it seams to have alot more.

i loved the Hill interview.

[xc_machine]

Just picked up the latest edition of Australian Mountain Biking and have just found time to sit down and get hooked into it.

I was extremely impressed with their write up on Whistler. This included advice on where to stay, plane ticket, luggage, where to ride, jobs whilst over there ect..
With a trip on my mind for the distant future i will definately be reffering to this as a guide. I recommend it to those planning trips to "the mountainbike capital" of the world.

I am only half way through the magazine but could not resist reading the interview with Sam Hill near the tail-end of the magazine. Included is also the 2008 DirtWorks catalogue which is an added bonus i guess!

I was also surprised with there hydro brakes test...
Avid Juicy 7's a winner over the like of Hope Mono's, Magura Marta's, Avid Ultimates..


All this for $8 bucks!

I recommend legging it down to the local newsagency and picking yourself up a copy!


Shhh, mine hasn't arrived yet.

[jamsta]

It looks like AMB's scoring process is biased to companies who advertise with them,

NOPE not at all. I've designed heaps of ads for different brands that appear in AMB, and they still rag on whatever they like...

[mtb1611]

I've never missed an issue of AMB, Some issues are considerably better than others, but I will buy it nonetheless; one good article or decent trail map makes it worth the $$$ IMO. What I do not like are the inconsistent criteria applied to bike ratings, and overall ratings that contradict what has been written. I also dislike the neutral stance adopted; if a product is shite, it deserves to be shown up as such so that we, the consumers, don't waste our heard-earned on it. I'd hate to put a figure on the number of products they've reviewed over the years, but I could apply a single-digit figure to the number of negative reviews. I doubt the figure reflects the facts somehow.

What also occurred to me was the Sid Taberlay article regarding shifting. I've spoken to a few witnesses who saw him run a female rider off the trail at the Mont and drag her for a few metres, as her jersey hooked his bars. He never so much as offered assistance or enquired as to her wellbeing. This is an utter dog act that only a farkin pr#@k would commit. But then again if AMB apply the same principles to the experts they recruit as they do to their reviewing and rating policy, I'm not surprised.

[Tom2304]

It seems I'm in the minority as I personally dislike the mag. Every 2 months a pitifully small mag arrives in the mail. I read it in half an hour and thats it for another 2 months. Plus they always get their info wrong on the group tests.

One test they said "this bike had some of the best brakes in the test" - Juicy fives. Another bike in the same test - "the juicy 5's lacked power and overheated quickly".
And they always seem to fuck up their graphs as well. They give a bike a 8 in the review but when they put it on there table, they rate it as 7. This gives you the wrong impression about the bike if you don't realise.

Excuse the rudeness. I'm just angry I got another year of subscription of it left when my money could be going towards Dirt or Decline.:(

[FR Drew]

Not sure if you're in the minority or if people are running by the maxim that if you can't say something good, don't say anything...

[whatsername223]

and it has the farked avanti ad

saying that derelikts can take on anything

they snap like crazy

[morto1980]

I just remembered something else I loved in this issue - the Huffy test run at Majura! (vs. a Yeti?). GOLD!

[Hud]

I just remembered something else I loved in this issue - the Huffy test run at Majura! (vs. a Yeti?). GOLD!

Yep. those sort of things are good for a laugh, I find the little bits and pices are interesting.
The bike reviews are too brief and generic.
Wasn't the F100 fork reviewed recently in AMB?
Dirtworks catalouge is great, especially so because there was a photo of me in it. :D

[murrum]

The mad digger is my hero. ;)

[avantiman]

yer this issue is really good so good in fact i took it to school and then art today wooopps i got busted and now i have a lunch time worth it thought i suppose ;)