The future of mtb

Shiny new tech and hard-baked trails are all well and good but as global warming continues apace we need to count the environmental cost of every action and purchase

At this time of year you’ll find all sorts of articles about the tech we might be seeing in the next few months and years.

But what about the core issues? They’re actually way more important than electric gears, automatic e-bike transmissions or what shock Specialized is hiding on Finn Iles’s Demo DH bike? I’m talking about the big changes happening in the world and what part mountain biking might play in that.

The climate, sustainability and the ecological impact of riding are obviously big ones. To be honest, as British riders who’ve had several of the best summers ever in terms of trail conditions, we’re literally in a good place. The hose pipe bans weren’t even a hassle when we could brush the dust off our bikes. Our importance as an income resource for other areas is likely to increase significantly, too. Les Gets in the Alps already opened some lifts for bikes in the first week of January because the snow conditions were so poor they couldn’t be used for skiing. And while Scotland and the US resorts are getting record snow thanks to shifting weather patterns, European resorts are definitely going to look at their long-term plans. That’s not just going to have implications for the resorts, but also the huge infrastructure of ski schools, chalet culture travel companies and snowsports brands looking for a new customer base. And with Discovery Channel/warner Bros already signed up to push mountain biking hard for the next eight years, maybe MTB Sunday will soon replace Ski Sunday in the TV line-up.

As much as last summer was awesome, we do need to think about the part we’re playing in fighting climate change. Some companies like Trek are clearly taking it very seriously, with comprehensive audits of its production and transport impacts. Santa Cruz runs its Californian HQ entirely on solar power and I recently visited the incredible fin-cooled, eco mothership of Scott in Switzerland. We’re seeing clothing companies moving towards a higher percentage of recycled material content and away from toxic carbon-rich waterproof treatments too. Recycled paper/cardboard materials and biodegradable packaging are becoming the norm.

All of these things are more expensive to implement though, so we need to make a conscious effort to support these positives with our purchases. Not just turn a blind eye and choose the unknown sourced, plastic-wrapped bargain. What we buy can potentially make a difference too. Is buying steel more ethical than carbon? Is choosing

Guy Kesteven spent the 90s thrashing hardtails round God’s Own Country before stepping up to bike testing. After four decades on the job he’s graduated to mbr. Most likely spotted shouting into his Gopro somewhere in Yorkshire durable components more defensible than going for delicate, maximum-performance kit? But as always, these buying decisions are rarely simple. For example, is an eco-friendly coat that needs constant reproofing actually more harmful to the planet than a jacket with a carbon treatment that’s more durable? Is buying cheap a waste of money and resources if you have to buy twice?

And while our impact is minuscule compared to that of governments and global companies, we also need to think about our own actions. Covid taught a lot of us about how much of a laugh we can have from our own front door, and brought local riding spots to the fore, as school and work were swapped for schralping and shovelling. So we do need to think more about how far we drive to ride and whether we all meet up at the trailhead or buddy up at home or en route, to save fuel and emissions. And if the ski companies start coming after

Is buying steel more ethical than carbon?... Is buying cheap a waste of money and resources if you have to buy twice?

us as customers, that’s potentially an even bigger fuel footprint for every hour we spend riding.

With more new riders in the sport than ever before and even more likely to be brought in by increased TV coverage and promotion, the way we behave as experienced enthusiasts has become even more important.

So whatever Bosch does with brakes, Shimano does with shifting, Fox does with its shock-sensing freehub and SRAM does with its e-bike motor, the important thing individually is that we don’t just pick up more litter but pick up our thinking overall and make mountain biking the super-positive world changer it could be.