Cyclist magazine....

bristolpete

Have been a long time advocate of this mag, but picked up this months today and did a page quick count.

First 24 pages are adverts excluding contents and editors comments.

Bit of a joke. Anyone aware if the cyclist team post here ? £5.50 and a huge portion of the mag is adverts. Think this will be my last copy.

Very poor value.

Rant over

Anything out there ? Bikes ETC any good ?

Moonbiker

I think all are bad just the same old stuff.

If there are any decent stuff its probably online only, cycling tips has some interesting artciles sometimes.

MiddleRinger

Must be tough in the specialist interest magazine industry as a lot of people have stopped buying regularly. Gott make money somehow so filling them full of advertising and then the rest advertising disguised as reviews must be the only way they can pay their staff wages, overheads and still turn a profit. Hardly worth reading anymore as everything is online and by the time the mag comes out the racing/news is all out of date...


Last mag I glanced at in the shops had "Will Richie win the Tour?" on the cover - and came out AFTER he'd already crashed out!

Matthewfalle

Cyclist blows really hot and cold - some months its well good, some months its a bit bilge. It did provide good quotes for the “Yanto Barker talking bollox” thread (for which I have stumbled upon a new quote that I’ll post later).

I subscribe to it and find it over the course of a year about a 7 out of 10 really - I keep the subscription going more out of habit and for the fact that once a month it gives me the chance to be moderately excited about something and to go and sit in a comfy chair with a glass of wine and have a read with TDV’s full approval as my magazine has arrived.

I’ve had a few copies of Bikes Etc and it’s a much better read but how long would be it be a much better for is the question .....

foggymike

BikesETC is the same people isn't it? I thought Bikes was supposed to be more about kit and Cyclist was supposed to be more lifestyle/mixed bag. I think there is only so much to say really, so after while they all start repeating and regugitating the same stuff. That's why they keep banging on about disc brakes and hydraulic this and electric that - because it's new (and keeps the advertisers happy who want to sell this stuff).

supermurph09

When the magazine first came out I was an early subscriber, I also had Cycling Plus as well. I thought Cyclist resonated with me a bit more so ditched CP. After a while the impact of the amazing images in Cyclist wore off and I found the articles not really to my taste and cancelled about a 18 months ago.

Oddly I bought the latest copy of the magazine yesterday and read what I wanted to read in about 30 minutes. At £5.50 that's a bit steep so probably won't buy again. I didn't feel like they did justice to the winter bike article, they had 3 models on test but only the writer was able to give a review of the bike he was on, the other 2 were left as a side note imo.

I think for articles and images you cannot beat the Cyclingtips.au website. I also find the comments section is free from lunatics which makes the site even more engaging. The images they show on there and most of the headline articles draw me in a lot more than any magazine does. One of the hardest parts of any magazine is the fact you are paying for for so much content that you are not interested in, in this day and age that concept is bizarre when you can trawl the web and be selective with what you click on for free.

Beatmaker

I tend to flit between bike mags, I think Cyclist is one of the better ones. During the season I'm more interested in Pro Cycling though. In regards to the adverts, some people don't mind ads, some people seem to really resent their presence. As the owner of an ad agency, albeit in B2B I really don't mind them! Cyclist will more than likely have an ad/edit ratio they work to though, so its unlikely more ads will be at the expense of content.

Matthewfalle

foggymike wrote:

BikesETC is the same people isn't it? I thought Bikes was supposed to be more about kit and Cyclist was supposed to be more lifestyle/mixed bag. I think there is only so much to say really, so after while they all start repeating and regugitating the same stuff. That's why they keep banging on about disc brakes and hydraulic this and electric that - because it's new (and keeps the advertisers happy who want to sell this stuff).

Yup - same people but the couple of copies I have read the writing style is a bit more relaxed and actually quite amusing at times.

A couple of the guys at Cyclist seem to be more interested in whether they are wearing matching socks rather than entertaining and educating a paying public - they need a crash course in journalism by reading Road Rocket or PB from the 90s.

As an aside, I'm just about to cancel my PB subscription after 25 years as it's turned, well, a bit shittt to tell the truth. Poor writing, boring content, journos believing their own hype......

imposter2.0

bristolpete wrote:

Have been a long time advocate of this mag, but picked up this months today and did a page quick count.

First 24 pages are adverts excluding contents and editors comments.

Bit of a joke. Anyone aware if the cyclist team post here ? £5.50 and a huge portion of the mag is adverts. Think this will be my last copy.

Very poor value.

Rant over

Anything out there ? Bikes ETC any good ?

Are you saying the ratio of ad content to editorial has increased? Most print mags aim for around 45-50% as a ratio. Apart from occasionally browsing through the comic in Smiths, I haven't read a cycling mag for many years.

CiB

I had a sub when it first came out, and enjoyed it for a year or two until it became the same magazine every month. Nothing changed; here's the editor's witty intro piece, here's a look at a stupidly expensive new bike that's not due out for a while anyway. A few pages of cycling toys that you know you won't buy. A beautifully photographed ride somewhere abroad. An interview or feature on something or someone big in cycling, and finally a handful of bikes that even at my peak I'd have been hard-pushed to justify spending anything close to that on. It was no longer an interesting read. I cancelled when I found myself 3 months behind on unread copies waiting on the bedside table that were exactly as expected when I did get round to it - rehashes of the previous 2 years' worth. The only good bit was Felix Lowe's page, much like CW is worth buying for Dr Hutch's bit at the back.

It's a shame; it was a great idea and for a while it was quite interesting, quite a good read. Rarely brilliant, but generally quite good. In the end there seemed no point in continuing to buy it. Fwiw The Oldie went the same way - subbed for a while but every issue was the same, so that was binned too in the end.

Matthewfalle

That German ex-pro who used to do bike tests in ProCycling always made me laugh - we used to have a game where we could see if we could guess how many times in one article he could mention that he was an ex-pro, how fast he was, how fast he went on a bike or how many people he burnt off.


Its almost like he thought we cared.

Beatmaker

Matthewfalle wrote:

That German ex-pro who used to do bike tests in ProCycling always made me laugh - we used to have a game where we could see if we could guess how many times in one article he could mention that he was an ex-pro, how fast he was, how fast he went on a bike or how many people he burnt off.


Its almost like he thought we cared.

Marcel Wurst?

imposter2.0

Beatmaker wrote:

Matthewfalle wrote:

That German ex-pro who used to do bike tests in ProCycling always made me laugh - we used to have a game where we could see if we could guess how many times in one article he could mention that he was an ex-pro, how fast he was, how fast he went on a bike or how many people he burnt off.


Its almost like he thought we cared.

Marcel Wurst?

Every bike he rode was a 'great bike'....

Matthewfalle

Beatmaker wrote:

Matthewfalle wrote:

That German ex-pro who used to do bike tests in ProCycling always made me laugh - we used to have a game where we could see if we could guess how many times in one article he could mention that he was an ex-pro, how fast he was, how fast he went on a bike or how many people he burnt off.


Its almost like he thought we cared.

Marcel Wurst?

That's the dude - well remembered. Ta muchly!

Matthewfalle

Imposter wrote:

Beatmaker wrote:

Matthewfalle wrote:

That German ex-pro who used to do bike tests in ProCycling always made me laugh - we used to have a game where we could see if we could guess how many times in one article he could mention that he was an ex-pro, how fast he was, how fast he went on a bike or how many people he burnt off.


Its almost like he thought we cared.

Marcel Wurst?

Every bike he rode was a 'great bike'....

And no one tested it more or ride it faster or for longer than he did.

foggymike

Haha, Marcel was a classic sprinter ego. Something like... "I blew past those cyclotourist guys like they were standing still on my favourite ride back to base in Majorca, but naturally I stopped to sign autographs at the top of the next hill so they could admire my fantastic legs, and also the unfeasibly expensive bike I'd just flew past them on". The bike would always have been better with some nice Campag tubs instead of the clinchers it came with

In fairness, he did have fantastic legs though!

Beatmaker

Imposter wrote:

Beatmaker wrote:

Matthewfalle wrote:

That German ex-pro who used to do bike tests in ProCycling always made me laugh - we used to have a game where we could see if we could guess how many times in one article he could mention that he was an ex-pro, how fast he was, how fast he went on a bike or how many people he burnt off.


Its almost like he thought we cared.

Marcel Wurst?

Every bike he rode was a 'great bike'....

Yep, I can't recall ever reading a less than glowing review.

fenix

Imposter wrote:

Beatmaker wrote:

Matthewfalle wrote:

That German ex-pro who used to do bike tests in ProCycling always made me laugh - we used to have a game where we could see if we could guess how many times in one article he could mention that he was an ex-pro, how fast he was, how fast he went on a bike or how many people he burnt off.


Its almost like he thought we cared.

Marcel Wurst?

Every bike he rode was a 'great bike'....

TBF he only ever rode nice bikes didn't he ? It's not like they ever gave him a BSO from the local supermarket. I don't think you can get a bad bike in that price bracket.

bristolpete

Imposter wrote:

bristolpete wrote:

Have been a long time advocate of this mag, but picked up this months today and did a page quick count.

First 24 pages are adverts excluding contents and editors comments.

Bit of a joke. Anyone aware if the cyclist team post here ? £5.50 and a huge portion of the mag is adverts. Think this will be my last copy.

Very poor value.

Rant over

Anything out there ? Bikes ETC any good ?

Are you saying the ratio of ad content to editorial has increased? Most print mags aim for around 45-50% as a ratio. Apart from occasionally browsing through the comic in Smiths, I haven't read a cycling mag for many years.

Yes seems like it. Cannot be bothered to do a whole count, but certainly of the 'opening' 24 pages, the contents and the editors opening hardly features. Very poor VFM.

I agree on the whole about the mag too. Time to do the WH SMith shuffle once a month

Matthewfalle

Just been to check out the Bikes Etc ..... subs offers - no free gifts so not getting my subscription this month......

imposter2.0

Fenix wrote:

Imposter wrote:

Beatmaker wrote:

Matthewfalle wrote:

That German ex-pro who used to do bike tests in ProCycling always made me laugh - we used to have a game where we could see if we could guess how many times in one article he could mention that he was an ex-pro, how fast he was, how fast he went on a bike or how many people he burnt off.


Its almost like he thought we cared.

Marcel Wurst?

Every bike he rode was a 'great bike'....

TBF he only ever rode nice bikes didn't he ? It's not like they ever gave him a BSO from the local supermarket. I don't think you can get a bad bike in that price bracket.

Yeah, that's true. They were all pro-team bikes, as I recall. It's just that he never had a bad word to say about any of them, which kind of made it less interesting, in a way. "Man rides nice bike and confirms, 'it's a nice bike'.."

Matthewfalle

He could always find some way to improve them though given his self proclaimed excess of hatural talent, his speed and - lest we forget - the fact he was a pro unlike any other pro that had existed or will ever exist again........

bristolpete

In his defence he did have some pins on him.

johnboy183

bristolpete wrote:

Have been a long time advocate of this mag, but picked up this months today and did a page quick count.

First 24 pages are adverts excluding contents and editors comments.

Bit of a joke. Anyone aware if the cyclist team post here ? £5.50 and a huge portion of the mag is adverts. Think this will be my last copy.

Very poor value.

Rant over

Anything out there ? Bikes ETC any good ?

Check out the Readly app. For about £7 a month, you have access to a tonne of magazines including cycling weekly, pro cyclist 220 magazine and loads of different titles covering a vast spectrum of interests. Bonus is no Cyclist magazine

keith57

Years ago I did some work in publishing. The way the magazine publishers work is interesting.

To survive they must have a huge number of different magazines. The lifestyle/ longevity of many of them is quite short. When a new magazine comes out it’s marketed heavily, sells well for a few years, then sales decline, its axed, and a new, similar one launched, cycle starts again. Often the content can be recycled indefinitely.

Once a title reaches the bottom of their internal league table of sales it’s days are numbered. It’s the only way they can make a decent profit. The rare ones that go on for longer are coveted and looked after.

Life can be hard or impossible for anyone publishing a single specialist title. This has happened a lot in the rock-climbing world where once great magazines are no more, like Mountain, Crags, etc. A few years ago there was a high quality sea-kayaking mag launched called ‘Ocean Paddler’. I still have the t-shirt 8) It folded after about a year or so. They ran out of things to say too

Here in Wales I’ve joined the national library system which gives me electronic access to a huge range of magazines for free. Great to be able to read almost anything I want on my large screen iPad

davep1

CiB wrote:

I had a sub when it first came out, and enjoyed it for a year or two until it became the same magazine every month. Nothing changed; here's the editor's witty intro piece, here's a look at a stupidly expensive new bike that's not due out for a while anyway. A few pages of cycling toys that you know you won't buy. A beautifully photographed ride somewhere abroad. An interview or feature on something or someone big in cycling, and finally a handful of bikes that even at my peak I'd have been hard-pushed to justify spending anything close to that on. It was no longer an interesting read. I cancelled when I found myself 3 months behind on unread copies waiting on the bedside table that were exactly as expected when I did get round to it - rehashes of the previous 2 years' worth. The only good bit was Felix Lowe's page, much like CW is worth buying for Dr Hutch's bit at the back.

It's a shame; it was a great idea and for a while it was quite interesting, quite a good read. Rarely brilliant, but generally quite good. In the end there seemed no point in continuing to buy it. Fwiw The Oldie went the same way - subbed for a while but every issue was the same, so that was binned too in the end.

My thoughts exactly. I love the Big Ride stories, but let the subscription lapse and now I buy every third or fourth copy, when it is a ride I have chance of actually doing myself. The reviews at the back wound me up, hardly ever anything under £5k which is lottery win territory for me. What's strange is I love car mags, and devour reviews of Lamborghinis and Ferraris, which are also lottery win territory!

jimmocrates

DaveP1 wrote:

CiB wrote:

I had a sub when it first came out, and enjoyed it for a year or two until it became the same magazine every month. Nothing changed; here's the editor's witty intro piece, here's a look at a stupidly expensive new bike that's not due out for a while anyway. A few pages of cycling toys that you know you won't buy. A beautifully photographed ride somewhere abroad. An interview or feature on something or someone big in cycling, and finally a handful of bikes that even at my peak I'd have been hard-pushed to justify spending anything close to that on. It was no longer an interesting read. I cancelled when I found myself 3 months behind on unread copies waiting on the bedside table that were exactly as expected when I did get round to it - rehashes of the previous 2 years' worth. The only good bit was Felix Lowe's page, much like CW is worth buying for Dr Hutch's bit at the back.

It's a shame; it was a great idea and for a while it was quite interesting, quite a good read. Rarely brilliant, but generally quite good. In the end there seemed no point in continuing to buy it. Fwiw The Oldie went the same way - subbed for a while but every issue was the same, so that was binned too in the end.

My thoughts exactly. I love the Big Ride stories, but let the subscription lapse and now I buy every third or fourth copy, when it is a ride I have chance of actually doing myself. The reviews at the back wound me up, hardly ever anything under £5k which is lottery win territory for me. What's strange is I love car mags, and devour reviews of Lamborghinis and Ferraris, which are also lottery win territory!

Ditto.
The Big Ride articles both in the UK and abroad are always really well written and accompanied by beautiful pics.
If they did these articles with reviews of affordable kit/bikes, I would find it much more appealing and be more likely to buy.I find the pseudo-science articles a bit dull too :-(
(I did get some great Lizard Skins bar tape as my subscription gift - made it an even better deal!)

mr_mojo

I buy it and quite like it, compared to what else is available.

I like the fact they review the more exotic high end bikes as I don't really want to read about another boring far east produced generic bike.

imposter2.0

Mr_Mojo wrote:

I like the fact they review the more exotic high end bikes as I don't really want to read about another boring far east produced generic bike.

What about if those 'exotic high end' bikes are produced in the far east..?

mr_mojo

Imposter wrote:

Mr_Mojo wrote:

I like the fact they review the more exotic high end bikes as I don't really want to read about another boring far east produced generic bike.

What about if those 'exotic high end' bikes are produced in the far east..?

oh yes, you're quite right, except those

shirley_basso

Those who lament reading cycling magazines, check out this site:

https://cyclingdigest.wordpress.com/

It is absolutely brilliant. Sadly the guy has stopped writing them now. He did pop up on the forum to promote the site ages ago.

I think the first post is right at the very bottom then read upwards.