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“Start pushing them hard, … and the 3D distortion — particularly as they unload out of corners and G-outs — can be momentarily, but significantly, disconcerting. There’s noticeable softness through the cranks too, and off-camber wander if you really stamp on the pedals.”
?
Superb example of word-w*nk...
Well that took a google
https://www.bikeradar.com/author/guy-kesteven/
Do people read Bike Radar reviews? Maybe it's just to check if anyone has bothered to get past the pics?
I actually used to pay some attention to Kesteven, til that C456 review he did where the frame was so stiff it was impossible to ride down rocky descents without stopping halfway down to shake out your hands. Not just bad at his job, more actually a little bit mad.
He should go back to doing the Crystal Maze
Vertically stiff and laterally compliant.
“He should go back to doing the Crystal Maze“
LOL
They’ll be fireworks.
With bullshit like that he could be a manager at my works.
They’ll be fireworks.
I remember that Mountain Mayhem
He peaked years ago and has maintained that level ever since. He’s always been a gobshite.
i dunno the pink bike are trying for peak journo with the whole singlecrown forks flex loads must be shit thing going on atm.
in all my years of biking, only 2 bike tests ever stick out, and made me take notice.
brant richards, planet x compo and steve makin, soulcraft 29er.
everything else is just pointless, imho
I remember that Mountain Mayhem
Yeah, sorry about that, I was rather drunk and egged on by Drac
Didn't take very much.
could have taken someones eye out!!!!!!!
Nobody died 🙂
in all my years of biking, only 2 bike tests ever stick out, and made me take notice.
Sure there wasn't one from Zak Tempest in there as well?
Are any lifestyle journo's to be trusted? I don't think so. Let him write his shite, just take it with a pinch of salt.
Zak Tempest
who?
Are they still on 'cut and paste trails' or have they move on from that.
I gave up a long time ago when What MTB tested 'adventure bikes' (before gravel was a thing). Requirements were a versatile bike, braze-on etc. for touring etc. etc.
And Orange 5 won...
His bike reviews are always on point 🙂
who?
Ask Brant...
Brant.
That's 3 times now. He'll be along in a minute.
My fav review was of the Boardman bike, slagging it for being too relaxed and that it needed to be snappier for road racing - insinuating that Boardman had never written it.
First comment was Boardman saying that a snappy bike was exactly what you didn't want at the end of a grand tour and that the geo was the same as the bike he had ridden X years ago.
Guy who?
How long has he been a bike tester? Really hard to find out he keeps it quiet.
i dunno the pink bike are trying for peak journo with the whole singlecrown forks flex loads must be shit thing going on atm.
Agreed - people worrying about something they've never actually experienced but are suddenly able to see in a slomo video of something you only do (huck to flat so your suspension bottoms out) if you're completely useless at jumping.
JP
I stopped believing anything bike jurnos said back when MBUK did a fork group test in the late 90s.
At a time when the marzocchi bomber we revolutionizing what a suspension fork should be, they still tried to claim that the Pace was the better fork.
It was also the last time I bought that rag.
He made me laugh a few months ago when he posted a blow up doll package on insta, that showed the box with his full address on .. Harrogate was if ;0)
I saw a video review he did for Pace on Instagram - back up what everybody else is saying! At least he's enthusiastic 😂😂
In Guys defence he comes up to Stainburn to dig days and works like a machine the whole time he is there. And he is friendly but unassuming. Basically a lovely bloke.
Everyone has to earn a crust I suppose. Him and his daughter are bloody handy on a tandem too.
I gave up a long time ago when What MTB tested ‘adventure bikes’ (before gravel was a thing). Requirements were a versatile bike, braze-on etc. for touring etc. etc.
And Orange 5 won…
Whaaat!
I started ignoring whichever mag it was that insisted every bike had to have 820mm wide bars no matter what.
STW reviews are good imo, lots of thought about how the bike feels and makes you ride, rather than component niggles or telling a designer how they *should* have designed it.
I read a review of a handcrafted steel hard tail by a well known MTB Journo (Say what you see:')
And it was a rave review. About 2 days later I was presented with the actual bike from the test, -ride this bring it back when you are done.
Hmmm, maybe like some wines it didn't travel well.
But, its hard to write a bad review with out cutting your own throat. And how many times can you re-sugar same pill?
from a recent US-youtube vid:
augmenting poppy trail manners without suffocating zest
Oh yes. Verbal dibbage.
I read a review of a handcrafted steel hard tail by a well known MTB Journo (Say what you see:’)
Roy Walker is/was a bike journo?
He should review HiFi with waffle like that.
its hard to write a bad review with out cutting your own throat. And how many times can you re-sugar same pill?
Agree on both points Paul. Was it part of a group test? Any bike ridden in isolation is hard to compare with anything else and it's all hugely subjective. Reviewers also have to somehow write in a way that newbies, regulars & very experienced riders (and everyone in between) can get something from it.
Basically a lovely bloke.
Agree.
He loves bikes and has fun.
...his reviews are mad sometimes.
Guy Kesteven's youtube video reviews are pretty good if you're not interested in the how the bikes perform but you miss this guy from the fast show
STW reviews are good imo, lots of thought about how the bike feels and makes you ride
No they're not. They're pretty awful.
For a good bike review you need the combination of good rider, technical competence and good writer.
STW Journos have none of those qualities.
Always worth reposting this, just in case there's someone that hasn't read it.
http://bikesnobnyc.blogspot.com/2007/08/bsnyc-2008-dream-bike-shootout.html
I think Guy does what he's got to do to get paid and get his free stuff. Most of it's a load of old shite, but he seems a decent (if slightly bonkers) bloke who loves riding bikes and talking about them, so fair play to him if it's paying his bills. And the world needs slightly bonkers folk to liven the job up.
Do I actually take anything from his reviews though - seldom. It's pretty obvious that he gets sent stuff to review (endorse) so you just have to bear that in mind. All I want to know from a review is if a bike is good value for money, are the components any good, and is it generally crap to ride or not? Most of that you can tell from a spec. sheet anyway, and the ride bit is subjective. There's very little crap about nowadays anyway.
If you've read MTB mags for more than a couple of years you will know it's basically the same stuff on repeat. That Guy can maintain such enthusiasm and come up with such creative writing is fantastic. God bless him. (Doesn't help me choose wheels of course)
For a good bike review you need the combination of good rider, technical competence and good writer.
STW Journos have none of those qualities.
You're just the bestest customer anyone could have. I'd ban you from my website, I really would.
Geex needs to write a mag for himself. A fanzine I think you call it 🙂
Geex needs to write a mag for himself. GRUMBLE I think you call it
FTFY
A fanzine I think you call it
Like a monologue version of Fan Fiction?
Based on whats written here, Karl Pilkington would make a killing as a bike reviewer
I like his reviews.
I've just watched a Guy Kestevan video.
He's ok - like a bouncing puppy of keenness about riding bikes, clearly bl**dy fast, and lots better than the 'merican tests where they all sit at a table and discuss a bike.
Geex needs to write a mag for himself.
He's already reviewing for another website....
He’s already reviewing for another website….
Post a link. I fancy a critique session.
Singletrackworld reviews are hit and miss.
They can be great, I'd just rather see a bit more critical appraisal of new gear and less praise heaped on new relatively untested products such as linkage forks - and a bit more objectivity. For example, I really liked the fact that Enduro mag stuck a bunch of brakes on dynos for their brake grouptest. Hardly a rigorous scientific test and there was no raw data, but it still made the review feel more grounded in reality.
Geex get's the technical side of bikes well, so I can't imagine his reviews would be total guff. I'd be rather interested in what he has to say actually, I just get the feeling he's rubbed a few of you up the wrong way! 😀
I miss Steve Worland. 🙁
Fanx Rayban PM me if you want a link
Matt alrady PMd you one.
I just get the feeling he’s rubbed a few of you up the wrong way!
Not for want of trying.
My fav review was of the Boardman bike, slagging it for being too relaxed and that it needed to be snappier for road racing – insinuating that Boardman had never written it.
First comment was Boardman saying that a snappy bike was exactly what you didn’t want at the end of a grand tour and that the geo was the same as the bike he had ridden X years ago.
I remember that, but I'll be buggered if I can find it. I believe whet the review said was something like "the geometry's not quite sharp enough for racing in your local town-centre criterium" and Boardman responded "it was sharp enough for Nicole Cooke to win the Olympics on, we don't just pluck these figures from the air" 🙂
I think this thread is really unfair to Guy Kesteven. I've never met the bloke, but I've ridden with people who have and they've only got nice things to say about him.
His 2019 5010 review is brilliant and as an owner of said bike I can vouch for everything he says about it.
I find his videos really entertaining, he's a handy rider and his passion for bikes really shines through.
It's also great to read a review from someone who can actually ride fast. All too often bikes are reviewed by riders, who can't really push a bike to its limits. This is fine for 90 per cent of people, but for those of us who like to race, jump and hit corners hard its not good enough - Long live the Kesteven I hope his YouTube channel continues to grow!!
In my defence I have nothing against the guy except his drivel-tastic reviewing style (for which he is hardly unique), utter twaddle, which if he works for STW, I do provide him income for.
OK, I'll bite - Geex, any chance of a link to some of your reviews?
I just get the feeling he’s rubbed a few of you up the wrong way!
Geex? Yeah, but he's usually got a fair point. That's the most annoying part.
In my defence I have nothing against the guy except his drivel-tastic reviewing style (for which he is hardly unique), utter twaddle, which if he works for STW, I do provide him income for.
Pretty sure Guy is MBUK only. Hasn't done anything for STW for a long time (if ever).
It’s also great to read a review from someone who can actually ride fast. All too often bikes are reviewed by riders, who can’t really push a bike to its limits. This is fine for 90 per cent of people, but for those of us who like to race, jump and hit corners hard its not good enough – Long live the Kesteven I hope his YouTube channel continues to grow!!
There's a good point - one of the issues I think with reviews is that certain people (like my brother who put in a time down the Steel City DH that was faster than Eddie Masters time), end up buying bikes because the reviews and marketing say the bike is suitable for Enduro or whatever. But that isn't a clearly defined discipline, the discipline changes and peoples perceptions of what a discipline involves changes - and the people who market the bikes for said discipline are either pros who can break them and replace them or bimbling reviewers who have no issues with the bike - and then fast privateers or ex-racers etc end up breaking the the things with quite a lot of ease.
I think this thread is really unfair to Guy Kesteven. I’ve never met the bloke, but I’ve ridden with people who have and they’ve only got nice things to say about him.
I've met him he is nice bloke but that doesn't mean people can't laugh at some of his articles. I've also met Steve Makin he's a right miserable git.
That's 100 per cent my point raybanwomble - a good example of this issue is the DH bike comparison on Vital MTB. One of the reviewers isn't strong/good enough to hold a good line through a rock garden - he falls off on one bike and looks very sketchy on the others. Obviously if you're the same then it's a good review, but if you're strong enough to hold a fast line through a load of rocks then it's a pretty useless review...people like Guy who are decent riders are way more trustworthy IMO.
To be fair on those riders thought, they look like typical park rats - average speed through technical sections but I dare say faster than me on smooth berms and probably go way bigger than me. They also seem faster than 90 percent of bike journos! 😀
They look stylish on the jumps and berms raybanwomble, but those rock gardens expose some massive weaknesses technically and physically. I reckon reviewers should stipulate their standard at the start of a review or at least be open about their weaknesses/technical deficiencies that way readers can judge whether a bike will suit them or not.
Surely if you're going to slag reviewers it'd be polite to open yourself up for criticism publicly. Don't hide, let us all bask in your glory.
Agreed. Some of it's just growing up with UK riding Dan, CyB is where I learnt to ride a bike. Brits grow up with tight, nadgery trails. So despite having some inner ear dysfunction from a past ear infection, I'm still relatively competent at it.
Flowy berms and hitting huge jumps is my weakness because unlike my brother (who raced) I didn't get exposed to much of that stuff as a youngster and now live in London.
Different magazines in different countries have different riding cultures because of the local trails.
His reviews aren't limited to MTB. He also reviewed a TT bike, which I used to own.
STW Journos have none of those qualities.
They'll be no doubt devestated to hear that from you
I think almost all bikes I've seen him review are......
https://www.vitalmtb.com/features/Vital-MTB-Test-Sessions-Five-of-the-Best-27-5-Downhill-Bikes-Raced-and-Reviewed,2599/blockquote >"I'm bike flossing"
"There's more flavours than an ice cream shop"
'Rad Music'
Yeah I didn't get any further.
I take the view that all reviews are unbiased and should only help inform you. You can't offend advertisers or those likely who made the effort to lend you things in the first place. I also know that from the industry I'm in that most maagazine awards and suchlike are paid for. utter BS.
I did find guy's youtube channel recently and noticed he's been raving about the caliber bossnut, and has reviewed it only. i'd seen reviews comparing it to another bike (one I was curious about) and its obvious from other coverage that money is at play.... sad really but times are changing.
I think this thread is really unfair to Guy Kesteven. I’ve never met the bloke, but I’ve ridden with people who have and they’ve only got nice things to say about him.
I've ridden with him. He's a complete bastard and I couldn't keep up. It was awful. The sooner he slows down, the better. His dog's bloody fast too.
Also like Guy's reviews. He's a big bike fan, don't care if he writes it in a superlatives.
That said, the comment above about reviewers detailing their riding capabilities first before a review so we can assess them did give me a good laugh whilst stressed at work. That would be hilarious. How you judge that would lead to a million more threads to keep STW alive until the next century.
Thanks for the bike snob link Ned that’s a great article!
On Kesteven I think he’s generally ok, a lot of the criticisms of him could also be made of all bike journos past and present.... take it or leave it. his videos are entertaining and he comes across well. Good luck to him.
I quite like his work, I get the impression he might play up to the Fast Show guy thing a bit.
He is blurring the editorial lines a bit now, but there's nothing wrong with advertorial if everyone knows what's going on.
The one issue is once someone's done paid content for a brand you tend to view their other reviews for that brand with a dose of scepticism.
The best thing about Guy is him sending drops on a full-sus tandem with his daughter on the back. Full commitment from both of them!