Hi Singletrackers,
In the last few days we, like all small businesses have being trying to come to terms with the implications of the corona virus lockdown and how it's going to affect everyone who works here at Singletrack and relies on a steady income. The shape of the impact is now slowly becoming clear and we, like all businesses are going to find it hard to keep things running. In the last few days we've inevitably lost a lot of future advertising bookings as those businesses themselves pull back on all their marketing activities. This is putting an intense strain on our future and so I'm appealing for your help.
We fully intend to keep on working to produce great content for you to occupy your lockdown time with and to keep the forum and website not only operating but, as was our plan all along, to build it into something really useful and entertaining beyond it's current form - but with 60% of our entire revenue coming from advertising that's at risk without your support.
If you are already a subscriber then we love you. In a very real sense you guys are keeping the lights on here. We just need more of you. I know that financial concerns are not just ours but also many of you and I'm not asking anyone to contribute in any way that puts themselves at risk. The key to getting through this crisis is be firstly looking after yourself and then those around you that are important to you. I appreciate that a website about mountain biking comes well down anyone's list of priorities. But there are some things that everyone can do to help us, so I've made a list...
1 - If you can afford to then subscribe - that puts money directly in the bank for us.
2 - If you are already a subscriber, please don't cancel your subscription if you can. We need you as much as new subscribers.
3 - Keep coming to the website as often as you can and if you have an ad blocker PLEASE either turn it off or whitelist us.
4 - If you see a bargain or deal anywhere on line that you think the rest of your community here may find useful then post a link to it in a forum post as a PSA type post. We earn a referral commission on a large proportion of outgoing links from the site and just by pointing someone at a deal could really help us.
5 - Keep posting and commenting and interacting with each other. High engagement helps drive others to the site through search engines and that in turn helps drive our business.
6 - Register. It's free and it's one step on the way to becoming a subscriber. Trust me, we have a spike in subscriptions shortly after we get a spike in registrations. You can't subscribe without first registering.
7 - Our merchandise shop is fully operational and we are still sending out orders every week. Buying our kit not only helps us but the whole chain of supply down the line too.
7 - Look after yourself - stay well and look after each other. Without you we have no audience and without an audience we have no income.
8 - Don't panic. This will be over at some point and we'll all look back and have stories to tell the grandkids I'm sure.
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Many, many thanks to @bearnecessities for setting up the Paypal donation pool. And of course to all those of you who put kind donation in to it.
EDIT edit:
Subscribed - best of luck
Subscribed, best of luck!
Love & hugs to the hamsters 🤪
Subscribed. I think many of us will be needing and appreciating all your efforts now more than ever so i'm glad to be able to pitch in while I can. all the best of luck
Life without Singletrack would make "working from home" unbearable, so I shall be subscribing.
Thank you so much 🙂
Wont unsubscribe 😉
All the best Mark and team!
I won't be unsubscribing, keep up the good work for as long as you can!
Won't unsubscribe either 😉
I'll try and find a couple of PSAs
This place greatly helps with my sanity!
Timber bell bought and ad-block disabled - if you guys can somehow add a wider range of stock to your site I'd be more than willing to support. Fingers crossed you make it through unscathed - wonderful publication.
Bought a bikepacking routes book, need some inspiration for when all this lunacy finally blows over.
Fantastic stuff guys. I’ve been friends with Chipps and Mark for almost 20 years now so really appreciate you supporting them.
I'm a singletracker for life so not sure I've even got an option to un-subscribe!!! 😂
Will see what I can justify buying from the shop...
STW for life here too! I rely on this place for news, entertainment and advice. It must go on.
Active subscription - although you're making me feel guilty as it was cheap in one of those sales you had a while back! - so seeing as I like collecting mugs I'll see what's in the shop, although that will have to be on payday next week so if you can keep the lights on 'till then please!!
somehow add a wider range of stock to your site I’d be more than willing to support.
I've always wondered that, or a links page to retailers where they get the affiliate comission - just a big old alphabetical list where you can click buy from, rather than just going through TCB for 1% for eBay etc (that you invariably don't care that much about).
somehow add a wider range of stock to your site I’d be more than willing to support.
Problem is you have to tie up more cash in stock some of which won't sell etc, so there's a balance etc.
Hits the shop…
I won't be unsubscribing and will have a mooch in the shop.
As said above - WFH would be rubbish without STW lol
Just converted to lifer.
I'd have to find somewhere else to mooch about if this place didn't exist...
won't be unsubscribing (and I'll even try to post a bit more....)
Subscribed. Feel bad now for not doing it before .....
Subscribed - as Failedengineer says I should have done it before.
Is there anyway of donating without buying anything? I’d be lost without this place.
Just read this and will re-enable my P ads on my laptop. Not that I visit while working of course.... And if anyone wants to post a PSA about a bargain deal on gx Eagle chains or old style xt/slx pads then I'll buy through them.
Is there anyway of donating without buying anything?
Thought the same so I've set up a Paypal Pool for people to donate:
https://paypal.me/pools/c/8nws4bCVbK
I ran the same when we raised over £3k for FFJA in the floods last year, and I promise he got every penny 🙂
You pay no fees and every penny goes to the cause.
Whitelisted on the and blocker. Already a P member.
Life without Singletrack would make “working from home” unbearable, so I shall be subscribing.
It also applies at the office!
Its a no brainer.
Been subscribing since Chipps had hair 😁 even had the "pleasure" 🤔 of riding with him 😜 and had my fizzog in the mag 🤣 made me so famous I was recognised grocery shopping in Whistler 🙄so for that reason alone I ain't going anywhere any time soon #inforthelonghaul Peace and love lads and lasses ♥️♥️♥️we'll get through this 💪
Thought the same so I’ve set up a Paypal Pool:
Nice one, donated.
Just done it.
Best of luck guys.
Im now looking forward to my magazine 🙂
Every issue bought on subscription. All the best
If you put the 'u' back in favourite I'll drop off some Cornish heavy cake. 🙂
Oooh I've only just spotted that. Jeez! That's awful.
That's on the list.
Thanks so much everyone who has subscribed today or bought or donated. It means a great deal to all of us.
Stay safe everyone.
no chance of unsubscribing. This is exactly when you need this sort of group. Very happy not to get the mag for a few issues either. Would rather this kept running
Just checked... subscriber since issue 16, 2004 - and I still have 'em all.
Belt, T-shirt and subscription. Best of luck.
Been a subscriber since, well, forever, and won't be stopping anytime soon. Off to the shop now...
Jeez! That’s awful.
Nah, it's really nice, 'specially with a bit of jam on.😶
I'll drop some off next time I'm passing through.
Good luck with it all.
Been a subscriber since before the hack, no intention to stop now. Don't even ride mountain bikes much anymore, more road bike, trail building and cake eating. Don't under estimate the importance of this site to a lot of people, it's not known as a blokes Mumsnet for nothing (no sexism intended to the many women on here whose contributions add much needed balance and help make this place great to be part of).
Just to shamelessly take advantage of a new page, in case anyone missed it, if you already subscribe and want to help further you can throw a beer or two here:
Done, good work. Thanks for keeping on keeping on.
Donated - this place is important
Maybe some special edition key-rings could be a good money earner for the shop...
Long time subscriber here. Have been visiting the site, reading reviews etc, but can't post on the forum while so many ****ing virus threads are being allowed. Sorry, but it's literally doing my head in (if that means anything).
I'll have a look at the shop.
Thanks everyone! It's really appreciated and we are always grateful of the time you spend here and to those who read the magazine. Cheers all!
I've been a subscriber since before the first issue... just chucked a bit extra in. Love you guys!
Happy to subscribe.
Best of luck.
For the record, my bit of this week’s podcast was recorded today and I’d called you all good humans before I saw this. What a bunch of stars. Thank you.
Yeah go on then....
Just resubscribed after a few years.
I canned my original subscription in a fit of pique after getting a 48 hour ban a few years ago.
I.e. after being a nob to someone for no real reason, I was banned for being a nob, then went on to prove I was being a nob by chucking a tantrum. Hat trick!
Anyway, we are all looking at an uncertain future to varying degrees and I do like this place. Even if things get a bit heated on the hot air politics threads, I've never seen anyone carry it over onto other on-topic threads. Two people can happily tear strips off of each other on a Brexit thread and then swap handy tips on tubeless setup five minutes later.
Keep up the good work at STW towers, you are the most authentic voice of mountain biking in the UK.
Subscriber here and won’t be cancelling. Have a feeling this forum is going to be very important for all of us over the next few months .
Staying loyal to the only MTB magazine for adults. I'm useless with computers but I'll have a go at turning off my ad blocker. Off to the shop now.
I WILL NEVER SUBSCRIBE TO THIS HELL SITE.
ON a more serious note, can I suggest putting an obvious link to the subs page in the OP? Took me a while to find the right zone.
Donated. Good to be able to chip in and support something worthwhile. Good luck!
Just realised I really need a new jersey and a guide to Scottish bothies (perfect product btw in the current environment!). Save on the postage though, I’ll pop down and collect when convenient.
daz - nice to see you on this thread; makes change from being over there ----->
Have dropped a little something into bear's PayPal money pool; will convince myself tomorrow I 'need' something from the shop.
Good shout, stevious... This should take you straight there if you can't find it: https://singletrackmag.com/shop/singletrack-subscription/
Thanks all! It's appreciated. Is now a good time to point out that (as far as I remember) the deadline for getting the next (April) issue is tomorrow/today Friday 20th at midnight, so if you subscribe today, your sub will start with the issue that went to the printers on Thursday. And if you subscribe after that, your sub will start with the June issue.
However, you will get online access to the new April issue (out on the 4th) the day it's out, plus access to 129 previous issues too. Thanks again for your support, folks!
daz – nice to see you on this thread;
Ignore that shite, that’s just brain-dumping catharsis 😀
Bell and book ordered. In these times use it or lose it has never been more relevant.
I like the coffee and mag deal. Though the coffee does not last long.
@Mark/@chipps appreciate you may not want to share the detail but is it worth it to you for digital subs to upgrade to paper?
Just ordered coffee, how about a bog roll subscription?
Done and done... just one question though, paid for sub first then went back to buy something from the shop and my card details were auto filled for me when I went to the basket, anyway to ‘unsave’ them?
Subscribed. Stay well people...
Subscribed, never have done before and not sure why honestly. Hope you guys get through this ok!
Just subscribed to the digital & paper subscription. Should have done it years ago, to be fair.
Chipped in my commute money to the Paypal pool. Am already a subscriber and there's not much room left in the flat for STW merch.
Wishing you and the team all the best!
Just ordered Bikepacking book and hip flask, hoping I need both soon!
Good luck and stay safe and healthy.
Steve.
can I suggest putting an obvious link to the subs page in the OP?
Done. Ta.
Subscribed, working from home for the next 3 months with the kids home is going to be bad enough so think i am going to need this place a lot more than normal
"I’m a singletracker for life so not sure I’ve even got an option to un-subscribe!!! 😂"
+1
Shutting the pub tomorrow, hoping the limited cash reserves will keep us and our staff together long enough to see it out.
And best of luck to all. Not sure if it's the virus or the government we're trying to survive.
Done.
Sub renewed.
Mark, is there any way of cancelling any future paper mags- I don't want to change to a digital sub, happy to keep paying the same amount, but to be honest, I don't need a hardcopy of the mag. Might only save you a few pennies, but I might not be the only one who'd be happy doing this.
I'd hazard that emailing subs@ would be the best place to ask.
I was thinking of going digital only, but I can pass the paper copies onto someone else, take them into work, whatever.
That way they get read by lots of people who wouldn't normally buy the mag.
Who knows, someone might even get into cycling....
@chipps or indeed anyone from the mag who can answer.
I don’t ride anymore so don’t really have any interest in the physical mag (although I’d read it if it dropped through the letter box) but before I subscribe which one actually puts more money in your bank?
The £8 bi-monthly or the £2.50 each month for the digital only? I’d presume the latter but can happily do either. Which is better for you?
