Colorado Kid

Has anyone seen the current issue of Bicycling? What a load of s....! Half of it is devoted to their new book. The other half sings the praises of Electric bicycles! What?? I canceled that rag really quick. How does everyone else feel about the "new" Bicycling magazine?

GeneO 

Quit reading it a while back. That sounds pretty bad.

ThermionicScott 

Print is dead.

Spoonrobot 

They gave me a free year to try to get me to renew my USAC racing license.

I never bothered reading any of the issues, I'd grab them from the mailbox, open to the center, pull the staples out and then use the sheets as drop-cloths when I was doing something messy like cleaning my chain or something. After 1-2 issues I realized I was stocked for quite a while so I'd just drop them into the recycling bin on the way into the house.

CXT

Really? Sweet! I used to subscribe to Bicycling but got tired of the same $10k+ carbon fiber road bikes, bland reviews, hipsters, best socks non-sense in every magazine. Sounds like they have finally recognized that globally electric bicycles are outselling standard bicycles and this is the future. I just re-subscribed.

Thanks for the heads up!

mattia76

I'm afraid that once I started with an E or E-assist, I would never want to pedal again

Motolegs

It's alright. Learned about pancakes and bacon in a pouch. Not fond of Yowza and Wowza on the cover. People tend to cry while riding their bikes in the articles, that's sort of disconcerting. Lots of lingo within that I'll be sure to NEVER use.

But I enjoy getting it in the mail and ogling the pretty bikes. There IS useful information in there. Last month there was a cool article about a woman bike racer that biked across the country. Yeah, I'll renew.

InTheRain

Ebikes continue to trend upward. However, their are plenty of specialty magazines that cover the segment. Shouldn't be too upset if bicycling covers ebikes, commuting bikes, folding bikes, touring bikes, fat bikes, etc. occasionally. bicycling is pretty heavy on road cycling most of the time. That's fine, but nothing wrong with covering mountain bikes and cross bikes every once in a while. However, I have a feeling that bicycling magazine is not as objective as they should be... things are a little skewed toward those manufacturers that buy advertising.

osric

I get the mag as part of an advocacy group membership, and it's useless. I use it as a doormat and don't bother reading it.

pdlamb

Sounds like the "old" Buycycling magazine to me...

52telecaster

never read it.

bigbenaugust 

I gave up on Bicycling when I realized it wasn't for me many years ago. But now I miss Bicycle Times.

liampboyle

Follow them online, but that's it, I won't bother with a subscription.

RubeRad

Without asking for it, I started getting the magazines a number of years back, probably because I lived close to a Performance and bought a membership for a year.

Then it stopped for a while.

Then 2mo ago it suddenly started again, I think it said something like 'courtesy of Cannondale'. Thanks Cannondale!

So I guess part of what makes it 'new' is a new editor? (the editor used to be Bill Strickland, now it's Leah Flickinger, who I remember as a regular contributor before)

Mostly it seems about the same to me. Tons of reviews of bikes that are way more expensive than I would ever buy, but amusing to ogle. There are a few useful tidbits here and there.

Darth Lefty 

We have a magazine?

RidingMatthew

+10 i miss that magazine so much. I read it cover to cover every time it came.

bigbenaugust 

I had just re-upped for three years and they quit it about three issues later. :/

DirtRag is not the same!

highrpm

I think the magazine is decent. Yes they had a lot of e-bike content in there. But it looked like a one-time thing.


Last month's issue had some cool trip ideas. That one I liked.

SloButWide 

No, they've also decided that the number one problem with cycling is the lack of women in the sport, so a substantial portion of the articles are about empowered women, or the best women's fashions. I have no problem with that, but I am obviously not their target audience. The cynical side of me says they know women control more of discretionary spending, and are trying to appeal to advertisers. The practical side of me says it's probably just a sign of the times.

speshelite

Bicycling Magazine pushes the social justice warrior agenda very heavily: ie the cycling industry discriminates against transsexuals, women, black people, bicycling is good for the environment, etc.

Just about every story features a heroic woman, such as a bicycling coop advocate volunteering in the ghetto.

RubeRad

What would a transsexual-specific bike seat look like?

CrankyOne

Only about 2% of the population (and shrinking) is interested in competitive or 'serious' cycling. About 15% has no interest in cycling whatsoever.

So that leaves 83% who may be interested in normal daily cycling; to the store, dinner, school, around the block, to visit friends, or through a local park. Maybe a 40 mile ride once or twice a year. These people are interested in e-bikes. And simple reliable bikes that they can ride without having to buy and wear special clothes.

I haven't seen it, but it sounds like Bicycling may be targeting well to remain viable in the future.

RubeRad

TL;DR previously Bicycling was definitely targeted at the 2%, now they're trying to capture the 83%.

Except I would suggest your numbers are probably more like 2%, 90%, 8%. But still 8 > 2, so they could well be trying to appeal to a larger market, BUT the 8% that are interested in 'normal' daily cycling may not be interested enough to spend time/money reading a magazine about it...

SloButWide 

There's an old quip that no one buys a car magazine to read about what's in their neighbor's driveway. It's only partially true. While the articles about the unobtainable supercars are popular, so are the comparisons - hence the bimonthly "Top % ... Comparo!" articles.

Unfortunately, those comparos only seem to run in Bicycling once or twice a year. I enjoyed the Raleigh first look at the $599 Preston and $649 Tourist more than I've enjoyed the reviews of the last few $2500 carbon wonders.

ItsJustMe

Magazines have been dead for years. By the time the magazine arrives, anything in it was old weeks ago.