Cycling Plus

Cycling Plus is the manual for the modern road cyclist. Whether you're cycling weekly, an occasional new rider or a Tour de France fan you’ll find everything you need. Each issue is packed with buying advice and tests of essential cycling gear - everything from bikes to bags! Cycling Plus is the place to find training advice, nutrition secrets and practical tips guaranteed to improve your bicycling. It's also full of inspirational rides, real-life cycling stories and entertaining riding-related features.

Ed’s letter • Issue 420 ● Summer 2024

The Dirty Reiver • Kielder Forest, Northumberland

What’s on • The best media, entertainment and events from the cycling world

Queen’s stage • 100 years ago, an Italian housewife rode – and completed – the Giro d’Italia. We recall the late, great Alfonsina Strada…

Watt’s the problem? • Laura wonders why some fellow cyclists are snooty about her beloved ebike

One Shop Stop • Every issue, Cycling Plus gives some love to Britain’s best independent bike shops

Yellow jersey • Sport’s most iconic item of clothing has a unique power, for good and ill

Basso Diamante SV Super Record WRL • £9,999 Handcrafted Italian Superbike with Campagnolo’s wireless Super Record groupset

United Arab Emirates

The route

The Bike Test FAST TRACK • Which of this trio of speedy mid-priced gravellers would make the best all-round, off-road race companion? We find out…

Need to know • Find out how this speedy breed of gravel bikes aims to get the balance right to suit the demands it faces

Bike tech explained • Your quickfire guide to bike jargon

Bikes on test • Three machines designed for going fast beyond the tarmac

Riverside GCR FORCE AXS XPLR • £4,000 Decathlon’s value-packed premium gravel ride

Cervélo Áspero Rival AXS XPLR • £5,200 More comfort means more speed according to Cervélo

Argon 18 Dark Matter Force AXS XPLR • £5,500 Rugged racer from Canada

Cervélo Áspero Rival AXS XPLR • Frame updates and excellent wheels produce plenty of off-road speed

HOW TO WIN THE TOUR DE FRANCE • What does it take to win a stage of the Tour or even the race itself? Cycling Plus investigates the physiology and skills required to triumph in the world’s biggest bike race

DAYS OF THUNDER • Champion cyclist Maurice Burton battled racism to compete in the Six Days of Ghent, the pinnacle of track racing in the 1970s. To promote his new authorised biography, he speaks to us about this wild era on the boards

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE • Britain’s best-selling cycling magazine will come through your letterbox as if by magic every month if you become a subscriber. And it’s much cheaper than buying it in the shops. It’s a win-win!

Ridden & Rated • The UK’s best tests for over 30 years

Tern Orox R14 • £8,100 Half utility cargo bike, half off-road fat bike

SRAM Apex AXS XPLR groupset • £1,457 (1x inc power meter) Slick, robust and well priced

Chain lubes • Which one works best in summer conditions?

Women’s bib shorts • £110-£160 Which ones strike the best balance of comfort and performance?

Land of the Giants • Warren Rossiter heads to Taiwan to experience the launch of the new Giant TCR

The 2024 TCR family • Three levels cover a range of budgets for those who like to go fast

HELL OR HIGH WATER • The Paris-Roubaix Challenge pits amateurs against an abridged version of the iconic ‘Hell of the North’ race

LOCAL KNOWLEDGE

SUBSCRIBE TO MBUK • BRITAIN’S BEST-SELLING MOUNTAIN BIKING MAGAZINE

Training zone • Expert cycling advice on maximising your training

Boost your ride...