Charlie Aldridge’s growing resume of race results marks him out as the future of XC.

He’s an Under-23 World Champion in XCO, is the 2025 British Champ at both XCO and XCC and has spent the past two seasons racking up some impressive results in both XCC and XCO on the World Cup circuit, having been signed to Cannondale Factory Racing in 2024.

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Louise Ferguson became the first woman to ever complete a top-to-bottom, seeding and then race run at the infamous Red Bull Hardline Wales 2025 mountain bike race.

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Ric McLaughlin is the current voice of World Cup DH and XC racing, as the lead commentator on Warner Brothers Discovery's coverage. He's also a former staff writer at MBUK, and a self-professed massive MTB geek.

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Dave Hemming was the first Brit to claim a medal in downhill racing during the first Mountain Bike World Championships in Durango, USA.

He went on to race for some of the coolest brands, including Klein, Kona, Fat Chance, Marin and of course, MBUK, to name a few.

His racing career saw him competing full-time as a World Cup racer, travelling the globe and having countless adventures.

It was during his years racing that Hemming’s love for the tech and development started to blossom.

After breaking his back for the second time, he decided to retire from racing professionally.

Since then, he’s been an important part of the bike industry, working for brands such as, Rapha, Vulpine, Cannondale and now Quin, which produces intelligent safety technology for helmets.

Alongside this, Dave’s an ambassador for Niner bikes, sponsors of this podcast. Massive thanks to those guys for helping out.

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Emil Johannson (@johanssoemil) is one of the foremost slopestyle and freeriders on the planet!

He’s a four-time Slopestyle World Champion, a 13 time Crankworx winner, and three-time triple crown winner too - which means he won all three events in the Crankworx tour in a year, three times.

He’s got more slopestyle wins of anyone on the planet, and has also competed in Redbull Rampage, showing an incredible breadth of skill.

His smooth riding style, and ability to fling his bike in any which way he chooses has won him plaudits and fans alike.

We talk to Emil has he recovers from his collarbone and rib fractures, as well as a concussion, suffered at Crankworx, Cairns.

Emil’s just launched a signature set of pads with G-Form. Thanks to those guys for sponsoring this episode of the MBUK Podcast!

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Step back to the late ‘90s and early ‘00s, when Alex Rankin's Sprung series brought DH racing directly to your VHS player, changing MTB filmmaking forever.

These videos became cult classics, kickstarting his iconic career.

His follow-up Earthed series cemented that legacy, showcasing the best of DH racing and the MTB scene.

Rankin's signature style of fast-paced camera work and unforgettable music defined his films.

Both Sprung and Earthed literally changed the game. Having lived and breathed the scene for decades, Alex has incredible stories to tell—and he's sharing some of them in this episode.

Thanks to DMR for sponsoring this podcast.

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Ever wondered how a mountain bike goes from a spark of an idea to shredding the trails? Join us as we dive deep with Matt Cipes, the driving force behind Marin's incredible resurgence in the full-suspension and aggressive mountain bike scene.

Matt takes us behind the scenes of Marin's transformation from a smaller brand to one stacked with high-performing bikes that won't break the bank. Discover the design philosophy that makes Marin bikes so capable and accessible.

We also explore Matt's career journey, from his semi-pro downhill racing days in NorCal (where injury ultimately flipped him from racer to industry) to influential roles at Paul's Component Engineering and Specialized, before landing at the helm of product development at Marin.

In this episode of The MBUK Podcast, we cover:

👉 Matt's career trajectory and the pivotal moments that shaped it.

👉 The core philosophy behind Marin's current bike lineup.

👉 A detailed look at the process of bringing a new mountain bike to market.

👉 Matt's expert perspective on the current state and future of the mountain bike industry. A huge thank you to Marin Bikes for their sponsorship of this episode.

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Chris Porter is one of the most outspoken, and influential voices in mountain biking. Even if you’ve not heard his name, if you’re riding a modern mountain bike, it is likely his influence is found within the frame.

Chris started his mountain bike industry journey as a journalist on mountain bike magazines, which led him, in a round-about way to working on MBi magazine, and others.

He then moved into the world of suspension servicing and tuning, as well as managing a World Cup DH team.

From there, his love for experimentation to find the boundaries of performance led him to, eventually, designing the Geometron brand.

So out-there were those bikes that numerous engineers from mainstream brands purchased their own Geometrons, to see what all the fuss was about - how many future bikes were influenced by those bikes is unknown!

We discuss his career, his unique stories, and dabble with a little technical talk about floating bushings…

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Matt Walker is one of the UK’s foremost downhill racers, having won the UCI World Cup overall in 2020, stood on the top step of a World Cup Podium in 2022, and having a Junior World Championship title in 2017.

Having spent 11 years with Saracen, this year he has moved to Trek Factory Racing’s team, as their most senior rider.

In this episode we talk about how the 2025 season is shaping up, and his move to Trek Factory Racing.

What has it been like moving to one of the paddock’s biggest teams, jumping on a totally new bike, and new suspension components, too.

We also look back at his successful 2020 campaign, his win at Leogang, and of course, his World Champs title.

This podcast is sponsored by Trek Bicycles.

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Join us for an incredible journey through the history of mountain biking with the legendary photographer Steve Behr! 

For nearly four decades, Steve has been capturing the heart and soul of the sport as a professional photographer, his iconic shots gracing the pages of MBUK Magazine since its very first issue 38 years ago. 

In this episode of the MBUK Podcast, Steve shares stories from his epic trips and photoshoots with mountain biking royalty, including Rob Warner, Steve Peat, and Hans Rey. 

Discover the inside scoop on capturing those iconic moments and the evolution of both the mountain bike industry and the art of mountain bike photography itself. 

With more MBUK covers than anyone else, Steve's visual storytelling has defined generations of riders. His legendary status is further cemented by his induction into the Mountain Bike Hall of Fame – a true testament to his impact on the sport. 

Tune in to hear:

* Unforgettable anecdotes from 40 years of mountain bike adventures. 

* Behind-the-scenes secrets of photographing the sport's biggest legends. 

* Insights into the dramatic changes in mountain bike technology and culture. 

* Steve's perspective on the evolution of photography in the digital age. 

* The significance of his Mountain Bike Hall of Fame induction. 

Don't miss this insightful and inspiring conversation with a true icon of mountain biking!

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