With a stagnant website and new ownership by EMAP USA , die-hard subscribers were starting to get worried. Posts on the website like "Put a fork in it (bikemag)" seemed to aptly convey the opinion of a lot of readers.

The final issues of last year looked like the work of another team, or the same team with new direction (management). Chock full of ads, and lacking in good articles and reviews, I only picked up a copy if the BUZZ section was good and I couldn't read everything in the checkout stand. --I'm telling you, that's how you tell a good magazine from a bad one! Take the the grocery store checkout stand test. If you can flip through the mag in the checkout stand, it's not worth buying.--

Anyway, I was a little worried.

A risqué ad for FHM seemed like a desperate attempt to get money, and spawned a lengthy message thread on their board entitled "Distasteful Ad"

Vernon Felton's opening address in the March issue of this year seemed like an attempt to justify the Second Annual Buyers Guide edition has he too new that this was not the Bike Magazine our mothers used to read. In his own words, Vernon wrote, "The question isn't whether BIKE can include a Buyer's Guide and still be BIKE. The more formidable questions are, can BIKE include a Buyer's Guide and still capture the thrill of riding? Can BIKE include a Buyer's Guide and still deliver a magazine that's interesting to non-gearheads? Can BIKE include an honest Buyer's Guide without bowing down to it's advertisers?"

His answer: . . ."Yes"

I'm not sure what kind of power struggles go on between the offices in San Juan Capistrano and Los Angeles, but I'm hoping the current staff is permitted to run the show.

This month's issue (May)(Yes, I said May, and no I don't know why magazines expect us to believe that they really travel in to the future to write and publish "cutting edge" stuff. The obvious answer is a simple ploy to get magazines that have been sitting on supermarket shelves for over a month . .sold.) . . . . . as I was saying: . . .This month's issue is was a great attempt to win back loyalty from the only person that matters . . .me.

Take a look at a GREAT article by Vernon Felton on the future of radical riding and what guys like Josh Bender are doing for the sport. I don't think he really took a side, just stirred up some discussion and debate.

What do you think? Speak your mind at Bikeaddict's Forum.