Singletracks began more than 20 years ago as a resource for finding mountain bike trails all over the world, and our mission is to share the mountain bike knowledge that inspires epic adventures. That’s why we’re stoked to officially announce a major site update that makes it easier to find mountain bike trail information than ever before. And to ask for your continued support.
A sample of the free mountain bike trail maps you’ll find on Singletracks.
The mountain bike trail resource
Back in the late 1990s we recognized the need for an online mountain bike trail information resource, and over the years our travel coverage has evolved and expanded thanks to the help of thousands of volunteer contributors. We’ve personally discovered dozens of incredible riding spots around the world thanks to Singletracks, and we suspect many of our readers have as well.
In order to share this wealth of trail information even further, back in May we removed the pay wall from trail maps and GPS data on Singletracks that’s existed for more than a decade. Our team has been working toward making this happen for a couple of years now, and given the cost and effort involved in managing, organizing, hosting, and sharing a massive trail database it’s been quite an undertaking. To say we’re stoked to be here today is an understatement!
Beyond making map data available for free, we’ve added dozens of new features, improved the look and feel, fixed bugs, and updated information for thousands of trails. Not only that, the Singletracks staff has added information for thousands of new trails both inside and outside the USA to the database, and we continue to add hundreds more each month.
While there are a lot of changes to the trail pages, what’s not changing is our focus on the trails themselves. In fact we’re doubling down on our coverage of the environment, trail advocacy, and news about trail projects happening all over the world.
Mobile trail info
Just like you, we live on our smartphones, so we work hard to make every part of Singletracks mobile-friendly. The new Singletracks trail pages incorporate additional features like trail check-ins that were previously only available in our iOS and Android apps, while offering other features not available in the app like the ability to edit reviews and suggest changes to trail details.
When we launched our iPhone (and later Android) apps starting in August, 2010 mobile web browsers were limited and responsive design wasn’t really a thing. Now it’s possible to do everything we ever dreamed for the Singletracks mobile app right inside Chrome, Safari, or Internet Explorer, on any type of device.
For that reason, we’re going to be dropping support for our iOS and Android apps beginning October 1, 2020. If you created an account or started a trail wishlist in the app, all your account info and contributions are already available on the Singletracks mobile website. You can even add a Singletracks shortcut icon to your home screen in the same spot where you kept the app.
We need your support
Singletracks has invested a lot to make these changes in an effort to better serve the mountain bike community, and we could use your help to continue growing and improving.
Purchase an ad-free subscription
The vast majority of Singletracks’ revenue comes from advertisers. In turn, ad sales fund our two biggest expenses: full time staff salaries and web hosting / map servers. It’s difficult finding the right balance between serving our readers and running (sometimes annoying) online ads. Ads cause pages to load slowly, they’re distracting, and can be intrusive. The phrase “necessary evil” was surely invented to describe banner ads.
So, for our regular readers and trail database users, starting today we’re offering an ad-free membership for a small fee. Purchasing a membership shows your support and ensures our independent journalists can continue covering the mountain bike world in a professional way.
We know many of you probably run ad blockers in your web browsers, so purchasing an ad-free membership is a way to continue doing so guilt-free. If you like what we do and want to support Singletracks, but can’t afford a few bucks a month, consider turning off your blocker when you do visit.
Contribute
The Singletracks community is incredible. Over the past two decades you’ve built a comprehensive resource for mountain bike trail information, from photos and videos to trail maps and reviews.
If you’ve found useful trail information through Singletracks, we encourage you to pay it forward by adding a trail review or photo each time you ride a new trail. Over the coming weeks and months we’ll be highlighting many of the ways everyone can share the trail stoke.
Shop with our Partners
We encourage you to continue supporting your local bike shops and when you do choose to shop online, consider purchasing from one of our supporting brands and retailers. Next time that you are shopping for new or used bikes, MTB clothing, even those hard-to-resist Black Friday deals, Singletracks may receive a small portion of that sale when you order through our referral links.
If you have not already, please join our email list to receive product news, deals, and exclusive offers from our retail partners.
Buy Singletracks Merch
Branded jerseys, hats, and stickers show your support out in the real world.
Our team is excited about these changes and we are indebted to our readers and contributors who have made the site what it is today, and what it can be tomorrow.
Happy trails!
