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Steve WorlandSteve Worland 1954 - 2014
Cycling journalist Steve Worland has died of a heart attack while running in Ashton Court, Bristol earlier today.
The doyen of British mountain bike technical journalists, Steve started writing for Mountain Biking UK in the early 90s and was instrumental in building that magazine’s reputation for fair bike testing based on real-world riding.
He went on to edit What Mountain Bike magazine and was technical director of the mountain bike magazines at Future Publishing from 2005 until being made redundant in 2011.
In the last couple of years Steve became a valued contributor to road.cc. He may have helped invent British mountain bike journalism, but Steve loved all types of riding and was a noted road racer and time triallist in his youth. He was also an accomplished expedition cyclist and outdoorsman who rode all over Europe. With Keith Bontrager he took part in the TransRockies in 2005.
Steve on the cover of MBUK in 1991
Steve also wrote or contributed to books including ‘The Mountain Bike Book’ for Haynes and ‘The Complete Book of Mountain Biking’.
To say the road.cc team is in shock is an understatement. Steve was a fixture in the cycling media, always willing to talk bikes or go for a ride. Despite his formidable knowledge of bikes and the reputation that went with it, he was a modest, generous, self effacing man who was always happy to share what he knew.
Steve will be greatly missed. Our thoughts are with all his friends and family, especially his partner Jo and their daughter Holly.
John has been writing about bikes and cycling for over 30 years since discovering that people were mug enough to pay him for it rather than expecting him to do an honest day's work.
He was heavily involved in the mountain bike boom of the late 1980s as a racer, team manager and race promoter, and that led to writing for Mountain Biking UK magazine shortly after its inception. He got the gig by phoning up the editor and telling him the magazine was rubbish and he could do better. Rather than telling him to get lost, MBUK editor Tym Manley called John’s bluff and the rest is history.
Since then he has worked on MTB Pro magazine and was editor of Maximum Mountain Bike and Australian Mountain Bike magazines, before switching to the web in 2000 to work for CyclingNews.com. Along with road.cc founder Tony Farrelly, John was on the launch team for BikeRadar.com and subsequently became editor in chief of Future Publishing’s group of cycling magazines and websites, including Cycling Plus, MBUK, What Mountain Bike and Procycling.
John has also written for Cyclist magazine, edited the BikeMagic website and was founding editor of TotalWomensCycling.com before handing over to someone far more representative of the site's main audience.
He joined road.cc in 2013. He lives in Cambridge where the lack of hills is more than made up for by the headwinds.
Latest Comments
- brooksby 52 min 25 sec ago
They haven't been seen for ages- did they get banned?
- eburtthebike 58 min 21 sec ago
They prefer their alternative facts to real ones. They believe something, therefore it must be true.
- Spangly Shiny 2 hours 9 min ago
Sorry, no idea what you are on about.
- ktache 2 hours 13 min ago
For double that you can' get a Pedro's vise whip Ii. Or half, the reportedly excellent decathlon thingy. And Sigma has the Silca for only £150.
- KDee 2 hours 18 min ago
I'm no detective, but the "NOAHFAST" decal vertically stickered on the headtube is a little bit of a clue.
- Spangly Shiny 2 hours 38 min ago
I remember my driving test examiner, straight after congratulating me for having passed the test said, "Don't be a twat and have that as your best...
- Bigfoz 4 hours 46 min ago
Did they think it was a drive thru?
- Rendel Harris 4 hours 56 min ago
As a teacher's husband, I'm allowed to watch up to 50km out (unless it's a big mountain stage when I can only watch up to the start of the first HC...
- PoorInRichfield 7 hours 31 min ago
I thought wide rims and tires were marketing hype until I bought a bike in 2019 that had both... 700x32C tires on a 25mm internal width rim. Now I...
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53 comments
The loss of a absolute legend RIP Steve
My thoughts and good wishes to his family and friends at this very difficult time.
I became friends with Steve way back in the very early 90'2 I used to love visiting his house near Howarth in Yorkshire to drop off bikes for test with him. Always found him one of life's genuine nice people and was always interested in what you were working on for the future. Such a sad loss to the cycling world and my most sincere condolences to his family.
Very sad. I cycled past him about 2 weeks ago when he was jogging near Leigh Woods. Also met him a couple of times, however it was his reviews and slightly dodgy neon lyrca, that fuelled my MTBing in the early days.
ride on dude.
Spent this morning's ride thinking of Steve and all the lives he's touched, which is evident through the tweets, reports of his death and comments on threads like this.
Holds up a piece of purple anodised.
Thank you for all the good reads. This one is for you!
Sad news indeed. A reminder to all to live for the day. A true cycling legend. Sadly missed.
So sad
Thoughts with all his friends & family.
I'm shocked and stunned
I can't imagine the MTB press without Steve's writing, he's been such an important part of it for the twenty odd years I've followed the sport. He'll be missed very much. Such sad news. RIP Steve
May his wheels forever spin. Condolences to his family, friends and work colleagues. His words will be missed. A true stalwart of the two wheeled brigade.
A talisman for UK MTB scene has left us. I've read many an article that Steve put out there and I've no doubt that he influenced me and others to take up fatter tyres.
What a sad loss.
RIP Steve W.
Condolences to his family and friends. He will be missed.
Sad and shocked.. A real loss to UK cycling and anyone that knew him in person, in writing or having met him in the bike world. Credibility as well as totally genuine and passionate about the subject. He'll be missed.
Very sad news indeed. He reviewed my bikes a few times and always put so much thought into a balanced and well written article. A real loss to our industy, our thoughts are with his family and friends. RIP Steve.
RIP, Steve. 'Ride and find where all the freedom has gone'. (Mint Sauce)
Mountain biking got lucky when Muddy Fox hired Steve to design their bikes in 1985. He was quiet, measured and knowledgeable. And he was kind.
I'm So Sad. I spent a lot of the 90's with my head in a Mountain Bike magazine if I wasn't out on the bike. You knew with Steve's articles you were going to learn something useful. whether it was bike handling skills (riding ruts) or a maintenance issue. You could guarantee it would be a solid piece. After a 10 gap for me from bikes due to getting into Beer and Live Bands. To come back and see him still up there at the top of his game was very heart warming. So today I mourn you Steve, from the bottom of my heart. Ride in Peace mate x
One of our number invited him out on the Saturday ride out to Clevedon, last year. A couple of the mountain bikers in our number were in awe of him but he just rode along as one of the lads, lovely fellow, chatting away at the coffee stop.
I know some people who were close to him and they're devastated.
Thoughts are with his family and friends at this time.
RIP Steve... sad day.
Keep on riding steve....
Sad news. Met him a number of times through mbuk on bike tests.
Was also responsible with freeborn for pushing Tony Ellsworth into making the Ellsworth 'moment' which was a genre defining full-suspension mountain bike.
Great guy and huge contribution to UK cycling.
I too am stunned and shocked by this news, he was a great journalist and a cracking rider, he will be missed, my condolences to his family and friends.
Bad day ... Condolences to family and friends.
Lost for words, RIP Steve.
Sad news, RIP Steve....his name was a mtb legend.
Really sad news, I learned so much from Steve's writing. He first gave me the confidence to try fixing and building bikes, and his objectivity was always clear. I will miss his writing, and my thoughts are with the friends and family he leaves behind.
I grew up with and respected Steve Worland's name. Been reading Steve since I was a kid. Never knew him. I'm sorry for that. He seemed like a proper decent bloke. Bye chap, you made British cycling a better place.
< Gallows humour >
"Whilst out running", well, that should serve as a solid reminder to all of us to not get off the bikes then.
< /Gallows humour >
Top fucking bloke, made me aspire to do stuff and want to do even more as a teenager, which lead to almost everything I do now.
Whilst I understand his family and friends sense of loss, I truly hope they can recall and retain all of their amazing memories of him.
I still can't believe the news. Steve was a proper nice guy, super chilled, fun and possibly the most knowledgeable person on the subject of bicycles bar none. Gutted he is no longer with us.
My condolences.
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