47 Money Saving Tips!

Times are tight and even our riding budgets need to be reassessed so mbr's put together a treasure trove of cost-cutting tips you can take to the bank

- By Sim Mainey

The outdoors may be free, but mountain biking is becoming an increasingly expensive way to access it. With the cost of living rising in almost every area, we're all looking at our outgoings and searching for ways to make savings. Over at MBR.co.uk, our buyer's guides are there to help steer your purchasing decisions with authoritative, unbiased reviews, alongside the latest software to find the best deals around. But here in print we've decided this month to put our collective heads together to bring you all the best tips and tricks to help lessen the financial impact of riding your bike. So without further ado, here are 47 cash-saving ways to stay riding.

1 CYCLE TO WORK SCHEME

What if we told you you could save up to 43% off the price of a new bike without any haggling? Well, you can.

You've probably heard of the Cycle To Work scheme - also known as Ride to Work, Bike To Work and other variations on the same name - your employers might already have the scheme in place. If you don't take advantage of it then you'll miss out.

How does it work? Here's the very simple version - your employer buys the bike you want, you then pay for it over 12 or 18 months straight from your salary before tax and National Insurance contributions. At the end of the scheme you pay a small fee and the bike is yours.

As you'd expect it's a little bit more complicated than that, but not much, and there are companies out there who will help employers get the scheme rolling.

It used to be that the scheme only worked for bikes up to a certain price point but it's now wide open to all bikes - and indeed frames, forks, lights, and other accessories at any price.

For a detailed guide on how to take advantage of the cycle-to-work scheme check out: bit.ly/cycle2Work

2 MAKE YOUR COMMUTE YOUR RIDE