Martyn Ashton on Rideable Now and the Future of Adaptive MTB
The innovation in this side of the sport has been growing rapidly, and Martyn Ashton is here to add even more fuel to the fire...
Starting Line
There’s a short list of “dream guests” for our podcast, and Martyn Ashton has been on this list since we started. The list of reasons why we admire him is a mile long, but his latest effort - launching Rideable Now - is what we want to share with everyone. Adaptive mountain biking is going through an incredible phase of innovation at the moment, and Martyn’s efforts are making those bikes more attainable and visible.
If this episode resonates with you and you’d like to support Rideable Now, here’s the link to do so. Join Aaron (and many others) in supporting the cause with a £5 monthly contribution.
Martyn Ashton on Rideable Now and the Future of Adaptive MTB
Martyn Ashton spent two decades as one of the most influential trials riders in the world — making the smallest, most niche discipline of mountain biking accessible and exciting for a global audience through videos, shows, and a personality that made everyone feel like they could try it. In 2013, a crash during a stunt show left him paralyzed. Now he's doing the exact same thing all over again — this time for adaptive mountain biking.
In this conversation, Martyn walks through the founding of Rideable Now, a not-for-profit organization dedicated to helping people with disabilities and life-changing injuries access adaptive mountain bikes. He explains why modern adaptive bikes aren't a watered-down version of mountain biking — they're genuinely terrifying, capable machines that unlock every trail in the world for people who never thought they'd ride again. He also gets into the economics of £25,000 bikes, why the e-bike power race could go too far, and the moment he gave away Rideable Now's first complete bike to a father of three who had no idea it was coming.
We Keep Hearing This
We just got back from TrailCon, and the conversations we had with brands there all pointed to the same struggle. They know they need to be working with creators, but most of them are too busy to find the right ones and get it off the ground. This is the exact problem that Popfly has solved. If you’re working at a brand that needs this kind of help, you need to check this out (and tell them we sent you), it’ll be worth it. And…if you’re an athlete or creator, you should definitely get on this platform - there are brands, ready to support you and looking for your talent. We’re using it outside of the podcast and having a lot of success with it - and this is exactly why we wanted to partner with Popfly in the first place. Highly recommended!
Article Of The Week
A big congratulations to Seth LaReau for one year of Trail Waves. Amazing how much can change in a year!
Matt Trappe created an incredible space in Tahoe last week - where we were invited to host a night for an offline Second Nature conversation. This is a mega update from Matt, including some TrailCon/WSER stuff, and then some. We’re going to have him on the pod to dive even deeper into this, but this is a solid preview!
Job Of The Week
💧 HydraPak is hiring a Content & Social Media Strategist.
🟧 ACG has a role open in Shanghai, China leading Sport and Marketplace Integration.
🚀 Our friends at Popfly are hiring a Client Success & Partnerships Manager.
🏃♂️ Tailwind Nutrition is looking for an Associate Creative Director.
Show Notes
BPC - Brand, Product, Content
BPC is our closing segment where we share Brands we’ve discovered, Products we’re using and Content that we love.
💨 Topeak Electric Tire Pump: Tire pumps have come a long way in the past few years - no more manually pumping your tires on the side of the trail (or anywhere else). As an added bonus, all these electronic pumps typically have a digital tire pressure gauge included. Too easy!
🤯 Stashed Spacerail (10% discount link): Martyn and Aaron both swear by this bike storage setup, and if you haven’t seen it yet - now’s the time. Getting bikes up off the floor makes a HUGE impact on your space (and organization), and the way Stashed puts it all together makes it super easy to install and use. Game changer!
Thank You
Thanks for listening to this week’s episode - this one meant a lot to us. Next week’s episode is with a founder who was previously mentioned on BPC by one of our favorite recurring guests. Stay tuned!