Now a quick run through of this list suggests a certain herd mentality but never mind. Believe it or not, we’ve all come to these bikes independently, despite appearances and in any case, we thought you’d like to know what at group of Surrey Hills riders in 2007 are currently riding.

Matt

At the moment I’m in the honeymoon period for my 2007 Orange Five. It’s covered about 200 miles so far and is still bedding in but it’s already proving a hit.

I also have a 2005 On-one Inbred hardtail, the classic white 100mm travel version with vertical drop outs. How quaint!

Dave

This year Dave is mostly riding… well all sorts really. As well as a 2007 Orange Five frame that he’s built up with a nice burly spec he has a 2006 On-one Inbred 456 in ‘that blue’, as Brant calls it.

And to show he can plough his own furrow (no, really, don’t go there!), he’s recently bought himself a new singlespeed On-one Inbred slot dropout 29er in a fetching sand colour.

He really needs a fetching desert camo outfit to go with it though…

Jem

Jem has recently switched from a 2006 Marin Wolf Ridge to a 2007 Orange Five Pro. Basically after trying the Orange at the Cycleworks demo day there was a clear winner!

But we’re happy to support Calderdale’s bike industry if it means we can have fun.

Mark

Mark has been waging a frankly lunatic campaign with his wife for a while now for a new frame. And wondrously, she’s caved in, meaning that the next shipment of On-one Inbred 456 frames off the boat has a ridiculously priced red frame with vertical dropouts and his name on it.

It also means a bit of an end to an era, since his 1999 Marin Nail Trail will have to be sacrificed on the eBay alter. Hopefully he’ll write a decent review of it before it goes.

Nicola

Nicola has been riding a 2006 Specialized Hardrock Sport not unlike my wife’s 2007 Specialized Hardrock D4W. Not unreasonably, she seems to be off the opinion that her bike should be kept for longer than one season, so it’s due some significant upgrades soon.

Hydraulic disc brakes are first on the (growing) list, so she’ll finally have a chance of stopping when she wants to.

Hannah

Heading wilfully off in her own direction, Hannah has managed to buy a bike from a little known brand called Trek. Amazingly, that’s the first person I know who rides a Trek!

It’s a 2007 Trek Fuel EX 8 which comes with a great spec and looks the part too. I’ll try and have a go on it soon but suspect it probably offers at least 75% of my Orange’s performance for a third of the price.

Neal

Neal’s another rider who believes in getting his money’s worth from a bike, except when it comes to buying Pace forks! He is currently staring a second decade of use in the face for his Klein something or other which puts the old into old skool.

Doesn’t seem to stop him riding most things we encounter though…

Dave P

Another of our 2007 Orange Five users and to be fair the person who really kick started our Orange fixation.

It’s amazing the effect a burly lime green bike has on people who see it for the first time. Initially negative reactions generally seem to transform into ‘that’s a wicked bike’ pretty quickly.

And then you buy one!

So, there’s the run down of our current bikes.

What’s everyone else currently using as their weapon of choice? Let us know in the comments.

About the author

Matt is one of the founding Molefathers of the Muddymoles, and is the designer and main administrator of the website.

Having ridden a 2007 Orange Five for many years then a 2016 YT Industries Jeffsy 29er, he now rocks a Bird Aether 9 and a Pace RC-627.

An early On-One Inbred still lurks in the back of the stable as a reminder of how things have moved on. You can even find him on road bikes - currently a 2019 Cannondale Topstone 105 SE, a much-used 2011 Specialized Secteur and very niche belt drive Trek District 1.

If you've ever wondered how we got into mountain biking and how the MuddyMoles started, well wonder no more.