John Abbott Valentine – better known to MBUK readers as John Stevenson – has died from cancer.
The outspoken Yorkshireman played a pivotal role in the early years of MBUK, joining the fledgling magazine as deputy editor in 1989, after several years working in bike shops and making his name on the UK MTB scene as a racer, team manager and event promoter.
In his own words, he “got the gig by phoning up the editor and telling him the magazine was rubbish”. Tym Manley called his bluff and gave him a job.
Although not trained as one, John had a journalist’s instincts and attention to detail, and wasn’t afraid to espouse controversial views, or call out brands or individuals for their mistakes.
Old friend Rory Hitchens, a fellow former racer turned UK cycling industry mainstay, remembers: “John was stand-out from the word go. I was drawn to his confidence, loudness and ‘couldn’t give a shit, that’s your problem mate’ way of going about life. Things always happened around John. The world is already less agitated without him, and all the more dull for it.”
John – and his trademark blond ponytail – moved with MBUK from its tiny office in Kent to the big offices of Future Publishing in Bath and went on to become international editor and then editor-in-chief of the media group’s cycling titles, which at that time included MBUK, What Mountain Bike magazine and BikeRadar.
Legendary snapper Steve Behr told us: “Very influential and much respected in the cycling world, John didn’t suffer fools gladly and wasn’t shy in letting people know when he was displeased about something or didn't agree with something.
“Under that gruff and sometimes grumpy northern exterior, he was great company, very enthusiastic about many things, and loved to debate and discuss energetically a wide variety of topics.
“He pushed MBUK on the tech side a lot in the early years, and has influenced many people who’ve gone on to have careers in cycling journalism. He’s a good friend who’ll be greatly missed.”
Both Rob Weaver and I had the opportunity to work with John in Bath. He was kind and generous – not hesitating to circle back and give me a push after I bonked on one particularly long ride – but would quickly get worked up when people didn’t meet his (very high) standards. I can remember him getting genuinely angry about brands’ (and writers’) use of the word ‘compliance’ to describe engineered flex, arguing that it wasn’t a dictionary definition of the word.
“I'd rather be loud and wrong than quiet and right,” he once told Rob and test guru Guy Kesteven during a memorable rant at the Interbike trade show in Las Vegas. Generally, he was loud and right – although maybe not during that same trip when he drove their hire car up Boulder Canyon with the handbrake on because, “it’s a shit car and I can’t find it to take it off”.
On another memorable occasion, he yelled, “Coffee is a human right!” across the office.” Former MBUK art editor James ‘Jimmer’ Blackwell said: “He was a hard taskmaster but a top bloke, utterly unique, and his ideas were something to listen to.”
After parting ways with Future, John branched out into freelancing, worked briefly for Planet-X and then became editor at large of road cycling website Road.cc.
In 2024, he took a DNA test and tracked down his biological father, who’d sadly died five years earlier. John decided to drop the surname of his hated stepdad, which he’d used since his school days, and adopt his mum’s maiden name, Abbott, and his dad’s surname, Valentine.
A year earlier, John had been diagnosed with stage-four bowel cancer and tumours in his liver. Despite undergoing chemotherapy and various operations, the disease spread to his lungs and abdominal lymph nodes. He spent his last days with his wife, Caroline, and his beloved dogs.
Caroline announced his death on Facebook, saying: “John died overnight. It was peaceful and pain-free, as far as we could tell, after a very fast deterioration.”
Funeral arrangements will be on www.isjohndeadyet.co.uk when finalised.
