Big Bike Bash, the family mountain biking and music festival held at Avon Tyrrell in the New Forest, has been cancelled for 2026, in what organisers have described as likely a permanent end.

The cancellation was announced on 16 May by organiser Dan and the BBB Trustees in a statement posted on social media. Organisers cited low ticket sales and rising costs as the reasons behind the decision, with only 23% of tickets sold.

The statement said the team needed time to come to terms with the closure, adding: "If there is ever a next chapter, you will be the first to hear about it."

Big Bike Bash isn’t the first MTB event to cancel, and it probably won’t be the last. Rising costs, changing rider habits, and the pressure of getting enough early ticket sales are clearly hitting parts of the events scene hard right now. Whatever comes next, Big Bike Bash has been a big part of UK riding culture for years, raising money, bringing families together, and creating a weekend that a lot of riders grew up with. Thanks to everyone involved over the years, from organisers and volunteers to the riders who kept turning up. 

If this really is the final chapter for the event, what’s your standout Big Bike Bash memory? And more broadly, what do MTB events need to do differently now to survive?