Weighing in at a claimed 1,345 grams, you might think these gorgeous carbon wheels are intended for mere XC race duty… but you’d be wrong. The Easton EC70 wheels are designed for trail riding, meaning that they’re more than happy blasting through the rocks and up and over mountains… but more on that below.
Photo: Cannondale Bicycles.
The new fork reportedly has new internal components which “increase the small bump sensitivity and high-speed suppleness of the fork.” Cannondale claims that the dual-crown single-leg design make this long-travel enduro fork both stiffer and lighter than the competition.

Read the full article here.

I took to the Duro glasses very naturally. The light weight, solid coverage, and sporty features combine with a rather casual styling quite nicely. But don’t get confused: these are performance glasses through and through. Since I picked them up at Interbike in September, I’ve ridden well over a thousand miles with these on my face.
Whether or not it actually was at the core before, Backcountry’s new pro team, as well as their sponsorship of Utah’s high school mountain biking league, proves that they are now all-in with mountain biking.

I first rode the Monarch Crest back in 2008, and while we had been through Salida several times since then, I hadn’t had a chance to ride the crest again. That first ride, back in 2008, was hellaciously daunting, yet fantastically memorable. Thanks to a wrong turn, getting caught in a rain storm without a jacket, destroying my chain and cassette, and being forced to bail off the route early, it was quite the experience, to say the least.

After a five-year absence, I finally returned.

Read the full article here.

It’s the middle of March, and cabin fever is afflicting mountain bikers all across the United States. Thankfully, if you want to escape the vice-like grip of snow and cold temperatures, there are plenty of places to catch some rays and roll on dry dirt.
Here are 13 fantastic choices for a spring mountain bike getaway:
Well, H&I Adventures has just the answer to this dilemma! Instead of hoping for a glimpse of animals through your metal cage, what about spending 12 days mountain biking across Namibia, getting up close and personal with the wildlife?

Read the full article here.
Hermosa Tours has just announced a brand-new 10-day self-guided tour along the Colorado Trail from the town of Salida to the town of Durango. This section of the trail passes through some of the most beautiful scenery and along some of the best singletrack that the Colorado Trail has to offer.
I’ll be hosting the Colorado event at the ever-popular Buffalo Creek trail system. Perennially a top-ranked trail system on Singletracks, these fast, flowy trails are both beginner friendly, yet entertaining for advanced riders! We’ll plan to ride about 20 miles, give or take, although there’ll be bail out options along the way. Afterwards, we’ll head over to the historic Bucksnort Saloon for a late lunch and drinks, if you’re interested.

Most of the big-name, well-known rides are located on the Alpine Trail side of the valley, and while there were definitely trail options and variations off the Alpine Trail that I hadn’t ridden yet, I decided I wanted to try a big shuttle on the southern side of the river. After doing a good bit of reading and a lot of staring at my map, I settled on the Hardesty Mountain shuttle.
The cutaway rear of the saddle is designed to provide additional tire clearance when the suspension is fully compressed. When developing their new DH rig, Pivot was concerned that they couldn’t use the geometry that they wanted because of the rear tire contacting the saddle when the suspension compressed fully.

Read the full article here.

Flying between the trunks of massive trees at extremely high speeds with a sheer drop off on one side is a white-knuckle experience. Even though I tried to let off the brakes and flow as much as possible, I think my pads were still sizzling in an effort to control the steep, treacherous freefall back down the flanks of Larison Rock.

After rolling into town, we wasted no time: we dropped by Wilamette Mountain Mercantile, purchased a map, got some trail recommendations, set up camp, and prepared to ride!
While this was our first visit to Oakridge, after reading reviews on Singletracks there was one trail that I knew I had to ride first: the Alpine Trail.

The 30 Days of Biking challenge is beginning its 5th year, and it’s a pretty simple concept: bike every day, without fail, for all 30 days of April. There’s no time or distance requirement, and not even a requirement to ride a certain type of bike. Whether it’s just riding around the block, to the grocery store, an adventurous singletrack mountain bike ride, or a road bike century, it all counts as riding!

Read the full article here.

The Breakout is a large volume all mountain tire that’s designed for both speed and dangerous traction, making for a deadly combination. The tread pattern features square and oval-shaped knobs with consistent spacing and pitch. This tire looks like it should roll fast, despite its 2.5″ width.

Hey John, thanks for the great post! This is an interesting question, and I think it’s an important discussion to have. However, I disagree with you on most of your points.

For points #1 and #3, I think it depends largely on the attitude of the people posting and viewing on social media. Posting your adventures doesn’t have to be narcissistic, and viewing others’ adventures doesn’t have to create jealousy and anger. Why the heck can’t we just be happy for one another? Also, I’ve found that generally, what goes around comes around: just because I see a Facebook “friend” posting photos while skiing massive peaks in Alaska, BC, Montana, Wyoming, Washington, Utah, and everywhere that I might have missed in between doesn’t mean I need to be jealous of him. I just enjoy getting to see cool photos from his experiences… it definitely beats baby photos and crappy memes!

Read the full article here.
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