Radioface

This is the kind of crash that the Bell super air R with removable chin bar seems like it could really protect your face on. It’s not real heavy impact (25 mph headfirst into a tree ) - that a heavy duty full face protects, but it is lower impact face + rock. If you have some plastic between your face and the rock you’re going to come out much better. I have had a few of these sort of slow speed OTB where my arms can’t fully brace and keep my face from going into stuff and the removable chin bar has protected my teeth. Most of the kind of riding I do is long XC rides with some spice mixed in, and long climbs with a few steep technical descents. A high end FF would be brutal but putting the chin bar on for a couple trails is NBD.

Check out Minus33. The Algonquin is a great riding shirt.

I try to wear merino as much as possible for both performance and environmental (less plastic shed) reasons. The options are pretty limited so it’s nice to see someone else focusing on mtb a bit. I like Minus33 - based out of New Hampshire. The Algonquin is a great riding shirt.

@Bikefellow: yeah man - I’ve been following along a bit but that’s helpful background. Quite a cluster but it’s good to know people are working hard on it. When I referred to the “situation” at VH I was thinking more about the relationship with local landowners and the fact that many of them were very anti-biker and ultimately led to the 250 Act trigger. I’d heard about the complaints from the locals regarding people ripping down the dirt roads in cars with bike racks on them. I’m also interested in the view on building trails in state-owned Victory State Forest. It is a massive area and very conducive terrain for great trails. Seems like a decent way to get out of folks’ hair a bit. Put a satellite parking area over on Victory Road south of Flower Brook. There is a bunch of land for sale there and a bunch that’s owned by timber companies. And it’s right on the edge of the state forest. Can easily connect with the Moose Haven stuff and the mountain if you connect over from Pinkham Rd. And then of course over to Victory Hill...

Agreed -- and I think we should be very much worried about the ripple effect on other landowners due to the consolidation of traffic in other parts of the network. The only way KT is going to work is if FAR fewer people ride there (so it's good that outlets like Pinkbike, Singletracks, etc are talking about it). The part of the network that is gone is the true core and center of the system -- the 3Ts on the west side and Pines / Riverwood / connectors on the east side. It looks like it is going to be very difficult to reasonably connect rides on either side of D Hill -- for example from Coronary over to Sidewinder on on the west side, or Rim/Ridge over to Kitchel on the east side. It is probably the most common loop in the area to link the 3Ts, sidewinder, heaven's bench, rim, ridge, pines, kitchel. And bigger loops almost always include some version of that within it. That is not possible now. So I am not sure I agree with the take in the article that: "This will no doubt be a huge blow to cycling in the area but there are still plenty of trails to ride in the network . . . " This is going to be a huge blow to the network, full stop. It is going to put a huge amount of pressure on places like Moose Haven, which is already a cluster. I saw a fight in the parking lot last year when a local tracked a down a pickup truck that blew into the lot way too fast. I don't think the East Haven locals like the riders at all -- and this is going to increase that tension. Same will be true of other areas in the network. It may be true that KT can expand into other areas within the system in the future to release the pressure -- but if it is going to sustain 150K riders that expansion will have to be major. And I don't see that happening anytime soon.

@THomer: I actually don't see this fork on the fox website...

I've had 5 Hans Dampf tires over the last 3 years or so and never knew there were knob issues. Til I went out Saturday on a tire that has probably 50 miles on it and 30 minutes into the ride I hear that heart wrenching sound of air screaming out of my back tire. Hop off and look at the tire and see a knob about 50% separated from the tire with Stan's sealant bubbling out. Now I know about the knob issues.

See if those guys can pick up my skin for me while they're at it. I've left a lot of forearm and shin meat on that trail. Pretty epic spot. Tough to beat back-to-back-to-back days on Amasa/Ahab, The Whole E, and Mag7. Must-do three-day trip.

Anyone have other recs for a good 2.35-2.4 trail tire. All around - good grip, durable, reasonable weight. I ride mostly rooty, rocky northeast trails. Have Hans Dampf on now and like them other than how they wear - which is too fast.