Devinci manufactures a lot of bikes in their factory in Chicoutimi Quebec and myself and Ambrose were there to learn about the whole process that happens from concept in CAD to boxed bike on its way to your local bike shop. This is part one of our tour and we'll be looking at the concept process where a bike is created on the designer's computer, then to prototyping it, testing prototypes in the test bench area as well as information on Devinci's instrumented bike that they created to gather valuable information for creating the best bikes they can. We'll also be going for a lunch time ride with a bunch of the employees as they enjoy the great XC trails just outside the factory door.

Videos, pictures and information inside:

Oury Grips have been around since year dot as you can see by their still popular 80's retro grip designs. New for 2009 are these new color ways for an ever expanding rider base.

Through your family you inherit a lot of things. Car's, homes, debts, genes, but the one thing us as men need most you can not inherit, the 'family jewels'. If you don't understand this saying in due time you will, but for us that understand it you know what I am talking about. Nothing is more of a flow breaker than getting a swift whack to your family jewels. Not only that, but it's a very uncomfortable lesson to learn.

But how do we avoid, or prevent this situation as well as we can? In this review we will cover a few of the main contributors to the pain we refer to as "sacking", and ways to prevent this painful lesson like running a set of good grippy pedals.

Schwalbe, along with Timo Pritzel have produced one heck of a nice street tire. The Table Top tire is an extremely light, street designed tire that features a simple, yet highly effective tread pattern. The Table Top tire is a functional tire, that does what it's supposed to, and it does it well.

Pics and video inside.

Mini DH tracks are great training grounds for DH racing. Adding a Freelap timing system makes it an even better training tool. I recently acquired a Freelap system, and couldn't wait to try it out. We put a good crew together on one of our local tracks and set out to do some timing!

All photos by Dave Mackie.

On November 8th Sand Hill Ranch Bike Park will be hosting the second annual benefit race for Tara called appropriately enough the “Race for Tara 2”. Sand Hill is currently trying to gather volunteers to perform maintenance of the track before this event. They need some help fixing up the berms, jumps and mowing down the weeds. Park maintenance days will be October 18/19 and 25/26.

Aaron Chase was making his way around the Outdoor Demo aboard his new and unique machine, the Cannondale Chase Softtail. The new bike uses a Lefty suspension fork for a top tube, has 3" of travel, and still has tight hardtail geometry. How the heck does it do that?

Read the article and find out!

Watch the HD Video with Aaron Chase explaining the theory behind his new bike!

Lock-Ons. There really is only one name when we talk about Lock-On Grips. 99 percent of us don't live in sunny California. Rain, Rain go away and come again another day.

Unless you've a set of ODI's that is.

Australia is home to some of the best DH riders on the WC circuit today. There are also a slew of new and upcoming rippers that are making a name for themselves on the Australian racing scene. TIA (not to be confused with TNA ;o) is a new video/documentary to come out of the land down under which give you an apercu of what it’s like to chase your dreams of becoming the fastest racer in Australia.

Point-One Racing is owned, and operated by racing enthusiasts, so it seems logical for them to strive for weight savings, and strength. Recently we got a Split Second Direct Mount stem from Point-One, their entry for the RockShox standard direct mounting stem market.

Point-One Racing has hit the nail on the head with the production of the Split Second Direct Mount Stem. Here's a quick look at it.

As one of the larger bike manufacturers, Norco continues to improve and add to it's ever growing line-up of bikes. Throughout the years, they have made leaps and bounds, improving and introducing new ideas to the mountain bike industry. One thing that hasn't changed is their outstanding commitment and drive, to deliver top quality bikes to happy customers. When I was approached with the opportunity to ride the Six, I didn't even stop for a second to think twice about it. It had been some time since I had saddled up on a Norco, but I was eager to find out what the research and development team had been up to in their lab-the North Shore mountains.

Pics and riding video inside:

Like a helpful roommate, Dain at WTB has hooked us up with some sweet rubbers.

Wilderness Trail Bikes is known more for their saddles around here, but we got our rims into a set of the WTB Dissent Tires to see how they'd perform in our neck of the woods.

Read on to see how they fared.

Norco has rocked the boat with this one! Their completely new 2009 Team DH has been overhauled, redone, retooled, and put on a diet. With a flashy look all its own and a class leading weight, the new Norco race bike deserves a little more attention.

Watch the HD video and learn more about the new go-fast bike from Norco!

DMR - Red Shift. From the guys who brought you the World famous V12 Pedal comes their new XC tire with an aggressive and sharp tread that's ideal for the fast approaching winter months.

Check em out!

The name Tomac is synonymous with racing and winning when it comes to mountain biking. Johnny T did it all back in the day - he raced road, XC, Dual and Downhill and he kicked a lot of asses at all these disciplines. Through his knowledge and experience, along with his good buddy Doug Bradbury's abilities, Tomac bikes was born.

Check inside to learn more about the Tomac Primer 220 from Johnny T himself and Joel Smith:

2009 marks a new series of brakes for Avid with the Elixir models. The Elixir line up uses TaperBore technology to harness and control the brake's power. User friendly adjustments are also a hot topic with these brakes.

Check out the video and pics inside:

Dakine of Hood River Oregon make products for us cyclists that enhance our riding pleasure. We're not talking components here, we're talking Hydration packs, Gloves, tail gate covers, traveling bike bags, and the all important Trail Builders pack. They want to help you enjoy your riding experience at home or abroad.

Check inside for a look at the new packs and gloves from Dakine:

New DH Wheels From Easton and a Blackburn Pump Designed For Big DH Tires!

I know, I know...Pumps aren't exactly the most exciting thing to see from Interbike '08 but you owe it to yourself to check out Blackburn's new Mammoth 2Stage. Made to move a ton of air fast into your big DH tires, the 2Stage may deserve a place in your backpack!

Easton has been feeding their Havoc wheels steroids and the result is the brand new for '09 Havoc DH wheelset ready for action on big bikes everywhere!

Two HD Video's Inside!

DMR Moto Tyres are the Dirt Jumper's No1 choice of rubber down the trails here in the U.K. Directional tread that spins fast yet holds up in the berms.

See why the Moto is number one.

For 2009, RockShox has taken their already great Reba and redesigned it from the ground up and added a 20mm MAXLE Lite option too. 26" and 29" options, are also rolling out.

Check out all the details and video inside:

Tomac bikes is the result of wanting to create bikes that are high performance, so that the end user can benefit from owning a race ready machine with no sacrifices to performance. The Snyper is the do it all trail machine that we're seeing more and more riders leaning towards these days.

Check out what Joel Smith has to say about the Snyper 140 inside:

Welcome to the future of trail and all mountain riding (freeriders, you'll benefit from it too) - the Truvativ HammerSchmidt will change how you ride! This is a bold statement, but until you get a chance to really try one, you'll just have to believe me or talk to the other folks that have demo'd one and be prepared to start riding more.

Check out the pics, video and information inside:

Race Face has always had a nice booth at the show and this year was no exception. In fact, between the Heli-biking movie that was playing on the flat screen, Brett Tippie walking about in lycra, and some wicked brew being passed about, I'd venture to say it was my top booth pick of this years show. While lounging in the bar stools Julian busted out some flashy new red cranks, the Deus LTD.

Let's have a look!

HD Video with Brett Tippie Inside!

Canadian company Race Face has your best interests in mind with their expanded range of pads. New for 2009 is a slim fitting knee pad called the Dig, as well as the Zero, a half length knee and shin pad that looks pretty sick. All the woman out there who ride will be pumped to see that Race Face is thinking of them also with their new ladies specific line of protection.

HD Video inside!

No one needs to tell you to wear a helmet I hope. But you may need to be told to wear one that look's rad! Giro has some killer new colors and designs for their Remedys, Carbon Remedys, and the Flak DJ lid. Check them out!

HD Videos inside!

The Quake 7.9 is Marin's big travel freeride bike that is versatile enough to pedal to the goods if you need to. With it's unique Quad Link 2.0 suspension and a full Saint parts kit the 7.9 deserves a closer look!

Watch the HD Video inside and get to know the Quake 7.9!

Giro is easily best known for making amazing helmets, but did you know that they make eyewear and gloves too? Yep eyewear that fits great with your helmet so no more obstruction of fit between eyewear and helmets. The new glove line is also an extension of safety and visual appeal from their helmet line up.

Check out their all new eyewear and gloves inside:

Dakine is best known in the mountain bike world for their packs and gloves, but for 2009 they have launched a full line up of clothes for us riders. They have had jerseys in the mix for a few seasons, but now the shorts are following suit and creating some really nice kits. We were able to wrangle up Dakine team riders Geoff Gulevich and Emily Johnston for a fashion photo shoot at the indoor show.

Check out the videos, pics and details inside:

Fox Racing Shox knows more than a thing or two about suspension, they are industry leaders in every outlet of action sports they are part of. They do one thing and they do it really well, they make suspension that works, so that you can go faster. This year the Atherton's brought home TWO World Champion jerseys on the Fox 40 RC2 and the DHX RC4 platforms.

Have a look at the all new limited edition World Champion 40 RC2 Fork and DHX RC4 Shock inside, along with an interview with Gee and Rachel Atherton.

The current year is 2008, we're at Interbike to learn about the 2009 products and here is RockShox unveiling their 2010 Boxxer forks. What?! Ya that's right, you've seen the Syndicate, Sam Hill and even Kenny Smith on them already, but soon you too will be able to be rolling on the newest Boxxers.

Jon Cancellier tells us about the new RockShox Boxxers inside:

It was hard to miss Trek's presence at the Outdoor Demo this year. With a massive tent, a huge demo fleet, and multiple water cooler's they were a popular place to be. It also didn't hurt that they had their brand new Session 88 DH out soaking up the rays. We take a closer look at the bike behind the buzz and talk to some key people involved in it's development.

HD Video inside!

Rocky Mountain bikes have re-introduced the Altitude for 2009 and it is replacing the long running ETSX series from them. They have classified the Altitude as XC / Marathon, but after talking with Simmons and going for a ride with Andreas Hestler, I say that this is one heck of an All Mountain machine.

Check out the specs, HD Videos and pictures inside:

Norco's Shore line represents their vision of a serious and versatile freeride bike. They have been an important part of Norco's big-bike stable for many seasons now but for '09 the Shore series gets a makeover of Ricki Lake proportions. We're going to take a closer look at their all new Shore One, the top end bike in the line-up.

HD Video Inside!

The crew at WTB have been happy with the success of their Dissent tire (the official tire of the Whistler bike park), but why stop at being happy? This season they set out to improve upon that success and develop a new Dissent 2.3 as well as the new Prowler MX 2.3 through direct input from their team riders Ryan Condrashoff and Brad Benedict. We'll also take a look at their LaserDisc FR Wheelset.

Have a look at the tires and wheels in action inside:

FSA / Gravity had some shiny new parts on display under the lights of their booth at Interbike '08. We take a closer look at their Gravity Light wheels, Gravity Cranks, and brand new platform pedals! While we were there, Vittorio Brumotti busted out some sick moves on his trials bike for Mike - Check out the video inside!

Four videos and a load of info inside!