Putting on a 'Brain Bucket' is one of the smartest things your wife/girlfriend/parents can get you do to, it's actually the smartest thing you can do for yourself if you want to enjoy Freeride/DH'ing for a long time. Wearing your helmet and armor isn't 100% proof you're going to walk away from a crash. I've learned a hard lesson this summer racing a DH and I crashed so hard that if I didn't have the body 'armored' up I would be a pile a Jell-O and useless to my loved ones. Impacting the ground at a any rate of speed is nothing I signed up for. Riding within my ability is the key and preached by the top racers in the world who risk life and limb to beat the clock. Wearing the right helmet when you go down will improve your chances dramatically. WEAR YOUR HELMET (And Armor While Riding A Bike!)

Porridge. The Scots absolutely love it, at the Winter races we even had a porridge bar serving the hot stuff.

I know for a fact Cathro, Hutchens, Barnes and Cunningham all live on the stuff. Should you?

With 88 bikes in their line up, Kona has a lot of styles to cover. Thankfully here at Pinkbike, we're more concerned with their gravity offerings for 2009.

Here's a look at the Stinky, the Stinky Deluxe, the Minxy and the Stab Supreme:

The Met Kaos Ultimalite is a fancy lid, a fancy weight and a fancy price. As my Grandmother said, "If you want to get ahead, get a hat".

Might as well make it a good one I always thought, what do you think?

A few weeks ago I had the pleasure of attending the Truvativ HammerSchmidt launch in the beautiful town of Pemberton B.C. Pemberton was the perfect setup for this launch as the riding in and around town is tough to rival anywhere. Great ascents that rewarded you with even better descending are in abundance there and the terrain is what HammerSchmidt was built to excel on.

Here is my personal take on my experience with the Truvativ HammerSchmidt:

Kona Bikes has been in the business for 20 years now and they have a recipe that works for them. Recently I attended their 2009 bike and soft goods launch up in Whistler BC.

Here's a look at the Shonky hard tail and the Bass Slopestyle bikes:

Atomlab’s General Issue Pedals definitely need a mention. Are they thinnest cast aluminum pedals ever made? Now how about their Pimplite Stems, time for the rest of us to catch up with the U.S me thinks.

Source: Ryan Kuhn

Midway through the 2008 season, the DH race beast sunk its fangs deep into my blood. I suddenly had a burning desire to get on the track as much and as soon as possible. However, the limiting factor was I had dumped all my cash early in the season on a new “all mountain” ride more apt to the single track of my hometown of Rossland, B.C.

Finally after months of teasing, Truvativ releases the true identity of HammerSchmidt. We can put an end to all the rumors and speculations that have been inundating various MTB forums. Adios front derailleur, hello HammerSchmidt!

EDITED: Added Q Factor Info

While I may still not quite know how to pronounce the GEAX name, one thing I do know is how their Barro tire performs. If you are looking for some new rubber for your pedal bike you'll want to keep reading.

Read on.....

Welcome to the Pinkbike.com time machine. Let's forget about visiting historical moments in time and get down to business! We're going to jump forward and take a good long look at the 2009 Mongoose Boot'r. Its price tag is impressive, but does the 'goose perform?

Read on and find out!

Riding and tech video's inside!

Source: Ian Millar

Once again the folks in Ferndale Washington have broken the mold on bicycle design. Transition Bikes latest hit comes in the form of a female specific freeride frame titled the Syren. So how does Transition define a freeride female specific bike? Simply by building a bike with the help of 30 female rippers based on the current trends they are seeing in all-mountain fun. A bike designed for bike parks, local trail networks and of course epic singletrack.

The Pinkbike crew gets to roll on the latest and greatest all too often. You guys call it "testing", while I call it living the dream. But what do we choose when we have to slap down some of our own hard earned coin on parts for our ride?

I've recently invested in a set of brand spanking new custom wheels for my all-mountain bike. I only wanted a set of wheels that approach the weight of XC race hoops, and something wide enough as to work good with 2.5" width tires, and sturdy enough to stand up to the odd booter or big gap if I am feeling zesty enough. That's not too much to ask for is it?

Read on to find out what I chose....

Riding the Session 88 has been an all around great experience. I had the pleasure of bike napping one for a few weeks and hit the road with it to various bike parks and riding zones around B.C. The response I got from other riders was unlike anything I've ever experienced with any other bike I've ridden.

Have a look at it in action (4 videos inside):