Tested: Diadora Ergo Mountain Bike Shoes
Cannondale discontinued distributing the Diadora Ergo mountain bike shoe, but there are plenty of them filling retail shelves. Deeply discounted prices mean a good shoe just got a whole lot better.

7-24-08 // Tested: Scott All Mountain Shoes
Riding trails with Scott’s All Mountain shoes, I found I could boot cactus heads like soccer balls. The main purpose of the high inside cuff is for protection, and I was happy to trade torn-out chunks of padding for chunks of ankle.

7-24-08 // Tested: Bell Variant
This helmet is all about taking care of business. Its easily adjustable GPS retention device grapples your head with a hold so stable that even the most aggressive trails, and a few ill-timed body slams, failed to rattle its composure.

7-15-08 // Tested: Specialized Trail 110
The Specialized Trail 110s are protective, comfortable enough to hike in, and gripped exceedingly well in loam or mud. And they are a perfect choice for the finicky, but financially challenged among us.

1-30-08 // Tested: Lake MX230 Shoes
My three-year-old, beaten-down shoes had finally taken on the shape of my feet perfectly. Unfortunately, they also had taken on a certain funk and shed every last remnant of tread.

1-8-08 // Tested: SixSixOne 2007 Pro Pressure Suit
It's no secret all the young punks in the bike park don't wear upper body armor. And sure, they may be dumb for doing so, but one thing remains certain: when the sun’s cooking and your’e riding hard, a T-shirt sans sweaty, bulky, manky pads sure looks appealing. Look a little closer, though, at said young bucks exposed flesh, and there’s usually a veritable meat department of scarrage.

1-4-08 // Tested: Craft Thermal Jacket
Mountain biking is rife with technology that makes the sport more enjoyable today than it was 20 years ago. While SPD pedals, suspension and disc brakes seem to hog all the glory, there are a boatload of less distinguished advances that, when you think about it, are pretty damn cool.

3-30-07 // Tested: Mace Cryogen Gloves
Riding in the cold can be a big challenge, but a few choice pieces of equipment can make things easier. Equipment including Mace Cryogen winter riding gloves.

TESTED: Garneau Wind Dry F2 Jacket
This is one of the warmest, most functional cycling jackets on the market (and it comes in more sedate colors, if you are so inclined.

TESTED: Adidas Marathon MTB Shoes
Baptized in a historically foul-weathered New England cyclocross season, my Marathons scoffed at every conceivable iteration of bad riding conditions with hardly a whisper of abandoning the cause.

TESTED: Bellwether Coldfront Women’s Jacket
Bellwether has created a true standout with its Coldfront women’s cycling jacket. Constructed for aerobic workouts in freezing and below-freezing temperatures, the Coldfront is an anomaly; it’s incredibly warm, but it’s also well-cut and ridiculously lightweight.

TESTED Dakine Ventilator
The Ventilator, as the name implies, is more of a light-duty, cross-country kind of mountain bike glove—heavy emphasis on being airy, comfy and the like.

TESTED: Adidas AdiStar XC Race
If you’re looking for comfortable, multi-use, budget shoes, forget about it. But if you’re narrow-footed and looking for speed, slip on a pair of the AdiStars.

DECEMBER 9th: TESTED Bell X-Ray
The Bell X-Ray still holds its own against the latest generation of swoopy, swiss cheese-looking, cross-country lids.

October 19th: TESTED Nema Mode Jersey
Long-sleeved, short sleeved, sleeveless--the Nema Mode adapts to every mountain bike riding condition.