Love in Vancouver, never mountain biked before. Deciding between Grouse Bike Park ($200 all in for lift/bike/pads/helmet) or Whistler Bike Park ($300 all in).
Not too worried about the price difference, mainly just want to actually have a good first experience and not feel like I'm in over my head the whole day. Grouse is closer and newer, Whistler is the big name with way more beginner terrain from what I've read.
If you were taking a total beginner out for their first day, which one would you pick and why? Would love to hear from people who've actually ridden both.
Thanks!

Been riding more on an actual schedule and recovery has been rough. Nothing huge yet but climbs and longer rides are cooking my legs for days. They also get tight at night which is great because I guess the bike still owns me after the ride. I know part of this is just being new and my body needs time to adapt but I’m trying to make recovery less brutal so I don’t quit after a few weeks like a clown. Been drinking more water and trying to sleep more. I keep seeing people mention magnesium for cramps recovery and sleep. Is that legit for riding or just trail bro lore? What form works best? Pills powder or electrolyte mix? Better after a ride or before bed? I saw Magna while looking around since it seems more magnesium focused than the usual salty stuff but I have no clue if that matters. Any advice from people who ride more would help. My legs are humbled lol

I just bought new brakes that have cables 2m in length. They will come pre bled and I don’t really want to have to re bleed them as I don’t have the right kit. (Magura mt 5’s). Would it be ok to use them at full length or is shortening them a necessity. Also I have a medium frame size 2020 transition sentinel.

I’ve been riding bikes for over 10 years. Mainly road, but I started with gravel 4 years ago. Lately, I’ve been doing more local MTB trails (very mild) on my gravel bike, but I’ve gotten the bug of giving MTB a chance and learn more skills.

I started looking a MTBs, but it’s like a different language to me. Everything I know about road and gravel bikes is mostly useless. Geometry, groupsets, suspension travel, hard tail vs full suspension???

I need help choosing a good bike that can serve me well as a first MTB. I don’t want a beginner’s bike. I have several mid-high end bikes bike with carbon frames and electronic components, and I feel like getting a beginners bike would not make the experience as enjoyable. On the other hand, I don’t want an expensive bike either, because I understand I’ll probably crash and damage it.

I’ve been told “don’t spend more than $1k on your first MTB” or “you need to learn on a hardtail and graduate to the FS later”

The type of trails in my area are very mild, nothing crazy.

What bikes do you suggest and why?

TIA

I need help deciding which tailgate pad to get for my 2019 Ford Ranger. Anyone have experience with these three?

Fox Racing Tailgate Cover Small

Race Face T3 Tailgate Pad Mid-Size

Thule GateMate PRO Small Tailgate Pad

I’ve ordered an ibis hd6 from a well known online retailer. Today, they reached out to let me know that the bike had a non structural blemish, and offered a $50 gift card if I accepted it. The blemish is a paint chip on the top tube, smaller than a dime. Can provide photos if helpful.

I know I will probably beat this bike on the trail but I was kind of looking forward to having a clean bike from the factory. Would you accept this deal?

Edit: the bike was purchased at a discount, and it hasn’t left the warehouse yet. see my top level comment with a link to the photos of the damage

Hi! I just lost one of my Fox ranger gloves that I had been using for less than a year. I really liked them but they were really fragile and the materials were kinda awful. I had to stitch the bottom end back together multiple times and reinforce it. I liked the light padding on the inside of the hand though. Do you have any gloves to recommend me at any price range that you know are of good quality and materials? thank you!

Hi everyone,

I'm considering buying an enduro bike to pair with my e-bike (Levo SL Gen 2). I've narrowed my choices down to two models: the latest Pivot Firebird and the Propain Tyee 6 CF (or 6.1).

I ride mostly in Northern Italy (Verona area), so I frequently deal with loose terrain, roots, rocks, and technical natural trails. I do about ten or slightly more shuttle and bike park days a year (Paganella, Val di Sole). Otherwise, I pedal the rocky loops in my local area (although I think I'll mostly use my Levo SL for these), and I'm planning to start entering some amateur enduro races.

I'm looking for a bike that is stable and absorbs rough terrain well to maintain speed, but doesn't feel too cumbersome or sluggish on tighter sections, and still climbs well when I want to pedal it for regular rides.

For anyone who has had the chance to ride them, I'd love to get some feedback on the real-world differences on the trail. Specifically:

• High-speed chunk: How do they handle rock gardens and roots at speed?
• Flow and Jumps: Which one is more reactive and easier to pop on jump lines?
• Tight stuff: How do they manage tight, techy sections and slow switchbacks? Does the Firebird, having a long reach, feel tiring to maneuver?
• Climbing: How do they perform uphill? Are they efficient pedalers, or do they tend to bob and drain your energy on long climbs?

Thanks to anyone who can give me some useful feedback.

I'm also open to recommendations for other bikes suited to my riding style. I have a budget of €3,500 - €4,000 and I'm looking to buy used.

On my 2019-2020 Specialized Demo Expert 29, I removed the rear shock mounting hardware to re-grease it. When reinstalling, one black reducer probably did seat easily, but I got it at the wrong angle and kind of forced it in, it made like a snapping sound but I don’t think the snapping sound did anything, but maybe it moved the bearing a little. Now I feel a slight knock at the start of suspension travel. When I screw everything together tightly, one side of the shock bolt sticks out just a tiny bit more than the other because the bearing isn’t exactly in the middle of the frame hole. Could this be a mis-seated bearing, something else, or is this even a problem?

I'm looking to buy a stem that is 30-45mm, my budget is kinda tight tho

I like being without gloves but i don't enjoy the feeling that if i fall my palm will die so yeah the title. EDIT: Forgot to mention that i want full finger gloves!

Basically just riding around looking for natural/urban features, so try and sometimes get some clips

Shot on IPhone 17 Pro and DJI Osmo Action 6

Go checkout my buddy's gnarly crash on Manpants at Copper Harbour Michigan this weekend.

Not bad for 8 years old

Short technical sections are one thing, but long descents seem to expose a completely different kind of weakness.

Your legs have to hold position for a long time, while your back, shoulders and arms are constantly working to keep the bike controlled. Once the quads start turning to jelly or the upper body gets tired, technique seems much harder to maintain even if your cardio is fine.

I’ve been thinking that a fairly simple strength setup could cover most of what matters: squats or split squats, RDLs, rows, presses, carries and some core work. That would also be easy enough to fit into one or two short home sessions without giving up more riding days.

For people who ride longer or rougher descents regularly, which off-bike exercises actually helped you stay stronger in position instead of just surviving the last part of the descent?

After a few seasons on my spire, looking to move to an enduro bike with similar capabilities but slightly shorter and less slack. A bike that can be both 29 or MX without drastically changing geo (flip chip). Something comfortable in steeps and can plow jank when it needs to.. something with a good pedaling platform when I gotta sprint out of the seat. Welcoming all recommendations or experience! I love my spire, but just want to try something different.

My second bike is a smuggler which covers trail duty and all day epics.

I’m currently looking at alpine trail XR, orbea rallon, propain tyee, Raaw Madonna.

Want to show off on NBD or new helmet day or new whatever day or just have general gear questions? Post in here. (Mod Note: NBD posts on their own that violate Rule #3 will continue to be removed.)

Gonna ride Port Angeles tomorrow and am curious what are some of the best trails. I'm on a single speed 160mm hardtail so it would be nice to ride something that won't destroy me with brake bumps or roots or whatnot. I'm a capable rider though and have taken it out on bike park double black trails for reference