FEB. 28th
Tested: Hoots Vorpal Jacket & Shorts
We all bail at some point. Hoots' Vorpal jacket and shorts take the sting and some of the bruises out of your inevitable rasslin' matches with Mother Earth.

Tested: Answer Kashmir shoes
One hundred and fifty bucks ain't exactly cheap, but it sure beats getting your frost-bitten toes amputated at the local ER.

Tested: Giro Xen helmet
The Giro Xen is kind of big, kind of punk and just a little bit of heaven on your head. That's Ferrentino's conclusion. Check it out.

Tested: Shimano M-225 Shoes
Light, snug, stiff...everything a racing shoe should be, but not necessarily the shoe for every rider.

Performance Clear Rain Jacket
Yeah, I know, catalog buying is going to kill the independent bike shops, but if you're looking for a plastic cape, Performance has 'em in your size.

Park Tool's SA-3 Heavy-Duty Shop Apron
Let's face it: Some mechanics just have that strange light around them that lets everyone know they aren't going to get so much as a drop of lube on them.

Arnette Swinger Sunglasses
The Arnette Swingers are so swinging, they include a warning: "This product is not suitable for direct viewing of the sun and for exposure to UV radiation produced by artificial sources."

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
This is one of the warmest, most functional 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 cyclo-cross 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.

FEB: 16th: TESTED Dakine Ventilator
The Ventilator, as the name implies, is more of a light-duty, cross-country kind of glove—heavy emphasis on being airy, comfy and the like.