John Shafer | Mountain Bike Review

About the author: John Shafer

John Shafer, a.k.a. Photo-John, is a photographer, cyclist, skier and general outdoor lover. He’s happiest when he’s on his bike or skis, taking pictures in the backcountry. He’s been on the Mtbr team since 1999 running PhotographyREVIEW.com as well as contributing photos and articles on Mtbr. John has been taking pictures since college and believes everyone can be a good photographer if they just learn a few simple rules. He loves big mountains, rocky singletrack, powder days, 6-inch trail bikes, coffee and tacos. Look for him pushing his bike uphill, carrying an inappropriate amount of camera gear in an overloaded backpack.

2012 Sea Otter FMB Dirt Jump Competition Photos

By John Shafer April 23, 2012 Feature Articles Race Coverage Sea Otter Classic

A bronze-level FMB dirt jump was held at the 2012 Sea Otter Classic. Since it was at Sea Otter, the turnout and competition was excellent. Camera and Tyler McCaul, Paul Basagoitia, Mike Montgomery, Aaron Chase, Andrew Taylor, Kelly McGarry and a whole bunch of other top-level chuckers were there to show off their big air

Knolly Endorphin Sneak Peek

By John Shafer April 21, 2012 26er Feature Articles Sea Otter Classic

I believe I just scored an exclusive with this Knolly Endorphin sneak peek. Kevin Waterbury from Knolly showed me what I think he said was a one-off pre-production bike. It has a shocking day-glow yellow paint job that my photos don’t do justice and Knolly’s standard-issue sophisticated linkage with beautiful CNC machined parts. The Endorphin

29er Day Full Suspension Bike Gallery

By John Shafer February 29, 2012 29er Feature Articles Featured Photo

(photo by “chuky”) To celebrate the 29th of February, or 29er day as we’re calling it, here’s a gallery of 29er full suspension bike eye candy. Most of these bikes are the private rides of Mtbr members, although I also pulled a few tasty morsels from last year’s Interbike coverage. It used to be that

29er Day Hardtail Bike Gallery

By John Shafer February 28, 2012 29er Feature Articles Featured Photo

In celebration of 29er day, here’s a gallery of 29er hardtail bike porn, with plenty of full rigid singlespeed photos for the serious perverts. The photos are all of Mtbr community member 29er bikes. Click on the thumbnails below to see larger photos. Each photo has a link to the original post in the description

Park City Point-to-Point Race

By John Shafer September 07, 2011 Feature Articles

The 2011 Park City Point-To-Point mountain bike race took place in Park City, Utah over Labor Day Weekend. The PCP2P is a 78-mile endurance race almost all of which takes place on the endless and glorious Park City singletrack. The race starts at about 7000 feet of altitude in Park City’s Round Valley trail network.

Trailside Bike Park Opens In Park City, Utah

By John Shafer June 20, 2011 Feature Articles

This weekend I had the pleasure of attending the official opening of the new Trailside Bike Park in Park City, Utah. It is spectacular – especially considering it was paid for with local tax dollars and it’s free to the public. It has a 5000 sq ft. pump track, a 1500 ft beginner “flow style”

2010 Red Bull Rampage Photos & Coverage!

By John Shafer October 03, 2010 Race Coverage

The finals for the 2010 Red Bull Rampage mountain bike freeride competition are being held today on the redrock cliffs in Virgin, Utah. On Friday, twenty-five riders who weren’t pre-qualified got the chance to show their stuff and the top ten and moved on to the finals, along with the fifteen who were pre-selected to

2010 Press Camp At Deer Valley Gallery

By John Shafer July 08, 2010 Bike Press Camp Ride Reports

The second annual Press Camp was held at Deer Valley Ski Resort in Park City, a couple of weeks ago. Exhibitors included, Scott, Orbea, WTB, Mongoose, Race Face, Fox, and Cannondale. Since I live about 45 minutes away in Salt Lake City, I felt it was my moral duty to drive up, ride the Deer

Top Five Mountain Bike Digital Cameras

By John Shafer December 09, 2009 Buyer's Guides Top Ten - Top Five

Most mountain bikers I know ride with a digital camera. If they don’t, they should. We get to play in such beautiful places and have such a good time riding that every ride needs to be documented. But how do you choose an mtb-worthy digital camera? A camera that would be fine for the average

I Heart The SF Bike Expo – Event Report

By John Shafer November 24, 2009 Press and News Race Coverage

I accidentally – and happily – ended up at the SF Bike Expo this weekend. I thought I was just going to a cyclocross race at the Cow Palace, but when I got there I discovered the race was only one part of the SF Bike Expo. This is the second year of the SF

Sneak Peak – Canfield Nimble 9 29er

By John Shafer September 10, 2009 Press and News Product Launch Product Spotlight

Canfield isn’t the first name you think of when it comes to 29ers or cross country bikes. Bikes for chucking off red cliffs, maybe – but 29ers? They’ve been talking about it for a while and those who had heard the rumors have been waiting. But this will be a surprise to most mountain bikers.

Specialized 2010 Global Press Launch

By John Shafer June 29, 2009 Press and News Product Launch

I am up at Snowbird Ski and Summer resort for the 2010 Specialized Global Press Launch mountain bike presentation. Yesterday I saw the new Stumpjumper, the new Epic 29er, the new Safire and era women’s bikes, and the new 27 pound S-Works Enduro. I also got to ride the carbon S-Works Stumpjumper and the Epic

Red Bull Rampage Rain Delay

By John Shafer October 04, 2008 Press and News Race Coverage

The 2008 Red Bull Rampage qualifying is postponed due to stormy weather.

Red Bull Rampage 2008 – The Evolution

By John Shafer October 04, 2008 Race Coverage

The Red Bull Rampage is back and Mtbr is covering the event! The last Red Bull Rampage took place in Virgin, Utah in 2004. It was the premiere mountain bike freeride competition at the time and is probably most responsible for the slopestyle competitions that exists now. It looked like the 2004 event was going

2008 Deer Valley National

By John Shafer June 28, 2008 Press and News Race Coverage

2008 Deer Valley National June 26-29, 2008 The US National Mountain Bike Series (NMBS) makes its fourth stop this season at the Deer Valley ski resort in Park City Utah. Events include Dual Slalom, Downhill, Cross Country, and Super D. Pro Cross Country finals and pro Dual Slalom finals take place on Saturday and pro

Marzocchi 2008 Forks

By John Shafer June 16, 2007 Pro Reviews

Marzocchi 2008 Fork Lineup This is the first of three articles on the 2008 Marzocchi suspension product lineup. It goes over the highlights of Marzocchi’s 2008 fork introductions. I will cover a few products, some new features and changes, and then at the end of the article you’ll find links to specific fork images and