With winter fading fast and the trails drying we’re getting geared up for a summer of riding!

I will be riding and reviewing the Norco A-line this year while I volunteer in the Whistler Mountain Bike Park and for some of the more gnarly rides on the North Shore of North Vancouver.

I thought I would give you a preview of the Norco A Line for 2009.

Norco has completely revamped its DH line. Using the same hydroformed frame with adjustable 8-9inch of rear travel as the A-line Park edition and DH Frame the lower spec’d Aline makes up this worthy trio. Coming in three sizes for 2009 I was on the small frame which was a good fit for me for downhill riding.

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Mtbr Lights Shootout Main Page | Mtbr Lights Reviews | Mtbr Lights Forum

NiteFLUX Photon Max Extreme

Light Meter charts and comparison table available here.

Description:

This review won’t be very long since this light is structurally identical to the NiteFLUX Photon Max that we reviewed last year. The case, mounting and accessories are all the same so please refer to the other review for our impressions on the design and packaging. The Photon Max Extreme is distinguished from its predecessor by it’s gold paint on the cooling fins. This gold paint is also seen on the Photon 8 Enduro which we will be reviewing shortly.

So the big news with this light comes in one number, 1350.  That is 1350 lumens compared to the old one at 800 lumens. Most of our other high end LED lights from the shootout come in at under 1000 lumens as well.  Naturally, we were giddy with anticipation to see if this light would measure up to its numbers.

The light comes in a very handy satchel bag that protects the light during transport and opens up nicely for setup. The light head features three LEDs and is fairly big but surprisingly light at 151 grams. The case is a mix of plastic and aluminum molded together in a design that includes nine cooling fins and five vent holes.

The battery is a neoprene wrapped unit slightly smaller than a coke can. The switch is on the battery and has very nice action to it.

Features and Specifications:

- Headlight with Helmet bracket weights – 136grams
- Headlight no bracket weighs – 115grams

The Photon Max headlights also come equipped with temperature sensing, in normal riding conditions it will not come into play but if the headlight was to get too hot it would activate a automatic throttling back of the power consumption to reduce the thermal load on the LEDs. In severe conditions (hot and a standstill for a long period and the light was on highest beam setting) or accidental situation like switching-on of the headlight inside a sports bag could raise the temperature to a point where the temperature sensor would alert a electronic micro controller inside the battery canister which would then throttle back the power to headlight allowing it to cool.
Photon Max Extreme Light Head & Accessories:

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The Sierra Buttes Trail Stewardship is putting on a raffle to win an Ibis Mojo complete bike, built the way
Lopes likes it.  all proceeds go directly to building new trails in and around Downieville.

http://sierratrails.org/

source: greg williams

Our New Bike’s Name Is Up To You - VOTE NOW: We’ve Weeded Out More Than 3,000 Submitted Names For Our New Magic Link Bike And Four Remain In The Hunt - Media Contact: Keith Cozzens, kcozzens@basecampcomm.com or 307.734.7575 KONAWORLD (April 20, 2009) - Sure, naming our new all-mountain jewel may have stumped us, but you, oh glorious Kona people, had no problem. After hundreds of emails, our international selection committee has weeded through more than 3,000 names submitted (thank you, thank you) to the following four: Tanuki – Literally, the Tanuki is a Japanese raccoon-like dog or badger with monster nuts. Enough said. Japanese folklore, however, backs up this name suggestion by explaining how the legendary Tanuki is reputed to be mischievous and jolly, a master of disguise and shape shifting. Basically, our new bike in a nut shell (pardon the pun). Fun, adaptability and super oversized cojones. Magus – Refers to a sorcerer or member of a priestly caste from ancient Persia, which fits nicely with the Magic Link outfitted, 2-bikes-in-1 supernatural powers of this new bike. King Kilauea – Located on Hawaii’s big island, Kilauea is currently the most active volcano on the Earth. Getting it done, day in, day out, hot burning magma style. The name has a nice fit with the volcano and Hawaiian themes used at Kona over the years. Cadabra – It’s been used for centuries, by shamans through to modern day magicians. An abbreviation of the power laden “abracadabra,” that again, fits nicely with the Magic Link capabilities of this bike. So, the time has come for you - dedicated Kona riders - to help choose the name of our new Magic Link six-inch travel bike. CLICK HERE TO VOTE ON A NAME TODAY. Every four days, based on your votes for the names you want to win, we’ll drop the least popular name until we arrive at our winner, who will get a sick new Tanuki, Magus, King Kilauea or Cadabra for their tagging efforts. Other prizes include a burly, crusier-style AfricaBike, new men’s Freddy Jacket, set of Wah Wah pedals and a Kona men’s or women’s riding jersey. For more info hit: www.konaworld.com. 2455 Salashan Loop, Ferndale, WA 98248 tel: (360)366-0951 www.konaworld.com | www.konabikeparks.com | www.konaworld.tv | www.konabiketown.com

source: Kona News

source: furiousagency

Claire, Matt represented the team is Sea Otter this year with Jason being the all-round guy!

After a monumental journey straight from South Africa via London and onto LA. Then the drive from So-cal up to Nor-cal for the Sea Otter classic with not much sleep and jet lag it must have been a mission for them. Thanks guys.

Here is Claire’s report - she kept up her great early season form with another 2 podiums, one on her brand new Tazer FS built for her just before the Slalom practice.

“Well the 2009 round of the Sea Otter Classic is over. Phew!
The weather was very hot days and very cold nights and dry and that made it much more fun. It also made for a loose, dusty Dual Slalom on Saturday, everyone was going down and the berms were disappearing fast. Aboard my new Intense Tazer, I was able to post a 4th place qualifier and then finish 5th in the finals. Oh my legs were burning by the end of the day!
Sunday was the DH, well I guess you can call it that. But it was alright, there are some fun jumps on the track and the flat pedally bits that make up the rest of the track just makes it super challenging. I had a not perfect but solid run to put me on the podium in 4th. I think my lungs are still bleeding though and I sound like I have a frog in my throat. Just need a good nights sleep!
Overall a good weekend and glad I came. Get to go home to Whistler for 10 days now, woohoo! I am so excited to see my cat!
Thanks again to our sponsors and thanks Marshy for your hard work and terrible driving.” Claire

April 18 - Fox Racing Shox announces breakthrough developments to their 32 mm front shock and their rear shock line ups.

Read on here…..

“I understand that bicycling, motorcycle riding, other motorized vehicle operation and competitive sports and activities, whether on or off road, involves danger and the RISK of INJURY to any and all parts of my body including possible DEATH.”

These words were used in the general liability release I read while sipping coffee with my fellow riders at the Fox Racing Shox 2009 product launch breakfast at Zaca Station. It was mandated that we sign our life away in order to participate in any and all activities planned for us! There was little known about the day, other than the fact that bicycles and several different types of motorized vehicles would be enjoyed by all who wanted to participate.

As I glanced around the table, people either had a look of trepidation or total excitement, no one really knew what to expect! I for one was totally excited!!!! I personally had never ridden or driven most of the vehicles that were going to be on site!

As far as the bicycle product testing was concerned, I heard that most of it was going to take place on the 2007 Santa Ynez Norba National DH and XC courses. This was great because we could actually test the boundaries of the product on a real DH course. I quickly came to find out that the course was really mellow for DH race course but perfect for testing the 32mm forks and RP23 rear shocks that we would be putting on our bikes.

Post breakfast we headed out to the Zaca Station MX Park in Los Olivios California where Mario Galasso gave a detailed talk about the new Bicycle offerings from Fox.

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If you can’t make it to Sea Otter you can stay up to date here at MTBR.  Bookmark and check out our coverage. There is also coverage in the Sea Otter forum.

New Marin Bikes QUAD DH at Sea Otter Booth#124 250mm Travel Quad Link Suspension Featuring Instantaneous Pivot Center New Low Profile Linkage Design Stepped 1.125-1.5″ Headtube Modular Dropouts

source: Marin Bikes