Tag Archive for: freeriding

Backcountry Lodge + Mountain Biking = Luxury

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For many of us backcountry skiers, the off season is spent whiling away the hours flipping through back issues of ski porn mags, attending the occasional CrossFit class and dreaming of the white stuff. But for others, the summer and autumn months are an opportunity to take part in another sport that has us climbing peaks and tearing back down them.

Mountain biking is what has brought the Backcountry Ski Canada crew to Sol Mountain Lodge on the southern border of Monashee Provincial Park near Revelstoke, British Columbia. (That and the opportunity to scope out the winter terrain.) It enjoys excellent tenure (30,000 acres), epic snowfall (up to five metres a season) and, importantly, road access in the summertime.

For the entire story about Sol Mountain Lodge, log on to the post at Backcountry Skiing Canada. 

Review of The North Face Downieville Colab Shorts and Wrencher Jersey

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In the past few years The North Face has been tiptoeing into the mountain bike clothing market to cater to the off-season whims of their pro ski athletes, such as Sage Cattabriga-Alosa. Then, at last year’s Interbike Show in Las Vegas, the company jumped in with both feet by announcing a partnership with Pro-Tec and unveiling a new line of padded apparel. The centerpiece is the rugged Downieville Colab Short which incorporates a padded inner chamois featuring Pro-Tec’s proprietary flex panels. The whole concept behind this short is to withstand as much abuse as you can throw at it, which is exactly what I did on a recent rainy ride in Rossland, BC. The area had been experiencing record-breaking rainfall and the trails were slick, fast and water-logged. More than once my tires slipped out around a corner and I landed on my hips. And in one memorable instant I naively rode through a creek with water levels up past my knees and endo-ed onto the far bank. In every instance I was happy to have the added protection of the Downieville Short.

To read the entire review, log on to Backcountry Skiing Canada.