Mountain Biking - helmet & shoes best bet?

ok so ive only rode a mtb trail once on all borrowed stuff. i just got an actual bike, gloves and lovely padded spandex which im excited about. however, dont want to keep resorting to borrowing apparel from my boyfriend. any day now, i'll need a new helmet and shoes. by the way, my pedals require clip-in shoes. what would be my best investment? THANKS :)

i'd check out www.pricepoint.com they usually have some good stuff cheap....or jensenusa.com i think....both good sites...

ok so ive only rode a mtb trail once on all borrowed stuff. i just got an actual bike, gloves and lovely padded spandex which im excited about. however, dont want to keep resorting to borrowing apparel from my boyfriend. any day now, i'll need a new helmet and shoes. by the way, my pedals require clip-in shoes. what would be my best investment? THANKS :)
Go to a bike shop where you can try on stuff. If this is your first set of shoes and your first helmet buying online will not get you properly fitting equipment.

I'd agree. You can even go to the LBS, try it on, and buy it online if the pricing is that far off, otherwise support your LBS :) I bought my shoes and helmet in a LBS even as cheap as I am!

Yeah, I say definitely try stuff on at the LBS if this is your first purchase... It's really hard to get a feel for what's going to fit since everyone's foot is different. Helmets are a little less of an issue, but I'd still say try stuff on and support your LBS.

yeah, i think im gonna order my jerseys off of pricepoint actually :)

our bike shop(cyclers' cafe) is sooo expensive! i love the guy who owns it and all but i think i'll support him by eating there. but everything is full price, so yeah, i'll try on their stuff and order it somewhere else cheaper. good call.

This time of year, many LBS's have last year's gear on closeouts; particularly things like helmets and shoes since they take up so much shelf space and have lots of cosmetic changes every season.

I know you could walk into many LBS's right now and pick up a good helmet and shoes for under $100 total. Don't count out your LBS just yet, at least see if he's got any of last year's stuff on sale.

And when ordering online, don't forget to include the shipping costs when evaluating the difference in price. Saving $50 on a helmet and shoes by ordering online may seem like a lot but take out $20 for shipping and add in the benefit of knowing everything fits and it may be worth the extra $30 to you.