If you haven’t yet heard of PNW Components, here is a brief introduction. They make simple and affordable mountain bike components, and strive to keep their customers riding their bikes at all times. Music to my ears! Nobody has time to monkey around wrenching at their local shop, at the trailhead, or in their garage: it’s 2022, we are all way too busy for our own good these days. PNW knows this and has founded a business around quality products that are easy to install, intuitive to ride, and are virtually maintenance-free. They make dropper posts and levers, bars, stems, pedals, grips, apparel, and a few more odds and ends. As a Vermont native who currently lives elsewhere and spends lots of time in the Pacific Northwest, I have always been intrigued with PNW’s heritage, brand, and products. They were kind enough to send out a few hardgoods and softgoods to review, so here’s the dirt.

Loam Dropper and Puget Lever:

A dropper post goes up and down, right? Anything else to know? Not really, but there are a lot of dropper post options on the market, so may as well figure out which posts kick ass….and which ones don’t.

I’m running the Loam Dropper in a 30.9mm, 200mm length version. So far, it has been performing flawlessly. I wanted to see how it compares against a OneUp dropper- they are both priced similarly, and I sure do dig OneUp posts already.

The Loam dropper came in a box with minimal packaging waste, and a sticker that essentially says “we love trees; please digitally download all manuals with this QR code.” Rad- nice work, PNW. Installing the dropper was a breeze. It has also been going up, and down, with no problems. Check mark. The travel length options are spaced at 125, 150, 170, and 200mm options. As a tall jumper, I want my saddle as low as possible: a longer (210mm+) travel option would be nice to see in the future, but their current travel selection works for most riders. I have yet to encounter any reliability/service issues: out of the box and so far, it functions perfectly and is trouble-free.

The Puget lever fits nicely into the controls on my bars, looks great, and is easy to reach/operate. I have encountered an occasional slight stickiness as the lever retracts back into place after being depressed. This is not a major issue, and certainly isn’t a deal-breaker. Overall, both the Loam Dropper and Puget lever have been phenomenal.

Lander jacket and Shuttle short:

The Lander jacket is built for trail riding: it is lightweight, breathable, and waterproof. I have done extensive pedaling, and even more DH bike park days/shuttle laps in this coat. The features are carefully thought out: the hood fits over a helmet quite easily, there are extensive ventilation ports, and there is an inner elastic waistband which keeps the coat in place. When the loam starts flying behind you as your tires dig in, this coat stays exactly where it should- and keeps things nice and tidy back there. I did encounter one torrential hour of downpouring rain, while building trail, that did thoroughly drench certain parts of this jacket (the forearm areas in particular). But, for your average ride, and for what this jacket is designed to do, I have been very impressed with its waterproof capability. The muted colors and casual style checks all the boxes as well- nice work, PNW.

The Shuttle short is designed as a do-it-all, workhorse short for either pedaling or shuttling back up the hill. The fabric is lightweight and durable, even after smashing down through skidder trails and puckerbrush in search of loam all over the Western US and Canada. The adjustable cinch straps on the waist are a nice touch, and the cell phone pocket works like a charm. My favorite part of these shorts is the length: they sit in that magic spot where they cover over kneepads when pedaling (no gap), but don’t extend so long that they could get caught on part of your bike when moving around in the air.

Is there such a thing as a perfect product? It depends on who you ask: I’m certainly not that picky, and I have enjoyed every minute of riding the PNW Loam dropper post and apparel. Pick some up; you won’t be disappointed. For more information, visit www.pnwcomponents.com.