The following list (in order of priority) was put together to help the beginning Mountain Biker choose equipment to make the trail riding experience safer and more enjoyable for you and your trail riding companions.

Helmet 
Approved helmet, properly adjusted.  More vents are better especially in hot weather.  Try to make sure the helmet will stay in place when riding and will accommodate your hair style comfortably.

Hand and Eye Protection 
These are equally important.  Bicycle gloves come with or without full fingers.  Full fingered gloves protect you better from thorns but are hotter in the summer.  The main feature of good gloves is protection from cutting your palms if/when you fall.  On our beautiful single track trails there are lots of hanging, thorny brush just waiting to scratch your head.  Clear or yellow glasses work best when the vegetation is heavy and the light is flat (summer).  Sun glasses are good when the leaves are off the trees in early spring, late fall and winter.  A light weight pair of well ventilated glasses are the most comfortable.

Water 
Make sure you have either a 12oz or more bottle and bottle cage on your bike (two are better) or a hydration pack (camelback).  Most experienced riders like the camelback M.U.L.E or equivalent for its 100oz capacity and room for tools and gear.  Smaller ones carry less water but are lighter, larger carry the same water but are heavier.  It’s common to go through 12 oz of water every ½ hour of riding in hot weather.

Spare Inner-tube, Air and Tire Changing Levers 
While the leaders on most of our group rides carry these it is you responsibility to carry with you the basic equipment and knowledge to be self sufficient on the trail.  At a minimum this includes a spare inner tube, an air pump or CO2 inflation system and tire levers to help get the tire off and back on.  These fit conveniently into a hydration pack or seat mounted pack.  Seat packs get the weight off your back but are generally noisy and its surprisingly easy to loose a small air pump from the seat bag. Many riders today use a product called 'Stan's No Tubes' from www.notubes.com

Bike Shorts
Sooner or later you will want to purchase bike shorts with an internal pad.  Mountain Biker’s utilize two different styles either “spandex” style or “baggy”.  Tight fitting shorts are less likely to catch the seat, usually have more choices in padding styles and are available from many manufacturers.  They are used exclusively on road bikes where you spend more time seated.  Baggy shorts have pockets and are more casual looking.  Good baggy shorts have Velcro or zippered pockets and an inner short with pad and leg grippers to keep the inner short in place.  Either style works great on the trail.  Bike jerseys are colorful, cooler and usually have pocket(s).  A well fitting water/wind proof jacket is useful in cooler weather.

Floor Pump
While you can certainly utilize the inflation system you carry with you (4. above) at home/before a ride, a floor pump is a great deal easier and faster, experience shows most riders don’t use the hand pump/CO2 system to check the tires before a ride and then spend valuable riding time changing “pinch flats” caused by low air pressure.  Your tires will loose pressure over time so check them before each ride.

Chain tool and Spare pins or an extra “Quick Link”
Next to flat tires the next most likely maintenance problem on a mountain bike is a broken chain.  Ask you bike shop for a recommendation based on the type of bike chain you have.  They will also usually show you how to repair a chain or give you information to read on the procedure.  Group leaders from the Delaware Trail spinners will also help you when needed.