Hey hannibal.. id say for any of the local DH spots - aston, woburn, danbury a full face should be your first stop. Anything from 661
http://www.chainreactioncycles.com/Sear ... +full+face or THE
http://www.chainreactioncycles.com/Sear ... the+helmet oneal bell or urge will do the trick.
Flat pedals are a good idea too and id recommend knee or knee shins guards
After that its up to you.. some run arms, some full body armour some don't
In terms of getting value from a day out id say Danbury is MUCH better if your new to DH than Woburn. Danbury you can roll everything Woburn maybe only 40% of the stuff. But feel free to drop by on Friday and make ur own mind up!