Justin Nyberg is the executive editor and a co-founder of the Gear Institute. He lives in Denver, Colorado.
Published
Technical bags for going the distance
After a season of testing, these eight came out on top
In the age of big foam, the ghost of minimalism lingers— making for versatile kicks
The season’s best trainers keep you moving through nasty weather
From bare-bones featherweights to long-haul beasts, there’s a bag out there for you.
On turf or tarmac, these are our favorite women's trainers of the season
These six jackets will help you log miles—safely—by trail or road
The Ultralight Trail Running Essentials of 2015
The result of years of chaos—go minimalist! go fat! don't change a thing!—in the running market? Everybody wins.
The best thing going in this year's crop of shoes? Diversity.
Put some bounce in your step with the season's best road running shoes.
Spring's best off-road shoes strike a balance between speed and comfort
The best shoe for speed work, and efficient runners with minimalist leanings.
From superfat to ultrathin, these are the best new sun-season road runners.
It’s been years since we picked a thickly padded road runner as our top shoe. But the 1260v3 demanded the recognition. Yes, it goes overboard on the comfort, with a pillowy tongue and heel collar and spongy mesh in the upper. Yet it’s still efficient, so it was a welcome partner on long hauls.
Outside reviews the best gear in the Summer 2013 Buyer’s Guide, including the Avia Avi-Mantis
Outside reviews the best gear of June 2013, including the Saucony Kinvara 4
From minimalist speedsters to winter-ready mountain scramblers, we’ve got you covered.
Rather sort your sock drawer than run on a treadmill? Us too. Here’s the gear you’ll need to keep running outdoors all winter long.
While the minimalism trend has shifted the center of the running universe toward lighter, more neutral designs with lower heels, shoe buyers are still faced with one crucial question: Performance or comfort?
Outside reviews the best gear in the 2012 Winter Buyer's Guide, including the Saucony ProGrid Outlaw.
Outside reviews the best gear in the 2012 Winter Buyer's Guide, including the Patagonia Ultralight Down Hoody.
Outside reviews the best gear in the 2012 Winter Buyer's Guide, including the Pro-Tec B2 Snow helmet.
Outside reviews the best gear in the 2012 Winter Buyer's Guide, including the CW-X Insulator Stabilyx tights.
Outside reviews the best gear in the 2012 Winter Buyer's Guide, including the Saucony PowerGrid Cortana running shoe.
Outside reviews the best gear in the 2012 Winter Buyer's Guide, including the L.L. Bean Polartec Power Dry Quarter-Zip Lightweight base layer.
Outside reviews the best gear in the 2011 Summer Buyers Guide, including the Garmin Forerunner 410 watch.
Outside reviews the best gear in the 2011 Summer Buyers Guide, including the Suunto M5 watch.
Outside reviews the best gear in the 2011 Summer Buyers Guide, including the Highgear Axio HR watch.
Outside reviews the best gear in the 2011 Summer Buyers Guide, including the Timex Ironman Race Trainer Pro Kit watch.
Outside reviews the best gear in the 2011 Summer Buyers Guide, including the Tech4o Discover watch.
Recent studies are shattering the myth that life span is predetermined by genetics. The latest bombshell: your morning run could be the fountain of youth.
From hot springs to mountain-town fiestas to one surprisingly easy island getaway, we've got you covered.
A three-ounce jacket with a hood? Believe it. This water-resistant featherweight trims grams with a half-zip and paper-thin ripstop nylon fabric. It’s less breathable than others here but offers excellent rain protection. 3 oz; mammutusa.com…
Most coated nylon shells are windproof saunas. Here, moisture buildup is minor in cool weather, and two front vents control airflow so you don’t have to unzip every five minutes. 3.8 oz; nike.com…
Jimmy Odén’s new ski-mountaineering bible is so comprehensive—366 pages on route finding, equipment, avalanche safety, etc.—we’d shelve it next to Mountaineering: The Freedom of the Hills. But the stunning photography and hip design suggest a better home would be on the coffee table. freeskiingthebook.com…
Good for Trail With its offset zipper, textured pattern, and athletic cut, this soft, recycled-polyester puffer has big-city looks. It’s no slouch in the backcountry, though, thanks to 850-fill down, a serious hood, and a DWR coating. 1.2 lbs; nau.com…
Don’t fret about shorts—a breezy fabric, supportive liner, and pocket, like those on Patagonia’sseven-inch-inseam Long Haul Runners shorts, and you’re out the door. patagonia.com…
Town Crossover Stuff the synthetically insulated Guise into one of its pockets and—voilà—it’s a U-shaped travel pillow. Though the DWR coating and pit zips give it a bit of technical prowess, without interior pockets, Velcro closures, or a hood cinch, this jacket is not designed for serious backcountry use.1.8 lbs;…
THE NORTH FACE‘s slim-fitting APEX CLIMATEBLOCK FULL ZIP JACKET, is all wind- and slushproof panels except the stretchy sides and forearms.
Fancy yourself a Mr. Fixit? You’ll never lack for the right screwdriver with this foldout tool and its six interchangeable bits (Phillips, flat, and Torx). Fix failed? The ‘biner clip can pop open a cold bottle of consolation. www.leatherman.com…
For nighttime running on busy roads, flip this jacket inside out and you’ll flash like a human traffic cone, thanks to a fluorescent mesh liner and reflective trim. 8.5 oz; hellyhansen.com…
To trim grams, the Hydrogen forgoes everything but a small key pocket and full zip. The nylon breathes moderately well without the help of vents yet still shrugs off a light drizzle. 3 oz; thenorthface.com…
Cut extra long and packed with 800-fill down for extreme cold, this super-puffy kept us warm in near-zero temps and 30-mph winds on a 12,000-foot-high ridgeline. 2 lbs; 66north.com…
Good for Trail When the weather waffled between freezing rain and slushy snow, this top-shelf technical jacket hit its stride. It’s a hybrid—a 750-fill down sweater wrapped in an eVent hard shell—that never wet out, even in a deluge, but breathed well enough for alpine treks and…
I’m also partial to ASICS’s Favorite Long-Sleeve shirt, which, despite being long-sleeved, is thin and cool enough to wear during summer speed work. asics.com…
Town Crossover Sure, you can sled or snowball-fight in your technical puffy. But you might appreciate the extra padding that this machine-washable wool-nylon beast provides. The huge collar pops up as high as your ears—and stays there. 4.6 lbs; TAGS: wool, machine-washable, heavy-duty…