Outside Magazine, Dec 2003
Stories
POSTs
Expedition: Surfing the closed coast Team: Ross Garrett, Keith Malloy, Dan Malloy Location: Central California Objective: Surf 40 miles of off-limits coastline Duration: Three days FOR SURFERS, the stretch of empty central California coastline beginning some 40 miles south of San Luis Obispo at Surf…
A wave off Rincón isn't the only wild ride in Puerto Rico. Here's an action primer on the island's untamed side.
It's ok—relax. We've got your big holiday score all wrapped up: the latest shiny new toys, sharp tools, and smokin' threads to help you keep you adventure resolutions.
What do you get when you bus two dozen high school seniors from the Nebraska flatlands to the peaks of Colorado for their first winter trip to the Rockies? You get an all-American rite of passage, gangsta rap, and terror on the bunny slope. You get kissy-face, rough surf in the hot tub, flaming stogies, brazen thongs, and a blizzard of memories that will last f
A journey to the cradle of climbing reveals a strange new alpine environment, where glaciers are melting, mountains are falling, and nothing is as it was
In the sixties and seventies it was the hippie trail that brought foreigners to Afghanistan. Two decades of war and terror later, Kabul is a nonstop rave of C-130s, NGOs, soldiers, and spooky nation-builders. The freaks are back on Chicken Street—where everything old is new again.
Two rival British teams launch a tenacious race to find Shackleton's long-lost ship
F E A T U R E S
EXPOSURE SPECIAL
XX FACTOR
News flash: The fair sex kicks ass. This year the women take over our annual tribute to sports and adventure superstars who are redefining the idea of cool. Meet triathlete LOKELANI MCMICHAEL , the diva of Ironman; ARACELI SEGARRA , the indefatigable Spanish rock star; NATALIE COUGHLIN , the next great Olympic swimmer; CEO turned environmentalist KRIS TOMPKINS ; extreme freediver TANYA STREETER ; and 20 more action heroines and alpha females.
SKI NAKED
Remember what you did on your high school ski trip? (It’s probably still blurry, huh?) For a busload of seniors from Hastings, Nebraska, this rite of passage became a classic road trip and a hormonal tsunami of drinking games, hot-tubbing, arm biting, making out, and the Party Boy dance.
By Brad Wetzler
REVIEW SPECIAL: THE HOLIDAY GIFT GUIDE
YOU KNOW YOU WANT IT
We’ve been making our list and checking it twice. Now we’re wrapping stuff that’s mighty nice: a trick mountain bike, a soft-shell jacket, new skis… 0h, let’s make this easy. Here’s the new Outside gift guide. Should we bring one of everything?
THE KABUL EXPRESS
The warlords are back, and so are the trekkers. The opium’s in bloom, the Afghan Black is excellent this year, and the aid workers are throwing all-nighters and shaking their booties. In other words, it’s a perfect time for a wild ramble through America’s other war.
By Patrick Symmes
D E P A R T M E N T S
DISPATCHES
An Outside exclusive: The craze over SHACKLETON goes deep as two British syndicates race to Antarctica to recover the underwater remains of the Endurance . PLUS: A gear-carrying HYBRID SURFBOARD gives “endless summer” new meaning; and this month’s RADAR .
THE WILD FILE
What’s the best bottled drinking water? At what time of night can you see the most stars? How do snow cups form?
By Brad Wetzler
DESTINATIONS
PUERTO RICO, UNTAPPED : On the island’s pristine western half, you’ll find solitude, empty waves, verdant jungles, and damselfish in distress. PLUS: Dive the Galápagos of the Caribbean, MONA ISLAND ; FILM SCHOOL for powder hounds; and more.
THE HARD WAY
Searing temperatures turned THE ALPS into a SLUSH PILE of melting snow last summer. In this firsthand report, mountains crumble, glaciers tumble, and a dire future comes into view.
By Mark Jenkins
BODYWORK
Fitness: good. Too much fitness: bad. The exhausting and unhealthy habit of OVERTRAINING is pushing an increasing number of adventure athletes into the red zone. Put that dumbbell down—now!