Adventure
Archive
I spent last Saturday at REI looking at ski gear and got a bit overwhelmed. I was told until I really want to invest in all the "stuff" for skiing, that all I should buy right now is a good hat, gloves and ski pants. What are your thoughts? Joan Redmond, WA
The Phoenix Suns star takes a break from running the point, filmmaking, building green gyms, and charity work to talk to WILL PALMER.
He's got seven yellow jerseys. He's not getting paid. He's 37 years old. So why is Lance Armstrong racing again? Because he still has something to prove—and nothing else hurts so good.
It sure sounds like another shameless reality-TV formula: Inspire people to slim down by offering them cash, then film their struggles with health food and sit-ups. But personal trainer Bob Harper, 43, of NBC’s The Biggest Loser, feels no shame at all. The show lets him introduce his holistic fitness…
British Columbia has tried to secure the Winter Olympics no fewer than six times. In fact, the town of Whistler was built for this very purpose: In 1960, four Vancouver businessmen began developing the ski resort 75 miles to the north, hoping to win the 1968 event. They failed. Four…
A veteran ice-boater takes a shot at the world record for wind-powered speed
They've got a slight animal-control problem in Delhi, India: Thousands of wild rhesus monkeys, addled by the sprawl that's taking over their habitat, are dropping out of trees to steal food, chug booze, and murder prominent citizens. Did we mention that many of the victims believe these creatures are gods?
For 25 years, Shaun Palmer has dominated everything from the snowboard halfpipe to mountain-bike downhills—and earned his reputation as action sports' foul-mouthed bad boy. Now 40, he's cleaned up his act for a run at Olympic gold. Will he find redemption, or die trying?
Two of the world's best spearfishermen hunt for fish the size of offensive linemen.
You could mope about the economy. Or you could go play in the snow, and then thaw out in comfort. Our guide to the best winter adventure lodges in North America. Nita Lake Lodge Nita Lake Lodge Nordic Pine Flagstaff Lake Hut, Carrabassett Valley, Maine Winter…
An X Gamer tries to make it in ski racing. But as a two-sport athlete, will Jon Olsson end up more Deion Sanders or Jeremy Bloom?
Every hour of every day, behemoth container ships cruise the highways of ocean commerce, loaded with stereos and lobster and plastic air fresheners. And during the winter storm season, massive waves from out of nowhere can wreck these arks of global trade.
MIT's Daniel Nocera has a recipe for taking solar power mainstream. It all starts with a tall glass of water
A seven-day trip aboard a U.S. icebreaker proves at least one thing about global warming: Things are getting very strange in the great white North.
The seven-time Tour de France champ on his favorite work-out music and the possibility of competing in an Ironman.
Cheaper Gore-Tex, cleaner diesel, and five other things George W. Bush got right.
Ski and climbing guide Michael Silitch is the only American working for the Compagniedes Guides de Chamonix, the exclusive, secretive outfit that runs the show in France's most extreme winter-sports town. It's a good life, but like any outsider, he knows that no matter how hard he works, he may never make it all the way in.
The king of big air talks about overcoming fear, setting records, and his ideal ski partner.
I'm going skiing this month, and with all of the advancements in ski apparel, I need suggestions for the best mid-layer jacket or fleece. Do you have a recommendation? Jeff Rogers, Arkansas
Outside's Micah Cratty show you how to pop the top off a champagne bottle.
Outside's Micah Cratty show you how to instantly freeze a beer.
At only 24, Seattle's Colin Haley has turned heads around the world with career-making alpine climbs, including an unprecedented team traverse of Patagonia's torre massif. He's driven to be the best-risky business in an era when the cutting edge leaves no margin for error.
If I go off the beaten path at a ski resort and get lost, what should I do? The Editors Santa Fe, New Mexico
Lance Armstrong announced his comeback. China staked claim to the future. Dara Torres gave us all hope for our older selves. The White House cleared the way for new occupants. Oh, and some kid from Baltimore won eight gold medals. If the past is prelude, we're in for an epic 2009.
Nice job in China, guy. Now could you turn your attention to saving swimming?
Tommy Caldwell needed a challenge, so he decided to hoist his clanking gear rack and free-climb one of Yosemite's hardest routes—a punishing 5.14 called Magic Mushroom—in 24 hours or less. Matt Samet was there from start to finish to watch the planning, training, and performance of a superhuman athlete at the top of his game.
“Sometimes, sitting around, I’ll realize that I’ve been silently mouthing the words ‘nomadic hunter’ over and over again to myself,” confesses correspondent Steven Rinella in American Buffalo (Spiegel & Grau, $25). An expansion on his 2006 Outside story “Come Herd or High Water,” the book is a sleep-with-your-safety-off narrative of…
I’m attempting to summit Aconcagua, over 22,000 feet and known to be very cold and windy. Which ccorder can I safely use at this altitude? Brendan Chicago, Illinois
Welcome to the U.S. Pond Hockey Championships, where the game is pure, the ice is dangerously uneven, and the beer is very, very cold
Larry Ellison's new yacht might prove the fastest (and most dangerous) sailboat ever—if a judge doesn't keep it from racing
Texas oil tycoon T. Boone Pickens, 80, made a fortune for himself with risky investments and corporate raids. But the outspoken Republican's latest scheme, the Pickens Plan—a trillion-dollar blueprint for reducing oil dependency by increasing wind energy and switching to natural gas for transportation fuel—may be his biggest gamble yet.
Is the Mountain Hardwear Sub Zero SL Parka good for Denali? Eduard Burleson, Texas
Drop into the coral reef at Pipeline and you'll probably get hurt. Drop in on a member of Hawaii's locals-only Wolf Pack and you're just asking for trouble. Here, Kala Alexander—surfer, actor, businessman, and the North Shore's most notorious enforcer—opens up about localism in the lineup, how to earn his respect, and his hopes for a m
What do you suggest for a cheap winter trip to Baja, Mexico? Bix F. Milwaukee, WI
The key to staying warm and stuck to the ice? The right stuff.
"Ninety percent of people do nothing to take care of their skis from the day they buy them to the day they throw them in the trash," says Peter Boyer, of Boulder, Colorado's Alpine Base & Edge. Don't follow suit. We asked Boyer for a few tips to keep your skis and boards running fast and true.
We're looking for a reader to take on the role of Chief Inspiration Officer.
Survivorman LES STROUD talks about venturing into the world's harshest environments alone, and the importance of a good harmonica.
The rooster. That’s what makes Rossignol‘s Mike sweater cooler than all the vintage ski apparel out there ($150; rossignol.com). Rossignol Mike Sweater …
Wear Nobis‘s hyper-cool Teabag and all other beanies will start feeling a little insecure ($45; nobis.ca). Nobis Teabag Hat …
Scott‘s Witness goggles are some of the best all-conditions spherical shields we’ve tested ($90; scottusa.com).
For winter, classic is always in style. Eddie Bauer’s down High Mesa vest is retro without trying too hard ($99; eddiebauer.com). Eddie Bauer High Mesa Down Vest …
Ice axes are dead weight, until you need them. CAMP‘s aluminum-alloy Corsa is just seven ounces—and worth every one ($110; camp-usa.com).
Deserts tend to be, well, dry. But there's still sometimes water to be found—if you know where to look.
A quarter-century after his now classic record of a trip down America’s two-laners, Blue Highways, William Least Heat-Moon is back in the driver’s seat. And though he’s given up sleeping in his ’75 Ford Econoline for places more along the lines of a Holiday Inn Express, he’s still a helluva…
After a half-century on his hands and knees, poking at bugs, Harvard ant geek and accidental eco-celebrity E.O. Wilson, 79, is back with The Superorganism: The Beauty, Elegance, and Strangeness of Insect Societies (W.W. Norton, $65), co-written with Bert HÖlldobler. It’s a follow-up of sorts to their 1991 Pulitzer Prize…
DEAR MISTER PRESIDENT: Congratulations on winning the election. I always knew you would win, and not that other guy. I told all my friends that. You can ask them. Jack Handey Offers to Be an Ambassador Mister President, let’s get down to business. One of your first jobs,…
In November, the Banff Mountain Film Festival returns for its 33rd edition, with some 500 screenings in 30 countries. Here's a look at how high-altitude cinema arose from low-rent beginnings.
By 2010, Denver-based Jet Pack International hopes to release the first commercially available jet pack. The forthcoming T-73 model is already five years and 100 pairs of burned shoes in the making.
An American is the best female skier in the world. Better start paying attention.
I climbed Rainier in June of 2008 and hated the plastic boots. I’m returning to Rainier next summer and looking for a good pair of non-plastic boots that take crampons. What do you suggest? Dayton Baltimore, Maryland