Gear
ArchiveThe best holiday gifts for climbers, from peak baggers to Himalayan mountaineers.
Cross-country skiing is among the world's great human-powered modes of movement. Whether you ski classic or skate, here’s the gear you’ll need to get started.
Floating a corner on the new Fuel EX 9.9. Courtesy of Trek/Sterling Lorence. Late last summer Trek invited me to Mayrhofen, Austria, to take a look at its 2012 mountain bike line. I was initially skeptical: Trek, after all, was…
https://youtube.com/watch?v=R4tsYqjJQ88%C2%A0 Remember the G-Form iPad case? In August we wrote about one in our post The Three Toughest iPad Cases On the Planet. Turns out that “On the Planet” may not have gone far enough. G-Form performed some extreme demonstrations of its technology by…
Love the idea of modeling, but don't have time for the agents, the makeup trailers, the long days on set in Hollywood? Send in a photo of yourself stripped down to your favorite Smartwool layer and a one sentence write up of what inspired you to do…
The new Lytro Camera means you may never have to focus again.
For hiking in 110°F, what top would you recommend? I was once told the best choice was a cotton T-shirt with a wind-resistant outer shirt. Is there any truth to that idea?
Five years after retiring from the NFL, former Patriots quarterback Drew Bledsoe is jumping on a rising trend and building his own line of bespoke skis
In the world of big mountain skiing, Dean Cummings is a legend. He was the captain of the US Freestyle Ski Team, has hundreds of first descents to his name, has been featured in dozens of ski films and shows, and for years was…
Shimano XTR M980 Race groupo. It’s been nearly a year since Shimano introduced its totally revamped XTR range, the sixth generation of the top-end mountain groupo, and we’ve been riding it hard ever since. Whereas in the past XTR catered mostly to weight-conscious racers, with this…
A couple of months ago, Portland, OR’s…
When reports surfaced last month that adidas was planning to acquire American climbing and outdoors shoe maker Five Ten, the companies dismissed them as rumor. Yesterday, however, they made it official: the German giant has reached an agreement to…
Like just about everybody else on the planet who skis or bikes, we've been using GoPros for several years. Naturally, when the company told us they were about to unveil a new one, we were interested. While the HD Hero 2 looks just like…
With their 20-inch wheels, there's not denying that folding bikes look a little funny. There's also no denying, however, how practical they are, be it for urban dwellers with little storage space or world travelers who like to roll through their final destinations without paying exorbitant baggage fees for normal…
Outside reviews the best gear in the 2012 Winter Buyer's Guide, including the Surly Pugsley bike.
Outside reviews the best gear in the 2012 Winter Buyer's Guide, including the Helly Hansen Odin Mountain jacket.
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 Black Diamond Custom boots
Outside reviews the best gear in the 2012 Winter Buyer's Guide, including the Salomon Quest 30 pack
Outside reviews the best gear in the 2012 Winter Buyer's Guide, including the Moving Comfort Rebound Racer Bra.
Outside reviews the best gear in the 2012 Winter Buyer's Guide, including the Nau 3/4 Length Cocoon jacket.
Outside reviews the best gear in the 2012 Winter Buyer's Guide, including the Jones Snowboards Mountain Twin.
Outside reviews the best gear in the 2012 Winter Buyer's Guide, including the Line Celebrity 100 skis.
Outside reviews the best gear in the 2012 Winter Buyer's Guide, including the Salomon F4.0 snowboard boots.
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 K2 Rescue Shovel Plus.
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 Casio ProTrek PRW-5000Y-1 watch.
Outside reviews the best gear in the 2012 Winter Buyer's Guide, including the Marker Duke bindings
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 Arnette Mercenary goggles.
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 2012 Winter Buyer's Guide, including the Merrell Wilderness Canyon boot.
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 Arbor Swoon Board.
Outside reviews the best gear in the 2012 Winter Buyer's Guide, including the Black Diamond Cayenne gloves
Outside reviews the best gear in the 2012 Winter Buyer's Guide, including the Columbia Hoodster boots.
Outside reviews the best gear in the 2012 Winter Buyer's Guide, including the Atlas Aspect snowshoes.
Outside reviews the best gear in the 2012 Winter Buyer's Guide, including the Fischer RCS Carbonlite Skating Hole skis.
Outside reviews the best gear in the 2012 Winter Buyer's Guide, including the Rossignol Super 7 Skis.
Outside reviews the best gear in the 2012 Winter Buyer's Guide, including the Volkl Nunataq skis
The Titanium Smartphones can handle shock and dust, or so Motorola claims. Editor Sam Moulton and Intern Dave put the phones to the test.
Outside reviews the best gear in the 2012 Winter Buyer's Guide, including the Canada Goose HyBridge Lite jacket
Intern Dave dives deep for Olympus’s waterproof, shockproof, and freezeproof point and shoot, the TG-810. For more of the right travel gear, check out our travel essentials.
Outside Buyer’s Guide editor Sam Moulton takes Intern Dave and Patagonia’s waterproof Primo Down jacket to the carwash.
I need help finding a watch for my boyfriend. He's into white-water rafting, camping, and fly-fishing, among other sports. My budget is around $350, and I want to stay away from features he won't use like tide times or diving depths. Ideas?
Outside reviews the best gear in the 2012 Winter Buyer's Guide, including the Rossignol Krypto Magtek snowboard.
The new roll top Crown VC 60, $200, granitegear.com The company that gained traction on the backs of hikers on the Appalachian Trail and paddlers in the Boundary Waters is now producing packs for Navy SEALS special ops in Afghanistan and beyond.
Outside reviews the best gear in the 2012 Winter Buyer's Guide, including the CAMP Xenon Trek pole.
Outside reviews the best gear in the 2012 Winter Buyer's Guide, including the Black Diamond Ultra Distance Trekking Pole.
For this winter’s Buyer’s Guide our testers teamed up with Backcountry magazine to put the skis through the ringer, for a week, in waist-deep powder.
High-end options include the Moots' Psychlo-X Cyclocross, a $2,900 frame that's made of titanium and has a lower bottom bracket and shorter chainstays for speed and control.
A few weeks ago, we wrote about CycleDog, a company that makes dog accessories out of recycled bike tubes. And a few months ago, we wrote about Alchemy Goods, which makes belts and bags from the same. Well, they're not the only ones. Two…
Winter's first flakes flew in Santa Fe today, and it got me thinking about snow bikes. Total gimmick, right? That's what I thought until I spent last season on a Surly Pugsley. And I have to tell you, it's pretty dang fun. Chugging…
Every time I see another video of Scottish trials phenom Danny MacAskill pogoing his bike off two-story buildings, I marvel not only at his skills but also at his bike. I mean, what kind of bike can stand up to that…
Our top snowboard picks for winter '11-'12, including the Arbor Wasteland
Outside reviews the best gear in the 2012 Winter Buyer's Guide, including the BCA Arsenal A-1 shovel with 35-centimeter saw.
Not everyone needs a GPS with infinite maps, geocaches, and barometric altimeters. When all you really want to do is find your tucked away Bangkok boutique hotel after an afternoon mopeding through the city, use Brunton's Get Back GPS. It's a small, no-frills navigator that is perfectly…
Outside reviews the best gear in the 2012 Winter Buyer's Guide, including the Exped Explorer 120 trekking pole.
Outside reviews the best gear in the 2012 Winter Buyer's Guide, including the Oakley Holbrook sunglasses.
Outside reviews the best gear in the 2012 Winter Buyer's Guide, including the Contour+ POV camera.
My wife and I recently went car camping. It was her first trip. She enjoyed it a lot, but the mummy-style sleeping bag I borrowed for her wasn’t comfortable. Too restrictive. What do you suggest we try?
Why does a toddler need her own headlamp, you ask? When she can barely walk, and will most certainly not be straying solo from the tent on dark trails, for at least the next two years, maybe longer. (Hopefully.) Because: Otherwise she will ferret yours out from its secret hiding…
A billion bicycle tubes are produced each year, two and a half million each day, and once a tube has served its tour of duty, it ends up in a landfill. And, unfortunately, you can't drop a blown rubber bike tube in the blue recycling bin and rest your conscience.
Outside reviews the best gear in the 2012 Winter Buyer's Guide, including the Tubbs Wilderness Snowshoe
What are your ten favorite pieces of outdoor gear from the past ten years?
Call us soft (and many of our friends have), but we've always been a fan of Crazy Creek chairs. (Our tripmates have consistently sneered “Lazy Geek” chairs, and then promptly sat in them when we got up to pee.) We also like the contraptions that turn your…
There’s no reason to be sheepish about switching those synthetic baselayers for a more natural alternative.
I'm worried about spraining my weak ankles when I go hiking in the Adirondacks this fall. Do hiking boots provide enough support? What's the best way to keep my ankles safe?
The American Alpine Institute (AAI) is a 35-year old mountain school best know for its advanced trainings, expeditions, and exceptional instruction, as well as its committment to protecting public lands. Of course, they also know a thing or two about gear, and this summer at the…
Outside reviews the best gear in the 2012 Winter Buyer's Guide, including the Cassin X-All -Mountain ice ax
There were more than just feathery carbon road bikes and high-tech 29ers on display at Interbike. We saw tons of intriguing designs across the board, from belt drive commuters and cross bikes to a radical new mountain bike design with 26-inch wheels. In our final installment from the show, we…
After competing in more than two dozen adventure races, Stephen Regenold breaks down his go-to outdoor gear
Do a pair of expertly crafted custom skis pay out on the slopes, or is that extra money you spent just vanity underfoot?
Do you find sleeping bags too confining? Are you a sleepwalker concerned about frostbite on your late night excursions? Are you jealous of small children who have onesie pajamas with feet? Then do we have something for you. Introducing the Selk'bag. This Gumby-like, polyester-filled, insulating outfit is…
We love Interbike for all the techy bling and cool, new gadgets we find there. We could devote pages and pages to the hottest new tech (and we will in subsequent issues of the magazine), but for now, here are a few of the best-looking bike accessories we found in…
Outside reviews the best gear in the 2012 Winter Buyer's Guide, including the Tecnica Cochise Ski Boot