ALL-ROUNDERDid Necky’s designers once work for Hasbro? Like a vintage Weeble toy, the Crux will wobble, but it won’t fall down. With minimal rocker in the stern, this one is nimble enough for tight creeks and fast enough for pushy rivers. Its round bottom softens landings. Taking a deep plunge?…

NEW-SCHOOL PERFORMANCE In the span of two days at San Diego’s Mission Beach, we put this 1970s-style Tudor singlefin through both thigh-high sets and overhead walls. The 2.5-inch-thick foam kept us moving on the small stuff and got us into big waves earlier than on a shortboard. One tester noted,…

Improving on its top-of-the-line bent-shaft freestyle paddle, Adventure Technology shaved an ounce off its standard (30-degree offset) AT2 by switching to full-carbon construction. atpaddle.com…

Adjustable Flex The Lost Rocket has a pump to adjust the air pressure inside its EPS foam core and change how it rides. It’s no gimmick: For clean waves, boost the psi to add stiffness and speed. On smaller, junkier waves, let some air out for a damper feel. The…

If you aren’t flailing on 5.10’s anymore, you’re probably ready to start lead-climbing. It’s time to invest in quickdraws (like Black Diamond FireWires, $17.50), a daisy chain, and a high-quality rope. BlueWater’s 10.2-millimeter, 60-meter Eliminator is long enough for some multipitch climbs. Bonus: A percentage of the proceeds…

1. The Triumph is like the best hotel mattresses: soft and springy but not mushy. Articulated outsole lugs and a five-layer sandwich of foam, rubber, and thermoplastic in the heel absorb the impact of each foot strike while retaining a remarkable responsiveness. And thanks to its forward-leaning tilt, the…

1. When the Flyer shape was first introduced, in 1999, it was as a performance board for small waves. But it worked so well that it became Channel Islands’ bestselling board of all time. Like the Flyer, the Helix is versatile on a wide range of waves. It’s lively…

Innovation usually comes in fits and starts: a zipper here, a strap there. But Arc’teryx dispenses with the nickel-and-dime approach with this revolutionary pack. Any other year its every detail—from welded seams to dynamic suspension—would have been noteworthy. In this case the sum is much, much greater than the…

At first glance, this hauler might seem born out of Lockheed’s Skunkworks, but relax: Our Gear of the Year pack will get you there and back in a flash. A matchless mesh suspension setup saves aches and ounces, while the main compartment smartly stows as much or as little as…

BIG-TRIP MASTER This 3,200-cubic-inch pack’s suspension system—a compression-molded back panel and nicely padded shoulder and hip straps—can handle the heaviest of loads (and the floating top lid really allows you to overfill the thing). But strip off the top pocket and framesheet and swap out the big hipbelt (pictured) for…

1. Comfort: Go ahead, try and overload it. On treks in New Mexico's Pecos Wilderness and even ski touring in the Tetons, testers were unanimous: The Meridian carries like a champ. Credit the firm yet flexy composite frame-sheet that moves with your body, dual-density foam in the hipbelt that cushions…

Why It’s CoolThe Venus is heavenly, with its side-opening stuffsack that easily swallows and compresses the tent—no carefully choreographed roll-ups here. The fly and suspended canopy go up in one move, thanks to the one-way exterior pole sleeves and twin-hoop architecture. » A large main door and rear half-door have…

*This shoe has been discontinued by New Balance and is no longer available. 1. The 850 simply fit and felt better than all the rest. Its deep heel pocket and snug waist created a tailored fit, and the toe box never felt confining. A web of dual-density plastic sandwiched…

Our go-to lamp for twilight trail runs, it switches between spot and spread beams with an easy slide of its light-dispersing filter. 3.4 oz; www.petzl.com…

1. Who says you can’t please everyone? Whether our testers had wide or narrow feet, or preferred slow, long runs or quick, on-your-toes workouts, somehow all were convinced the Glide was the perfect shoe for them. The key is a generous amount of padding in the heel collar and…

Ounce-counter special: The retooled Hightail has trapezoidal baffles to bolster insulation, a tough new shell, and a cut that’s less stingy at the shoulders than other featherweights. The 900-fill down compresses so well that even the bag’s modest stuffsack is too roomy. Only our coldest sleeper felt slightly chilled…

The antimicrobial poly-and-wool blend is an excellent funk fighter. And the body-mapping construction—thicker fabric around the chest, thinner under the arms, and flexible sections on the elbows for mobility—works: It’s extremely comfy and better at temperature regulation. Note: Runs small and slim—the large fits like a medium.

For the no-frills gal who thumbs her nose at floral details and feminine colors, Marmot’s ultralight synthetic bag delivers women’s features in gender-neutral style. Primaloft Sport insulation crushes almost as well as down, and there’s extra fill at the feet, hip, and shoulder. 25ºF, 1.9 lbs; www.marmot.com Bonus:…

At our annual ski test, 12 hard-charging testers put the Kendo through its paces at Snowbird (see page 37), and every tester wrote something to this effect: “You can make every turn shape at every speed on every style of terrain.” That’s the ultimate goal of an all-mountain ski,…

THE LIGHTEST TENT ON THE BLOCK Some solo tents weigh more than this spacious two-person shelter. By utilizing ultralight materials and an every-ounce-counts design—notice the lack of fabric at the corners—the three-pound Evolution is in a class by itself. Which, considering it has two doors, a roomy interior, and four…

The Contour is light and strong—made with a tough aluminum alloy—and the new Airshock cushioning system (which can be turned off if more stiffness is required) serves up a soft ride. 15.8 oz per pair; komperdell.com…

SUMMER SLEEPER With a hood and pillow pocket, an external earplug pocket, full zip, and straps for holding your mattress in place, the Kaya is full-featured for such a compact bag. Filled with Polarguard Delta insulation, it sports a trimmer fit than the other bags we tested, which makes it…

Tiny but powerful: In mild weather at 9,500 feet, we easily boiled a liter of water in less than five minutes. 2.4 oz; optimus.se…

It can take a licking. A rubber grip makes this waterproof, one-watt LED flashlight hard to break or even ding. 6.8 oz; princetontec.com…

If you need a shelter that can handle the nastiest weather year-round, Hilleberg’s flagship model, the Kaitum, is the best non-freestanding tent we’ve ever tested. Setup, even in high winds, is a snap, and the tube-style design sheds snow easily. Because the body and fly are linked, you can…

We initially scoffed at the funky shape, but the ergonomic handle and soft rubber really helped us keep a grip on this impressively bright two-mode flashlight. It’s a tad heavy for backpacking but great to keep in the glove box for car camping. 7 oz; princetontec.com…

Can Take a Beating The Ascent 40 was designed with climbing in mind; for example, it comes with a rope tarp. And while it does a fine job getting rope to the crag, we also loved it as an adventure-travel pack. That’s because the 2,450-cubic-inch Ascent is basically, as one…

GSI Outdoors’ Pinnacle Camper is a 23-piece mess kit with everything from two pots and a frying pan to four insulated mugs and BPA-free plastic plates. gsioutdoors.com…

Stiff plastic on the sides of the Scarlet make it powerful enough to drive through crud and bumps yet still feel stable on hardpack and ice. But it's the boot's excellent forward flex that makes for precision turning. “Not too soft, not too stiff,” as one tester described it. “It's…

With metallic highlights woven into the strap and a distressed-leather carrying case, the Black Boutique is understatedly badass. For flat coastal light, the new Ignitor lens—taken from Smith’s sunglass line—is among the best we’ve tested. smithoptics.com…

This versatile lace-up has two interchangeable midfoot supports (dubbed the Power Wrap system). Use the stiff version when hiking for fresh, and replace it with the flexible option for park sessions. thirtytwo.com…

What started as a utilitarian whitewater helmet has crossed over to snow sports. With alternating layers of plastic and energy-absorbing foam, the Fresh Roy is the safest helmet for the money. Wear it as is with a thin beanie or Velcro in the included fleece liner with ear…

MOST VERSATILE This do-it-all shoe scored high marks whether we were strolling a rec path or marching off with a multi-day load. The keys are low weight and a nimble feel made possible by the shoe’s unique crampon design. Small teeth are cut directly into the frame, which presses points…

KING OF SLASH Good for Powder Looser and more nimble than most rockered skis, the S7 is perfect in any snow deeper than your boots. The most versatile of the category, it was quick enough for tree skiing, and the traditional sidecut underfoot (the ski’s reverse sidecut…

The Zenith’s redesigned liner feels more secure. And thanks to a tweak in the shell design and a polycarbonate insert under the ball of your foot, it provides excellent snow feel. A confidence-inspiring choice for intermediates. rossignol.com…

More of a Budweiser man than a High Life guy? The Trace is also available in seven colors, each with ten vents. But this is the only style that has a rear vent that conveniently doubles as a bottle opener. redprotection.com…

Good for Touring Designed, built, and field-tested in the shadow of Utah’s Wasatch Mountains, the Switchback remains the least expensive and lightest free-pivot tele binding on the market. Plus the design is refreshingly simple. “Makes you wonder why other tele-touring bindings are so complicated,” said…

ALPINE TOURING Good for Alpine Touring Scarpa's superlight, four-buckle Diva still provides the best downhill performance of any AT boot. The Dynafit compatibility allows for ultralight touring setups, and the boot comes with two sets of tongues—one for touring and one for ripping downhill. 7 lbs;…

A lot of boot companies use the Boa system, wire laces you ratchet snug, but none better than ThirtyTwo. By moving the tightening wire to the outside of the foot and stabilizing the top with wide strips of polyurethane, the company eliminates the pressure points sometimes caused by the…

Good for Alpine Touring All-around mid-fat dimensions make the Shazam our favorite go-to gun for resort-based adventures—it's just plump enough to keep afloat in a foot of powder. On firmer snow, testers found that the wood core provided dampness and torsional rigidity for quick, edge-to-edge responsiveness. 120/90/113, 6.8 lbs;…

Good for Resort As its mouthful of a name suggests, this 686/New Balance collaboration was designed with running-shoe elements: a stability post for overpronation and a foam footbed. While we don’t recommend it for a 5K, it is (generally) the comfiest boot here, though some testers complained…

Good for Big Mountain It’s a fat ski in a race ski’s body. With no camber at all (either traditional or reverse), a wood-and-metal laminate construction to quiet the ride, and vertical sidewalls for enhanced edge penetration, the Girish likes to flat-out wail downhill. “The stability makes…

A small pump on the right side of the chin strap inflates eight EVA-foam pads spread out along the helmet’s interior; a release valve on the other side deflates the helmet. A bit gimmicky, sure, but it works: This lid will not wobble on your head regardless of how…

ALPINE TOURING Good for Touring The 2010 ST uses a chromoly-steel toepiece that improves strength while shaving nearly two ounces of weight. And the interface between pins and inserts is now more precise, which increases downhill control: “Surprisingly solid,” said one tester. We love the pivot-point efficiency, kick-turn ease,…

Big Mountain With plenty of snow to push around during testing at Utah’s Powder Mountain, people didn’t wait long to dig in with Scott’s fattest ski. The general consensus: Most felt its name is somewhat misleading. “Lively … Stay forward and let the rockered tips plow over anything,” said one…

Alpine Touring Game-changer alert! The price tag is no joke, but the TLT, with its full carbon-fiber upper cuff, boasts the best stiffness-to-weight ratio we’ve ever seen. It weighs less than five pounds, and it rips: The two-buckle lockdown system yields solid ski-to-boot power. Shave off a quarter of the…

Salomon’s idea is this: A contoured footbed increases circulation, which means a warmer, happier foot. Hard to say if it works for sure, but the beefy, all-mountain Dialogue received high marks for both comfort and, yes, warmth. Testers also praised the pressure-point-free lacing system. TAGS: big mountain, big…

Ski-Mountaineering Master With straps, loops, and holders designed specifically to carry skis, snowshoes, a helmet, ropes, ice axes, and trekking poles, the 40-liter, ski-mountaineering Spindrift is without a doubt the most versatile pack we tested this year. Even more impressive is how intuitive it is to affix all of the…

POWDER SPECIALIST The Gambit—by Boulder, Colorado–based custom ski builder Folsom—is part of a new generation of fat skis that are serviceable on groomers, too. Here, the aggressively rockered tip and tail are tapered for a loose feel in deep snow, but the traditional camber and sidecut let you edge with…

Why It’s CoolOnce you roll and buckle the top of this vinyl pack, the Cilaos becomes a giant drybag. Impervious to any water intrusion save a prolonged dunking, it’s perfect for canyoneering. » The harness is beefy beyond what you’d expect in a sub-4,000-cubic-inch bag—a framesheet and two aluminum stays,…

We were equally smitten with ATOMIC‘s top-end SNS setup: THE WORLDCUP SKATE FL SKIS made long climbs a little less painful.

Why They’re CoolThe uppers—open mesh on the outside and brushed nylon within—of these two-pound-eight-ounce shoes are woven as a single piece, rather than sewn or glued together. The result is unimpeded airflow, which I appreciated on a hot hike through Saguaro National Park. » Tall, nubuck-reinforced uppers guarded my ankles…

Alpine Touring The Starlet lived up to its name and was the center of many testers’ attention. “It’s superlight, but surfy and incredibly fun in pow and snappy on groomers,” said one. It’s also touring-friendly, with an aluminum skin clip and flat tail. 134/100/121, 6.2 lbs. TAGS: all mountain…

How do you make the Pacific Crest Trail feel like the Pacific Coast Highway? Let this pack smooth out and speed up the miles. I literally ran the San Juan Mountains’ nine-mile Hope Lake Trail with the Arreba stuffed full. Credit the pre-curved harness, narrow back panel, and Wraptor…

MOST VERSATILE During a week of testing at Copper Mountain, the Mythic Rider’s composite-and-titanal core delivered a smooth, consistent flex on bulletproof groomers, soft bumps, and even manky, wind-scoured snow. And thanks to its thinned-down center and beefed-up edges, it has tenacious grip. Which is a good thing, because this…

LEATHER GOES NEW-SCHOOL While others try to reinvent light hikers with synthetic materials, Merrell went another route: It transformed the classic leather midweight into a new breed of light hiker instead. At just over a pound apiece, the Phasers are built for light-load cruising, but the sturdy, no-nonsense construction and…

DAY TRIPPER If your passion is touring, get the nimble Drift. “It’s the perfect size and profile for the typical day trip,” said a tester who put miles on the pack in the Colorado backcountry. Skis or snowboards strap on easily and stay rock-solid, with three different carry options. On…

TOUGHER THAN IT LOOKS The waterproof Terrex may look like every brightly colored sneaker out there, but one of our testers proclaimed it “rugged as hell” during an off-trail scramble up Santa Fe’s ski basin. We think he was referring to the outsole’s combination of soft, grippy rubber and deep…

The lightest shoe here, the Lodi is ideal when piling on miles at top speed with little weight. The mesh upper offers natural air conditioning and saves ounces, yet the shoe still has ample arch and ankle support. Tip: The Lodi suits slimmer feet. 11 oz; ahnufootwear.com…

Good for SnowshoeingThe rubberized body of this waterproof-breathable, military-style boot is insulated with ultra­light material. But it has a softer side, too, with a faux-fur collar and tongue. salomonsports.com…

The 3,970-cubic-inch, top-loading Sentinel may not look as sleek and stable as the other packs here. But it’s sturdier than it looks. The traditional suspension system consists of two aluminum stays, while the main compartment includes rear sleeping-bag access and a generous stuffsack. What impressed us were the extras…

From car to curb to camp, this seven-cubic-foot soft-sided carrier does it all. With integrated straps and a nonabrasive quilted bottom, it attaches securely to side rails or crossbars. Tuck-away shoulder straps make it easy to schlep an expedition’s worth of gear through airports. Water-resistant construction keeps rain out.

Most Versatile You can certainly find less expensive day hikers out there, but you’d be hard-pressed to find any as versatile and sturdy as the Thunder. Testers reported this lightweight hiker was comfy and reliable during every stage of the review process—right out of the box, on day hikes, and…

Hiking up may be hard, but it’s the downhill that your joints will really feel. Bring along a pair of trekking poles so they can take the brunt of the impact instead of your knees. The thermofoam-handled Aergons are lightweight and easy to adjust on the fly.

HIGH-MILEAGE CUSHION If you’ve followed a marathon training program, you know what a grind it can be to crank out those 18- to 22-mile runs about a month before race day. Not so with the dreamy Praya NC, a lightweight trainer that derives cushioning from a thick foam midsole and…

Why They’re CoolThey’re anti-gearhead shoes—the sort you’d see on the feet of a humble Kiwi adventure racer with a resting heart rate of 32. They’re hip yet unimposing, functional without being encumbered by newfangled compounds. » Actually, we take that back. Teva uses an abrasion-resistant fabric impregnated with rubber in…

ONE SWEET RIDEForget the South Beach Diet: The cushioning here will convince you that you’ve lost ten pounds. Credit trademarked midsole components (they boil down to strategically tuned EVA and a bit of foam rubber), which render each foot strike a pleasure instead of a pain. A thickly padded, noncreeping…

STABILITY ON AND OFF THE TRAIL This shoe is like the SUV—er, make that the all-wheel-drive wagon—that you drive to work on weekdays, then load up with gear and take to the mountains on weekends. The versatility lies in this stable shoe’s adaptive midsole and deep, supportive heel design, which…

So hot you’re tempted to run in sandals? Give your feet the air—and support—they need with the Cardrona. Thin, open-weave mesh means your dogs can feel every cool mountain breeze that blows their way, and vents in the midsole actually let air circulate beneath your feet. The design works…

Run in any weather? A Gore-Tex XCR liner and Salomon’s aggres-sive Contagrip tread handle the ugliest conditions. One-pull Kevlar laces are hassle-free and secure on wild descents. We loved the snug, fully gusseted tongue and lower heel height of the women’s model. Buying tip: They run almost a full…

LOVES LONG RUNS If neutral shoes are sedans and stability shoes are SUVs, then the Infiniti is a minivan. It’s part of Brooks’s new “guidance” line of shoes, which are designed to be a bit less structured than stability shoes but not quite as minimalist as trainers. To wit: The…

“Just right” is not exactly a technical attribute, but that’s what testers kept saying about this shoe after subjecting it to a variety of conditions. It’s simply the most versatile runner of the bunch. The Syncro Pace has sufficient motion-control mechanisms to combat mild pronation, it’s light and flexible enough…

Mild Stability Old perceptions die hard, and a few of our testers initially scoffed at the idea that Puma, better known in other sporting arenas, is making legitimately high-performance running shoes. The Concinnity III changed that. At under ten ounces, it’s a remarkably fast and agile shoe.

If you run hard-packed trails, the Whisper is for you. While the thin sole wasn’t comfortable on rocky terrain, the Whisper’s great traction on loose gravel and secure one-pull lacing (plus its light weight) make it race- ready. Best for wide feet. 9 oz; salomonsports.com…

Pavement Pounder The Glide 2 is the Tempur-Pedic bed of the road-running world. Case in point: Soft, moldable foam conforms around your heel and the top of your foot, making this one of the most comfortable runners we've ever stepped into. It's a breezy, mesh neutral trainer with ample cushioning, ready…

Tough Guy This is a stand-up pack—literally. Thanks in part to its extremely heavy-duty fabric (“Like Carhartts,” said one tester), the 29.5-liter Pit Boss stands up straight, on its own, even when empty. But the truly unique feature is the pack’s three interconnected zippers. Two close the lid over the…

Produced by a Basque collective in the heart of Spain’s Pyrenees and raced by Iban Mayo’s Euskaltel-Euskadi team, Orbea bikes are like cask-aged single-malt: They’re all about small-batch quality. With the Mitis you get classic European geometry — a stretched-out cockpit and a glute-engaging position — freshened up with…

LIGHT AND STIFF “The 595 is less yielding than Dick Cheney on Meet the Press,” quipped one tester. It’s true: The naked-carbon tubes might appear a bit thin, but the integrated seat-tube/seatpost system takes out lateral flex under the saddle. And where stiffness counts—at the bottom bracket, in the head…