Jack O’Neill: A former commercial fisherman widely credited with inventing the neoprene wetsuit.

Suunto Vector: The original smartwatch.

These innovators-in-chief changed the way we play

Lululemon: A yoga-apparel brand founded by Canadian entrepreneur Chip Wilson in 1998.

Pack Raft: A small inflatable raft that can be rolled up to fit in a backpack.

Garmin Forerunner 201: The world’s first all-in-one GPS-enabled running watch, released in 2003 by Kansas navigation company Garmin.

The original American road-trip trailer, designed in 1931 by Wally Byam, was inspired by Charles Lindbergh’s Spirit of St. Louis.

The most valuable currency in gear marketing of the past 40 years.

Vibram: A vulcanized-rubber sole that revolutionized footwear.

A rapid sequence of radical innovations, such as appeared in cycling between 1984 and 1987, the sport’s Age of Enlightenment.

An instrument of mass exhibitionism.

Surfboard Fin: A structural element, usually made of wood or fiberglass, attached to the bottom of a surfboard to aid maneuverability.

Waffle: A repeating inverted cube shape adopted by sporting-goods manufacturers, beginning with Nike, which used the pattern on the sole of its iconic waffle trainer.

Founders of the Recreational Equipment Co-op (REI), which the couple started in their West Seattle home in 1938 as a way to help climber friends gain access to cheaper ice axes and harnesses by ordering bulk gear from Europe.

A cooler company whose two-inch-thick, double-walled products are so effective that its creation, in 2006, began a new era in rafting.

Gary Fisher: A major figure in the development of mountain bikes.

Polarization: A lens technology that cuts glare created when light reflects off materials like plastic and glass.

Fly rod: A skinny stick, usually 6 to 13 feet long, used in conjunction with a reel, a line, and hand-tied simulations of in-sects to catch fish.

Fat shoes: Shoes with roughly 20 millimeters of foam underfoot

Phil Knight: Cofounder of athletic-shoe company Nike.

The brand of zipper that is likely keeping your britches up at this very moment. Headquartered in Tokyo, 81-year-old YKK (short for Yoshida Kogyo Kabu­shikikaisha, which translates as ­Yoshida Company Limited) was founded by Tadao ­Yoshida, who started making cus­tom zippers to take advantage of breaks and…

Blimp-tired bicycles were developed for one of the most grueling endurance races in the world. But then everyone else realized how much fun they were.

Nike+: The original wearable technology for athletes.

Odor Control: The relentless attempt by apparel makers to tame human stink.

Wetsuit: An insulating garment that allows individuals to spend more time in cold water.

P-cord: Parachute cord, also known as paracord, the world’s most versatile survival tool.

Recall: A request by a manufacturer, and usually the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC), to return a product after the discovery of safety issues.

The Perfect Size Wheel: An elusive and controversial hoop that allows mountain bikers the ability to optimize progress over rocky terrain.

Leatherman: A multitool invented by Tim Leatherman after wishing he had a pair of pliers while working on a rust-bucket Fiat with a pocket knife during a 1975 European road trip.

A sturdy, purpose-made fishing boot that has become the gold standard of footwear in the 49th state.

Filson, a Seattle-based maker of high-quality leather goods.

Sunglasses designed to protect a pilot’s eyes against high-altitude sun.

Telescoping front forks and articulating rear frame triangles that absorb bumps and shocks.

Pulaski: A wildland-firefighting tool that combines an ax and an adze and is used to clear brush and small trees.

Howard Head: The founder of ski brand Head.

The surprising tendency for technical products and trends from the outdoor world to find their way into mass culture.

Sick Footie: A visual recording worth replaying for others.

Dutch Oven: A large cast-iron pot and the campfire cooking vessel of choice for pioneers, cowboys, and river guides.

Repurposing: Taking a product and adapting it for a different use.

Westfalia: A breed of Volkswagen camper van prone to expensive repairs, yet beloved by those who own them and coveted by road-trip dreamers everywhere.

A pioneering social-fitness app released in 2009.

Little Things: Those items that mark the difference between a miserable experience and a joyous one—pit zips on jackets being a prime example.

Catalog: A magazine-like print presentation of a company’s or retailer’s products.

Jeremy Jones: A pioneering big-mountain snowboarder and snowboard designer.

Hummer: The civilian version of the military’s Humvee off-road vehicle, which was produced by AM General from 1992 to 2006.

Swiss Army Knife: The world’s first consumer multitool, designed by cutler Karl Elsener with two blades, a screwdriver, and a can opener.

Greg Lowe: Inventor of the internal-frame backpack.

Kite: A lightweight aircraft—often erroneously considered a toy—propelled by the wind and controlled by a user on the ground via a line or set of lines.

A category of gear that came into being in the late 1960s as more and more skiers ventured beyond resort boundaries.

Jeep: A four-wheel-drive vehicle first produced for the U.S. Army during World War II.

Gone are the days of rangers in fire lookout towers. Now, mountain-top cameras are being used to spot smoke and flames.

Washing a single polyester jacket can send 1,900 tiny synthetic micro-fibers into waterways, where they can soak up toxins and get eaten by fish. So what is the outdoor industry doing about it?

How a humble wooden fishing craft became the quintessential Grand Canyon ride

Therm-a-Rest: The first mass-market inflatable sleeping pad.

A bindingless monoski invented in 1965.

Duluth pack: A heavy canvas rucksack, patented in 1882 by French Canadian Camille Poirier in Duluth, Minnesota, along the shores of Lake Superior.

And how it's going to change the way you see all of your stuff

Jogging Stroller: A stroller that allows parents to run and, theoretically, get their toddlers to nap.

Headphones: Any device used for playing music close to or within a wearer’s ears.

Fat Skis: Skis that are at least 115 millimeters underfoot.

Vasque Sundowner: A svelte hiking boot that serves as a testament to how well-made products can endure despite evolving design trends.

Portaledge: A collapsible sleeping platform for climbers.

Blake Mycoskie: A 38-year-old philanthropist and entrepreneur who founded Toms Shoes (originally Shoes for a Better Tomorrow) in 2006.

Lumbersexual: A fashion-conscious male urbanite whose clothing and accessories project an aura of rugged manliness.

Thule: A company founded by Swedish outdoorsman Erik Thulin, originally to make fishing gear.

The world's leading design center for outdoor footwear—everything from featherweight climbing shoes to hard-shelled mountaineering stompers—is a small city in northern Italy where craftsmanship reigns.

Nalgene bottle: A durable, wide-mouthed vessel originally designed to hold chemicals.

Doug Tompkins: Businessman and crusading conservationist who cofounded the North Face and Esprit.

Heart-Rate Monitor: A device that measures a wearer’s heart rate; particularly useful for monitoring exertion in athletes.

A packable device producing fire for camp cooking.

Military-strong material with smart features for any civilian

Commandment #1: Know thy options

Treat your feet right with bright art and classic comfort

Surfer Jamie O’Brien and his team made the fiery stunt look easy. But turns out, it took months of planning and some very specific gear to get right.

Towable as hell but built with enough room to host dinner parties

Some our favorite images from this year's Tour de France stages in the French Alps.

When you build the two millionth edition of an iconic 4x4, it deserves special treatment

A cool concept that does fisheries good

Glaciers! Trained grizzlies! $3.25-million dollar cameras! An inside look at the hottest bike flick of 2015.

Tenth Mountain Division: An Army outfit specializing in mountain warfare, devised during World War II around the idea that it was easier to make troops out of skiers than skiers out of troops.