Whenever I travel outside of the borders of the good ol’ US of A, I can’t help but notice that most wallets are inadequate to carry all the things you need. That velcro VANS wallet that you usually carry? Won’t carry a Passport very well, will it? How about saving receipts and carrying boarding passes all in one location? Nope. That’s where the REI Travel Wallet and Travel Document Organizer becomes a real cherished piece of gear.

The REI Travel Wallet is about the dimensions of a paperback book, but much thinner. While that won’t fit into your pocket, it is slim enough to slide into your bags quite easily. (more…)

The North Face Gotham jacket is a heater like no other — it is a puffy down jacket from The North Face that will keep even the most anemic girl warm on the coldest of days. I should know — I finally got my wife a gift she is stoked about!

Okay, okay — I’m not terrible but I do admit to sometimes getting her a gift that’s more for me than for her. Like that Flip video camera? I thought she’d love it — which she does, just not as much as she would have loved a spa treatment. Me on the other hand? I’m using that Flip video thing every time I go skiing with my little boy so I can pull it out of my pocket & shoot pics of him.

So this Mother’s Day, get that special mom in your life something that will keep her warm when winter rolls around next year. Heck, with the way it is STILL snowing here in Utah, she may be pulling it out right now! Snowbird is open until June with a 134″ base this year, by the way…. (more…)

I’ve long been a fan of Crank Brothers pedals. the Eggbeater design is far and away the simplest and most consistent clipless pedal platform I’ve used. Just look at the design… 4-sided entry with plenty of float and easily-cleaned design that sheds mud and dirt better than anything on the market.

The Candy C pedals have been on the market for a couple of years now and they provide that tiny little extra platform just in case. They aren’t as big and beefy as say the Mallet or Acid design, but they are perfect for all-around riding.

I did use the Mallet’s, but have switched to the Candy’s because they are lighter and better for all-around riding. The design is small and light enough that I use them on both my mountain and road bikes. I like having the same type of platform regardless of the type of bike I’m riding. (more…)

High Sierra has been making backpacks, luggage duffels and ski bags for a long time. As the official ski bag of the U.S. Ski Team, they make some of the most durable luggage on the market to carry your gear… and protect your valuables from the heavy-hands of the TSA.

At Outdoor Retailer, I checked out several new products in the High Sierra spring lineup. One of them was the new High Sierra Sentinel 65 backpack. Suitable for extended trips, this marks High Sierra’s solid entry into the technical backpacking market that’s long been dominated by the likes of Gregory, Osprey, Arc’Teryx and The North Face.

Looking over the new Sentinel 65, it’s evident that High Sierra is making a bold entry into this market with a solid backcountry pack that will haul plenty of gear for an extended backpacking trip. Standard features of this 3970 cu. in. pack include everything that should be found on a pack of this size. The fabric is solid and durable with all the right features. (more…)

Have you read Jon Krakauer’s “Into the Wild” yet? Well, if you’re planning your own little trek into the wild then you just might consider taking a mobile GPS device so you don’t end up lost and dead. The perfect setup at the right price just might be the Garmin eTrex Vista HCx GPS Bundle that is available for cheap from REI right now. That way you get everything you’ll need in one tidy, cheap gear package. For me, cheap gear that is also good gear is always a little tough to come by. The only cheap gear I find is when it is a pair of old K2 Gyrators from ‘91 on eBay…not exactly what you would care to drop a dime on.

But the Garmin eTrex Vista HCx GPS Bundle is a different story (albeit with a name that’s a mouthful). Not only do you get a carrying case with the mobile GPS receiver, you also get an extra 128MB MicroSD card and a Topo 2008 DVD with all the topo to keep you rocking. (more…)

In case you’ve been hiding under a rock for the past 4 years, the Santa Cruz Blur is all-but fabled at this point. Our kids will be talking about the Blur as one of the most successful XC bike designs to hit the dirt. When Santa Cruz ponied up for the patents to the Virtual Pivot Point (VPP) suspension design, they had no idea how wildly successful it would be.

For years, Santa Cruz made single-pivot bikes. The Heckler and Bullit were really all they had… simple and decent enough designs for the day. But, with the VPP design, they could carve out a name for themselves and have fun expanding the possibilities of the VPP design in the process.

I got a chance to demo the 2007 Santa Cruz Blur LT in October 2006 at Interbike. At the time, it was really just a slightly modified Blur that now had 5.5 inches of travel instead of 4.7. It was a great bike, but it didn’t feel that much different than the Blur. (more…)

Look, so we’re not Road and Track or even Consumer Reports, but can’t a guy salivate over a nice new set of wheels? Even more justified if it is a driving machine like a BMW. But, even more than that is when that particular BMW is the all-new BMW X6 xDrive35i Sports Activity Coupe.

Yeah, I know… with gas prices where they are, I shouldn’t even care about the 20 mpg X6, but I can’t keep my eyes off the thing. It’s like someone put a Subaru Outback sedan into the “make me sexy and make me drive like a sports car” machine, then added a much more usable hatchback rear end. Oh yeah, did I mention that it’s a BMW? (more…)

Not particularly known for their road bikes, Kona is more of a staple in freeride films and on the North Shore of Vancouver. Nonetheless, their road bike lineup offers an amazing value for what you’re getting. carbon forks or even full-carbon frames mated to top-notch parts specs at competitive price-points and you’ve got yourself the Kona road bike lineup.

The Kona Zing is the entry-level bike in the 4 bike lineup, which consists of the race-worthy, full-carbon King Zing, the still capable and still full-carbon Zing Deluxe, the competitive Zing and the old-school steel Kapu. Between all 4 bikes in the line, you’ve got full carbon, carbon/aluminum and full steel construction. I don’t know of any other major bike line that has so much variety in their framesets, so there’s something for everyone in this line. (more…)

Are you a classic new schooler? Yearning for the good ol’ days where an over-tweaked huntony grab could land you a shot in Freeze Magazine? Do you still idolize Josh Loubek and his Hart F17’s? Then you’re my kinda guy. You should be rockin’ Arnette Sunglasses’ Full House model, because it’s a classic too. The Arnette Full House is a pair of no-frills sunglasses that has remained relatively unchanged since the 1900’s. I got my first pair in ‘98. And they are like the Raichle Flexon ski boot — if these specimens of sweet eyewear gear fit on your head, you love them.

So what is that head shape? A little narrower ear-to-ear then front-to-back. Basically, a football. Okay, that’s an exaggeration — it’s not like Dory in Finding Nemo. But if you have a smaller-than-average nose, then all the better. Because if you, like me, have a small nose bridge then you’ll be stoked to find sunglasses that don’t have a big gap over your nose that lets the wind whistle through your eyeballs. You’ll never want anything different. (more…)

Balancing time between work, play and outdoor activities, it’s always nice to have versatile clothing–especially shoes. I’m definitely not one for wearing wingtips or loafers unless someone has a gun to my head. So, I typically prefer to wear trail runners or other, versatile shoes that can transition from office to trail or the local park without flinching.

I first saw the new North Face Mountain Sneakers at Outdoor Retailer Summer Market 07 last August. Since then, I’ve been anxious to see them hit the store shelves. They are hip-looking and versatile–all while being environmentally-conscious with appropriate use of bamboo-spun tweed, metal-free suede (I didn’t know suede has metal in it), cork midsole and tread made of 40% post-consumer rubber.

I love the style of the Mountain Sneaker and see them as a great set of shoes to wear at the office with jeans or around town. They definitely bring their own unique style to the table. It’s actually very refreshing amongst the other hiking shoes or casual/hikers on the rack. (more…)