Category: Bikes and biking
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The penultimate pack
Just like with beer or coffee, every one is the penultimate. I wanted to do a couple things with this one. First, experiment with 5.3 oz/yard hybrid cuben fiber. Second, fix the mistakes/things I didn’t like about this pack. To whit; a too-short torso length (you’d think I would know better), less than ideal shoulder…
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Little Creek mesa
If at all possible, it’s a good idea to take a few days before a big trip to get acclimated. Feel the pulse of the land, get used to the temperatures, and make sure you’re mentally switched on. For the Grand Canyon trip our permit started Tuesday, which allowed for a perfect acclimation period. I…
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RIT die for synthetic garments
I have issues with hats. This is mostly a performance thing. While the scientific robustness of the old claim that you loose an outsize amount of heat through your head is coming into question, the fact that temperature regulation via hats is fast and easy remains unassailable. As readers will know, I have a brain…
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The Black Diamond Alpine Start Hoody
Surely, the windshirt quest will never stop. Finding an ideal active layer for days which are neither warm nor arctic, neither calm nor storming fiercely, involves delicate balancing of contradictory attributes. The shirt must be significantly wind resistant, but quite breathable. It must be light, but tough, especially given that a windshirt will be used…
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Anorak conversions for blown main zippers
It is to be expected that a heavily used jacket with a #3 main zip, like the 2.1 year old Rab Xenon pictured here, will have zipper failure within the useful life of the garment. While manufacturers continue to use these zips on weekly-use pieces, for reasons of weight, cost, and pliability, repairs will be…
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On turning 33
Monday morning I awoke in the surprisingly warm loft of a forest service cabin, went down the ladder in my socks, blew coals back into life, and put a pot for cowboy coffee on the stove. I was 33 years old. The afternoon we had skied in, done cabin stuff like chopping wood, melting snow,…
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Review the review: OGL on Headlamps
I may have given them some shit recently, but a few weeks ago Outdoor Gear Lab atoned for any past sins and then some, with an outstanding headlamp review. I can’t think of anything they left unexamined. Breadth (37 lamps) and depth (beam patterns, real world run times) are present. Basic theory (why have a…
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Pack materials rundown
I gave in to a somewhat unreasonable obsession with building packs a few years ago, embracing the learning process it provides and admitting that nothing will be perfect and that eventually, anything will go back under the knife to be rebuilt or just scrapped for parts. This lack of attachment helps, I like to think,…
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Seek Outside Big Sibling stove review
I am not going to discuss the theory and applicability of a backpackable wood stove here. For that, go elsewhere. If you are interested in the lightest and most compact such stove currently available, read on. The Big Sibling is the lightest wood stove on the market because it dispenses with a lot of what…
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2013 in review: A journey with backpacks
Gossamer Gear Gorilla, Red Eagle Meadows. M photo. I have a large pile of packs in the closet right now. The taint of this excess is blunted somewhat by the fact that M and I can wear almost identically sized packs, but the redundancy still gets under my skin. However, given the huge steps in…
Bedrock & Paradox 
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