Shoulder Season 1: It’s soon time to hike
Ski season isn’t over, but the end is nigh. (Seasonally, of course. Also, existentially. If the world gets another few bad winters, the ski resort economy in some countries will be in serious trouble. Doubt us? Check this collection of abandoned lifts and dirt slopes.) So it’s time to think ahead. To hiking. Or at...
Bests in show?
Writers sometimes excuse their laziest writing by labelling it service journalism. Other times, they will excuse their lazy research by calling it curatorial reportage (i.e., consolidating information from other published accounts). The following combines both of these lame gambits in a single flaming post. Despite its obvious limits, you might still find it useful. ...
Let’s not get too excited about e-bikes
E-bikes—already a big deal—are bound to get bigger. Analysts expect the global market to grow by 60 percent or more by 2025, with at least one major European bike maker projecting that it will soon sell more e-bikes than regular bikes. Giant, the world’s largest bike-maker, expects e-bike sales to increase by 30 percent this...
Monitoring fitness monitors: the heart of the matter
In exercise, the flesh can be weak and the spirit too willing. You know the stories: someone your age pushed too hard and then keeled over. (In fact, this happens at all ages, but you pay more attention when the deceased is someone your age.) The more often you hear the stories, the more...
Toward a safer bike
The bicyclist with a jacket tied loosely around her waist, a guy with a strap dangling from whatever is clamped into the mousetrap over his back fender. An errant shoe string or flapping pants leg. Suddenly, the fabric swings that extra inch and gets snagged. It’s pulled into the derailleur or wedged between the chain...
Two more things on glamping
Everyone should self-impose a limit on the number of stories they write on glamping. Like one a month and maybe ten in a lifetime. So apologies, but two things have crossed my desk that demand to be relayed to anyone who has read this far: First, you need to see the array of products...
You don’t want anything for Christmas
Young people hate old people for many reasons, most of them justifiable. This time of year they hate us because there is no obvious gift for us. We have most of what we want. What we don’t have we can live without. If we are going to get something more, we very particular about what...
Can seniors run barefoot? (Redux.)
If you’ve lived long enough, you’ve learned to be skeptical. Maybe cynical. You may even have crafted a few homemade conspiracy theories that you’re reluctant to divulge because everyone knows what conspiracy theories mean. (They mean you’ve taken the first step on the meandering trail to someone’s-been-sneaking-into-my-apartment-and-moving-my-reading-glasses-and-car-keys.) You might even think that Nike’s huge advertising...
L.L. Bean AT 55 Pack: built for speed and some comfort
Backpacks are like golf clubs. You make your selection based on your size and how far you’re going. The first part is easy: you get a pack that fits your frame. The second changes constantly, which is why golfers lug around 14 clubs and why it’s not uncommon for hikers to have more than one...
Ahnu Mendocino Hiking Boots: Separation Anxiety
This story is about footwear. And emotion. It’s not about the passion young women supposedly feel for $450 stilettos. No. This is about the abiding, nuanced appreciation one feels for certain hiking boots. The ones that feel right from the first moment. The ones that reach out to you, that don’t build a bond so...
Old habits vs. old knees: the gray backpacker’s dilemma
Change is hard, especially if what you’re doing works. And doubly so if it’s been working for 40 years or so. If you started backcountry hiking in the 70s or 80s, you have notions about what constitutes a robust and well-stocked pack. And you probably scoff at younger people who wander off for a week...
Hiking and the spiff of health
You know the seasons are wheeling around because of all the hiking stories that are popping up online. Over the past week or so we’ve been reminded of the joys of hiking, and the toys of hiking, and the health benefits, including this simple and stunning fact, from a study by a team at the...
