The Goat

The search for a cool earmuff is like finding cold fusion to these people. Swix makes several earmuffs, but this guy’s is one of their biggest. My favorite is the super small stealth-style earmuff you can wear without even putting on the headband—no one will notice! These are actually for wearing underneath your hat while cross country skiing, but why do you need earmuffs under a hat?

My friend’s Cannondale frame broke a long time ago and we found a bunch of Bondo inside. Apparently they’ve stepped-up quality control since then, because Dirt Rag Magazine has a tour of their facilities that’s fairly impressive (if you’re a tech dork). Check out the photo gallery if you’re more of a “picture person.”

via Go Clipless

The Swiss should stick to making watches and knives for their famous army. The Swiss company Eleven has something out called the Eleven Edit Jacket. It’s in a bunch of modular pieces that you can swap to make your own unique look. A snap together jacket? It’s probably not the most waterproof or windproof thing out there.

via Snowbroader

The company that specialized in river dry bags for years is taking roll top technology to the streets. The WX Tex Metro is a waterproof urban backpack. You can stand in a downpour on the highway shoulder for hours without ruining your laptop. WX Tex put one external pocket on the Metro and slapped on some reflective tape so truckers can see you hitchhiking.

It looks like Burton menthol, but it’s actually crusty ol’ Patagonia. The Slopestyle Hoody might be the best piece of gear Patagonia’s cut since the aforementioned Retro-X. It’s a subtle, low-tech piece of gear with a comfy feel and cut. It’s the one thing you can wear as a mid-layer on cold days, alone on spring days, and at the bar after every day of skiing. The front pockets are a little big since it looks like they’re sized to carry magazines around, but for $100 this is still a killer deal.

Faucet water too polluted to drink? Just fill up your CamelBak and add Sawyer’s inline Water Filter to your drink tube. You’ll get a little lightheaded from trying to suck water through the filter, but it does kill e. coli in case you have any meat juice leftover in your water reservoir. The Sawyer filter can be added to a dry bag to make a gravity water filter when you need to purify a lot of water. The setup costs $50 and lasts for 500 gallons.

Marmot re-released their Original DriClime Windshirt. It’s been a staple in the industry for years—dirtbag climbers wear it without a shirt underneath, backcountry skiers wear it while skinning. I’m hoping that the Original does really well and other companies start re-releasing their old jackets, too. I’m holding out for the pastel colorway Bugaboo and neoprene-lined windproof Patagonia Retro-X.

The Shimano MW02 Winter Boots would be a hell of an upgrade to those weatherproofed cowboy boots you’re riding around with. Shimano improved on their creatively named SH-W101 by giving the MW02 a Gore-Tex liner and neoprene ankle cuff. It has a pretty burly outsole so you can walk up those hills too steep for your cargo bike. It’s about $200 to keep your feet dry on the ride to work, or you could just buy a bus pass and save some cash.

via Bike Magic

Proving that the Olympics are a little closer to allowing Roller Derby, the Executive Board of the International Olympic Committee announced they would continue to include ski and snowboardcross in the next winter games. They’re also keeping something called “team sprint cross country skiing,” which should be pretty entertaining if it’s just like it sounds. The OIC also considered women’s ski jumping and a national team event in alpine skiing for the 2010 games, but apparently neither had the following of team sprint cross country skiing because they didn’t make the cut.

via My Snow Sports

Starting in spring ’07, Patagonia will begin selling footwear that’s not made to be worn with waders. Their casual shoes will be made with Vibram’s Ecostep soles which use 30% recycled rubber and hemp or vegetable oil tanned leather. Now it won’t hurt so bad when you step on glass at Widespread Panic concerts.

via Treehugger