Bike Camper, Sleeping Pod, Tea-Making Growler: GearJunkie Week In Review

A recap of top stories, week of Oct. 17 – 23, 2015.

1) Superior Hiking Trail: REI Fund Will Complete Route

The outdoors retailer and co-op REI is literally building the trails you hike on with its Every Trail Connects program, funding shovel-ready construction and maintenance projects on trails across the country.

2) GearJunkie #BuiltForTheWild Photo Contest

Tag your photos #GearJunkie and #BuiltForTheWild, get YETI Coolers gear.

3) Killington First North American Ski Resort Open For 2015

Reporting two trails open, and a 12-inch base, images on the ski area’s social media show hordes of happy skiers making do with early-season conditions.

4) The Amazing Warranties Of The Outdoors Industry

The outdoor industry has amazing customer service and warranties if you know where to look. These are some of the best warranties offered by brands in the outdoors.

5) Back To The Future: Onewheel Rides Like Hoverboard

An all-terrain skateboard with a single wheel, Onewheel leads the way as the closest thing to a real, ride-anywhere ‘hoverboard’ that humanity has created on the day Marty McFly arrived in ‘Back To The Future.’

6) Meet The Camper Made To Pull Behind Your Bike

Finally, a camper you can pull behind your bike. One catch: It weighs 100 pounds.

7) Most Over-Engineered EDC ‘Biner Ever Made?

This carabiner has 45 parts, can’t be used for rock climbing, and costs 10 times that of a normal ‘biner. But it sure does look cool.

8) Vintage Skijoring: ‘World’s Most Dangerous Sport’

Strap yourself to a Porsche and hang on tight!

9) Spectacular Rockslide In Swiss Alps

Watch 2,000 cubic meters of stone break away from the mountain and cascade into a valley.

10) The Plush, ‘Deflateable’ Foam Car-Camping Mattress

This camp pad turns the idea of an inflatable air mattress on its head. Made of foam, you use a pump to deflate it for storage.

11) Justice For Bike Thieves In Brazilian Prank

Bike thieves make our blood boil, so it’s nice to see these guys get a little surprise. Be warned, this slightly odd post is in Portuguese, so you may want to turn down your volume.

12) Modernized Canvas Tent: Spacious Backwoods Comfort

Review: This big ‘canvas camp’ tent is easy to set up and serves as a bomber base camp.

13) Brace For Impact! Ski Racers Get Deployable ‘Airbags’

The ski-specific airbag deploys automatically in 25 milliseconds to protect the collarbone, chest, and shoulders.

14) Largest Ski Jump In America Set To Reopen In 2017

The massive structure in Michigan will re-open for ‘ski flying’ competition after being refurbished.

15) New Brand Takes Swing At ‘Holy Grail’ Of Heated Jackets

A startup company is taking a poke at the complex proposition of electric apparel. If successful, the Ravean jacket will keep a human warm in weather from 55 degrees F to below-zero.

16) Eye Candy: 7 Minutes Of MTB In ‘Darklight’

Sweetgrass Productions just released the full 7-minute ‘Darklight’ mountain bike film, and it’s breathtaking.

17) Growler Carries Beer & Makes ‘Infused’ Tea, Too

Make tea with the same growler that carries your beer from the micro-brewery. Gotta love this invention straight out of Boulder, Colo.

18) Watch: The Evolution Of Skyrunning

‘Run free to the top of a mountain.’ We love that introductory quote to this video, and for trail runners, it gets better from there.

19) A Peaceful Powder Edit From Hokkaido

The second edit in DPS’s Shadow Campaign, ‘The Warmth Of Winter,’ has a vibe like Sunday morning and deep powder for miles. Grab a cup of coffee and let it ease you into the season.

20) New Method: Tape For ‘Glue-On’ Tubular Bike Tires

Cyclocross season is here. Tubular tire glue can be replaced with a new tape that takes the fuss out of installing “glue-on” bike tires.

21) FAA To Require Recreational Drone Registration

The Federal Aviation Administration today announced recreational drone operators must register their vehicles in an effort to safely manage burgeoning technology.

22) On The Ground At America’s Craziest MTB Event

The difficulty of the terrain at Red Bull Rampage, and the skill of the riders, is hard to comprehend. Eric Hanson reports from Utah.

23) Gear Of The ‘Mobile Office’

It took a lot of gear to support 10 guys at the GearJunkie Mobile Office. From Enerplex portable batteries to Swedish hatchets, this gear kept us stoked in the backcountry.

24) Trip Report: Remote Office

What happens when you put 10 GearJunkie editors, hundreds of pounds of gear, a cooler full of beer, and enough Enerplex products to power a small village in the woods for two days?

25) The Art And Science Of Avalanche Forecasting

Drew Hardesty is an avalanche forecaster in Utah’s Wasatch Mountains, and his message in this video will remind you to stay safe this winter.

26) Ultralight Urban EDC: ‘Fellhoelter Frikky’ Review

Small and unique, our tester reviews the Frikky, a friction folding knife that fits easily in a pocket.

27) All-In-One Sleeping ‘Pod’ Is Winter Camping Upgrade

Insulated walls and a modular design set this system apart from other bivvies on the market.

28) Plug-In For Power: ‘Generac’ Gas Generator Review

Generators have a bad image with some campers. A new, made-in-USA unit we review from Generac has a quiet engine and aims to replace the rumbling generators that can plague campgrounds with exhaust and noise.