Gear Patrol | Spirit of Adventure, Passion for Gear

With a production count of only 500 this week’s Fixation, the 2011 BMW 750Li Alpina B7 is a BMW guaranteed to do less blending and more asphalt igniting. A driver’s coach for the driving enthusiast. Alpina, an oft misunderstood variation of BMW (the 80′s come to mind…) has made massive strides in their 45 years [...]

Paintball fans looking to take the experience to the next level should consider hopping the pond and heading to Souhfields Farm at Leicestershire in the UK. There you’ll find a one of kind warfare simulation experience known puntastically as Armourgeddon. If the name didn’t give it away, this facility teaches visitors how to operate real [...]

The Bag That Deserves Better Camera Gear

Originally a fishing gear bag, Billingham made the switch to pro-photo gear in 1978 when founder Martin Billingham learned that professional photographers in New York were using the bags to carry lenses and cameras instead of tackle and bait. The rest is, well, history. After a month, ours has been nothing less than a photo [...]

A Look Back at Gear Patrol's Recent Finds

Sam Martin, the Editor-in-Chief of Design Mind discusses the instinctive, visceral need of men for their own space. In his speech at 2009′s TED Conference (the thinkers of our time), Martin shares his research and findings of “man spaces”. His insights are not far from what I’ve seen permeate modern-day men’s culture both mass (Into [...]

Zoom Lensonkulous

With an f/2.8 aperture through its entire 200-500mm zoom range and f/5.6 at 1,000 (using its 400-1,000mm adaptor), this near-comically sized super lens from Sigma is the ultimate zoom lens for pro wildlife, sports, and astrophotographers. Granted, it’s also the size of a Fiat so prepare to check another bag if you plan to take [...]

A Watch For Your Black Ops Maneuvers

Suunto pretty much invented the “ABC” watch – that’s Altimeter/Barometer/Compass – and they have a different model for just about any use, from golf to sailing to skiing. But when you want utility in a super hard-ass tactical package, there’s only one choice – the X-Lander Military ($350).

Otherwise Known as Deep-Fried Dough

Based on the attention you all gave to the King Aurthur Flour Mini Doughnut Maker, we figured we’d share more with you in deep-fried goodness department. Anyone who has been to New Orleans and followed a guide books instructions has probably sampled the delicious offerings of Café Du Monde. If you enjoyed the experience, there’s [...]

Go Lighter For Less

You’re probably thinking, Pendleton – camping blanket, or maybe even bag, but not Madras, right? Well, Pendleton is more than a one-trick pony. Using authentic loom-woven madras from India, the Pendleton Oceanside Madras Shirt ($48) is certainly one of our unexpected procurements. The pigment died madras lives up to its heritage: soft and light, it’s [...]

A Year Ago on Gear Patrol

Never Dark, Never Weak

When it comes to a daily wear watch, I’m not always looking for beauty – rugged functionality will do me just fine thank you very much. Utilizing “Never Dark” dial illumination technology the Reactor Trident ND ($350) maintains an illuminated dial 24/7 using Superluminova brightness with tritium gas tubes. Water resistant to 660 feet, the [...]

Cheat Sheet Mat

Sure, reading men’s magazines about different workouts and stretches is great, but like a Google search, I manage to forget everything I read in a matter of seconds. No takeaways and prefer leaving the “bring my magazine with me while I’m working out” doucheyness for the guy. The result? Same workout, every time. G2 has [...]

Get Drenched in Style

Non New Yorkers may not be familiar with the Supreme brand, but thanks to e-commerce, that doesn’t mean you can’t integrate their clothes to your wardrobe from afar. The Outdoor Parka is a choice piece from their current offerings, and works well as a light weight, stylish shell for weathering summer showers. Made from water-resistant [...]

1,000fps In Your Pocket

When it comes to point & shoot cameras, small does not necessarily equate to good. The same goes for price. The Casio EX-FH100 ($349), a replacement for last year’s popular EX-FC100, features a wide-angle 24mm 10x optical zoom f3.2-5.7, 10 megapixel high sensitivity backlit sensor, 3″ LCD, 40 fps continuous shooting @ 9 megapixels, and [...]

Cook Like a Superhero (or Villain)

By Gear Patrol reader Amos Kwon What would you get if you hybridized Bruce Wayne and Wolfgang Puck? A large, angry Austrian version of Squiggy from Lavergne and Shirley? Perhaps, but you’d also have someone who would use the dark and stealthy Boker Ceramic Kitchen knife to carve his Kobe Beef tenderloin in the shape [...]