Team Pride Never Felt So Manly

Whatever your team, this is the ultimate grill mark for your meat.

Sometimes things in life are meant to be questioned like why your girlfriend came back from the grocery store with the brand of paper towel that costs $3 more a roll than the kind you buy. Others aren’t.

You don’t question why you need a custom grill grate with your favorite college team’s logo on it. That’s because instinctually we all know that meat just tastes better when it’s grilled with team pride. Never mind the fact that Matt Yarder, the founder of YM sports grates happens to be from the home town of one of our editors and supports the same college team.

So do yourself a favor, measure your grill and get your hands on one. It’s guaranteed to impress your buddies, not to mention make your whole grilling operation look that much more badass. [via Tailgating Ideas]

Cost: $135+ @ YM Custom Grates

There are two types of men: Those who get this trophy, and gymnasts.

Pigskin prognosticators rejoice! As the commencement of the NFL season draws nigh, so does the start of the Fantasy Football season. I am proud to count myself among the 40 million plus Americans whose utter dedication to 17 weeks of gridiron speculation result in a near 19 billion dollar fourth quarter loss in corporate productivity. Clearly the stakes are high, thus the rewards should be equally lucrative. Allow me to present The Ultimate Fantasy Football Trophy, which is nothing if not aptly named.

Though the rules of each league vary, you and your fellow owners likely play for some combination of pride, cash, and a tangible symbol of your skill and dominance. The Ultimate Trophy from Titlecraft represents the most handsome, enviable vision of that symbol. Handcrafting each masterpiece right here in the good ol’ US of A, Titlecraft offers a wide range of styles and prices. You’ll have the option of choosing a proven design or customizing your own unique league award with up to nineteen different options.

Gear Patrol asked Ed Reichow, Titlecraft’s trophy master, to give his take on the majesty of his craftsmanship. Here’s what Ed has to say:

“This isn’t for lesser men… we wanted to create a prize that justifies the effort that the serious fantasy player puts in.”

Truer words have never been spoken.

What this means to you: Want to take your league to the next level? Look no further than the Ultimate Fantasy Football Trophy. Take it from us at GP, there’s simply nothing else out there that compares.

Cost: $299 to $799 @ Titlecraft

For some, the end of August is a sad time when summer slowly winds to a close. For others though the final days of August signify something far more meaningful - football…

Dust of your coozies and fire up your grills men, it’s time for pigskin. Whether your grace the hallowed asphalt lots for tailgating extravaganzas or prefer your gridiron perspective in the the comforts of your home, may your feats of cookin, drinking, cheering and jeering be greater than ever before.

Long have you waited for the sensory symphony of football: sizzling grills, sordid rants of opposition, clashing titans on the field, clanging coolers, the crisp aroma of beers - you are man. You are football and we salute you.

Today is Friday, so lets Hail Mary into the weekend with some football gear.

Virtual Signing Bonus For The Armchair Quarterback

Must… see… more… football…

If there was ever a reason for you to wish you had a clear view of the Southern skies*, it’s DirecTV NFL Sunday Ticket. A literal cornucopia of NFL football viewing, Sunday Ticket offers you more options than Donovan McNabb.

The basic package ($289) allows you to watch every NFL game every Sunday of the NFL regular season. No longer are you restricted to just your markets games. You’ll get enhanced viewing experiences like real-time scoreboards of all the day’s actions, Game and Player statistics (team and individual) and our favorite: Player Tracker.

Football Stats Euphoria - NFL Sunday Ticket Player Tracker

Player Tracker allows fans and fantasy football fanatics to track their favorite players, offering the statistics of up to two teams of nine players each, and receive real-time onscreen alerts.

And the fun doesn’t stop there. For $99 more, you can upgrade yourself to the Superfan tier that gets you:

• Supercast - the entire weekly lineup of live games available via web-stream to their PC or laptop computer every Sunday
• Red Zone Channel –provides up-to-the-minute highlights, combined with live-action of critical plays and moments from game broadcasts.
• Game Mix – Allows fans to view eight game broadcasts on one screen.
• Short Cuts –features edited versions of NFL game broadcasts, allowing fans to watch an entire game in 30 minutes or less.
• NFL Sunday Ticket Mobile - receive in-progress highlights from games on demand via their mobile phones.

You even get the option to choose a remote for your own team.

No peripheral left logoless.

What this means to you: Over the top? We didn’t think so either. As a matter of fact, we’ve already signed on for our second season.

Cost: NFL Sunday Ticket $289 + Superfan $99 @ DirecTV

* - Random info: In case you didn’t already know, DirecTV satellite dishes have to be pointed to the Southwest or Southeast skies depending on your location.

Click here if you are unable to see the poll.

The Real Spin Class

(Credit: Judyth Ramirez-Carvey, Chris Carvey - streetflystudio.com)

There are two kinds of people when it comes to music. Those that listen and those that create. Those that create, listen as well, but their desire to forge sounds is inherent. Bring out your inner DJ or Electronic Music Producer by taking a class at DubSpot, located in New York City (as any good school like this should).

DubSpot’s insanely cool facilities are one of only a few Ableton certified training centers in the world. Better yet, their gear is teeming with what qualifies as a DJ’s wet dream - DJ workstations equipped with: Apple MacBook Pros, Technics SL- 1210 MK 5 Turntables, Shure M44-7 Cartridges, Pioneer CDJ 1000 MK 3 CD Turntables, ECLER DJ EVO5 Mixer, KORG KAOSS Pad KP3 Effects Unit, Ultrasone DJ1 Pro Headphones, Rane Serato Scratch Live, Traktor Scratch DJ, Ableton Live 7.0, Reason 4.0. Logic Pro 8, and ProTools.

Main DJ Station And Student Workstations at DubSpot [courtesy: DubSpot]

With courses ranging from quick intro sessions to a full-on DJ/Producer course package, DubSpot might just get you one step closer to showing Timbaland just how your shit is done.

Cost: $295-$4,750 @ DubSpot

Alas, this isn’t your window sill. (Credit: Brian Bowen Smith)

We weren’t sure how to approach this week’s Gear Girl, but felt compelled to note that Gear Patrol’s Editor, Eric, has an outspoken ‘thing’ for Jordana Brewster. (Oh, you didn’t think we knew did you Eric). Normally, not one to make much hullabaloo when we select a Gear Girl, Eric tried to measure restraint when Jordana Brewster’s name arose, but I saw it in his eyes… So here we are, obliging his obvious affinity for Brewster (she is smoldering, regardless) and selected her as this week’s Gear Girl.

Jordana Brewster was born in Panama City by way of London and Brazil, but joined the populous of New York City, later graduating from Yale University (Yale.) in 2003. As a former soap opera star on All My Children, which explains Eric’s random disappearances during daytime hours, Brewster has been seen in The Fast and the Furious, which explains the DVD in Eric’s collection, and a few other movies of little consequence. Jordana is married (to Eric’s chagrin, no doubt) to producer, Andrew Form.

More images and a response Eric forced me to add after the jump.
Read the rest of this entry »

Democrat or Republican, Support Your Party With Ties

Now that the Democratic and Republican conventions are finally upon us, there’s no avoiding politics. We suggest subtly showing your party support with these classic Elephant and Donkey printed ties from Vineyard Vines. You are, after all, a man of discerning taste. Made of 100% silk, these ties are reasonably priced to fit your budget and still look great; just make sure you vote! No joke.

Cost: Elephant Tie, Donkey Tie $75 @ Vineyard Vines

Last week we asked Gear Patrol readers what they drank most. 192 of you voted and we wanted to share the results.
By and large ‘Anything That Comes In A Six Pack’ (a la Beer) won with 28% of the votes. Not that we’re surprised - we are, after all, men. But a surprising 6% of you voted for ‘Drinks with Fruit and Umbrellas’. We’re all for unique, but no shame indeed. 14% of our voters went for the liquid gold, that is, Scotch. 11% for whiskey - the same for wine, 10% for Gin and 10% for molotov cocktail fuel, and 9% for Kentucky’s finest.

So, if you feel compelled, tell us (comment or write) what your favorite drinks or brands are? Gear Patrol’s listening.

A Photographic Force To Be Reckoned With

Unleash your inner photographer. And cinematographer.

Normally, we wouldn’t bring you a post every other Tom, Dick and Harry site or blog have published but there’s no doubt the Nikon D90 warrants your attention. Or at least this editor wants it to. If you haven’t noticed, we (I?) tend to obsess over great images. The fact that the above image is obnoxiously large may attest to that. Admittedly, the Nikon D90 is a bit of an attainable wet dream for me. It is, for lack of better words… a photo-f$#king-graphic marvel.

Sure, the 12.3 megapixel capture image quality is nice (granted, not the highest), but this is a Digital SLR so the images you’ll capture will make that little pocket point-and-shoot look more along the lines of something you took with your phone - crap. The D90 has 4.5 frames-per-second continuous shooting, 200-3200 ISO, 3″ high resolution LCD display with live preview, built-in image sensor cleaning, 11-point auto focus system, Nikon 3D color Matrix metering, and optional GPS tagging. Very nice, but my attention is turned to one single amazing feature. The D90 captures 24fps high definition video with sound. On an SLR camera.

What this means to you: Imagine now for a moment, those gorgeous, rich and saturated photos you always wonder how people take (a la wedding photographers)… but now they’re your own videos. Obviously, I’m smitten.

Cost: $1000 @ Nikon

Also See: Nikon D700 Digital SLR ($2999)