A Great Source of Information

Whether you are into camping, hiking, trail running, mountain biking or paddling, I have found a wealth of information on whatever your outdoor recreational activity is. Trails.com has put together a very easy-to-navigate site that allows you to pick your sport, then just click on the state and you will be amazed at how many locations they provide information for. You can also get photos and reviews from the members who post them. I live in South Florida and I was very impressed by the number of great hiking destinations in my area. This is also a great place to get topographical maps and to buy gear.

The Essential Kayak Equipment

Everything You Need to Buy to Get Started

By George Sayour

Buying your first kayak equipment is a bitter-sweet moment. It is a time filled with the excitement of starting something new mixed with the apprehensions that go along with any large expenditure of money. Getting into any sport can be an expensive affair. That is exactly why many beginners want to know what equipment they must have to get started. There certainly are some must-haves when it comes to being able to paddle. At the same time there are other items of equipment that are more a matter of preference and are not required at all. Here you will find an explanation of the essential gear that a kayaker must have as well as other non-essential equipment one may want to consider purchasing.

Essential Kayak Equipment

• Kayak: Whitewater kayaks are completely different from Sea or Touring kayaks. The type of kayak you choose depends completely on what type of paddling you wish to do and what level of paddler you are.
• Paddle: Each type of kayaking uses a different type of paddle. The store where you buy your equipment can help you figure out which paddle goes with the kayak you decide to buy.
• PFD: PFD stands for Personal Flotation Device and is essentially a life jacket or life preserver for kayakers.
• Spray Skirt: Spray skirts help keep the water out of the kayak. They are necessary for Whitewater and Sea Kayaking. Recreational kayaking can do without them. You must be sure that the skirt fits both you and the kayak.
• Helmet: Helmets are a requirement for Whitewater Kayaking. They are not a requirement for Sea Kayaking. I always recommend using a helmet while Surf Kayaking.

Non-essential Kayaking Equipment

• Dry Top, Drysuit, Wetsuit, Paddle Jacket: This is totally a matter of preference and water temperature. Some people always use a dry top. Others paddle without any of these items all summer long.
• Booties: Make sure they are comfortable and that you fit into the kayak while wearing them.
• Gloves: This is also a matter of preference as some people hate to paddle with gloves. In addition to keeping your hands warm, gloves also protect your knuckles from scrapes and gashes.
• Rope Bag: It could help you save the life of a friend. I strongly recommend all paddlers to carry a rope bag.
• Knife: This is one of those items you will probably never use. In the event you get tangled in a rope or stuck under a raft, you'll be glad that you had one.
• Float Bags: These bags that fit in the stern of the kayak will keep it from sinking should you get separated from your boat.
• Dry Bag: This will keep your snacks and camera dry. Just make sure it is attached inside of the boat.

The New Best Cities For Cycling

By Brian Fiske

The new best cities for cycling

A few years into the latest eco movement, we all know that the price of gasoline is through the roof, that Americans are too fat and what Al Gore says about global warming. It has become chic to lower your carbon footprint, buy organic--and ride a bike. While trends can often feel like little more than media hype, we noticed something while researching our latest Best Cities for Cycling survey: real change in surprising places. Increasing pressure to solve local traffic and health problems has led some mayors and city planners to discuss ways to accommodate alternative modes of transportation, not mockingly or grudgingly, but genuinely. The plans are being embraced. Bicycles are being embraced, in ways they have never been before in this country. Of course, cities like Portland, Oregon, and Boulder, Colorado, remain the best in the United States for urban cyclists, just as they were when we last did our survey, in 2006. But this new crop of cities shows that great things can happen in a short amount of time even in big urban centers, and that this may be only the beginning of a far-reaching pro-cycling movement. Get on your bike and roll with it.

Most Improved Cities
Washington, D.C.
Louisville, Kentucky
New York City

Runners-Up
Minneapolis & San Jose

Still the Greatest
Portland, Seattle, Chicago, San Francisco & Boulder

5 For the Future
Boston
Los Angeles
Salt Lake City
Columbus & Fargo-Moorehead

Worst Cities for Cycling
Dallas, Memphis & Miami

Instant Ironman: The Next Level

March 2009

You’ve chosen a good time to start cross-training: Adventure races that combine a variety of sports are on the upswing. Spurred in part by the success of shorter, high-intensity cross-training regimens, the popularity of multisport races has exploded in recent years, especially at the amateur level. Last year alone, nearly 60,000 Americans competed in events across the country, says the Austin, Texas–based U.S. Adventure Racing Association (USARA). Ten years ago, there were only 11 sanctioned multisport races in the U.S. Today there are more than 400, most about four to six hours long and tailored to teams of amateurs.

Public interest in adventure racing seemed to plummet around the same time Mark Burnett ditched his popular Eco-Challenge for Survivor. Once out of the spotlight, though, multisport events became more accessible than ever thanks to grassroots efforts. "Our sport grew backward," says the USARA’s Chance Reading. "We started with the biggest national television contracts and huge races and have since boiled down to a smaller core audience of loyals. Burnett is definitely credited with bringing mass appeal to the sport, and when he left, the masses did lose interest. But as the numbers show, he sparked a movement." Here are some of the best events in the U.S., ranked from beginner level to badass.

Beginner

The Central Coast Adventure Challenge

This event features an 18-mile kayak, bike, and foot race through some of the most remote backcountry between San Francisco and SoCal (May 16–17 in San Luis Obispo, California; ccadventure.com).

Advanced Beginner

Adventure Week

There’s a little something for everyone here: orienteering workshops, three-hour sprint competitions, an XTERRA triathlon, and trail running and mountain biking races (June 5–14 near Coeur d’Alene, Idaho; adventureweek2009.com).

Intermediate

Adventure Xstream Summit

Part of a six-race series, the high-altitude Summit installment plays out between 9,000 and 12,000 feet on stunning backcountry singletrack and alpine lake terrain (July 25 in Frisco, Colorado; gravityplay.com).

Difficult

The Longest Day

The name says it all. Staged annually, this 26-hour race combines trekking, trail running, paddling, and mountain biking with a decent dose of navigation and some ropes sections (June 6–7 in New York’s Catskill Mountains; nyara.org).

Extreme

Primal Quest Badlands

This is the big daddy of the North American adventure racing circuit. The 2009 edition is 600 miles long and includes everything from singletrack mountain biking to spelunking through local cave networks (August 15–24 in South Dakota’s Black Hills region; ecoprimalquest.com).

—Text by Devon O'Neil

Everyday Hydration Tips

by Roseanne Pereira

Dr. Douglas Casa, Director of Athletic Training Education in the University of Connecticut's Neag School of Education says people get into trouble when they try to follow set requirements for hydration. A magazine article that endorses eight glasses of water a day may not be right for you. Quench your thirst for information with Dr. Casa's tips on how to regulate your daily drinking.

Peek at Your Pee: Monitor its color. If it's light, like lemonade, you're doing pretty good. If it's darker, like apple juice, start gulping down liquids.

Step on the Scale: And do it both before and after exercising, to get a better sense of your individualized hydration needs. If you weigh more after a workout, chances are you drank too much while exercising. If you weigh much less, you may need to drink more. Experts recommend losing no more than 2 percent of your body weight during activity. Weighing the same before and after exercise, or slightly less, suggests you are an efficient hydrator.

Consider Sports Drinks: Because they replace some of the salts you lose when sweating, they're ideal for activities that last longer than an hour (for instance, hiking or biking treks) or even during very intense activities. Or if you're the kind of fanatic who's jogging in 110-degree heat.

Remember Chug Capacity: Recent studies show that coffee doesn't dehydrate, but Casa still doesn't recommend it for a workout; it's not the kind of fluid you can chug when you need to replace a lot of fluid in a short period of time.

(But Not for Beer!:) Alcohol does not leave you in the best possible state to recognize your fluid needs, prepare for the next bout of activity, or maximize fluid retention. Only use if stranded on an island with a case of beer, not for the purpose of fluid replacement.

Shun Sugar: Sodas, fruit juices and even beer have a higher level of sugar (which means more calories per serving) than most sports drinks or water. These drinks can rehydrate your body because they contain water, but their sugars give the stomach and intestines more to deal with; as a result, the fluids aren't absorbed into the body as quickly. It's fine to drink these beverages with meals and during leisure activities, but they won't keep you optimally hydrated during exercise.

10 Benefits You Get from Using Trekking Poles For Hiking

We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence then, is not an act but a habit.
-Aristotle-

I remember watching my boys growing up. They would go to their scout meetings and bring home a pole that they had

cut from a sapling. They made it into a pole by stripping the bark and carving different designs into it. They would talk about how they used it for hiking and on camp outs.

Today things have changed a lot. The Scouts still make their trekking poles, but more hikers are now going high-tech.

Today's poles have much of the same benefits the scouts used them for.

Hikers also use two of them for hiking. Which double the benefits.

1. This includes pack weight distribution to the arms, thus increasing endurance.
2. Makes keeping your balance easier as you cross rivers and streams as well as rough terrain.
3. Lowers stress on the joints, knees, hips and lower back.
4. Gives a more upright, hiking posture. This in turn will make breathing more efficient.
5. Helps you go up those steep inclines. Also helps you keep your balance on the declines.
6. Despite some drawbacks concerning them, the advantages far outweigh the drawbacks.
7. Trekking poles today are high tech in design and with adjustable telescopic features make them ideal for summer and winter. Most are made from materials such as aluminum or titanium.
8. Trekking poles have adjustable wrist straps and can have plastic or cork hand grips.
9. How to use your trekking poles is done by keeping your forearm parallel to to the ground on flat terrain. If you're ascending the poles will need adjusting. You will need to make them shorter, so you will not over reach. The opposite is also true as well. When going down a hill you will need to lengthen the poles.
10. Its very easy to use trekking poles. Just walk naturally one arm forward with the opposite leg. The poles will soon become apart of you as you walk.

As you become used to using the poles you'll find how easy it has become to hike and how much faster and farther you can travel.

Submitted by:

Robin Shortt