Outdoor Gear

Review: Cgear Sand-Free Multimat for Camping

Let’s face it: The outdoors can be dirty and dusty.  You go to the beach and try to lay a towel out and end up getting sand all over it.  You go for a swim and then get sand in your eyes when you dry off.  Not fun.  How do you cure this?  Cgear’s Sand-Free Multimat!  That’s how! The Multimat is made from a special technological material similar to what the military uses a to keep dust down when landing helicopters in dusty environments.  This also works wonderfully to keep the sand and dust on the ground where it belongs…


Casio Edifice Watch Review: Yep, I Said Casio

I have a pretty extensive watch collection which includes time pieces that range in price from very low to very high. While I do posses several “high-end” watches I find that I wear a digital watch most often. Part of the reason is my line of work – I just am too hard on anything I wear to worry about a pricey wrist accessory and part of it is the functionality a digital watch offers. A few weeks ago I took off my trusty Casio G-Shock while at the mall and gave it to my wife to hold. When we…


Gear Review: Icon’s Solo and Link LED Flashlights

I loved Icon’s Rogue 2 Flashlight.  It was the most durable flashlight I have ever had the opportunity to use. It was bright and well designed and will last many years. Paul Kim, the designer of the Icon line of flashlights is a genius at designing flashlights that are not only very good-looking, but very functional. That’s why I jumped at the chance to review flashlights of another shape and size. Icon sent me a Link and a Solo LED Flashlight and they are the smallest lights that Icon makes. First up is the rugged and handy Link. The Link…


RadTech I-Sight Review: Let There Be Light

If you have significant other and you sleep in the same bed chances are it’s happened to you at least once. It’s nearing bedtime but one of you just isn’t ready to go to sleep yet. Do you like to read in bed? A lot of us do, it’s probably where I do most of my reading. But does your partner get frustrated when your bedtime reading because it means leaving lights on so you can see? Enter the RadTech I-Sight. When I do early morning running in the winter/fall it’s sometimes still dark outside. What do I do to…


Follow Me and My iPhone On Our C25K Journey

My running career hasn’t been a long one. I started running back in the summer of 2007 as part of an effort shed a few pounds. After a few runs I was hooked and made a promise to myself. I was 37 at the time, and I pledged that I’d run the NYC Marathon the year I turned 40; at the time I planned to make it my first marathon. Anyone who knows me knows that when I start something I go all all in. I know only one speed. So it didn’t come a surprise to my friends or…


Review: High Sierra Cirque 30 Daypack

One of my favorite activities during the spring and summer months is to go hiking.  I don’t mean just for a afternoon hike, but all day.  Just pack a lunch, thermos full of coffee and a bagel and head out the door for a long hike in the woods.  Of course you have to make sure that you have a jacket, some raingear, sun block, a hat, water and maybe even a tent and bedroll for a quick overnight in the woods.  Some daypacks barely have enough room for this kind of activity and  if you are a scout leader…


Review: Etón FR360 Emergency Preparedness Digital Radio

It is starting to be that time of year.  What do I mean?  Thunderstorm and Tornado Season that’s what I mean.  That is followed by the Hurricane season.  The best thing to do to st?ay safe dur?ing this season is to take time to prepare now before the worst happens.  One device that will help you keep informed during a storm is a radio.  If you have a portable radio, one problem you always have is batteries not being charged when you need it or you only have the radio on your stereo.  If that’s you, then you should pickup…


SurvivalStrap Review: Always There When You Need It

As a firefighter, I’m always looking for “gear” that keeps me safe.  It’s especially nice to find a piece of equipment that I can carry both at work and at home.  My rescue tool, for example, never leaves my pocket.  It’s a versatile piece of hardware that I use almost every day, sometime to free an injured patient from their seat belt, other times to cut the blister pack off of one of my daughter’s newest toys. When I saw the SurvivalStraps web site I immediate thought, “now there’s something that might come in handy no matter where I am.”…


Enjoy a Sand-Free Campsite With the CGear Multimat

Anyone who has ever tried to camp where there is sand knows that it is nearly impossible to not track those demonic little grains into your tent or worse — into your sleeping bag. It’s just as bad at the beach, when you are trying to tan without wearing half the beach on your lower legs. CGear has a solution which they say will eliminate the problem – their Multimat. “The CGear Multimat was originally designed as a deployable helimat to eliminate dirt, dust and debris from being kicked up by the helicopters rotors when landing. The product was so…


Pelican i1015 iPhone and iPod touch case Review

Allow me to set the scene. You’re sitting on the beach in a faraway tropical location sipping on a fancy frozen drink, while listening to tunes streaming from your iPod touch which is resting gently on your towel. Looks good right? That is until the family of six comes marching by with a horde of beach toys, chairs, karts, umbrellas etc. kicking sand all over your precious Apple product along the way. Pelican has been in the business of protecting gizmos and gadgets for over 20 years. Their heavy-duty cases our industry known as ones that offer the maximum amount…


Review: Tom Bihn Synapse

Tom Bihn is a company I have been following for a while now, ever since Judie reviewed the Aeronaut when she was still at The Gadgeteer.  Tom Bihn is not only based right here in the United States, they make their bags in the US, which is a rarity among bag manufacturers.  When Tom Bihn let me know about their new Synapse backpack, I jumped at a chance to review it. The exterior of the Synapse I was sent is made with Indigo colored 1000 denier U.S. Cordura, and the backpack is lined with Solar Dyneema/nylon rip-stop fabric.  The Syapse is…


Coghlan’s Magnesium Firestarter Review

I really liked the Flint Striker from Coghlan’s I reviewed in September.  It works really well but sometimes you need a little more.  The Magnesium Firestarter from Coghlan’s not only gets the spark you need, but also provides you some tinder that burns a little hotter than dryer lint.


SCOTTEVEST Evolution Travel Jacket Review

I was a big fan of SCOTTEVEST’s technology enabled clothing long before I began writing for tech sites. It just appealed to my inner geek. I got one of their classic vests, as well as their mid-weight jackets, long before most people had heard of the company and wore them for years. Those jackets were among some of the earlier designs Scott and Co. offered but were already highly functional. I had not, however, seen any of the more recent designs other than through occasionally browsing the online catalog and posting news on Gear Diary. Judie was sent one of…


Review: Icon Rogue 2 LED Flashlight

Not all flashlights are created equal.  Back in 1979, Anthony Maglica created Maglite.   Maglite is the bar where all flashlights are measured, for me.  Almost nothing could top it back then.  Well, Paul Kim, the designer of the Icon Rogue series of flashlights may be the new Anthony Maglica.  The Icon Rogue 2 is the best flashlight I have come across in all of my LED flashlight reviews I have done.   It is that good.


Tent stake with built-in LED light makes late night tent setups a snap

This orange stake looks like any other tent peg. Look closer and you’ll find that there’s a white LED lamp built into the side. Powered by 4 LR41 batteries (included) this peg will help you survive those hurried late night tent setups by illuminating the ground. The manufacturer claims the light will run for up to 5 hours on one set of batteries. Lighted Tent Peg – $3.72


Coghlan’s Flint Striker Review

From the days of the cave man, starting fires has long been something man has struggled with.  The Coghlan’s Flint Striker which is a twist  on a fire-starting technology that is almost as old as time.  Even with today’s more modern technology, you  still might want to use one of these instead of matches or butane lighters. Coghlan’s Flint Striker is a rod made of magnesium with a striker attached with a piece of cord.  It is simple to operate.  You just take the striker and hold it in one hand with the word UP facing the top of the…


Life+Gear 6IN1DC Flashlight Review

It never fails.  The power goes out in the middle of the night and your flash light is out of batteries.  Now that we are getting to the heart of the hurricane season, before the next storm hits maybe you should  get your family a Life+Gear 6IN1DC. The 6IN1DC is touted as a quad power device. The device can run on 3 AAA Batteries,  a DC Adapter (not included), an AC Adapter (also not included) and backup power. 


Spyderco Native Pocket Knife Review

Every year my family takes a week long vacation to visit my mother at her cabin in Maine.  We make it a habit of passing through Freeport, Maine on the way up to her house each year.  Freeport is not only is the home of L.L. Bean but it’s also the home to one of my favorite knife shops, the Freeport Knife Co. I am a collector of pocket knives and I carry one almost all the time either in my pants pocket or my turnout gear.  It’s a tool I end up using several times a day be it…


Gorillatorch: Coming to a Dark Room Near You

I am a huge fan of the Joby Gorillapod, a fantastically flexible mini tripod.  It is one of my favorite gadgets for my camera.  Well, now the good folks at Joby have brought the latest in the Gorilla line, the Gorillatorch.  This is an ultra-bright light, mounted atop the same three flexible legs as the Gorillapod.  At the end of those legs are magnetic feet, which allow you to position the light wherever you need it most.  This would be the perfect solution for workshops, autoshops, and even camping.  Hit the jump for the full press release.


Little Tool That Packs a Big Punch

I’ve been using the Leatherman Skeletool CX for the last year or so.  It goes with me everywhere I go.  I thought it was light weighing in at a mere 5 ounces.  Now Leatherman has one-upped themselves again with the release of the Freestyle CX. This little knife/tool hybrid is packing one heck of a material list. To start, the Leatherman Freestyle CX features DLC coating for scratch and corrosion resistance, making it great for those adventures that really put your gear to the test. Next the premium 154CM knife blade holds its edge three-times as long as traditional stainless…


Coghlan’s Camper’s Kit Review

It’s May, which means it’s off to camp soon for my son and me as we had to Camp Pilgrim Hills with my son’s class for an adventure in Nature’s Classroom. We always pick up water bottles, ponchos, and a new first aid kit because we usually have lost or broken the water bottle, torn the poncho, and used the first aid kit. Coghlan’s has developed a unique package that lets me pick up some of the stuff I need in one shot;  I am talking about Coghlan’s Camper’s Kit in a Bottle.