Wearable Swann Camera Takes Flight

There is another competitor in the rugged, wearable HD video camera market as the Swann FreeStyle HD has arrived. This camera, which features detachable LCD viewer and 3X digital zoom, can be enclosed in a sturdy case (included) that is waterproof to 65-feet. The Swann FreeStyle HD lives up the name and can capture 1080p HD video (1920×1080) at 30fps with stereo audio. In still camera mode it can shoot 8MP in both single-shot and rapid fire.

As with other rugged outdoor cameras it can be worn on the body, mounted on a bike, or on a helmet for skiing, skateboarding or just about any other outdoor activity. It comes with a variety of interchangeable mounts and brackets, while a remote control allows the wearer/user to operate the camera even when it is out of arms’ reach. Continue reading Wearable Swann Camera Takes Flight

Ladies, Reform Your Core!

Ladies, if you are the type of person who has the discipline to get into a workout routine at home, then there might be a new piece of equipment for you. Nautilus has announced the launch of the CoreBody Reformer, a new piece of fitness equipment specifically designed to help women build their core strength by combing the moves of yoga for flexibility; dance for calorie-burn; and Pilates for muscle strength and tone. All in one package that is light and easy to carry over one shoulder.

Continue reading Ladies, Reform Your Core!

Cotton is Performing Again

With space age fibers, and a big move toward everything from bamboo to recycled water bottles the old cotton apparel seemed to be booted from the performance category. But now it seems that Longworth Industries Inc. of North Carolina are showing that cotton can once again be king.

The company has rolled out “performance underwear” as part of the Polarmax AYG Line of men’s and women’s boxers and briefs that features a special cotton called TransDRY. The fabric looks and feels just like normal cotton, but it reportedly breathes more like a synthetic, and this is done through a chemical treatment that is applied to the threads, which in turn helps disperse moisture. This means that the cotton TransDRY offers the same whisking benefits of other performance fabrics, while also being thin, comfortable and light. The underwear further features an anti-microbial treatment, which will come in handy for those who can’t change these as often as necessary when out in the wilds.

Polarmax Official Website
[Via Gearjunkie: ‘Performance’ Underwear made of Cotton]

Tent Shells – Poles = Unhappy Campers

Upon purchasing a new bike or gear, you often have to make room in your stable (garage, basement, attic, closet, etc.) to accommodate the new acquisition. This can either mean taking it to a used gear store to have them sell it, you doing the work to sell it yourself through an online outlet, giving it away or throwing it in the trash. We have mentioned the donation option of your cycling gear in the post Re-Cycling Your Old Bike Gear, but what do you do with your other outdoor gear? There are non-profit organizations that will redirect your old outdoor gear to new owners in need. One such organization is Gear to Grow and they need your help. It appears that some companies have already helped Gear to Grow substantially with donations of tents during the 2011 Outdoor Retailer Summer Market Show, but there seems to be some missing poles. In what seems as an almost comical problem, Gears to Grow has a new gear drive, “Calling All Poles”, with the sole mission of getting poles for these tents.

Continue reading Tent Shells – Poles = Unhappy Campers

Study: Cycling Offers Economic as Well as Health Benefits

There is no denying that we at KineticShift love our bicycles. While not everyone on our staff is a regular bike rider, even those that don’t do the two wheel thing admit it has many benefits. And according to a study just published in the scientific journal Environmental Health Perspectives cutting out short auto trips and replacing them with mass transit and active transport would yield major health benefits, but also save about $3.8 billion per year from avoided mortality and reduced health care costs for conditions like obesity and heart disease.

The report calculated that these measures would save an estimated $7 billion, including 1,100 lives each year from improved air quality and increased physical fitness.

“We talk about the cost of changing energy systems, the cost of alternative fuels, but we seldom talk about this kind of benefit,” says Jonathan Patz, director of the Global Health Institute at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Continue reading Study: Cycling Offers Economic as Well as Health Benefits

QuickFix to Keep You Clean

We’ll admit it, we like our bikes to have a clean look but we also like to stay clean. The two are sometimes mutually exclusive if it requires riding in the rain or on wet roads. The solution to the latter is mudguards, but those sort of detract from the clean lines of our bikes.

If only there was a quick fix solution to this problem. But wait, there is from Full Windsor with its QuickFix, a new line of plastic mudguards that slide in and out of place within seconds and yet still remain snugly in place and ready to keep the dirt from flying and the water from spraying. Continue reading QuickFix to Keep You Clean

Campagnolo Gets Electric

Bicycle shifting in the 21st century has gone electric. Japan’s Shimano entered the juiced up gear controls a few years ago with its high-end Dura-Ace Di2, which is favored today by many pro riders. This year at Interbike Shimano also officially introduced itsDi2 electronic system in its step down – but still high-end – Ultegra groupo. In fact, it has had many deciding whether to go with the mechanic Dura-Ace or the electric Ultegra Di2. Not an easy choice, and now one that is even harder to make as Campagnolo is getting in on the action.

Our friends at BikeRadar reported yesterday that Campagnolo has finally announced its own electric shifting system, with not one but two groups. This includes the Record EPS (Electronic Power Shift) as well as the Super Record EPS. These will reportedly have identical functionality but differences in weight. Continue reading Campagnolo Gets Electric

Keeping it Real While Golfing

Direct Golf UK shows how close a fake can look like the real deal

With the Christmas shopping season around the corner, you might be tempted to save a few bucks on a gift for the golfer in your life. There are a number of online retail websites, auction sites and classified sites that list new golf equipment at a substantial savings, but are you really getting a good deal if they are fakes? The U.S. Golf Manufacturers Anti-Counterfeiting Working Group has developed a website with tips to help you avoid buying a fake.

Continue reading Keeping it Real While Golfing

Responsive Fabric To Help the Wearer

There is better health through technology, but what about better health through fashion? That’s the idea of Celliant, which prides itself on being the “Intel Inside of responsive textiles.” The company has actually been around for a decade, but has recently teamed up with major sportswear and fitness apparel companies including Reebok, Adidas and Saucony to create what is called “responsive fabric.”

According to a recent Fast Co.Exisit story this fabric may sound like something from science fiction, but it is actually very real, utilizing “a synthetic polymer that interacts with the body’s electromagnetic emission to induce increased oxygenation and blood flow.” The company claims that when worn as clothing Celliant can recycle energy back into the body by increasing blood flow and blood oxygen levels, and this means better athletic performance, potentially better strength and healing. Continue reading Responsive Fabric To Help the Wearer

Power and Insect Repellent in a Tablet Sized Device

As many outdoor activities, such as camping and hiking, involve time in the sun a solar charger is a good device to bring along. Singapore based Third Wave Power unveiled its new take on solar charges as last week’s Clean Energy Expo Asia (CEEA), introducing the mPowerpad, which captures and stores solar power to charge mobile phones, tablets, cameras and other devices via multiple USB ports. No real news there, but as anyone who has had a solar charger with a battery knows that left over juice typically just slowly drains way.

Unlike other solar charges this one, which is the size of a tablet PC, can also use the power it stores with built-in functionality including a built-in reading light, flashlight, radio and even a built-in ultrasonic insect repellent! mPowerpad features a unique gesture-based user interface that requires no button, knob or dial to operate the device. With no moving mechanical parts that could break down from manual wear and tear, and being water, dust- and drop-resistant, mPowerpad is built to withstand harsh weather and terrain conditions. Video after the jump

CrossCore Ready for the Extreme

httpv://youtu.be/n2BsFYOcszU

Our friends (and sponsor) CrossCore released a new video this week that showed exactly how “extreme” the CrossCore Rotational Bodyweight Training training can go. While the company says, “You may never perform these moves but doesn’t it make sense when purchasing a bodyweight trainer to purchase one with no limits?” shouldn’t you at least be able to try?

CrossCore Official Website

A Single Speed Solution for the Masses

Tr!chStuff Exzentriker OBEBB

In a previous post, we mentioned the Eccentric 46 Bottom Bracket for use with PressFit-30 (PF30) bike frames. This aftermarket accessory allows you to be able to purchase a geared PF30 frame or bike and easily convert it to a single speed. But what about those of us who do not own a frame with a PF30 frame? Are we left out in the cold? Nope! There are solutions out there for those of us with the standard bottom bracket shell. Continue reading A Single Speed Solution for the Masses

TravelBench, A Couch For the Great Outdoors

You don’t have to be a benchwarmer to appreciate a place to sit when you’re heading to the great outdoors. The El Grande 5, made by TravelChair Inc., is no mere folding chair either but more like a “outdoor” couch that is ideal for family camping as well as for traveling teams that need a place to sit.

Each of the couch’s five seats is equipped with a pouch cup holder and can support up to 300 pounds, while weighing just 23 pounds. As with other folding outdoor seats it folds up to a compact size that can fit in a shoulder-bag for transport, and expand up to 95 inches wide. TravelChair also provides banner displays that can attach to the back rests. And if you don’t need seating for five, the company also offers three seat options, as well as an even larger six seat model without a backrest.

TravelChair Official Website
[Via GearJunkie: Foldable, Five-Person ‘Couch’ for the Outdoors]