The right stuff
Recreational accessories for the winter season.

By Rachel Swan

SOMEWHERE OUT THERE a gondola is gliding to the top of a mountain, crowded with snow bunnies in urethane-coated nylon snow pants and slinky Polarfleece sweaters, warding off frostbite with adhesive toe warmers. At a campfire in the foothills of the Sierras, a group of backpackers are sipping espresso-flavored energy gels, light-emitter diodes shining from their head lamps. Meanwhile, over in Golden Gate Park, people are jogging the pathways, blasting house music through their solar-powered radio visors.

We're consumers with a penchant for the inventive, the enhanced, and the inventively enhanced. We love multifunctional gizmos, near-weightless communication devices, and ultraconvenient nutritional solutions – and the world of the athletically inclined is no different. Adopting a high-tech patois to advertise their products, sports and wilderness stores are teeming with "recreational systems" of one kind or another. While entertaining, it can be difficult to trek through the gear outlets without getting lost among all the objets d'gadgetry. With that in mind, we went into the trenches to look for user-friendly do-it-yourself tips, environmentally sound commercial products, and the latest oddities and strokes of genius in sports gear for the Bay Area's winter season. Unless otherwise indicated, these items can be found at most outdoor-sports outlets.

Doohickeys

Mining the shelves of sports and wilderness stores, you come across the occasional gem. There's my favorite toy for the winter season, the glow-in-the-dark boomerang, so handy for those early-dark winter afternoons. Then there's the Survival Station, a vaguely boom box-shaped model of multipurpose gadget design that includes a lamp, a fan, and a radio ($39, Brookstone, San Francisco Shopping Center, 865 Market, S.F.).

It's all about winning combinations. For instance, you feel like barreling down a mountain at high speed, dodging trees, icy patches, and other people, but you're more at home tearing down Market Street on your skateboard. With snowboarding settling comfortably into mainstream athletic culture, it was only a matter of time before someone thought of the snowbound skateboard. For $40-$50 you can get yourself a snowdeck, or snowskate, essentially a fiberglass deck with an upturned nose and rubber coating. If you want to get fancy, look for one with a narrower subdeck underneath ($120-$150). All the rage now, snowdecks from Burton, Salomon, Premier, and other board manufacturers can be found at most snowboard shops.

No matter how much you enjoy those blisteringly cold mornings on the slopes, you'll wince when the snow starts seeping through your mittens. Most sports stores sell disposable adhesive hand and toe warmers ($3.50-$4 a pair) for winter hikes. You can find reusable warmers for around the same price, but you'll have to boil them in water after each use. You can also dry your footwear at home before hitting the trail again with Seirus's electric boot toasters ($26).

Once the days get shorter, you'll want a bike light that won't burn out on the trail. Madison, Wisc.-based company Planet Bike offers inexpensive LED lights (which use less energy that halogen lights) and donates 25 percent of its profits to bike-advocacy causes. If you want to keep it local and you're willing to shell out a little more cash, buy a generator light, which produces its own energy, from Valencia Cyclery ($50, 1077 Valencia, S.F.).

Finding trails in California's state and national parks where dogs are welcome can be an Olympic challenge, but once you do, ensure that Fido pulls her weight by getting her a dog pack ($40-$50, Wilderness Exchange, 1407 San Pablo, Berk.), with organizer pockets for her PowerBones, water (she's probably not ready for the SnoDAWG; see below), and other doggie doodads. To keep your own goodies safe from the rain, we recommend Ortlib pannier bags. Valencia Cyclery sells large pairs for $120; American Cyclery (510 Frederick, S.F.; 858 Stanyan, S.F.) sells small pairs for $96 and large pairs for $112 to $136. Designed for harsh German winters, these waterproof bags come in traffic-stopping, primary colors.

Any Girl Scout can tell you the importance of an ample water supply, but that doesn't mean you'll want to lug a huge canteen while you conquer the Seven Summits. Water bladders (the above-mentioned "hydration systems") are a saving grace for the dry-throated, allowing you to slake your thirst without making a pit stop. Just fill up the plastic placenta, stick it in your backpack, and suck water through the nozzle that hangs out. Your too-cool-for-bladder friends may start the day making fun of you, but the convenience factor might convince them before the day is out. CamelBak (www.camelbak.com) and Platypus (www.cascadedesigns.com/platypus) make backpack-style bladders in a range of sizes ($25-$95). Look for über-macho names befitting an Arnold Schwarzenegger blockbuster, such as "Typhoon," "Liquidator," or "SnoDAWG."

Do-it-yourself

"Home brew" gear recipes suit the superindustrious, those eager to plumb the depths of their local hardware store for materials. I've met crafty bikers who assembled their own rechargeable bike lights with car batteries, zealous backpackers who built their own ice caves in the snow. However, not all of us are out for one of those epic survival stories that have become the beef stock of backpacker zines. So don't feel like a sellout if you opt for store-bought products. To reconcile pragmatism with personal touch, we've found a few resources for saving your gear from wear and tear.

In the Bay Area, winter doesn't necessarily mean stabling your bike for the season, though it may require more upkeep to fight off the effects of inclement weather. To secure your bike for road riding, try the Topeak Survival bike repair kit ($25, REI, 1338 San Pablo, Berk.), which includes several box, spoke, and flat Allen wrenches, plus Velcro straps, repair patches, steel chain tools, and a stainless steel lock. And yes, this puppy will mount on your bike! If you like macho paraphernalia, a peek inside the box is real pornography.

Local cooperative Pedal Revolution (3085 21st St., S.F.) has a limited selection of new products but an über-cool membership repair bench. For a mere $30 a year, you can use the bench, manuals, and tools. East Bay cooperative Missing Link (1988 Shattuck, Berk.) offers free bike-repair classes and free tool usage.

Zines like Trailquest (trailquest.net) and Backpacker Magazine (magazinewall.com/224.html) are a wellspring of home-brew recipes for backcountry provisions, including tents, stoves, lanterns – just about anything you can think of. In addition, try Len McDougall's book Made for the Outdoors: Over 40 Do-It-Yourself Projects for the Great Outdoors (Lyons Press, 1995), which offers step-by-step instructions, illustrations, and ideas for recyclable household items.