Books & Media
ArchiveRwandan cyclist Adrien Niyonshuti lost 60 of his relatives to genocide in the '90s. This year, he competed in the mountain biking event at the 2012 Olympics in London.
During our Best Towns 2012 competition, hosted on Facebook over four weeks this summer, residents of 10 finalist towns submitted more than 20,000 votes, posted some 5,000 comments, and uploaded roughly 1,000 photos. But none were quite as convincing as this one, from Richmond's…
ext_script = "//player.ooyala.com/player.js?height=360&embedCode=Ixa3h2NTryeS7tCL5-9aYuefHEKCrNZG&width=640&video_pcode=1jZG06vQqWlGOe2jr1WK6VaYFHtK&deepLinkEmbedCode=Ixa3h2NTryeS7tCL5-9aYuefHEKCrNZG" 9.79* debuted on ESPN this week. The best articles, photos, and videos that I didn't post this week—until now. If you only have time to click on one link, go to “…
https://www.youtube.com/embed/vkJ5ItzEq3MWatch the jump live above. Red Bull Stratos team leaders say there is a 50-50 chance this morning that Austrian stuntman Felix Baumgartner will lift off in a capsule carried by…
A few facts on the cheetah, via Not Exactly Rocket Science. Go to Jacob O'Neal's website for a larger gif. The best articles, videos, and photos I didn't post this week—until now.
Gannets. Photo: Winged Planet When filmmaker John Downer was in elementary school, he got down in the dirt of his parents' garden so that he could film the insects, frogs, and toads using a Super 8 camera.
This new show from the Discovery Channel offers a bird’s eye view of life on Earth. For more on the making of the show, check out our interview with director John Downer.
A look at ten of the silver screen's oddest, most entertaining, and occasionally even accurate techniques for living through disaster
“Out Living It” will play at the Adventure Film Festival in Boulder, which begins October 4. The best photos, videos, and articles I didn't post this week—until now. If you only click on one…
The most promising films screened at this year's Toronto Film Festival featured adventure seekers and adventure survivors. We reviewed six of them.
In The Deep, a chubby man survives a shipwreck off the coast of Iceland, only to wash ashore to a field of jagged, volcanic rock
Gerald Ford takes the snap. (U.S. National Archives and Recor)U.S. National Archives and Records Administration. Photo: Wikimedia Commons “Best athlete” discussions always make for an interesting debate in the sense that they’re always totally stupid and pointless and boundary-less, so you’re basically arguing about completely…
In Kon-Tiki, directors Joachim Ronning and Espen Sandberg present a fictional look at Thor Heyerdahl's attempt to sail from Peru to Polynesia
In Venus & Serena, filmmakers Maiken Baird and Michelle Major provide a glimpse into the lives of tennis' most dominant siblings
PASS THE MICFor our second-annual Interview Issue (July) we sat down with nearly two dozen outspoken personalities to talk about everything from the environment to doping to spectacular crashes (yes, we're talking about you, Jeb Corliss). Readers' reactions to the conversations varied considerably.
The best articles, videos, and photos that I didn't post this week—until now. If you only have time to read one link this week, read, “How Silent Spring Ignited the Environmental Movement,” by Eliza Griswold. ADVENTURE Read this. You…
Reporting “The Devil on Paradise Road,” about the murder of ranger Margaret Anderson inside Washington's Mount Rainier National Park, hit close to home for Seattle-based contributing editor Bruce Barcott. “I've snowshoed across the creek where the killer's body was found,” says Barcott, who…
The role that these tiny insects play in our global ecosystem has never been made more clear than by Swiss director Markus Imhoof in More Than Honey, an extreme close-up documentary
In 9.79*, documentary filmmaker Daniel Gordon examines the 1988 Summer Olympics race that would set the stage for doping scandals to come
https://www.youtube.com/embed/OtY8DpA_XNEPresenting 131 years of temperature data in 26 seconds. (Things get hotter.) The articles, videos, and photos I didn't post this week—until now. If you have time to read only one article from this list, read “Obama's Way,” by Michael Lewis…
The world of surfing meets the age of 3-D cinema in Justin McMillian and Chris Nelius' new film
An adventure into the world of big wave surfing with Aussie legend Ross Clarke-Jones and two-time World Champion Tom Carroll. Read our Q&A with the filmmakers.
“57 Feet and Rising,” by W. Hodding Carter, won gold for U.S./Canada Travel Article. Photo: Christopher LaMarca If you're looking for a great longread, the Society of American Travel Writers just announced the winners of their annual…
The most ambitious environmental documentary since An Inconvenient Truth tries to make the case that we just might win
The best articles, photos, and videos that I didn't post this week—until now. If you only have time to check out one of these links, read “Elephants dying in epic frenzy as ivory fuels wars and profits,” from The New York Times. ADVENTURE Everyone else remembers…
Image: DDB Group China Car sales in China are a wee bit flat right now, but it’s still one of the world’s largest car markets. Congestion in cities is so bad that local governments have begun restricting how many people can drive each day. Despite that,…
ext_script = "//player.ooyala.com/player.js?video_pcode=1jZG06vQqWlGOe2jr1WK6VaYFHtK&height=360&width=640&embedCode=BndzhyNTralMV4IeHBWlpG2T2nNh9zHv&deepLinkEmbedCode=BndzhyNTralMV4IeHBWlpG2T2nNh9zHv" The best articles, photos, and videos of the past week that I didn't post—until now. ADVENTURE That Associated Press article on Tyler Hamilton's new book missed the mark. Read this. Outside A former personal assistant to Lance Armstrong…
The news leaks about The Secret Race have vastly undersold its importance. Tyler Hamilton’s book is a historic, definitive indictment of cycling’s culture of doping during the Armstrong era.
Tyler Hamilton’s new book, The Secret Race, makes it impossible to believe Lance’s story anymore
Over the course of their careers, Chris Sharma and Adam Ondra have both been able to lay claim to the title of world's strongest sport climber. But watch this engaging clip from Sender Films' and Big UP Productions' La Dura Dura, and you can see that's about where the…
In Lumbering Planes, artist Callum Cooper has made a trippy video about trees. It's packed with footage shot from a swinging camera. The first reaction I had when watching the short was, How did he shoot it? Sculpture of Lumbaring…
Earthrise As Seen By Lunar Orbiter 1 on 23 August 1966 via Space Ref Photo: LOIRP/NASA The best articles, videos, and galleries that I didn't post this week—until now. Lance Armstrong Judge sides with USADA…
Filmmakers Ron Fricke and Mark Magidson discuss Samsara, their world tour of mesmerizing images that force us to think about humanity and our relationship to the eternal
In August’s Premium Rush, Joseph Gordon-Levitt plays a bicycle messenger who gets mixed up with criminal forces and must ride for his life. Astute (or simply awake) moviegoers will note the similarity to 1986’s seminal Quicksilver, in which Kevin Bacon plays a bicycle messenger who gets mixed up with criminal forces and must ride for his life. We
There is something about a bicycle that stirs the soul. In some souls, the act of riding also inspires the act of writing and, naturally, as one wheel follows another, there are books about bicycles. These are our favorites.
Watch Lucas Brunelle's controversial documentary about the world of alley cat racing
The best stories, videos, and photos I didn't post this week—until now. OLYMPICS It should be mathematical, Propeller via Science of Sport Extremely close up at the Olympics, The New York Times Analyzing Semenya’s race, The Science of Sport…
This month marks 25 years of amazing footage, corny hosts, and fake blood for the Discovery Channel’s most-watched series
Paul Hildebrandt began a love affair with space as a child through science fiction. As an adult, the director has set out to make a documentary called Fight for Space. “Since the Apollo era of the 1960s, NASA's…
Photo: Srineet/Flickr It is common knowledge at this point that the United States of America is the greatest country in the world, which was verified after the Americans won the Olympics. (104 medals, 46 golds, y'all.) Other perks for winning the Olympics: ownership of the sun,…
For years, outdoorsman and hunter Steven Rinella dreamed of felling a Dall sheep, North America's most difficult game animal. After seeing his friends come home with horns of their own, in this excerpt from his new book, Meat Eater: Adventures of an American Hunter, he went all in and booked a trip to the Alaska Range.
Allie Bombach on location. Photo: Miguel Tercero What is it about movers and shakers? What makes them tick? Filmmaker Allie Bombach wants to know and is using her MoveShake film series to uncover some answers. The year-long project debuted in early June with the…
Photo: sam_churchill/Flickr The five things you should know if you were only going to know five things about the final weekend at the Olympics. 1. Jamaica’s 4x100m relay team ran around a track in less than 37 seconds, winning the gold medal and…
In this weekly roundup, we scour the Web for our favorite long-form magazine and newspaper articles, collecting them here and on Longreads and Twitter. This installment focuses on the deodorant we wear, the hospitals we visit, our online lives, and the future of solar po
In Too High to Fail: Cannabis and the New Green Economic Revolution, participatory journalist Doug Fine wades into the world of legal cannabis farming and comes out with a harsh critique of the war on drugs
Photo: markhillary/Flickr The five things you should know if you were only going to know five things about yesterday at the Olympics. 1. Usain Bolt won gold in the 200m, repeating his sweep of the Olympic sprint races because of course he did that. No…
Photo: ianpatterson99/Flickr Everything you need to know about tonight's Olympic primetime coverage—without knowing what actually happened. MEN’S POLE VAULTAs with all throwing events, you don’t really have a choice whether or not you want to watch this. It actually ends up being a pretty…
Photo: Erik van Leeuwen/Wikimedia Commons Everything you need to know about tonight’s Olympic primetime coverage—without knowing what actually happened. WOMEN’S 10M PLATFORMThe Chinese diving team will be looking to bounce back from yesterday’s “disappointing” silver medal in the men’s 3m springboard competition. As is always…
For the 40 years since the adaptation of the James Dickey novel of the same name hit theaters, Deliverance has endured because it gets at a fundamental truth about our relationship with the wild
Photo: Erik van Leeuwen/Wikimedia Commons The five things you should know if you were only going to know five things about yesterday at the Olympics. 1. The U.S. moved back ahead of China in the medal standings, currently leading the way with 82 medals compared to…
The first big Olympic news to come out on Instagram? Well, a photo revealed that Michael Phelps' girlfriend is a 20-something blonde bombshell. Aside from that shocker, there are other photos that reveal personal details about the athletes. A lot of the…
Photo: tommarsh/Flickr Everything you need to know about tonight's Olympic primetime coverage—without knowing what actually happened. WOMEN’S LONG JUMPThe last American to win this event was Jackie Joyner-Kersee in 1988. Brittney Reese will be looking to change that, as she’s the favorite heading into the…
Last spring, Bear Grylls walked away from one of the sweetest gigs in the adventure world. Was it career suicide? Or a savvy move by a born survivor?
ext_script = "//player.ooyala.com/player.js?height=360&embedCode=41cnBrNTqXHVVaCGyB46F-Q0OCL1NPlL&width=640&video_pcode=1jZG06vQqWlGOe2jr1WK6VaYFHtK&deepLinkEmbedCode=41cnBrNTqXHVVaCGyB46F-Q0OCL1NPlL" When Legs of Steel asked on their Facebook page whether they should release the trailer to their new movie, Hurt So Good, one fan's answer pretty much summed up the energy of the clip. “If…
Photo: ianpatterson99/Flickr Everything you need to know about tonight's Olympic primetime coverage—without knowing what actually happened. MEN’S PARALLEL BARSFeng Zhe of China comes in as the favorite. He’s the 2010 world champion and will be expecting to win his second gold after a first-place finish…
Photo: ianpatterson99/Flickr Everything you need to know about tonight's Olympic primetime coverage—without knowing what actually happened. MEN’S RINGS China’s Chen Yibeng comes into the event as the overwhelming favorite. In addition to winning rings gold in Beijing—with what’s maybe one of the best rings routines…
https://youtube.com/watch?v=_hEzW1WRFTg The best videos, photos, and stories I didn't post this week—until now. OLYMPICS Is Michael Phelps the greatest Olympian ever? ESPN For Pistorius, nothing left to do but win, The New…
Photo: marcopako /Flickr The five things you should know if you were only going to know five things about yesterday at the Olympics. 1. Something obvious: Michael Phelps is the greatest Olympian ever. He has six more golds than anyone and now has more total medals…
Superheroes of Stoke Trailer from MSP Films on Vimeo. Twenty years after releasing their first ski film, Matchstick Productions is taking a look back. Their newest film, Superheroes of Stoke, follows some of freeskiing's biggest new…
Every Olympic year, a slew of newspapers, magazines, and websites put out photos of scantily clad or completely nude Olympians. Outside did it this year with pictures of Lolo Jones by Robert Maxwell and Trey Hardee by…
Ben Sutherland The five things you should know if you were only going to know five things about yesterday at the Olympics. 1. We’re maybe seeing the beginning of the career of the greatest female swimmer ever. Or, according to others, we’re seeing a 16-year-old on…
Photo: marcopako /Flickr Everything you need to know about tonight's Olympic primetime coverage—without knowing what actually happened. WOMEN'S TEAM GYMNASTICSThe U.S. women come in looking for their first team gold since 1996’s “Magnificent Seven.” Can they become the—sorry Chris Webber, Jalen Rose, Juwan Howard,…
Matt From London/Flickr The 2012 Olympics kicked off on Saturday—if you don't count soccer, which you should—and a lot of things happened. It's not easy to keep up with it all, especially since NBC's streams have been especially screwy, so here are the…
For whatever reason, NBC is refusing to show the majority its primetime-scheduled Olympic events live. Well, they're showing them on their hitch-ridden, computer-crashing website, but they're not playing most of the marquee events when they happen. Maybe it's working (numbers are on a record pace) or maybe it's just…
Les Stroud in Norway. Photo: Discovery After almost a four-year absence, 50-year-old survival expert Les Stroud will return as Survivorman on Sunday August 19, at 8 p.m. Eastern. Earlier this year, Stroud traveled to the mountains of Norway…
Last week, we published a list of the top 10 United States Olympians to follow on Twitter. We also broke down the social media guidelines at the Games and threw in some…
Watch Dan Ransom's 22-minute film about canyoneer Richard Rudow's exploration of an undiscovered slot in the Grand Canyon.
Lolo Jones Photo: Screenshot of Twitter.com/LoloJones This is the social media Olympics. At least, such are the rumblings all over Facebook and Twitter. Fans and followers have exploded since the 2008 Games. Twitter has jumped from…
America's leading active-lifestyle and adventure-travel magazine is looking for a web producer to join its growing online team. Think you have what it takes? Apply now. Are you passionate about compelling digital content and audience development? Interested in the fast-paced, dynamic, challenging world of online news and information? Outside magazine,…
“You might even live if you fell off of it,” says Squamish pioneer Perry Beckham. But that doesn't make this gorgeously-edited film of 25-year-old Canadian climber Will Stanhope free-soloing British Columbia's Zombie Roof (5.12d) any less gripping to watch. While the tone of the video is more soulful than…
If you’re like me, no matter how much you plan, the Wing It factor always comes into play when you go camping with children. Somebody sprouts a new tooth; you forget the salt; nobody sleeps. That's why it's called adventure. But now there's a book that can help you tame…
It's hard to imagine anything looking right about a 40-year-old man riding a BMX bike in the city, but Alain Massabova looks downright graceful as he wheels around Paris while wearing jeans, a t-shirt, and various pairs of Nike Airs. To be fair, it looks…
NOT LEAVING IT ALL ON THE PITCHContributing editor Eric Hansen has long been our go-to guy for offbeat stories, because he has a special knack for getting people to—how should we put it—open up. Not surprisingly, his piece about competing in the Quidditch World Cup (“Quoosiers,”…
The best videos, photos, and articles I didn't post this week—until now. ADVENTURE The search to find an autistic boy in the wilds of Virginia, Outside Meet the woman with the most Olympic medals, Sports…
Our man on the ground at the 2012 San Fermin festival chats with Dennis Clancey, a frequent Pamplona runner and filmmaker who has been working on Chasing Red for the past six years
While reporting “Boom Times”, about the 21st-century survivalist movement known as prepping, Emily Matchar visited a handful of sophisticated bunkers and attended a South Carolina convention. “As someone who was raised to believe a gun in the house will inevitably lead to somebody getting shot in the…
If you’ve seen Red Gold, about efforts to stop the proposed Pebble Mine in Bristol Bay, Alaska, you know the documentary-making prowess behind Felt Soul Media. The trailer for the team’s next film, DamNation, has just been released. Conceived by…
Here are the best stories, videos, and photos I didn't post this week—until now. ADVENTURE In England, Indoor Climbing to Overtake Outdoor Climbing in Popularity, The Guardian A Stinky Problem on Denali, Alaska Public Radio…