Steve Feher wants to cool motorcyclists’ heads, using the same technology he invented to cool drivers’ butts. The Feher helmet is the world’s first fully integrated air conditioned motorcycle helmet, and it claims to keep your head 10-15 degrees cooler than the outside world. read more
Finding the average camping trailer ill-prepared for all of the obstacles of life on the road, a new Oregon-based company is building its off-road caravan up to an “overkill” standard. While one man’s overkill might be another’s shortage, it seems clear that OverKill Campers has gone above and beyond average with its S.O.5.10 off-road trailer. The package includes a rugged steel frame, honeycomb core composite body with expansion slide-out, and wraparound galley, among other features. read more
A real-world Jurassic Park is never going to happen, but shooting for a more recent prehistoric era might be more achievable. The Pleistocene Park project is aiming to rebuild a lost Ice Age ecosystem in Siberia, and its directors, the father-and-son team of Sergey and Nikita Zimov, say it could help slow the effects of climate change. Now, the initiative is running a crowdfunding campaign to help transport a new herd of animals to the park. read more
Bubbletent Australia is the country’s first bubble hotel, about two hours north-west of Sydney. Three isolated bubbles are available – including one with a private wood-fired hot tub(Credit:Bubbletent Australia) read more
It’s beautiful, but you can say mudslide?
Vietnamese architect Chu Van Dong has completed a tiny house project that offers a cheap and easy solution for temporary housing or tiny living. Dubbed Forest House, the 12-sq m (129-sq ft) home rests on two stilts and is one of three wooden cabins planned for a vast forest landscape in the Sóc Sơn District, 30.6 km (19 mi) outside of Hanoi, Vietnam.
In designing the home Van Dong wanted to create a basic building model, with an accessible and low cost construction method. “It is hoped that the project will inspire temporary housing projects by its simple construction and low cost,” says Van Dong, who is also a designer at Handyman decor and furniture.
No Audio Version
Sorry folks, but no Podcast today. For those unfamiliar, I do a video podcast every weekend that airs today. But not this time. No – this time it has nothing at all to do with production problems. It has nothing to do with 
technical issues, more often than not caused by my own ineptitude.
This time it was pure pleasure. I had a choice to make and I chose family over politics.
Every year my sons and I revel in a trek into the woods in search of a Christmas tree. Sure, we could do it the easy way and pick one out one from the many lots around town. And to be sure, we would likely get a beautiful one.
We could also choose the blasphemous path and buy a synthetic “Fake” tree – maybe hang some pine tree air-fresheners on it to replicate that outdoorsy scent. Yummy!
But we Smith’s enjoy the thrill of the hunt. So off we went, two weekends ago, into the wilderness, to scout for and tag a tree. This year we were exceptionally lucky and found a beautiful 7 ft white pine. And best yet, it was only about a mile in. In years past we’ve been known to trek twice that in seeking out the perfect wild tree. As we strode through the woods, invariably one or the other of my sons, or both, would recount a story from a previous year – “Remember that year when…?” read more
It seems to be human nature that if you’re camping near a lake or pond, you pitch your tent right at the water’s edge. Well, SmithFly’s new Shoal Tent lets you take things a step further. Described as a floating raft with a tent topper, it allows you to actually sleep out on the water. read more
When we think of Land Rover’s Special Vehicle Operations, we think extra-cushy leather interiors, upmarket trim and personalized paint jobs. We definitely don’t think of a rolling kitchen fit to prepare gourmet meals on the road. But that’s the mission celebrity chef Jamie Oliver laid out for the SVO team. Land Rover responded by building Oliver an extraordinary Discovery that slow-cooks under the hood, churns butter and makes ice cream in special wheel drums, slow-turns a rotisserie out front, makes toast in the center console and has numerous other culinary tricks up its sleeve. Forget the drive-through restaurant – this is the driving restaurant kitchen. read more
Clifford Denn already has a portfolio that puts him in the elite category of maritime designers having previously designed passenger cruise liners for Cunard (such as the Queen Mary 2) and P&O. His latest concept, Project Maximus, shown at the Monaco Yacht Show last week, could begin a trend for superyachts by putting the wheelhouse one deck down and devoting the upper deck to the passengers, just as he has done with his work for Viking Ocean Cruise vessels. read more
