Playbook

Snow goggles used to be so simple, but today’s ski and snowboard eyewear have more digital functionality than your first car.

A college pitcher with a knack for numbers and his statistics-loving coach have found a way to mine baseball statistics that could help big-league scouts and managers more accurately assess minor-league prospects and bring better hitters to The Show.

How is it possible to rip open your knee without moving, or even getting off your bike? Two words: Track stand. It’s a helpful trick for learning bike control, but best not attempted by a klutz.

Most terrain parks don’t stick to mathematical standards, but physicist Jim McNeil—himself the father of a snowboarder—thinks better specs could prevent accidents.

We spend one last day on the mountain testing skis, snowboards and other winter gear — and an insane, snow-ready mountain bike.

After shaking off the soreness of our first day on the slopes, we hit the terrain park to practice our moves.

A basketball fanatic and a math whiz want to do for basketball what Bill James and sabermetrics did for baseball, and their innovative way of parsing data could revolutionize game analysis, providing coaches with new insights while making the game …

On the second day of our Lake Tahoe trip, we tested skis, boards, clothing, helmets — and each other’s patience.

For the snow enthusiast, the first day of the season is more exciting than Christmas morning. And we’re about to experience it. Welcome to Wired’s 2012 Winter Camp test excursion.

Snow reports are a mess. What the industry — and more importantly, the community — needs to do is take a page from the surfing world. It needs a Surfline for snow reports.

ProForm’s new Le Tour de France exercise bicycle is a mechanized, micro-adjustable training bike that provides a workout almost as intense as the real deal.

Snowboarding, surfing, childbirth, zombie apocalypse, DEA raid — whatever the activity, you can be prepared to hit the road at a moment’s notice if you keep a well-stocked satchel at the ready.

Only in Sin City would the sight of 8,000 Santas running amok through the streets not raise an eyebrow. Even the Elvis Santas barely drew second glances in this town, where the King is as common as bad buffets and …

Wanna push harder, go further and last longer in the gym? Choose a workout buddy just a bit stronger, faster and fitter than you are. Science shows you’ll redouble your effort to prove you’re no slacker.

Buying ski boots usually involves stepping into a few boots off the rack to find the ones that don’t hurt, and picking whichever boots look best with your skis. Greg Whitehouse says you’ve been doing it all wrong.

On day two of bike camp, our intrepid roadie learns how to steer. Turns out you don’t turn in the direction you want to turn.

Knowing your limits, keeping your head and using the right gear will keep you alive when — not if — you get caught in an avalanche skiing the backcountry.

Oliver Percovich didn’t set out to help kids heal from the ravages of war or bridge socio-economic divides between ethnic groups or create safe havens where 1,600 children ride skateboards. He just wanted to teach kids how to skate.

When you have crazy contraptions with big engines that make a lot of noise, you get guys with a lot of bravado and something to prove. And that, naturally, leads to racing.

Why would we do this? For one thing, the possibilities are endless when we go beyond our all-too-fragile wetware towards more hardy software. Software is limitless. The human body is not.