Das Urinator: German Pee Bag for Long Road Trips

by Neil Woodburn on

We’ve all been there before. You’re on a long trip and you’ve got to pee really, really bad. The only problem is that there is no toilet anywhere near.

Well, now a German manufacturer has solved this age-old problem.

The RoadBag is a handy little receptacle for your urine. Simply do your business into the bag and a special chemical immediately solidifies your waste, thus preventing any spillage or mess. Seal it up and then throw it away at your next stop. Problem solved!

The RoadBag website is unfortunately all in German. For your convenience–and entertainment–I’ve translated it using Google Translator:

Each man knows it: Situations, in which one would give everything for a toilet. Roadbag® this problem eases once and for all.
Whether in the back-up or on the festival, with the camping or in the sport airplane – Roadbag®, the bag WC for men, facilitates you, where you also are.
Roadbag® is handily, surely, hygenically and comfortable.
The secret of Roadbag® is the superabsorber: This special granulates in the interior bag connects itself with the urine to a firm gel. Thus no drop can run out, become unpleasant smells reliably prevented.
For clean hands after urination Roadbag® a refresher pad is attached to everyone. A completely clean thing.

Oh, and be sure to listen to their classic theme song.

(via RandomGoodStuff.com)

Only in OZ: A Winter White Out

by Kelly Amabile on

Want to cool off this summer? Head to OZ, my friends! Blizzard-like conditions in the mountains of Victoria and New South Wales have dumped size-able accumulations of snow over the south-eastern Australian region. Reports are predicting that this year will be one of the best ski seasons in OZ since 2000.

The total snow depth at places like Falls Creek resort in Victoria is up to 22 inches. At Thredbo in NSW, the resort will be celebrating more than it’s 50th anniversary if the snow keeps falling like this. Mt. Buller is another cool spot to check out if you’ll be downunder between now and October, when the warm weather returns. But for now, southern hemisphere sports enthusiasts can enjoy their winter wonderland.

Get all the latest ski and snow reports here.

Sunscreen for Glaciers to Combat Global Warming

by Iva Skoch on

Last month, Germany spread sheets of reflective plastic foil over its largest glacier, Zugspitze, high in the Alps, south of Munich. A staggering 97,000 square feet of tarps were laid on the ski areas of the mountain, in an attempt to slow the melting of the glaciers there. Apparently, the Swiss have attempted a similar feat in Andermatt.

But, many are now saying that the “sun-screen” may be just a tiny band-aid over a gaping wound. The Swiss have said that the glaciers in their part of the Alps have lost 4% of their mass this year past alone, and predict that 20% will be gone in ten years, and as much as 70% within 30 years.

Now, it they could only figure out a way of making the tarps out of photo-voltaic cells to generate clean electricity too….

Things to do in New England: It’s Not Totally Too Late

by Jamie Rhein on

At explore new england, there’s a list of “10 things not to miss in New England in April” and I haven’t seen done one of them. I don’t live in New England which is one excuse-a big one.

The items on the list range from visiting the Newport Mansions in Rhode Island–there are 11– to skiing. Some events could not happen anywhere but here. Fishing season starts on April 14 and the Kenduskeag Canoe Race in Bangor, Maine can’t really take place in Kentucky. Canoeing in Bangor, Maine? In April? All I can wonder about is how cold is it anyway?

And not to beat National Poetry Month to death, but number 10 on the list of “10 things not to miss in New England in April” is to visit Robert Frost territory in New Hampshire and Vermont. The farm where he lived is in New Hampshire, but in the Green Mountain National Forest in Vermont where he spent some time, Frost’s poems are engraved on plaques fastened to trees along the Robert Frost Interpretive Trail.

The comforting thing about this list is that even though April is past, it’s not too late to do some of the things. There’s May.

Mini Cam for Capturing Extreme Sports

by Neil Woodburn on

I don’t engage in many outdoor sports that require a helmet. But if I actually did more mountain biking, rock climbing, or extreme kayaking, I’d be sure to grab myself an Elmo SUV-cam and strap it tightly to my helmet.

This tiny camera and its slightly larger recorder weighs just under seven ounces and can easily be strapped onto your helmet, the front of your bike, the hood of your car, or just about anywhere else you’d like to record your favorite activity to later share with the world on YouTube.

The SUV-cam is also waterproof, has a built-in microphone and can store up to 2GB of video on a removable memory card.

Considering the $1,200 price tag, however, I think I’d be too paranoid to strap this pricey equipment on to anything which may involve crashing, drowning, falling, or the chance of my accident being recorded and played online to joyous glees of schadenfreude.

via National Geographic Adventure