When it comes to bicycles and components, people tend to defend their preferences with what amounts to an almost-religious fervor. But ultimately our opinions about what’s “best” are often just that—opinions. The insufferable retrogrouch insists that steel is the only material worth considering, while the performance-obsessed racer maintains that, gram for gram, nothing beats carbon fiber, and ultimately they’re both...

　　How do you make the best of a golf addiction? Add running. That’s the formula contributor Alex Ward tried to perfect a few months ago, when he started figuring out a way to turn his rounds of golf into real exercise. Would golf be an endurance sport if he played sunrise to sunset? What if he wore running gear, carried...

　　Tuckerman Ravine on the southeastern flank of Mount Washington holds an almost mythic reputation among expert backcountry skiers and snowboarders in New England. The glacial cirque sits mostly above timberline on the 6,288-foot peak, and the wide bowl boasts chutes and steep snowfields—extreme skiing terrain that is tough to find in the Northeast. 　　But Tuckerman is also dangerous, and reaching...