Gear

EvoGear.com is a collection of snowboard, ski, skateboard and wakeboard gear from a company with a conscience. The site's evoTRIP section lists international ski, snowboard and surf trips. This winter, there are trips to Japan, Switzerland and Bali. A 14-day excursion to South America in September combines skiing and boarding with surfing. Need to save money on gear? Don't miss the "Super Closeouts" for brand names at discounted prices. Many are more than half off. This site is not all about winter wear, either; it offers gear for wakeboarders and skaters, too. Each product has ratings and user reviews (or the option to review it yourself)

KABUL - As the pace of the drawdown of U.S. troops from Afghanistan picks up in 2012, military planners are trying to figure out how to ship huge quantities of alliance vehicles, weapons and other equipment out of the mountainous, landlocked country. The operation requires the removal of $30 billion worth of state-of-the-art military gear by the end of 2014, when U.S. and other coalition troops are to end their combat role, a senior U.S. official said yesterday. Most of the American equipment will be shipped to military depots in the United States for refurbishment and then redistributed to bases around the country.

LIKE A MANAGER who has been to the postseason before, Chris Achilefu felt comfortable that he knew just what to expect at his Forman Mills store on Grant Avenue in the Northeast. After all, he had been through this before when the Eagles went to the Super Bowl. Sort the World Series merchandise. Set up the table where the items would go. And then move his staff and the World Series champion apparel into position once the game ended. "Before we knew it, the game was over and in the next half-hour, we were mobbed," Achilefu related yesterday, still going on fumes after pulling an all-nighter.

RE "STUCK in Traffic" editorial (Sept. 22): Since the Police Department is obviously overburdened with work and cannot effectively enforce many of the traffic laws, I say give more responsibility to the Parking Authority. As far as the new "block the box" law goes, it has to be one most unenforced traffic ordinances in the city. In fact, the way it works now, it is a joke. The city should move the stop line back another car length from the light - and the really start enforcing the law. Too many intersections in Philadelphia are total gridlock at all hours of the day. Gerald Jackson, Philadelphia Wake up, California!

Lacrosse equipment will be collected at Cingular Wireless retail outlets in the area today through Monday as part of an initiative to promote youth lacrosse programs in Philadelphia. The telephone company, an official sponsor of the NCAA and its men's championships being held at Lincoln Financial Field this weekend, wants sticks, balls, pads, goggles, jerseys and cleats - new or used, for girls or boys. The donations will help the Inner City Lacrosse Development Program, a joint initiative of the Philadelphia Lacrosse Association and the Black Women in Sport Foundation.

The stick and glove Sidney Crosby used to give Canada its Olympic gold medal are back where they belong. Crosby's missing gear was on its way to the Pittsburgh Penguins star yesterday. Hockey Canada says the gear was misplaced rather than stolen, with both items ending up in the wrong place in the process of packing and shipping equipment after the Olympic final. The stick and glove got lost in the shuffle after the frenzy of Crosby's overtime goal for a 3-2 win against the United States at the Vancouver Olympics on Feb. 28. "I'm grateful to everyone who took the time and effort to get my equipment back for me," Crosby said on the Penguins' Web site.

VANCOUVER - It was 7:30 a.m. here, nearly five hours before Canada met the United States in what the morning's Toronto Globe and Mail called "the biggest hockey game of all time. " If the scene in and around Vancouver on the final day of the 2010 Winter Olympics was an accurate indication, that was no exaggeration. On the SkyTrain to downtown Vancouver, one young man was aggressively chest-bumping the door and snarling at his reflection, "You want some of this, States? You want some of this Miller?

For two women tennis pros, coming back to their car last night after dinner at a Center City restaurant was worse than a straight-sets drubbing on the tour. The station wagon that had contained their equipment, personal belongings and $1,500 in cash had been broken into and everything stolen, said Barry "Butch" Heffernan, a tennis instructor who was escorting the two touring pros, Amy Schwartz, 16, of Miami, and Akemi Nishiya, 21, of Japan. Someone had smashed the station wagon's rear side window and taken the possessions.

The Phillies and some viewers were upset Wednesday after a Web site - phillyburbs.com - offered merchandise making fun of the Brett Myers situation. Myers, a Phillies pitcher, was charged last Friday with domestic assault and battery. From about 11:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Wednesday, readers of phillyburbs.com were offered merchandise for sale that included T-shirts, thongs and even shirts for their dogs that had "wife beater" and "39" written on them. Myers wears No. 39 for the Phillies.

"Daily News Live" will kick off Comcast SportsNet's lineup of extensive coverage of the World Series tonight. "DNL," with host Michael Barkann and broadcasting from Florida, begins at 5 p.m., followed by "Phillies Pregame Live" at 6 o'clock and "SportsNite" at 6:30. "Phillies Postgame Live" airs immediately after Game 1, with a replay of the show to follow. CSN will air World Series coverage as part of "Daily News Live" weeknights and "SportsNite" every night. "Phillies Pregame Live" will air before every game and "Phillies Postgame Live" airs immediately after each game, featuring live news conferences, interviews and analysis.

Austin Velte says it didn't take much convincing for him to ditch soccer after his freshman season and make a full-time commitment to Malvern Prep's rowing program. "There was a history of success there, and that's something that really attracted me," Velte said. "Also, several of my friends were going to give rowing a try. It was a pretty easy choice. " This weekend, in the 86th annual Stotesbury Cup Regatta on the Schuylkill, Velte's aim, as part of the Friars' varsity quad, is to add to his and the Friars' championship total.

On the brink of financial ruin and not improving nearly fast enough academically, the Philadelphia School District will, over the next 16 months, completely reinvent the way it organizes and runs schools. And with the announcement of its radical restructuring last week, questions swirl. Is the district privatizing public education? Who will run the new "achievement networks," groups of 25 or so schools to be managed by either outside providers or district staff, bound by performance contracts with the School Reform Commission, and expected to be entrepreneurial?

CHEYENNE, Wyo. - For wildlife enthusiasts hoping to catch a glimpse of wolves, grizzly bears, and bison at Yellowstone National Park, the best place to be on the lookout may soon be a cellphone. New smartphone apps enable people to pinpoint where they have recently seen critters in Yellowstone. People who drive to those locations can - at least in theory - improve their odds of seeing wildlife compared with the typical tourist's dumb luck. An app called Where's a Bear promises "up to the second" animal sightings in Yellowstone.

Quarterbacks Calvin Lowe of South Jersey Group 3 champion Timber Creek and Shaq Lee of South Jersey Group 4 runner-up Millville will lead their teams at the annual Adam Taliaferro Blue-White football game, set for 7 p.m. June 28 at Rowan University. Lowe and Haddon Heights' Nick Lundholm will serve as quarterbacks of the White team. Lee and Cinnaminson's Dom Elly will quarterback the Blue team. Lindenwold's Derryk Sellers will be head coach of the White. Maple Shade's Tony Nicolino will be head coach of the Blue.

Five Below Inc., the Center City-based chain of 192 kid-oriented dollar stores in 16 Eastern and Midwestern states, has hired Goldman Sachs and other brokers to lure investors for a $150 million initial public stock offering. The chain, founded in 2003 by former Zany Brainy toy-store owners David Schlessinger and Tom Vellios, has grown quickly, especially since investors led by Advent International Corp. of Boston pumped in $194 million in 2010. Five Below more than doubled its sales of cheap sports gear, snacks, party goods, and other middle-school accessories to $297 million in the year ended Jan. 11, from $125 million two years earlier, according to its filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

  HOME-OPENER! The Phillies are back and so is Broad Street Billy, asking my fellow fans to send me your phanatic photos and stories of die-hard devotion - fervent families, geared-up babies and pets, and pinstriped pals! Send your stuff to: phillies@phillynews.com Broad Street Billy will feature your Phillies fan stories as he stands with you in the howling springtime winds of Ashburn Alley, sits with you in the howling autumn winds of the 400 level and sweats with you through the dog days in between, hoping to turn Broad Street into a Red Sea once again and party like it's 2008.

FOR A WHILE there, it seemed like serious "hi-fi" sound was going down for the count. Digital music players, stressing cutes and convenience, have made bulkier - but better-sounding - CD players and discs seem old-school. Low-fi, DIY basement recordists suggest it's cool to cut corners on miking and studio acoustics, minor details that add so much warmth, realism and connection between music maker and listener. And don't get me started about the chilly artificiality of the whole electronica/dance pop scene.

March Madness begins in February in South Jersey, and these next few weeks will provide lasting memories, especially for those teams able to win sectional and/or state championships in this one-and-done event. The momentum builds so quickly, with games played virtually every other day. Those who participate in the tournament, which will begin Monday, will perform in an interminable pressure cooker, which makes this such an alluring affair. Basketball is such an emotional game to begin with, played in settings in which fans are so close to the action.

Suburban sales over the next few days will feature photo equipment and Fantasia figurines, weaponry and watches, and other auction activity - both alliterative and affordable. The photo equipment, much of it with the Profoto brand name, will be a highlight of Briggs Auction Inc.'s weekly variety sale, beginning at 4 p.m. Friday at the gallery at 1347 Naamans Creek Rd. (Route 491), Garnet Valley. It was consigned by two New York residents who in the 1970s and '80s ran a Greenwich Village studio specializing in rock bands of that era before switching to the antiques business and becoming regular Briggs customers, Briggs president John Turner said this week.

Community organizations, activists, students, churches, and others in the Philadelphia area are preparing to lead the nation Monday with an array of service initiatives and other projects for the Martin Luther King Jr. holiday. The Philadelphia area, the first site of the day of service, will again have the nation's largest number of activities, officials said. A record 85,000 volunteers are set for more than 1,300 service projects in Pennsylvania, New Jersey, and Delaware. The key site for projects during the 17th annual event will be Girard College in North Philadelphia.