F E A T U R E S

2005 ALL-STARS
THE BELIEVERS
Take a stand. Make your mark. Knowledge is power. As the planet throws more wicked challenges our way, these 25 visionaries in exploration, science, technology, and volunteerism are hard at work creating bold solutions. Meet top mountaineer CONRAD ANKER, who's on a crusade to give something back to the Sherpas; ocean defender FABIEN COUSTEAU; caving microbiologist HAZEL BARTON; alt-fuel guru DANIEL EMMETT; and space conquistador DAVID GUMP. Isn't it time you were moving and shaking?

EXPEDITION
THE LIGHT OF SEVEN MOUNTAIN SUNS
In the Himalayas, cataracts—the world's leading cause of blindness—blight thousands of lives, but a pioneering medical campaign has been reversing the damage, one patient at a time. In the latest chapter of this awesome project, a crew of gung-ho climbers pitch in and see the light.
By Nick Heil

EXPOSURE SPECIAL
AFTERSHOCK
Just days after Hurricane Katrina ravaged the Gulf Coast, an acclaimed photographer and a young journalist embarked on an odyssey through the Mississippi and Louisiana disaster zones to document a world turned upside down.
Photographs by Larry Towell
Story by Ace Atkins

INVESTIGATION
J'ACCUSE
Faced with doping allegations that won't go away, Lance Armstrong is fighting back. In the weeks and months ahead, he'll try to turn the tables and put his accusers on trial. Outside gets to the bottom of the looming confrontation between the Tour champion and his enemies.
By Joe Lindsey

D E P A R T M E N T S

D I S P A T C H E S

GIFT GUIDE MADNESS
The time of immaculate consumption is upon us. From a flaming kayak paddle to an indestructible laptop that can pinpoint your exact location on earth, we've gathered the hardest, softest, smoothest, and sleekest gear of the year in our annual holiday-swag blowout.

» GIANT RIDERS: On the heels of Dogtown and Z-Boys and Riding Giants, snowboarding's life story, FIRST DESCENT, hits the big screen this month.

» Eccentric plyometrics: CHRIS CARMICHAEL on turbocharging your game with squats, sprints, and jumps guaranteed to help you crush opponents.
PLUS: THE PULSE prescribes coffee for workout hydration and olive oil for what ails you.

» In lieu of that $8 six-pack, may we recommend elegant BOUTIQUE SPIRITS? Limited runs of micro-distilled vodka, grappa, and eau-de-vie can fuel your drinking pleasure.

» THE WILD FILE wrestles with the willies and what causes them, WHY WAVES COME IN SETS, the last land on earth to be discovered, and why dogs circle before bedding down.

» BOOKS: Five perspectives in Iraq-inspired WAR STORIES, from a pumped-up jarhead to a dilettante slacker; Scott Weidensaul retraces Roger Tory Peterson and James Fisher's classic journey in Return to Wild America; behold the iconic photos and intimate journals of Michael "Nick" Nichols and Mike Fay's epic African Megatransect in The Last Place on Earth.

» WARM WINTER ESCAPES The flakes may be falling, but you're only half a day's journey from the white sands, hot sun, and azure seas of the CARIBBEAN AND CENTRAL AMERICA. Read up and recharge with our six sweet, go-now travel remedies.