Ask The Gear Guy

In 20 years of hiking, biking, climbing, skiing and camping, Douglas Gantenbein has seen a mountain of equipment come and go.

Cotton fishnet underwear, pyramid tents, heavy leather boots - items once the rage are now difficult to sell at garage sales. They’ve been replaced by a Mother Lode of gear, some of it quite expensive, that makes thoughtful shopping a full-time job, not to mention the care and maintenance.

Today the resident of Bellevue begins putting his experience to use for you, in a new equipment column that will run Sundays in Outdoors & Travel.

Gantenbein, a.k.a. The Interactive Gear Guy, will respond to readers who send their equipment questions via e-mail.

Should I wash Gore-Tex?

When carrying a tent: stuff, roll or fold?

What’s the perfect pair of compact binoculars?

Regardless of whether you have a computer or are hooked up to the Internet to ask your own questions, you’ll find his answers to other queries interesting, pertinent and entertaining.

Gantenbein is an outdoorsman and contributor to Outside, The Economist, Sports Illustrated, The Wall Street Journal and other publications.

Send your questions directly to Gantenbein at gearguy@starwave.com/ His column also appears twice weekly on Outside Online (http:/ /outside.starwave.com)/