Skills

An important part of manhood has always been about having the competence to be effective in the world — having the breadth of skills, the savoir-faire, to handle any situation you find yourself in. With that in mind, each Sunday we’ll be republishing one of the illustrated guides from our archives, so you can hone your manly know-how week by week. First used as a necessary technique for pre-WWII clunky gear mechanisms, heel-toe shifting is largely unnecessary for daily drivers (if not impossible since most cars today have automatic transmissions!). Used mostly by motorsports professionals in high-octane cars and motorcycles, it’s not really something you need to learn un…

There you are, captured behind enemy lines, locked in a makeshift POW camp. Your only chance of escape? The M60 Patton tank sitting unguarded just beyond the fence. If you’re able to get inside it, would you be able to start it up and pilot the tank for a getaway? While you might never find yourself needing to commandeer a tank for a daring escape, there’s something undeniably appealing about knowing how to operate one of these steel monsters. Tony Borglum, owner of Drive a Tank in Minnesota, has taught thousands of people the basics of tank operation, and in this illustrated guide, we’ll share his instructions for piloting an M60 Patton. Why the M60 Patton? Because it…

An important part of manhood has always been about having the competence to be effective in the world — having the breadth of skills, the savoir-faire, to handle any situation you find yourself in. With that in mind, each Sunday we’ll be republishing one of the illustrated guides from our archives, so you can hone your manly know-how week by week. Here’s the good news: piranhas very rarely attack humans unless said humans are already injured or dead. Here’s the bad news, according to Ray Owczarzak, assistant curator of fishes at the National Aquarium in Baltimore: it would only take about 5 minutes for a good-sized school of piranhas to devour an entire man. Luckily, yo…

An important part of manhood has always been about having the competence to be effective in the world — having the breadth of skills, the savoir-faire, to handle any situation you find yourself in. With that in mind, each Sunday we’ll be republishing one of the illustrated guides from our archives, so you can hone your manly know-how week by week. Picture yourself lost at sea, adrift in a boat with a broken engine and torn sails. You’ve sent out a distress signal via radio, but by the time the helicopter search and rescue team arrives it’s already well after midnight. In a pitch black world, finding you is like looking for a needle in a haystack. Luckily, you’ve got a fl…

An important part of manhood has always been about having the competence to be effective in the world — having the breadth of skills, the savoir-faire, to handle any situation you find yourself in. With that in mind, each Sunday we’ll be republishing one of the illustrated guides from our archives, so you can hone your manly know-how week by week. In the kitchen, fresh coconuts can add great flavor to one’s culinary pursuits. In the wild, they’re one of nature’s most perfect survival foods. Coconut meat is a great source of fat, carbohydrates, and fiber. And there’s a good reason coconut water is so readily available at stores these days: it’s loaded with minerals, elect…

You’re on an airplane that crash lands. Smoke fills the cabin, and you’ve got only seconds to react. How would you respond? Would you immediately take action — or freeze in place? While you might think you know how a scene like this would play out from watching movies, the reality of what occurs in the aftermath of a disaster is quite a bit different. And that knowledge gap could prove deadly. My guest, Amanda Ripley, spent years researching how humans actually respond in emergencies, interviewing their survivors, as well leading researchers. In her book, The Unthinkable: Who Survives When Disaster Strikes—and Why, she uncovers the myths and realities of survival psyc…

Last year, we wrote a guide to how to take your first backpacking trip, offering a complete primer for getting out there, even if you’re a little intimidated by the idea. If going backpacking seems daunting when it will just be adults, the thought of bringing kids along can make it feel doubly so. How far are the kids capable of hiking? Are they just going to whine and ask “How much further?” the entire time? How do you pack in a bunch of gear for humans who might not be able to carry their own stuff? To get the lowdown on how to successfully execute a family backpacking trip with the smaller set in tow, I talked to our friend McKenzie Smith. McKenzie and her husband…

An important part of manhood has always been about having the competence to be effective in the world — having the breadth of skills, the savoir-faire, to handle any situation you find yourself in. With that in mind, each Sunday we’ll be republishing one of the illustrated guides from our archives, so you can hone your manly know-how week by week. For hunters who like to go after smaller game, frogs represent a prized delicacy. Their legs, served up simply with garlic and butter, or battered and fried, are found on the menus of fancy French restaurants and Southern diners alike. But, they’re probably far more common in the cast iron skillets of those who know the secret …

An important part of manhood has always been about having the competence to be effective in the world — having the breadth of skills, the savoir-faire, to handle any situation you find yourself in. With that in mind, each Sunday we’ll be republishing one of the illustrated guides from our archives, so you can hone your manly know-how week by week. Earlier this month, 71-year-old Donald Zimmerman was jogging near Pillar Mountain outside of Kodiak, Alaska. He was surrounded by berry bushes that were just starting to fill out, and he knew that encountering bears was a possibility, which is exactly why he carried bear spray. He saw the bear out of the corner of his eye just…

An important part of manhood has always been about having the competence to be effective in the world — having the breadth of skills, the savoir-faire, to handle any situation you find yourself in. With that in mind, each Sunday we’ll be republishing one of the illustrated guides from our archives, so you can hone your manly know-how week by week. It is one of the planet’s great ironies that a person can be lost at sea, surrounded by water, and die of dehydration. The reason saltwater is so harmful to drink is not that you can’t drink salt. We drink salty liquid, like soups and stews, all the time, and our kidneys have no problem filtering out the salt and processing it.…

An important part of manhood has always been about having the competence to be effective in the world — having the breadth of skills, the savoir-faire, to handle any situation you find yourself in. With that in mind, each Sunday we’ll be republishing one of the illustrated guides from our archives, so you can hone your manly know-how week by week. Among the many quintessential summertime activities is swinging from a rope over a lake or river. If there isn’t a rope swing by your favorite swimming hole, here’s how to make one safely and use it like the King of the Jungle. Like this illustrated guide? Then you’re going to love our book The Illustrated Art of Manliness! P…

Imagine a significant manmade or natural disaster knocks out power and water where you live. The grid won’t be back up for a long time, and aid from government organizations isn’t forthcoming. Ideally, you’re ready for this scenario and have stocked emergency water as part of your bug-in supplies. But if you’re caught unprepared and need water for drinking and cooking, you’re not entirely out of luck. There are places in and around your home where you can obtain water in a pinch. This guide highlights six sources of drinkable water. These sources, with the exception of the rain gutter and aquarium/koi pond, offer water that’s likely potable as is; that even goes for the…