We have begun to look at everything from conventional items such as shoes, boots, winter jackets, tents, sleeping bags and aluminum and Kevlar canoes to new and unusual items such as snowshoes, flint and steel fire starters, folding canoes and kayaks and yurts.

In coming issues, you can count on American Scouting Digest to publish the results of our exhaustive field testing of these products and items. We are firm believers in using the products ourselves before introducing items to our readers. Our Managing Editor, Tim Kachinske, a native of northern Minnesota, leads our field-testing group. A true outdoorsman, he has set high standards and criteria for our gear reviews. Count on Tim to lead our staff into adventures and misadventures as we push products to their limits.

For more information, look to our web site which features a daily gear give-away for scouts and the general outdoors-loving public. Several major outdoors manufacturers have already committed to give away items as a means of introducing their products to the scout market.

The various manufacturers ASD staff have met over the past year have expressed an interest in our readers. These manufacturers know our readers live for camping, hiking and fishing, and love the outdoor lifstyle.

ASD publisher Rob Miller said, "Boy Scouts are avid outdoorsmen, so it stands to reason that our magazine will be at the forefront of testing and introducing the latest and greatest of outdoor products."

Editor-in-chief Jaime Rodriguez adds, "Our writers are among the best campers, fishermen and sailors. Letters of our readers have praised our adventure-based travel articles. Readers have requested more. By adding an editorial gear review, I hope to be able to show you how to use products that have worked for our writers.