Gear up for your fall adventures with locally-designed, high-performance equipment from Triple Aught Design. 

Headquartered in the Dogpatch (right next to Serpentine), TAD was founded in 1997, by Patrick Ma, a modern explorer on a mission to create stylish, hyper-functional adventure gear for himself and other modern explorers.

Meticulously designed and tested, each TAD piece is created to do its job and nothing more -- no bulk, no fuss, no getting in the way of the outdoor experience. Most of the pieces draw directly from historical army gear, with colors that purposefully stay true to nature (lots of tans, blacks and camo prints).

And while function is key, these pieces help you look good, too. "We don't believe you should sacrifice performance for style -- or style for performance," said TAD marketing specialist, Michael Weiss. "Our products cross over into all elements of life -- from the city to backpacking through Patagoina." 

We're particularly fond of their hardcore collection from Southard Knives (#4) and the Vietnam War-inspired Survival Spark (#5). Check out the rest of our favorites below.

Triple Aught Design Dogpatch (660 22nd St.) open Tuesday-Saturday from 11am-6pm; Hayes Valley (551 Hayes St.) open Tuesday-Sunday 11am-7pm

1. FAST Pack EDC, $325

2. TAD Skeleton Key, $99

3. Fisher Space Pen 725 TAD Edition, $30

4. TAD x Southard Knives Dauntless Titanium Flipper, $650

5. TAD Survival Spark, $19

6. TAD Grimloc Carabiner, $2.50

7. TAD 550 Paracord, $9

Lily Ko (lily7x7 @gmail.com) studied fashion design and merchandising at Central Saint Martins and the Academy of Art University. In addition to writing for 7x7, Lily is on the creative team at Pottery Barn, and works as a freelance stylist, writer, and designer.