Alex Lauer

Alex Lauer is the features editor at InsideHook. Since joining the company in 2016, he’s covered a wide range of topics, including cars, the environment, books and business. His reporting broke stories on the rise of Bookshop (the anti-Amazon online bookseller), the fall of Best Made Company (and sale to Duluth Trading) and the false promises of a supposedly “environmentally-friendly” NFT initiative. His hands-on methods — driving in a Sherp (of Kanye West fame) in northern Minnesota and idling in the electric Ford Mustang Mach-E for 12 hours in the middle of winter — offer a reliable and unique perspective on popular issues. Previously, he wrote for City Pages in the Twin Cities after graduating from the University of Minnesota. After starting at IH in New York City, he now lives in Minneapolis, MN. Follow him on Instagram: @alexlauer.

All Articles From Alex Lauer
A man with a camo Team Rubicon hat and grey Team Rubicon T-shirt tapes a cardboard box with donations for Afghan families resettling in the U.S.

For Some Veterans, The Afghanistan Mission Isn’t Over Yet

We spoke with Team Rubicon CEO Art delaCruz about how the group is helping with Afghan refugee resettlement

The handlebars and side mirror of a motorcycle as it speeds down a winding road in the woods. A motorcycle just a record for the Cannonball Run, an illegal nationwide road race.

A New Cannonball Run Record Has Been Set on a Motorcycle

The price of winning? Wearing a catheter for almost 33 hours.

A full-length and close-up photo of the Noir Round Bar Cart from Crate and Barrel, a three-tiered bar cart filled with bottles of booze and cocktail accoutrement

Which of These Bar Carts Will You Pick Up for 50% Off?

Complete your entertaining setup during this Crate and Barrel sale

The Valkyrie Racing Porsche 356 A equipped with skis and snow tracks for Renée Brinkerhoff to drive in Antarctica starting in December 2021 as the final leg of the Project 356 World Rally

Is This Ski-Equipped, Antarctica-Bound 356 the Craziest Porsche Ever Built?

Renée Brinkerhoff of Valkyrie Racing will drive the Polar Porsche on the final leg of her World Rally tour

Waterproof boots from Ugg, Sperry and The North Face in a line on a grey background

Take Up to 50% Off Waterproof Boots From The North Face, Sperry and More

Don’t get caught in the rain without them

A Marlow pillow from Brooklinen's new sub-brand sitting on a bed with yellow sheets and a red pillow next to a nightstand

Review: With Marlow, Brooklinen Brings Its Bedding Magic to Pillows

The new sub-brand looks to take over another part of the sleep experience

From left to right: Doug Tompkins, Rick Ridgeway and Yvon Chouinard on the summit of a peak in Chile in 2008, which would go on to become part of Patagonia National Park

The Playbook for a More Adventurous Life, Courtesy of “The Real Indiana Jones”

Catching up with longtime adventurer Rick Ridgeway, who recounts his best stories in the new book "Life Lived Wild"

Three white Tesla Model 3 electric vehicles sitting next to a Hertz sign. The rental car company ordered 100,000 EVs from Elon Musk's car company.

Hertz Orders 100,000 Teslas, The Largest Purchase of Electric Vehicles Ever

The EV revolution is here, courtesy of a recently bankrupt rental car company

A Smithey cast iron pan, Flint and Tinder's flannel-lined waxed trucker jacket and Kentucky 74 non-alcoholic bourbon from Spiritless

Huckberry Opened a One-Stop Shop for All Things American-Made

For holiday shopping, or really whenever, you’ll want to bookmark this online store

Hundreds of parked cars, trucks and SUVs in a large parking lot during the day

It's Already Hard to Buy a Car, But a New Shortage Could Make Things Worse

Analysts are eyeing another threat beyond the current chip shortage

A Finex cast iron skillet, De'Longhi espresso machine and Crafthouse by Fortessa cocktail smoker, all of which are on sale at Sur La Table

The Kitchen Indulgences We're Eyeing During Sur La Table's Fall Sale

Grab big discounts on espresso machines, cocktail smokers and more

A rendering of the reception area in a new hotel from Steigenberger Porsche Design Hotels, a new hotel brand in the luxury lifestyle segment

Porsche Design Is Getting Into the Luxury Hotel Business

The new hotel brand is looking to open 15 locations in cities like London, Singapore, Dubai and Shanghai

A 12-inch cast iron grill pan from Finex with coiled stainless steel handles on a grey table. It's currently on sale at Williams Sonoma.

Here's Your Chance to Get 50% Off Finex's Cast Iron Grill Pan

Peak grilling season may be behind us, but this'll help bring it inside

A grid of the best science-fiction and fantasy books for adults, from Robert Jordan's "The Wheel of Time" series to J.R.R. Tolkien's "The Fall of Gondolin" to Naomi Novik's "A Deadly Education," on a green background

The 12 Sci-Fi and Fantasy Books That You, an Adult, Should Read

Once Hollywood hooks you on the genres, with adaptations like "Dune" and "The Wheel of Time," read these books next

The Agdor 32 Yankee Felling Axe from Hults Bruk, available in the U.S. as of July 2021, lying on a wood table next to a leather sheath and other tools

The Best New Axe You Can Buy Has Been Around for a Century

Historic Swedish axe maker Hults Bruks has reintroduced its Agdor line to the U.S.

Red Wing Classic Moc-Toe Boots in Oro Russet Leather With a Gore-Tex Lining on a cream background. These shoes are currently on sale at J.Crew.

J.Crew Is Offering an Unbeatable Deal on Red Wing Gore-Tex Boots

A classic pair of moc-toe stompers for way, way less