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Video Review: Xtracycle Swoop 2nd Gen E-Cargo Bike
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Review: Backcountry Access Stash Pro 32 Backcountry Backpack [video]
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Review: Chuck Rack Bike & Ski Carrier
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Family Rafting: Bighorn Sheep Canyon

The mORning Show – 2012 ORSM

August 8, 2012

Ever wanting to try something new, I joined a team of friends to put together a consumer facing webcast at the Outdoor Retailer Show this summer. The result was a video for nearly each day of the Outdoor Retailer show where we interviewed movers and shakers in the outdoor business and checked out some of the latest gear yet to hit the shelves.

The team included Doug Schnitzpahn as the host, Mike Geraci as producer and yours truly as video editor and gear guy. Huge thanks to our sponsor, Columbia Sportswear, making the whole thing possible. Hopefully we’ll be back at Winter OR for another round. We streamed the videos live via Ustream each morning and archived them on YouTube. Click “Full Story” below to see the videos.

Post Fire Kayaking – Soot Water

August 1, 2012

Kayak and outdoor enthusiast Christoper Wiegend and I hit the Poudre River in a tandem Jackson Kayak. After the big fire of July 2012 a big rain storm hit. Hopes were the water would be running high and fast but it’s the lowest Chris has ever run. The video below was filmed on an iPhone 4 in a LifeProof case and a helmet mounted GoPro camera. Click below for video.

Slot Canyons

May 29, 2012

Hidden in the southeast corner of Utah down the long Hole-in-the-Rock road lies a series of canyons – tributaries to the Escalante River. Thirteen miles down Coyote Gulch takes you through a series of environmental shifts. Starting on the dry, hot and barren plateau, the trail quickly descends into a dry wash. Trees start to appear providing some nice shade and suddenly the ground is wet and water starts flowing. Sandstone cliffs begin to tower above you, shafts of sunlight stream past the rim and the riparian zone bursts into lush foliage. Tents are optional as camp can be made under the sandstone overhangs carved out by centuries of passing water. But there is little need for concern with regular sunny days and scant rainfall. Though flash floods are possible so keep an eye on the upstream weather. Click “Full Story” for more photos.

Backcountry Ski Hut

April 24, 2012

As a last push to find some measure of winter (defined by me as including skiable snow, not just being cold out), Jordan and I pushed out to the new Opus Hut tucked in the southern end of the San Juan Mountains. We had invited a number of other folks, but by the virtue that we scheduled our trip mid week, most of the working world wasn’t able to comply. So Jordan and I set out on this trip on our own. This was her first ski hut trip (though, she did get herself up to Gray Knob a few years ago) and she said it pushed her a bit more than she would have liked.

Patagonia CEO & President Casey Sheahan Talks Business, Conservation & Compassion

February 13, 2012

Patagonia CEO & President Casey Sheahan Talks Business, Conservation & CompassionPatagonia doesn’t need any help with marketing their products. In fact, the ad they placed in the New York Times on Black Friday last year said “Don’t Buy This Jacket”.  Don’t be fooled, they still want you to buy their product, but only when you really need it. What does that mean? This marketing conundrum and a number of other insightful ideas on how this company operates were shared by CEO & President Casey Sheahan at the Business of Outdoor Recreation Lecture Series presented by the Outdoor Industry Association and the Leeds School of Business at the Stadium Club on the University of Colorado campus in Boulder.

Review: Vasque Rift Approach Shoe

December 31, 2011

Vasque Rift Approach ShoeSpring climbing calls for an approach shoe that is comfortable and light. The Vasque Rift comes in bold and subtle color options to suit every personality. This multisport shoe sports the ultra sticky Vibram Spider outsole with Idrogrip Compound reaching from above the toe all the way back and up the heal to stab those tricky approach routes.

Soft and comfortable, wearing the Rift is like wearing tough slippers. Soft laces tie easily and stay tied. After hitting a few trails in them, my feet are always happy with the experience and I’m never itching to get these shoes off.

Hiking the Grand

November 25, 2011

It doesn’t matter how you access the Grand Canyon, so long as you actually get down into it. Sure, the views are impressive from the rim looking down into and along the big red gash in the earth, but it’s too big to fathom just from above. By boat or by foot, you’ve got to get into it.

Matt, Agnes and I, planned on a four day backpacking trip descending from the North Rim along the Bill Hall Trail and into Deer Creek Canyon for the first night. Well, technically our first night out was car camping on the North Rim which offered the aforementioned amazing though limited view from above. The morning sun crept down along the walls, displacing the dark pooled in the canyon as we packed up our car camp and got on the rocky trail taking us down.