SOAR Blog

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

SOAR Communications Announces Brand, Spankn’ New Hire

After nine months in the womb and kicking our co-worker, Crew Wesley Lansford joins the SOAR team

SALT LAKE CITY – March 11, 2010 – SOAR Communications is proud to announce that the newest member of its team, Crew Wesley Lansford, arrived Tuesday, March 9, 2010 at 3:30 p.m. He is the smallest among them, weighing in at 6 pounds 15 ounces, but brings to the group his the public relations skills he inherited from his mother, our Account Executive, Maura Lansford.

“We are so excited for the fresh perspective Crew will bring to our PR strategy,” said Chip Smith, SOAR Communications CEO. “We expect his cuteness will make it harder to focus during our staff meetings, but that he will become a kind of PR muse.”

SOAR will waste no time grooming Crew to become an account executive. His job includes daily “tweeting,” mostly at his mother, and being SOAR’s booth baby at the Outdoor Retailer and Interbike trade shows.

Crew comes to SOAR with three days of life experience and plans to develop “Cooing,” a social networking site for infants. His inherent love for competitive sports (Go Longhorns!), skiing and golf comes from his father, Cole, and makes him a true advocate for everything outdoors.

“I’ve sensed from the first kick that Crew was going to be an athletic guy, and I think life with SOAR will fit him perfectly,” said Maura Lansford, SOAR’s account executive and only mother. “Plus, after nine months, I think it’s time he start earning his keep.”

For more information about Crew and his PR qualifications, please e-mail Maura Lansford at mlansford@soarcomm.com.

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MEDIA CONTACTS:

Chip Smith, SOAR Communications, 801.656.0472 x1 (work/) 801.597.7515 (mobile), csmith@soarcomm.com or

Elizabeth O. Hurst, 801.656.0472 x3 (work)/ 408.386.8168 (mobile) ehurst@soarcomm.com

The outdoor industry is abuzz on Twitter, contributing comments, queries and suggestions to all participating manufacturers, buyers, retailers, media and advocacy groups in the 2010 Outdoor Retailer Winter Market through the show’s aggregate feed, ORWinter. Since SOAR launched Outdoor Retailer into the Twittersphere for the 2009 Winter Market, the outdoor industry has channeled much of its conversation through the platforms the show has provided. Attendees and exhibitors getting ready to travel to Salt Lake are using #ORWinter in their Tweets about the show to create dialogues and relationships before they even step foot into the Salt Palace. They can also follow ORShowLive to keep up with OR-specific event announcements that will help them make the most of their time at the show.

The ORWinter conversation will continue throughout the show as attendees Tweet about the new products they’re seeing, the people they’re meeting and the industry events they’re enjoying. Outdoor Retailer sponsor Channel Signal will display these conversations, too, on four 50-inch screens strategically placed around the show.

They’ll toggle between the ORWinter Twitter feed and the top five mentioned exhibiting OR brands. Look for them while you’re there. It will be convincing visual evidence of how social media permeates even the outdoor industry and a reflection of how fast the conversation can shift, especially when there are thousands of people participating.

Next to the monitors will be a directory of 200 exhibitors on Twitter.

If you’re interested in attending the show, January 21-24, please register at outdoorretailer.com. See you there!

SOAR Communications is in no danger of being overtaken by a tsunami, with thousands of miles east and 4,000 feet above the California coast. Still, in this world of unpredictable weather patterns, knowing how to survive a tsunami could be an important life skill. Here are some tips I’ve summarized from Beverly Goodman, PhD., geoarchaeologist and National Geographic Emerging Explorer. Damon Tabor used her as one of his sources in his National Geographic Adventurer article on tsunami preparedness.

• If you live less than 25 feet above sea level or within one mile of the shore, map out an evacuation plan.
• Sign up for early alerts text messaging from the national Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s tsunami warning center.
• Make a “grab-n-go” survival kit readily available.
• Quickly make your way inland to high ground if you see the ocean water dramatically recede.
• Find shelter in a concrete building no less than 10 feet tall.
• If you get caught in the wave, swim hard, keep your legs up and get out of the water asap.

You can read Tabor’s article on tsunami preparedness in the August/September issue of National Geographic Adventurer or find it at adventurer.nationalgeographic.com.

I contributed an article about cycling in SLC to Momentum Magazine’s September issue. Interested in reading it? You can find it here:

http://www.momentumplanet.com/cities/cycling-salt-lake-city

Mayor Ralph Becker at the 2008 Bike Bonanza

Slovenian wears its MTB-friendliness on its flag of independence and on the Pohorje Mountains in Maribor, Slovenia, the host city of last-weekend’s MTB World Cup race.

You can check out footage of the Maribor event on YouTube. If you love Slovenia like I do, you won’t be able to help but cheer when you see the clip of the Slovenian flag.

A recent Mountain Bike Action article called Maribor “one of the friendliest and most intimate stops” for the Mountain Bike World Cup. The Cup’s two-year hiatus from Maribor didn’t stop passionate and rowdy Slovenes from turning out to cheer on the riders racing down “the sunny side of the Alps” June 20 and 21.

Slovenia and its people somewhat embody the hardcore spirit of mountain biking. Being a small country (population 2 million) at a geographical and cultural crossroads has made Slovenia susceptible foreign occupation multiple times in the past several centuries. Still, Slovenes are strong and proud people with a very distinct cultural heritage- a heritage worth fighting for. And they did fight for it, gaining their political independence from the Soviet Union 18 years ago tomorrow, June 25.

Vse Dan Državnosti, lepa Slovenija! Na Zdravje (Cheers)!

Goblin Valley with castle formation in the distance.

Standing in Goblin Valley is a bit eerie. If you get there before 9 a.m., it is easy to feel that you are the only non-petrified person around for a hundred miles. You feel even more alone at standing edge of the valley’s precipitous cliff staring into the flat desert land ahead that starkly contrasts the enormous and stout goblin formations surrounding you. I had a lot of fun maneuvering my way through the maze of goblins last weekend. I suggest you include it in your trip itinerary if you’re headed to Moab or Lake Powell.

“My bikes goes hard, don’t need no car” says the scraper bikers of the San Francisco Bay Area hyphy movement.

The scraper bike movement that originated in Oakland, Calif. is now sweeping the world. “Scrapers” in the hip-hop world are huge cars with rims so big they scrape the inside of the wheel well. According to a NRP story aired last year, Tyrone Stevenson Jr. (better known as “Scraper Bike King”) first thought to apply the aesthetic of the scraper car by fitting large wheels on small bike frames and painting the frames to match the rims, accenting them with colorful foil wrappers from food like Oreos, Doritos and Lemonhead. I saw several scraper bikes on display at the Oakland Airport on a recent trip to my hometown in the South Bay. They’re works of art as much as they are vehicles.

Stevenson made his first scraper bike because he couldn’t afford the car version. Now he makes a living designing them, while giving teenagers in his community creative and healthy ways to channel their energy.

Click here to watch the YouTube rap music video that started the now world-wide scraper bike phenomenon.

Me (the one who looks excited), a crew member and my King Mackerel

Though I’m not exactly new to the SOAR Blog, (having been featured and/or mentioned here, here, here and here), I’ve never actually written a post–hence me thinking a small introduction is warranted. I’m the lone Canuck on staff at SOAR communications, actually working for Politis Communications–sister agencies–but working on a few of SOAR’s accounts, from time to time. I grew up immersed in sports and athletics, but mostly enjoyed swimming and playing soccer and rugby, which I played for my high school, and pick up games of basketball till the wee hours of the morning (at least in the summer). That said, I’ve dabbled in everything from winter skiing to water skiing and canoe trips to snowshoeing.

Well, enough about me and onto the purpose of this post. It’s been a few months now, but back in November I went deep sea fishing off the coast of Miami for one of my best friends bachelor party. About 20 of us jumped on one of the Reward Fishing Fleet’s largest boats and set off for four hours of fishing fun. It was my first fishing major fishing adventure in an ocean (Poppa P showed me the ropes of small lake fishing last year!)

About 20 minutes into our voyage the skipper yelled, “they’re biting!” Within minutes beers were exchanged for fishing poles, and lines were dropped into the Atlantic as we trolled across a school of dolphin-fish (also known as mahi mahi, dorado, calitos, maverikos, or lampuki). Within about 45 minutes 90 percent of the guys had caught their first fish. Several had caught a few, including some sharks (catch and release) that were hanging out trying to get some food themselves.

Matt, the bachelor, and his first Mahi Mahi

It was an experience of a lifetime and one I will not soon forget… specially since today I received my way-too-expensive mounted fish (for those wondering and who may not know, they don’t stuff the real fish anymore. Nowadays, they send you a fiberglass replica of the fish to hang on your wall.). Sure, I was also lucky enough to catch a red snapper and a king mackerel before the day was done, but none will look as cool on my wall as the 34 inch mahi mahi I was able to haul in!

If you’ve never been deep sea fishing I highly recommend it. And if you’re looking for a company to take you, out of the hundreds available, I’ll gladly recommend the crew at Reward Fishing Fleet (not a paid client or endorsement–this one is from the heart!). The rates are very reasonable and they’ll work their butts off to see that you and your group have a great time. Happy fishing!

The trophy has arrived!

Point-of-the-Mountain Paraglider Above I-15: I wouldn't blame him for pointing and laughing at the motorists below.

Every morning as I ride along Utah’s I-15 towards a new day at SOAR Communications, I see people who are actually soaring. They’re paragliding- at 8:30 in the morning. I wonder, “Shouldn’t they be at work or something?” It wasn’t until I did some digging at the agency that I realized that some of the figures floating in the distance might actually paraglide for a living. The Point of the Mountain Flight Park that I drive by during my commute is only a few miles away from a handful of paragliding schools and the Utah Hang Gliding and Paragliding Association (UHGPA). These destinations and businesses are all ironically close to SOAR’s office.

I had no idea that Utah was such a glide-friendly state. The UHGPA website (www.uhgpa.org) indicates that there are nearly 20 different gliding launch points in Utah. Enthusiasts have the opportunity to participate in the association’s Utah Cup, a yearlong cross-country soaring competition. The full-time members of the UHGPA participate in this low-key competition where the only prize is a plaque, peer respect and the satisfaction of flying. The association uses the honor system to verify the pilot’s distance traveled.

I’ll admit that after my web search of “Point of the Mountain paragliding,” I’m tempted to stop my ride to work short so I can soar with the rest of them. Or maybe I’ll start commuting by paraglider, flying as the crow does, instead of driving or busing the curvy highway. In fact- David, Chip- I think a paragliding outing would be a fantastic opportunity for the SOAR staff’s professional development. What do you say?

Elizabeth modeling in the Interbike 2008 Urban Legend Fashion & Art Show

When I volunteered last-minute to model urban cycling wear during the Interbike 2008 Urban Legend Fashion & Art Show, I didn’t realize how much Momentum Magazine had reinvented the fashion show wheel.

The show was completely fresh from its format to its philosophy. Models wearing fashionable and bike-able outfits toured a circular, ramped runway with hip bikes ranging from electric to stone-age inspired, from foldable to recumbent. This show was about having fun and being confident, unlike most modeling gigs that demand you adapt the personality of a hanger. The congeniality of the predominantly Canadian modeling and styling team made this show as much fun backstage as it was on the runway. Ron, along with several other super-friendly bike technicians, stayed backstage before and during the show to make sure the models’ bikes fit their heights, accommodated their outfits and were poised for riding.

The models were to showcase the fun and simplicity of cycling life. However, I was one of the few in this production who hadn’t made cycling part of my lifestyle. Honestly, I wasn’t sure if I could maintain momentum enough to get around the runway in my athletic look let alone my opera get-up with stiletto heels. For me, walking a runway feels much more like “riding a bike” than does actually riding a bike. As impossible as the notion seemed to a girl who was reared in urban sprawl, I admired those around me who had consciously decided to make cycling their way of life.

After spending the better part of an hour whirling around in sweet clothes on cool bikes and maneuvering kickstands, I realized that I could make the cycling lifestyle part of my own. A few minor adjustments would allow me to express my inner cyclist without making it impossible to navigate Utah Valley. Momentum pushed participants like me to make cycling a way of life, even if we need start off with training wheels.

[UPDATE: This post was re-purposed in Momentum Magazine, "Momentum Rocks the Runway at Interbike."]