If you attended Outdoor Retailer Winter Market this year, you know that it was a great show that epitomized the industry’s resilience and hope. Many long-time exhibitors were there along side many new exhibitors launching their products OR.
Despite the huge amounts of preparation that goes into each OR show, SOAR, like the rest of the OR operations staff, doesn’t have time to rest on its laurels when the show is happening in the Salt Palace.
We start before day one managing the periphery of the show to make sure only qualified media get badges and that their press needs are me once they’re inside. We help journalists work around the show director’s very busy schedule and step in as spokespersons when needed. We get up at 4:30 a.m to coordinate early morning shows on the floor, with hair brushed and smiles on our faces. On occasion, we double as models for exhibitors’ product, feeling a little embarrassed and mostly excited when attendees point and ask “Weren’t you on T.V. this morning?” We get a little jealous when attendees ask us about the discounted lift tickets they can purchases with their OR badges, not sure of the next time we’ll be able to hit the slopes.
Though we don’t do as many laps around the show floor as most retailers, the 12-hour day catches up with us once it’s time to party with the industry. Still, we party on. The Woolrich Fashion show made us want to dance (we may have acted on that impulse) and industry’s enthusiasm over the Canada Goose Cup was super fun to watch. We talked to Pam Theodosakis about Prana’s hockey win the next morning as we prepped her to speak about Project OR on camera with a local TV studio.
Of course, between these appointments we are writing like crazy so we can keep media in the loop about the news of the show. We each manage to get away for a few moments, though, to admire amazing new products on the show floor, talk with exhibitors and see how the Project OR designs are developing.
Even though there is still snow still on the ground and in the mountains, we’re shifting our attention to Outdoor Retailer Summer Market, running August 2-3, 2010. Even more exciting times for SOAR and the outdoor industry are on the horizon.
Here’s to warmer weather and more hot products!
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!
Yeserday the season’s first snowflakes fell around SOAR’s office near Salt Lake City. We’re ready for the slopes and powder that await us (see image below)! Winter is something to look forward to in the state with the greatest snow on Earth, and here’s why:
- 13 ski resorts, most which are less than 40 miles from Salt Lake City
- Nearly 400 inches average annual snowfall at the resorts
- Nearly 27,000 skiable acres
- More than 1,100 ski runs
- Snowboarding allowed at 11 out of the 13 resorts
Ski (or snowboard) on!
Information gathered using information from SkiUtah’s 2009-2010 Utah Resort Facts
Our "Best Of Utah" Route
I was skeptical moving away from my California paradise to the arid and hot and cold Utah desert. But this red rock, Wasatch state has proven itself in the year that I have lived here. This past weekend Utah re-wowed me as I spent three days taking my parents up and down Eastern Utah for their first visit. You could call it a “best of trip,” starting with mole at Salt Lake’s Red Iguana (killer Mexican food, really). The folks had fun with the Utah altitude hiking up to the Timpanogos Caves, driving through Castle County to Arches National Park, seeing Delicate Arch that graces the Utah license plate, riding the chair lift at Sundance and poking around art galleries in Park City.
And there are several bests we didn’t have time to do, like float down the Provo River, make our way through slot canyons, eat Navajo Tacos, snow skiing or sleep under the stars.
So, I’m living proof that you can drive nearly 600 miles in one weekend with your parents and finish the trip happy…as long as you have a group of adventurous spirits and an amazing state like Utah to tour.
“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.
I’ve spent the past few weeks trying to figure out how to get back at my husband for the way he treated me on Valentine’s Day. While others were eating chocolate and smelling roses around scented candles, we were camping at the snow-covered Jordanelle Reservoir, in the dark, in the midst of a looming snowstorm. I wouldn’t have wanted to spend Valentine’s Day and other way.
Snow Camping at Jordanell Lake
Though I grew up enjoying the California outdoors, only a few times did I venture to sleep in them. So when Philip and I got married, I was eager to benefit from his backpacking and camping experience. My camping naivety made it easy for me to accept his suggestion to spend Valentine’s Day in the snow (most of my Utahan friends shivered at the thought of it).
On Valentine’s Day eve we set up camp in the dark, then enjoyed s’mores roasted over the awesome fire Philip built for us. We heard the falling snow brush against our tent the entire night and woke up to a very still and pristine morning. With hot chocolate in our bellies (thanks for the stove, Chip!), we set off on a snowshoeing adventure around the reservoir. There was no one around for miles, save a couple of ice fishers. You couldn’t beat the scene’s romance factor. Nice work, Philip!
Snowshoeing at Jordanell Lake
With spring (and hopefully warmer weather) approaching, I spend a lot of my free time thinking about all of the local adventures Utah and its surrounding states have to offer- Havasupai, the Narrows at Zion, the Tetons to name a few. I need to get back at Philip for the amazing trip he planned and would greatly appreciate any/all reader suggestions.
P.S. Thanks to Joby for the amazing Gorillapod. We couldn’t have taken these shots without it!
Samson Riders Bicycle Club
Considering the plethora of well-established mountain biking cultures that exist worldwide, it is telling that Trips for Kids (TFK) would establish its first international chapter in Israel. In addition to the typical complexities that challenge childhood, Israel’s youth faces the challenge of developing tolerance for the variety of ethnic, educational, socio-economic and immigrant groups in their communities.
I imagine this is true even in Beit Shemesh, Israel, where Trips for Kids Israel- Samson Riders Bicycle Club (TFK Israel-SRBC) has been established. This community in the heart of the Judean Plains merits a group like TFK Israel-SRBC that encourages young people to understand and unite with their peers of all backgrounds. Before Samson Riders Bicycle Club became the foundational group for TFK Israel, it had already been successful in bringing Jewish and Arab youth together to ride, learn about each other, break down barriers, discover new interests and respect the land. The club’s new relationship with TFK will make it possible to expand this program, Riding for Co-Existence, to give more underprivileged youth in Israel a chance to experience mountain biking and involve youth from other local ethnic communities in the bike ride planning and implementation.
Come late November, riders with TFK Israel-SRBC will take their first tour of the monasteries, water springs and olive groves as an official chapter of the Marin County, Calif.-based non-profit organization. For many of them, it will be their first time exploring their historic surroundings. For some, it may be their first time riding side by side with a peer who claims a different culture than their own.
You can learn more about Trips for Kids at www.tripsforkids.org.
We all have our interests in life. A few around the office include cycling, baseball, volleyball, golf and fishing, and we’ve talked a lot about doing these activities together to experience something a little different and to get to know each other a bit better.
Well, last week we took an opportunity to participate in an activity together by taking the afternoon to play mini-golf and hit a bucket of golf balls at a local facility called, appropriately, Mulligans.
Here are some captions of the event:
The Team at Mulligans
FORE!
Can’t Quite Get Away
Scoping out the lay of the land
One too many practice swings…enough already!
For the Win!
Past the Windmill…through the tunnel…off the rock…up the volcano…in the hole!
Needless to say, we had a great time together. While we did keep score, everyone, it turned out, won. We built team unity and relieved a bit of stress…for those of us who could get away.
We’re planning to do these types of events every couple of months. Who knows what the next one will be, but I’m sure it will be a great time to be had by all, as this one was.
I’ve been putting off writing something for our blog for a couple of reasons. One, life here at SOAR has been incredibly busy. Our biggest client, Interbike, is having their annual bicycle tradeshow in Las Vegas in 4 days and we have spent the last couple of months ramping up for that. The other reason is, I’m new to blogging, and I wasn’t sure I had anything interesting or significant to post. Now I do.
I’m bummed. The U.S. Anti-Doping Agency found Landis guilty of doping (see AP story here). I haven’t ridden regularly in a while, but I’m still an avid fan of cycling and racing. My wife and I cheered loudly at the TV during Stage 17 of the 2006 Tour, only to stare silently again later while learning that Landis was accused of doping.
I’m not even going to pretend to understand the facts surrounding the case and spout my opinion here in this post. I’m just bummed for Landis, racers in general and for recreational cyclists and potential recreational cyclists who might think twice about participating in a tainted activity.
The news about Landis will make for an interesting next few weeks, especially with the industry’s largest trade show, Interbike, and the Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI) World Championships taking place at the same time. I’m sure everyone will be talking about the verdict and will have an opinion.
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