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2019 UIAA World Cup Ice Climbing Finals in Denver

Some of the best ice climbers in the world converged in Denver to compete in the sixth and final event of the 2019 Ice Climbing World Cup on February 23-24. The American Alpine Club hosted this event, the first in the U.S., at Denver’s Civic Center Park. A total of 38 men and 26 women competed in the speed climbing and lead climbing competitions.

Over two-days, the event broke international records by becoming one of the most spectated climbing events of all time. They recorded a live crowd of more than 25,000, as well as hundreds of thousands more watching the competition’s live stream.

Walking up to the event, you could see a towering structure of sheer ice and steel that was built for the competition. The 60-foot wall of ice was kept frozen with a chilling system, utilizing the same technology as a skating rink, but on a vertical surface. It allowed for two climbers at a time to race up for the speed climbing competition.

Next to the wall was the structure for the lead climbing competitions. There were two walls with tiny holds for the climbers to scale. For the semifinals, the walls were identical, utilized by both men and women competitors. For the finals, the left side was customized just for women.

Once the climbers reached the top, they would make their way through a swinging obstacle course; hanging upside down, leaping to nearby structures, and sometimes falling. Only a few were able to make it to the very top, straddling a structure dubbed “the rhino horn” while pumping their fists in victory.

Saturday, February 23 — The Need for Speed

Saturday held qualifying rounds for lead and speed climbing, which determined the contenders for both nights.

Speed climbing featured three rounds: the quarterfinal, semi-final, and final rounds. Contestants sprinted up the wall in pairs, side-by-side, using ice tools and crampons. Judges rated the climbers soley for speed.

David Bouffard of Canada made history by becoming the first North American to quality for the quarterfinals in speed climbing. Unfortunately for Bouffard, he punctured his thigh with his ice axe and had to go to the hospital.

Bouffard returned for the finals, however, and took second place behind Russia’s Nikolai Kusovlev in first. Dmitriy Grebennikov of Russia came in third for men’s speed.

Maria Tolokonina of Russia also took Gold in the Women’s Speed Final.

Sunday, February 24 — Lead Climbing Finals

The lead climbing finals challenged the competitors to balance speed and agility to climb as far as possible before the clock ran out. There were eight finalists in the men’s and women’s category, and each climber had only eight minutes to make it through the course.

Utilizing their ice tools and crampons, they climbed up the wall to the obstacles. Points were given based on how many holds they touched and the amount of obstacles they were able to clip into. But making it to the aforementioned “rhino’s horn” was the pinnacle achievement.

Switzerland’s Yannick Glatthard raced through the course, becoming the first man to reach the horn with seconds to spare. The winner of Saturday’s men’s speed finals, Nikolai Kuzovlev, was able to reach the horn with just over 25 seconds left, becoming the champion of the lead climbing course.

The women’s competition was even more dramatic. Woonseon Shin of South Korea was the first to make it to the horn, but the clock ran out before she was able to make the final leap. The winner of the women’s speed climbing competition, Maria Tolokonina of Russia, leapt for the horn, barely catching it with her ice tool before falling. Her ice tool stuck, however, and because she had reached the horn before the clock ran out, she won.

Watching the crowd’s reaction to these superhuman climbers, you could see their sense of awe. Hopefully we’ll see more climbing events like this in the future, providing inspiration to a new generation of rock and ice climbers.

For complete results and World Cup Tour recap, please visit, https://www.theuiaa.org/ice-climbing/

Product Review: Vuori Clothing

Last year, REI had a trail running event at their Boulder location. Wandering through the aisles, I ran into Austin Prideaux from the Vuori clothing brand. He showed me their line up, which included a sweet pair of olive camo running shorts.

The brand, at that point, was a relatively new addition to a lineup of athleisure companies. Their functional design was geared towards a more active demographic. Their products ranged from workout, climbing, running, swimming, hiking, to just relaxing. Whether you’re sweating or chilling, you’ll always look good.

This year, Vuori sent me a few items to give my honest review. 

The brand, at that point, was a relatively new addition to a lineup of athleisure companies. Their functional design was geared towards a more active demographic. Their products ranged from workout, climbing, running, swimming, hiking, to just relaxing. Whether you’re sweating or chilling, you’ll always look good.

Kore Shorts

One of the first things that stood out to me was the internal liner in the shorts. I’ve had a few uncomfortable run ins with other brands that had internal liners that—shall we say—left a negative impression.

The Kore Short felt immediately different when I first put them on. They were the most comfortable running short I have ever worn. The material had better stretch for easy movement and mobility. I also felt that my nether region was better supported.

After running  20+ miles in them across 4,000+ feet of elevation gain, I didn’t have the normal chafing issues I was used to experiencing, which was a joyful thing.

Movement Hoodie

This hoodie has become my go-to hoodie for all my activities. It’s made from an ultra-soft Stretch French Terry fabric and is lined with jersey fabric, making it a great combo that was  moisture-wicking, quick-drying, and super soft. Vuori’s website says that it’s great for traveling, hiking, and chilling, but it quickly became my favorite tech top for running during winter.

During a recent snowfall, I was cruising around Green Mountain in the hoodie, making fresh tracks for around 10 miles, and I was completely comfortable in it. It was able to dry quickly, and I never found myself feeling too hot or too cold. After running, when I got back to the car, I took the hoodie off to see if it was soaked after running two hours in the snow, but the interior was still dry.

Ripstop Climber Pants

For once we’re not going to talk about running.

The Ripstop Climber has a stretchy waist, Vuori’s signature drawstrings, and gusset construction in the crotch area for increased movement. The legs feature a slim fit that’s perfect for hiking, climbing, or walking at Outdoor Retailer for 12 hours.

While bouldering at Movement Gym, I found that the pants had enough stretch without being uncomfortable. I’m hoping to take these outside to do some bouldering on Flagstaff Mountain to see how they hold up.

The Bottom Line

I’m a big fan of Vuori’s clothing line. Their quality and comfortability is outstanding. If I could, I would probably be wearing their product every day. I hope they continue to expand their product line for adventure athletes, because I’d be first in line for them.

CWHemp.com

New Gear Preview – Outdoor Retailer Snow Show 2019

At Outdoor Retailer Snow Show 2019, brands from across the world congregated to launch their latest products. Our team spent a week in Denver walking the show and talking to some of these amazing brands. Here’s some of our favorites.

Bern

Bern Helmets specializes in protection for snow, bikes, and water sports.

One of our favorite helmets in their lineup is their Watts EPS. It’s dual-certified and is great for skiing in the winter, but come summer, you can easily pull the winter liner out and replace it with a lighter summer one for biking. The Watts has Bern’s classic brim style and can come with a plush new winter knit that features a BOA 360 degree fit system and integrated audio compatibility.

What we were most excited to see was their products featuring MIPS (Multi-Directional Impact Protection System) technology that’s designed to protect against brain injury caused by rotational impacts. In these helmets, the shell and the liner are separated by a low friction layer, so that when it’s subjected to an angled impact, the low friction layer allows the helmet to slide relative to the head. Bern has expanded the MIPS technology to their Heist lineup for 2019, making it their most protective helmet for winter sports.

Bern is continuing to utilize MIPS as a partner, expanding the technology across more and more helmets; making sure that they are offering the most protective, lightweight helmets to outdoor enthusiasts.

You can find Bern helmets at outdoor retailers across the U.S. or on their website https://www.bernhelmets.com.

RMU (Rocky Mountain Underground) Outdoors

RMU has been around for 11 years; building everything for technical outdoor adventures. They’ve been building skis for a majority of that time, but four years ago they ventured into the backpack category.

New in 2019 is their Core Pack 15, which is specific to the Mountain Bike category. It’s made with a rugged, water-resistant material, and features a 15-liter capacity, ventilated back panel, and a helmet sling.

One of the coolest features this pack has is an integrated removable hip belt that can be used as a stand-alone unit for shorter rides. You can easily fit everything you need in this belt: multi-tools, tire levels, and car keys. There’s also a catch to hold a water bottle if your bike doesn’t have a bottle cage. On the back of the belt there’s plenty of room for a pump, a tube, and even a cellphone.

It has a lot of organizational slots and pockets to hold your gear and tools—including an insulated spot for beer. It even features a reinforced outer panel to carry your bike and a RMU strap to carry skis during cross-season times.

Sven Can See Anti-Fog Gel

One of the biggest challenges we’ve experienced on the slopes is our goggles fogging up. That’s why we were thrilled to run into Sven Can See.

They have a biodegradable anti-fog gel for various types of lens wear: goggles, glasses, or anything with anti-fog or anti-reflective lenses. It has no odor and is made without the typical alcohol or ammonia ingredients.

Its application is easy: spray it on both sides and use the micro-cloth that’s included with the spray. It cleans your glasses while applying a clear layer of anti-fog product. The application lasts one day, so if you’re spending multiple days on the slopes, you’ll need to reapply each morning.

Sven Can See can be found on their website, https://www.svencansee.com, and at some retail locations.

HydraCell

HydraCell is a fuel cell technology that’s powered by liquid. Their fuel cells have an up-to 25-year shelf life and are perfect for emergency situations. When you want to use it, you remove it from its plastic, dip it in any liquid you want: water, beer, juice—even urine—for about 10 seconds, and it will initiate a chemical reaction between magnesium and oxygen, powering the battery.

Each fuel cell can provide up to 300 total hours of light and will not degrade like normal batteries. If you turn off the light, the chemical reaction will stop. Once it’s dried out and dipped in liquid again, you’ll be able to use it again.

At the Snow Show, HydraCell showed us the power cube, a cube battery that can charge up to six full phones and run a flood light. They also showed us the PR750, which is a hybrid model featuring a lithium battery that is constantly being charged by their cells. If the cells run out on this model, it comes with a little solar panel that can be plugged in as a backup.
Right now, Hydracell is going through a rebrand. Some of their products can still be found at https://www.hydralightfuelcell.com.

New Ski and Snowboard Gear – Outdoor Retailer Snow Show 2019

At Outdoor Retailer Snow Show 2019, brands from across the world congregated to launch their latest products. Our team spent a week in Denver walking the show and talking to some of these amazing brands. Here’s some of our favorites.

Jones

One of the first snowboards we saw at Snow Show was Jones’ 10th Anniversary edition of their Flagship board. The shape is a little more tapered with the same directional profile with a camber underfoot, a rocker tip and tail, and with a more blunted nose.

The new Flagship is made with a lot of new material, including FSC (Forest Stewardship Council) certified wood. And instead of using an epoxy that’s made from petrochemicals, for this snowboard Jones started using a sustainable, plant-based bio resin made from waste materials from the agriculture industry.

The Flagship is made for anyone who is an intermediate to advanced freerider that leans on the more aggressive side. This is for anyone looking for a board that’s great for charging fast through trees, handling drops from cliffs, or heading down pillow lines.

The team at Jones also showed us the new women’s splitboard, the Hovercraft Split. It’s built with a directional shape for quick turns. It has a rocker nose, a camber underfoot, and a tail that is very tapered, so it’s really fast edge to edge. The Hovercraft is a little bit wider, so that it can be ridden shorter and still have the same surface area and volume to float in the deep snow.

Jones also showcased their bindings, which was a new category for them in 2018. Their Jones Apollo binding has a new highback that has a wider profile at the top, so that snowboarders don’t fall out of their bindings when making hard toeside or heelside turns. This binding also continues Jones’ sustainability efforts by being made from ultra-damp Flax fibers and 3K Carbon Fiber for lightweight response.

These bindings, among others in their lineup, utilize NOW Skate Tech design, which provides an active binding that mimics the function of a skateboard truck. It’s an active binding, so there’s a lot of great energy transfer. The “Kingpin” in the binding acts as a fulcrum, while the “Hanger” magnifies the energy transfer through leverage.
You can find Jones products throughout the United States in a variety of outdoor retailer shops along with online retailers, including Backcountry, Evo, and REI. You can find out more information about their boards at https://www.jonessnowboards.com/.

CWHemp.com

Faction Skis

Faction Skis is a Swiss-born company that was started in 2006 with the goal of providing consumers with a wider ski.

What they showcased for us at Outdoor Retailer was their Candide Thovex (CT) Signature Series, which has introduced a female graphic called the Mademoiselle, available in the 2.0 and 3.0 models. The CT 2.0 has a 102mm underfoot with their poplar/beech wood core. Their CT 3.0 has a 112mm underfoot and a balsa/poplar core. This season, the core in the 3.0 has been updated by beefing it up for a stronger ski within the men’s and women’s models.

These skis are perfect for women freeriders who want a wider ski. The CT 2.0 is going to be more mountain friendly for powder skiing. The CT 3.0 will be awesome for a deep snow day on the slopes.

You can find their skis at retailers across the U.S. or on their website www.factionskis.com

Rossignol

At the Snow Show, Rossignol was introducing the new Xavier de Le Rue signature series of snowboards.

They showed us the directional “fish” shaped Sushi, which they said is one of the most friendly and fun boards to ride. “It’s absolutely insane in the powder and one of the best tree boards,” said Tom Lebsack with Rossignol snowboards.

The Sushi is a tribute to the intersection of snow and surf with its roots in Japan’s snowboarding scene. The all-new XV Sushi Split is the newest splitboard design from Rossignol, featuring their innovative L.I.T.E. Grip technology, which integrates an urethane strip that bend towards and away from the edge of the board, increasing grip when you need it. It should make for a versatile ride to slash through fresh powder.

Next up was their XV Sashimi LG, a hybrid between the Sushi and original XV board. It is a friendly ride and more forgiving than the XV, but allows you to push it further than the Sushi. It provides an exceptionally smooth and quiet ride in any condition; whether you’re in powder, or on groomers, chilling with friends, or pushing yourself to go further and faster.
You can check out their line up at www.rossignolsnowboards.com

Icelantic Ski

We had the opportunity to talk to Travis Parr, co-founder and head artist for Icelantic Skis. He founded the company 15 years ago with his best friend Ben Anderson. They’ve grown to become the largest U.S. independent ski manufacturer.

They have several different lines within their ski company, but one of our favorites was the award-winning 109 Pioneer. It’s a powerful and versatile all-mountain ski that can power through any condition. It’s stable, snappy, and responsive as you’re hard-charging down the mountain.

New for this year, they introduced a women’s version of the Pioneer called the Riveter. They took the same aesthetic with the wood, but introduced a soft water color in the art on the top of the skis.

For their backcountry line, they wanted to keep the same aesthetic as their freeride series, but lightened up the ski in the core to make it the perfect ski for skinning and trekking. It has a surfy, playful, and fun aspect to it.

Overall, the biggest draw for us was Parr’s storytelling artwork that graced each of the skis in their showcase at Outdoor Retailer. Each ski is brought to life through his unique artwork and color palette which seems to pull inspiration from nature and tribal art.

You can check out their line up on their website, https://www.icelanticskis.com.

CWHemp.com

Gear Review: BioLite HeadLamp

When I moved to Colorado, I immediately started researching local running groups to learn the area’s trails. In the Boulder region, there are a lot of groups to choose from, but most didn’t fit my busy schedule.

Luckily, I found a group of parents with the same issue who found that night time was the best time to get in a trail run. I could help get the kids to sleep, then drive to the meet-up location of the night.

My only issue was lighting. It’s dark on those trails, and even with sufficient lighting, it can be challenging. At a basic level, I knew what I wanted: something rechargeable that had enough lumens to light the trail and that was priced under $50. I drove to REI to check out the options and left with one that fit two of those three criteria.

After several weeks of running with it, I decided that 150 lumens was not ideal for the technical trails in the area. I started running with my 400 lumen bike light instead. But that wasn’t ideal either because I had to run stiff-armed down the trail to reduce how much the light bounced.

So I kept my eye out for something better and brighter. Based on my own experience, I knew that I still wanted something rechargeable. After talking to several runners about their own headlamp experiences, I knew that I needed something that had 300 lumens, was lightweight, had no bounce, and had an easy-to-use functionality.

Enter the BioLite HeadLamp

Photo by Andrew Patra (@andrewpatra)

The BioLite HeadLamp wasn’t even on my radar until I saw a sneak peak of it at the Outdoor Retailer Summer Market in July 2018. I was walking by their booth and saw a display of their headlamps on the far back wall. It was love at first sight. After talking to their reps, they hooked me up with a HeadLamp before their product launch so I could test it.

The BioLite HeadLamp has a sleek and balanced look. The power source, unlike most other headlamps, is on the back and only one-inch thick. The LED light element is only a half-inch thick.

This lamp has become my go-to headlamp for everything. When night running, regardless of how technical the trails are, I don’t have any issues with bounce or slippage. It moves with me as part of me, and doesn’t have the bulk of other products.

It also is incredibly comfortable to wear. Weighing only 2.4 ounces, it is barely noticeable, whether I’m hiking throughout the night or going on long runs. My son, who is seven, enjoyed wearing it during Cub Scout camp while running around with his friends in the dark woods west of Boulder.

The HeadLamp unit is slim and easy to adjust. With a single finger, I can adjust the brightness and light setting–a feature I greatly appreciate when changing position within the running group. If I’m in the middle of the pack, I can adjust down the brightness to around 200 lumens; when leading the pack, I can crank the brightness to full (around 330 lumens); or when trailing the pack, I can adjust it high or low depending on how slow I am. To adjust the brightness, it is as simple as holding down the power button and letting the light fade or brighten to the setting I need.

There are four lighting modes I can use as well: full brightness control, spot/flood, strobe, and red night vision. When I hiked up Longs Peak in August, the red night vision was key because it allowed the battery to last for hours in the dark so I could crank up the light when I hit more technical terrain at the Keyhole Route.

The feature I tend to use most on elevation gains and losses is the light’s angle. Adjusting it isn’t a distraction to my flow. Instead, I can focus on the trail ahead of me, and adjust it between its five angles. I can do it easily without having to awkwardly hold it with one hand, while I adjust it with my other (something that I had to do with one of BioLite’s competitors).

Unparalleled Battery Life

This might be a bold statement, but I have found the battery on the BioLite’s HeadLamp to be unparalleled. Going up Longs Peak, the HeadLamp was on for over six hours without any issues. I haven’t been out on an adventure that fully drained the battery yet. On their site, BioLite boasts the HeadLamp has up to 40 hours runtime or 3.5 hours on high. If this is true, this is the best rechargeable headlamp on the market, and one that I would recommend to any ultra-runner looking for a headlamp for their next ultramarathon.

Conclusion

The BioLite HeadLamp is currently available on BioLite.com. Priced at $49.95, this makes the BioLite offering in this category even more attractive, especially when you compare its features and capabilities against other brands.

The HeadLamp should be on everyone’s list of best gear of 2019.

My Minimalist Journey – Vivobarefoot Primus SG Review

When I first started wearing minimalist shoes, I worked at a pretty conservative company. It was business wear every day. I quickly found that, just as my feet didn’t enjoy wearing traditional running shoes, neither did they enjoy wearing traditional business shoes.

That’s when I discovered a small shoe company in the UK by the name Terraplana (shortly thereafter rebranded to Vivobarefoot). Even though it’s been 9 years, my two original purchases from them, a brown loafer and their “Suede Gobi” mid-ankle boot, are in great condition.

Over the years, it’s been amazing watching them grow in popularity as a company and expand their product offerings. I believe Vivobarefoot is the most stylish and functional minimalist shoe brand on the market.

This fall, I was lucky enough to receive a pair of their Primus Trail SG from Vivobarefoot to review. Over the past two months, I’ve put about 200 miles on them and in all kinds of conditions: dry, muddy, rainy, slushy, snowy, and icey.

Photo by Andrew Patra (@AndrewPatra)

The lugs on the sticky rubber outsole are amazing. There’s still a great sense of ground-feel, but there’s the right amount of protection for your feet. Out of all the conditions I tested them in, the only time I had issues with grip and stability was on ice. If there was a thin layer of snow over the ice, the shoes performed great.

The other nice thing about the lugs is the way they are spaced: mud and snow doesn’t get packed in. You might lose traction momentarily, but it’ll quickly get knocked away as you pound down the trail.

If there was one theme I keep going back to while I run in these shoes, it is the idea of trust. When you’re out in the elements, you need to trust in your own abilities but also in your gear. The overall design of the shoe has delivered a product that I can trust fully on the trails. While wearing them, my speed has increased, because time after time, they have my back (or rather my feet).

Photo by Andrew Patra (@AndrewPatra)

The Fit

The Primus SG runs true to size with a wide toe box. When you slip it on, the stretchy sock-like ankle collar feels snug and secure, but not constrictive. The shoe is very flexible. You can bend it in multiple directions, making it very agile on the trail. There’s been occasions where I’ve turned my foot on a rock, but because of the flexibility, my foot flows through the movement, without injuring my ankle or foot.

The rubber around the midfoot creates a secure fit, and my foot didn’t slip even when trudging through sticky mud.

The upper mesh is made of a synthetic multi-ply material that is extremely breathable. I mention this, because I’ve been wearing these shoes during the winter. The lowest temperature I’ve run in with them was 10ºF for around 10 miles. As long as I kept moving, my feet were happy, but you need to make sure you pair them with a good pair of socks (I highly suggest the Wigwam brand).

Durability

I have put over 200 miles on them, and there are no signs of wear. Keep in mind that by this point, traditional running shoes are near the end of their lifecycle (on average 250-350 miles depending on the brand), but because of the minimalist built, I should be able to put an additional 800 miles (or more) on them.

Photo by Andrew Patra (@AndrewPatra)

Conclusion

I’d highly recommend the Vivobarefoot Primus SG for any trail-runner interested in minimalist shoes. I’m excited to continue running in them, and I’m excited to see what’s next for this particular product line.

I’d love to see Vivobarefoot continue to innovate in this space by providing a trail-runner shoe that can withstand winter conditions a little bit easier by having a more water-resistant upper and by including features like a gaiter attachment on the back of the shoe.

But even without those features, I’ll be a big fan of Vivobarefoot.

You can find these shoes and learn more about Vivobarefoot at https://www.vivobarefoot.com.

Yummiest Brands at Outdoor Retailer Snow Show 2019

The Huck team was at Outdoor Retailer in January for their Snow Show. We worked up quite an appetite walking about 10 miles each day, but luckily there were some amazing food brands sampling out their best offerings. Here are a few of our favorite adventure snacks from the show.

Peak Refuel

If you’ve camped, you’re probably familiar with the freeze dried meals on the market.

Peak Refuel has been reimagining and reinventing the freeze dried experience since they hit shelves in June 2018. What stood out to us most was the flavor of their meals. Typically when we’re camping in the backcountry, we’ve sacrificed taste for nutrient dense meals. It’s a bold statement, but Peak Refuel is the best tasting freeze dried meal we’ve had. When was the last time you had a freeze dried meal that tasted like a home cooked meal?

This has a lot to with their ingredients and freeze dried process. They have real, non-GMO ingredients that are delicious and nutritious. Their meals are loaded with protein (150-200% more than other brands) sourced from 100% real meat—with no fillers. The biggest standout is when you look at their ingredient list. You can see just how clean their ingredients are by their pronounceability, but also by the short list of ingredients.

Our favorites were the Beef Pasta Marinara, the Breakfast Skillet, and the Strawberry Granola with Milk.

You can purchase Peak Refuel directly from their website, Amazon, or by finding local retailers using their Zip Code Locator.

Morsel Spork

We couldn’t move on from Peak Refuel without a brief mention of an awesome little utensil that was at the Snow Show: the Morsel Spork.

I’ve seen a lot of sporks, but this one takes the cake specifically for designing a long handle; long enough to reach into a bag of Peak Refuel for a quick bite of Sweet Pork and Rice. The shape allows for a deep reach into every nook and cranny to make sure you get every bite.

Morsel Sporks can be found on their website.

Country Archer Jerky

Country Archer Jerky has been around since 1977. They’re known for their small batch process, using healthy ingredients like grass-fed beef and antibiotic-free pork. Their tagline is “As Gourmet as Jerky Gets,” and they aren’t wrong—this stuff is delicious.

One of the standouts for us were their meat bars. There’s a lot of jerky companies that make bars, but Country Archer stands out mostly for their flavor and texture. I’ll usually take a meat bar with me when I’m in the backcountry or on a long-distance trail run, and my usual complaint is the texture and chewiness of other bars. Country Archer tastes like meat, versus some of their competitors that have a grainy or oily taste profile.

Favorite flavors so far is their Hatch Chile Beef Jerky and their Sweet Jalapeno Beef Sticks.

They can be ordered off the Country Archer website or found in most local natural food stores through their store locator tool.

Avalanche Swiss + Granola

For breakfast we stopped by the Avalanche Swiss + Granola booth daily. Their granola is the crunchiest granola we’ve had in a long time. The packaging is perfect for day hikes with their grab-and-go pouches—easy to pack in and take back out with you.

It’s baked in small batches and imported from Switzerland. All their ingredients are natural and GMO-free. There were a few flavors that were 100% organic, and I hope as they continue to grow that they look for ways of moving their whole product line to organic.

The texture is super crunchy—loud enough to have my kids running in from another room at home to see what I was eating. There’s a lot of oats, nuts, and seeds in their granola. Depending on the flavor, there’s a fair mix of dried fruit or chocolate, too.

I haven’t yet tried mixing the granola with milk. You can add it directly into the bag if you’re camping, and based on other reviews, the granola will still retain the crunch. This is definitely going on my food bucket list.

There’s 5 flavors to choose from: Original Organic, Original w/ Raisins Organic, Fruit Basket Organic, Red Berries Organic, and Coconut Quinoa & Chocolate. My favorite at the moment is their Fruit Basket Organic.

You can find them on their website or at local grocery stores.

It’s Time to Make a Difference – Outdoor Retailer Snow Show 2019

The Outdoor Retailer Snow Show kicked off at the end of January as a celebration of the whole mountain experience. This was the 66th year of their annual Snow Show, and it didn’t disappoint. The Denver Convention Center was filled with inspirational explorers and storytellers.

The show kicked off with the launch of the Confluence of States, a newly announced bipartisan organization that is dedicated to developing a national platform to grow the outdoor recreation industry, protect the nation’s wild places, and transform conversation into a driver for economic prosperity. Their goal is to amplify, support, and unite outdoor efforts.

That announcement was quickly followed by a keynote address that focused heavily on sustainability and climate change. Based on recent reports, global warming will happen faster than anticipated. Extreme weather has become our new normal. As states like Colorado are growing in population, we will have less water because there isn’t the same level of snow pack.

Collaborate and Listen

These challenges will require more collaboration and innovation from the outdoor industry, and now’s the time to make the difference.

Throughout the show you could see that sentiment echoed throughout other talks, but also in the exhibitor booths of the outdoor retailers. There were several companies that were highlighting products that were created with sustainability in mind (like United by Blue Bison Jacket) or that showcased their dedication to sustainable efforts (like Nemo Equipment).

During a panel on sustainability, Pat Campbell, President of Mountain Division at Vail Resorts Inc., spoke about how Vail Resorts had launched Epic Promise, which included a Commitment to Zero—a pledge to reach a zero net operating carbon footprint by 2030. What was even more inspiring was how Vail is empowering their employees to take an active part in their initiative, which has inspired incredible collaboration and teamwork within the company around this initiative.

Positively impacting the negative effects of global warming is a huge initiative. The panel encouraged the business leaders to not be scared of how big this initiative is, but to focus on areas they could impact within their company. We’re not free from doing our part—we just need to figure out what that part is and not be complacent.

Take Action

Before this panel closed, they left the attendees with some words of wisdom as they set off to change the world:

  • Find a mentor to help you find your path
  • Set almost unattainable goals. Engage employees often.
  • Engage where decisions are being made
  • Take an adventurous approach.
  • Remember that we are in this together. We need to be inclusive, embrace diversity, and help one another.

We are in this Together

The Huck Adventures team was encouraged by this message because we are working to unite the outdoor community and believe that collaboration and innovation are the key to doing so.

As part of our company’s mission, we aim to grow outdoor participation, grow the outdoor industry, and reinvest in the outdoors by supporting nonprofits that are working to preserve the natural beauty of the outdoors and getting more people outside to enjoy it.

To get there, we know we can’t do it alone. So as we get our app ready for launch in a couple months, we have been busy collaborating and meeting with nonprofits and businesses with shared missions and values that want to be our partners. It’s an exciting time, and we are hopeful for the future, not just for Huck Adventures, but the entire outdoor community.

If you want to be one of Huck’s nonprofit or business partners, shoot us an email at info@huckadventures.com. You can also get updates on our progress and be notified when the app launches by signing up on our website at www.huckadventures.com.