Podcasts about big city mountaineers

In this episode, Martin speaks with David Taus, the Executive Director of Big City Mountaineers. Big City Mountaineers provides transformative experiences through connections to nature that strengthen life skills and build community for youth from disinvested communities.Please click below to lean more about this organization and how you might be able to help.:Big City Mountaineers | Non-Profit Outdoor Programs for YouthAdventure For Someone - Big City MountaineersLike and SUBSCRIBE TO: Martin Outside - YouTubeAmazon.com: Switching Gears: Rediscovering the Meaning of Life, Love, and Happiness While Backpacking Vermont's Long Trail eBook : Armitage, Martin: Kindle StoreGet outside, have fun and be safe!Martin Armitage, Host of the Papa Bear Hikes Podcasthttps://www.papabearhikes.com/https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/papa-bear-hikes/id1541491746https://www.instagram.com/papabearhikes01/

In episode 9 of the Outdoor Minimalist podcast, we will be discussing a hot topic in any part of the sustainability and zero-waste movement: single-use plastics. More specifically, we will be discussing the use of plastics on the production side of packaging with some limited discussion regarding consumer use of single-use plastics. To help me expand on this topic, I had the pleasure of talking to Steven Reinhold. Steven has worked within the outdoor industry for over a decade. He began his outdoor career with Big City Mountaineers' Summit for Someone program where he guided and recruited fundraising climbers whose efforts supported BCM's wilderness-mentoring programs. Steven has been an ambassador for multiple outdoor brands and currently serves as Backpacker Magazine's official Brand Ambassador. He created the online sensation #trashtag, a social media-based cleanup effort, which went viral in 2019 and has been used over 100 million times worldwide! Steven also founded The Appalachian Adventure Company, which has strong guiding-roots, but has since grown into a formidable Media/Marketing/Consulting company which works closely with organizations like Black Folks Camp Too, Leave No Trace, and the Southern Environmental Law Center. INSTAGRAM: https://www.instagram.com/outdoor.minimalist.book/ WEBSITE: https://www.theoutdoorminimalist.com/ PRE ORDER THE OUTDOOR MINIMALIST BOOK: https://rowman.com/ISBN/9781493063994/Outdoor-Minimalist-Waste-Less-Hiking-Backpacking-and-Camping ------------------------ Connect with STEVEN: https://www.instagram.com/ramblin_reinhold/ APPALACHIAN ADVENTURE COMPANY: https://www.facebook.com/AppalachianAdventureCompany/ BLACK FOLKS CAMP TOO: https://www.instagram.com/blackfolkscamptoo/ Plastic Impact Alliance: https://www.outsidebusinessjournal.com/tag/plastic-impact-alliance/ Join the Plastic Impact Alliance: https://www.outsidebusinessjournal.com/issues/sustainability/packaging/how-to-join-plastic-impact-alliance/ About the #trashtagchallenge: https://www.cleanupnews.org/home/trash-tag-challenge Ever Green Adventure Foods: https://evergreenadventurefoods.com/ NoSo Patches: https://nosopatches.com/ Rerouted: https://rerouted.co/

Now more than ever do we need to safeguard the great outdoors and national scenic trails that we, like so many other adventures, love exploring. The Florida Trail, Pacific Crest Trail, and Appalachian Trail, and so many other National Scenic Trails need to be protected. On this episode, we're excited to bring you the dynamic life story of a very special guest and a legendary figure in the Great Outdoors, Jim Kern.  Tune in as we dive into the world of the Outdoor Industry as Jim shares another quest of his with us, which is to complete several national scenic trails in the US. We learn about the importance of the outdoors and how it generates enormous wealth for small local businesses, enabling the restoration of small-town economies. Guest Profile: Jim takes us back to his roots in small-town New Jersey and shares with us what lit his fire, leading him to pursue a lifetime of adventure and his quest to make this same privilege accessible to all.As the founder of the Florida Trail, co-founder of the American hiking society, and president of Big City Mountaineers, Jim has led an awe-inspiring life and career that has gone far beyond the scope of just his own adventures, helping at-risk youth by introducing them to the outdoors and inspiring real change. This is an episode you don't want to miss! For more info on Jim Kern and his projects, check out his website, the Florida Trail Association, the American Hiking Society, and the Big City Mountaineers Program. If you wish to support Jim Kern's venture in safeguarding the outdoors, consider signing his petition.   Check us out on Instagram @10Adventures

This week I am thrilled to speak with my friend Elizabeth Hammond Born in California and raised in Washington State, Elizabeth (also Liz or Lizzie!) has led expeditions on land and sea in Mexico, the Western U.S., Alaska, and India. She sails, backpacks, sea kayaks, and often migrates like whales and birds – spending most of the year with her partner Carlos in Baja Mexico and heading north to Alaska during summers. She has worked in outdoor education since 2005 and in the field since 2008 - with NOLS, Ecology Project International, Baja Expeditions, Big City Mountaineers, Universidad Autónoma de Baja California Sur This year she is on the deck for post-quarantine trips with Alaska Alpine Adventures. In this episode:   (03:16) Elizabeth shares how California sea lions are rather friendly than dangerous and are extremely gregarious, and form large aggregations when on land. She later jumps on an infamous “sea lion nugget story”, where she took us back to the date of August 2009, exciting us with her trip to a busby island on a rainy summer. She tells us more about her paddling through a successful uneventful crossing, and barging in the territory of sea lions. She further adds our amazing guest Oscar (If you haven't heard his podcast, now is the time), her dear friend and the designated course leader describing the dominant male sea lions that have the big bumps on the head – while the mammals themselves make their presence known, as the whole groups padded away for their dear lives. (15:30) Going along she tells us what is “FFU on VHF”, in which she mentions how they were sailing on drascombe longboat, with a very fun-loving group of students on the waters of Baja California, where they took a quick trip to a nearby town stocking up on packaged baked cakes, chocolates, chili candy, and brown bubbly sugary soda pop water. And on their way back to the beach, a bunch of fluently British accent students came up with the efficient idea of each vessel having its own independent number – in the behavior of sugar kicking in and wackiness, that turn out to be a memorably happy day. (26:28) Hammond talks about her first 30 days wilderness backpacking course in Alaska, which requires one of the things that they've made sure to add to the instructor's backpacks were as many leopards printed items of fun clothing from the costume banners they can find. Which paid off in the multiple birthday celebrations during the course.   (31:43) Moving forward, Elizabeth shares how as one day they were coming down to Burt's Creek, close to the toe of the glacier, they were looking for a good place to cross and in order to do so, they decided to be parted in 3 small groups. Adapting a technique to hold on to one another's backpacks, sort of in a train and then do a step and step coordinated, choreography crossing the stream – which turns out to be the scariest moment of her life. (37:48) Later on, Elizabeth terrifies us with the incident of her co-instructor and one of her students falling into the deep hole while crossing the river that turns into those slow-motion minutes of life, where you see many things flashing before your eyes and imprinting its images forever in your mind.  (49:40) She entertains us more with her hilarious funny stories filled with adventure, boat trips, and a great tip to be out in the wilderness.  (1:09:00) Elizabeth shares some intriguing stories about her favorite gear, and why is it the chosen one. (1:10:43) Lastly, she tells us her best backcountry costume and how it's accompanied by a statue, and prom dresses – making it all better with a bright red shade of lipstick with a fancy photoshoot.

A continuation with Amanda Jameson and her journey of finding employment in the outdoor industry. We talk about leaving her recent position at Big City Mountaineers. I can relate on so many levels as people of color face overt and covert racial discrimination from our leadership as well as colleagues. We discuss our personal stories as well as share tips and pitfalls for recruiters and organizations looking to “hire for diversity.” Resources: https://coco-net.org/problem-woman-colour-nonprofit-organizations/ https://implicit.harvard.edu/implicit/takeatest.html https://www.consultreal.org/ --- Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/erica-nelson2/support

Today I'm speaking with Roy Notowitz, President of Noto Group Executive Search. Roy has spent nearly his entire career in the Pacific Northwest. His work includes founding the Generator Group, he spent time in recruiting at Nike, he's is a recipient of the SGB 40 Under 40 award and has his own podcast How I Hire.   Facebook Twitter Instagram   The Outdoor Biz Podcast   Show Notes How'd you get introduced to the outdoors? What was your first outdoor experience like? I feel really lucky. I grew up in upstate New York in a small town called Manlius, the Manilius Fayetteville area, which is just outside of Syracuse. And, you know, it was at a time when kids would roam free in the woods, and around the neighborhood. It was a pretty standard neighborhood, but we had woods nearby. We built sledding tracks and we played baseball in the street and in our backyards, we rode bikes. Basically it was a time when parents would just kick their kids out of the house all day and say come home at night for dinner. We were a big ski family, so my parents were, they weren't hippies, but they acted like it. We had a garden and they went jogging before everyone else was jogging. We had a very active and healthy family lifestyle, and we would ski every weekend. Sometimes twice on the weekends or sometimes once during a weeknight. In Syracuse, there are a few different mountains within 20, 30-minute drive. We went to this place called Labrador mountain, “Ski more at Labrador”, was their slogan. And it was like 800 vert, they had a T-bar and chairlift that was super slow. That was a big part of my early outdoor experience. And, and then in my teens, my parents had bought this little fishing cabin in the thousand islands, which is about two and a half hours north of Syracuse, just outside of Brockville, Ontario. We kept our boat on the US side and we'd cross the river and check-in at customs then go to this little Island. And there's a 30 mile stretch of the Saint Lawrence River that flows out of Lake Ontario, bordering New York and Ontario. And there are about 1800 small to medium-sized islands with little cabins and stuff on them. A lot of them aren't winterized, ours wasn't. I saved up all this lawn mowing money that I earned to buy a small aluminum fishing boat and with a 15 horse Evinrude motor. It was my obsession. I became obsessed with fishing for largemouth and smallmouth bass and Northern pike. And there's a 10 mile stretch of that river that I know like the back of my hand to this day. I went back there a few summers ago and I still know where all the Shoals are and where all my fishing spots are. I have a nautical chart framed in my office. It's changed a lot because of the zebra mussels and the cormorants. The whole ecosystem in the Saint Lawrence River hs changed. It's sad in the last 15 years the river has really declined. But that's my happy place. I can still picture the early morning fog burning off the river and then loons and the carp jumping and casting and trolling along the weed beds. What was your first outdoor job? I went to Potsdam college, which is right on the edge of the Adirondack Park. There are 9,000 square miles of lakes, rivers, and mountains, and it's close to the Saint Lawrence River. So I was able to continue to go to the cabin in summers. Potsdam was part of the State University of New York, and they had a satellite outdoor recreation campus on a little Lake called Star Lake. It was about 35, 40-minute drive from campus. Students would go there on the weekends to take classes, physical education classes. So they had a tiny ski hill with the little J bar. And I never taught before. So I basically had to teach how to put your skis on how to fall, how to get up, how to stop and turn. Then in the warmer months, I stayed there in the summer and taught canoeing and sailing, mostly Sunfish and Snarks. I was always active in student activities. I was on the camp board, which is the student board for that outdoor recreation facility. I was a student orientation leader, I volunteered on the local rescue squad. So I had a lot of activities. I was more social than academic at that point. Figuring out a lot of things and whatever you could fit in around the fund. Tell our listeners how you became an outdoor industry recruiter. It's an interesting story and it's part luck, being in the right place at the right time. And it starts in grad school. After Potsdam, I went to Virginia Tech and earned a master's degree in education with a focus on education administration. During my graduate studies, I was really drawn to the career services center and found an interest in how students formed career aspirations and how people figured out what they wanted to do and making the connection between higher education and the business world, which I think to this day, there's still a bit of a disconnect. The challenge was I really didn't have a lot of business experience or career experience. So I don't know if my obsession was because I really didn't know what I was going to do with my career or if I really wanted to help people. Anyway, after grad school, I drove my pickup truck across the country with my dog to Portland, Oregon. It was kind of on a whim, I identified the Pacific Northwest as a place I wanted to be. I checked out Seattle and Portland and Portland just felt kind of right. When I got here, it was July 1995. My first job was pumping gas for five and a quarter an hour. And I also got a second job selling shoes. Hiking and walking shoes at the walking company. I sold the European comfort shoes, mostly like Echo's, Mephisto, and Clarks. They were really innovative and differentiated at the time, they used better materials and construction. I enjoyed the customer interaction and I was always selling in the top 10% nationwide because I'm competitive. I was surprised at how much I enjoyed that job. In fact, I got employee discounts from that manager for maybe 10 years after I worked there. But after about six months of working there, I landed a desk job as a recruiter in a staffing agency in downtown Portland. It was kind of an old school Jerry McGuire kind of staffing agency. On my desk, I had a phone, a shoebox of three by five cards that were blank, a phone book, and a phone. They had computers at the time, but not at that company. We faxed resumes to companies and we took out classified ads on the job. I was marketing candidates to companies. And at the time even candidates paid fees, part of the fees to companies. So very different, but, and it took me about a year to really figure out was I very commission focused. After a year, I got a call. I don't know if it's divine intervention or just luck, but a recruiter called asking if I would be interested in that position at Nike. And in my interview with the HR manager at Nike apparel, he asked, what do you know about apparel footwear? So I took the shoe off of my foot and I started taking him through all of the things I just talked about, the materials, the construction. And he could tell that I had a passion for the product. And he literally said his name's Adam Baker, and every day to this day, I still thank him for that opportunity. But he said, “Okay kid, I'll give you a shot”. So anyway, I landed in the apparel division, right when Nike was shifting from selling tee shirts and accessories with footwear to becoming a functional apparel brand. And that really enhanced the performance of athletes with the fit, the fabrication, and materials. Dry fit when had just come out. So the apparel team was really small in comparison to the recruiting team and the rest of the company. The apparel business grew from 400 million to 3 billion during the time I was there and we recruited about 1200 people in those three years. I learned a ton, it was a great experience. And of course, now it's one of the most successful apparel companies in the world. What inspired you to continue down that outdoor industry recruiter path? That's a great question. I saw a need, to be honest, in recruiting. It's very inconsistent, the results when we were partnering with external firms. You know, the way they represented the brand, Nike was very particular about that. The way that these candidates are screened, we like to use structured interviewing and competencies and, a lot of recruiters were kind of just pitching candidates. And I felt like if we could create a more consistent and more professional service model, sort of like there's no bar associated student association or MBA or any accreditation that's meaningful in recruiting. So I wanted to take it up a notch. And what I realized is there's an opportunity to act more like an in house recruiting team to bring these fortune 500 best practices, to bring more consistency, to have a service delivery model with the accountabilities and, and deliverables, and to really help companies figure out where they want to go and how they want to get there and bringing world-class recruiting resources to small and midsize growth-oriented companies. So that's kind of what my first vision was for The Generator Group and to a large degree that's the vision here as well. So I started The Generator Group and ran that for about nine years. I had two partners and then in 2009, I branched off and started The Noto Group, We're coming up on 11 years here.   What are a couple of the accomplishments you're most proud of? We passed our 10 year anniversary last year and I'm really proud of the team we've built. The team is really my biggest asset here. The level of experience that they bring is significant and clients really trust us. They turn to us when they need an experienced partner that they can trust. And when we do great work, we get more work. There are three things that kind of come to mind. One is being the first outdoor industry professional services firm to become a B Corp, or at least the first outdoor industry recruiting firm, for sure. We certified in 2013, and we've recertified three times and scored higher each time. They get harder every time. And we also, for the last six years in a row have earned B Corp's best for workers award. So this coupled with the opportunity to work with so many great clients has been huge in helping me attract top-level talent to the firm. And then the second accomplishment I think was, a decision I made shortly after I started this firm to really expand our client base beyond the athletic and outdoor industry. So we do work in parallel consumer sectors, such as food beverage, grocery, natural products, restaurant hospitality. And this really aligns us with the way PE firms operate and the way law firms operate with consumer practices and the way investment bankers work. So this strategy has really helped us create more stability for the firm, which then allows us to invest more in the team, the tools, and the causes we care about. And it also enables us to sort of cross-pollinating to generate a more diverse range of candidates for clients. And that's really smart too because it gives you a lot of opportunities to bring a broader resource, broader opportunities to both the client and the applicant, right? Yeah. You might see someone who comes in wanting to focus on outdoor and athletics, but you look at them and you talk to them and you realize, you know what, you're going to fit way better over here. Right? One of the differentiators is that we put a lot of energy and effort into cultivating and engaging this talent ecosystem. We have over 10,800 people following us on LinkedIn. We have a monthly newsletter that goes out to 8,000 people. We have web traffic, like 2,500 to 3000 people a month hitting our sites. So we have a really engaged talent network. And I think that's a huge differentiator for us. I think the third thing I'm most proud of is launching our leadership consulting practice. So last year and in the past 12 months, we've really been working on communicating and integrating our new capabilities and it's been really well received. It started with a colleague and actually a former client, Dr. Ted Freeman, who's based out in New York. He worked at Eileen Fisher, which is basically like the Patagonia of the fashion world. They're a highly sustainable women's fashion brand, and very mission and purpose-driven. We did some work there, some leadership, a CFO, and a board position, and Ted was our client and he branched off on his own. He has a background in leadership development, coaching, and assessment. And I started thinking about how we could wrap these services around our recruiting and our search work to create greater success for clients and to get people ramped up faster and to be more effective, faster. So he, and a bunch of his colleagues that he collaborates with have really helped us broaden and deepen our work around leadership assessment, onboarding, integration, leadership development, and coaching. Our clients are engaging him and his team of colleagues to help do really meaningful work. And so as the economy recovers, I'm confident that this will become even more central. Leadership is a word that's used very lightly. I've found over the years, the more energy effort and thought that you put into hiring and, and developing and, bringing the team along. The more results you get, it's just part of that. The better the team works together too. I think. There's a lot of things that can derail teams and a lot of issues around culture and communication and, people can be more effective. I think that's what companies are realizing now. They don't have a lot of resources to hire a lot of people, especially moving forward. So they have to make sure that they get it right, and that the team is as effective as it can be. You probably have a pretty good read on what's going on in the job market. What are you reading in the tea leaves right now? How's it looking? Um, it's a mixed bag. So there's obviously a significant amount of job loss. And to be honest, I don't think that everyone is going to get hired back. Companies are not going to be like, okay, well, let's get back to work and let's use the same strategy and the same people, it's going to be a complete reset. And there's been some acceleration points, obviously around digital and eCommerce. Some of our clients are really investing in that even while they're divesting other resources. Other companies are realizing, that there are weaknesses within their leadership team, or they have a key position that they still need to fill. So there are still, I would say it went from a flood of opportunities and people calling us every week to see if we could help them work on projects to a trickle. For candidates, I think that means you have to really know your strengths. You have to really know the job that you're best suited for, and you have to go beyond. You can't just look at postings and hope that you can apply and find a job. I think it's going to be really competitive. And I think you're really going to have to make sure that you're able to differentiate and communicate and realize that you're going to have to have a lot of activity to be in the right place at the right time because there's going to be such a competitive market. I feel really bad for a lot of the newly minted job seekers but at the same time. It's an opportunity for people to reinvent and rethink and maybe chart different directions. And I'm sure at the end of the day, even some of these companies that are failing right now, they might get recapitalized. I know there's a lot of private equity firms that might find these distress brands and bring them back to life. And so over time, I'm optimistic that everything will work out and that companies will actually be stronger as a result of this because retail, let's be honest, it was struggling already.vI'm trying to put a lot of resources on our website and blog and being as kind as I can, you know, and my team as well, to be responsive and supportive of job seekers. It's hard to keep up though, for sure. Who are some of the mentors that have helped you along the way, building this great team? I've had a lot, Adam Baker, I talked about who was the person who gave me my start. To this day when I call him, I thank him for giving me my start. But what I learned from him, he was a great manager and supervisor, and I haven't had a lot of managers and supervisors in my career. So I learned a lot from him, always supportive, kind of gave us a lot of freedom, even when we were very inexperienced, he trusted us and very metrics-driven, a lot of communication and follow-through, strategy and planning, follow-through, every month, every quarter, I learned that. Sue Schneider, who was his boss. She was also very involved in guiding the Nike apparel recruiting team and a super straight shooter, great at team building. After I left Nike, she sort of was a constant supporter. She's done tons of offsite strategy and planning meetings for the firm and probably a dozen team-building off-sites. And she never took any money. She always says just to pay me with a bottle of wine and a restaurant gift card. So I got to learn her favorite restaurants. She's fantastic. Steven Gomez, who was the brand president at Nike apparel when I was there, was sort of my boss's boss's boss. I wasn't obviously exposed too much to Steven at Nike, but after Nike, his mentorship really was around getting involved with the community. He's been involved with a lot of really great organizations and he's brought me in to do executive searches and we've also worked together on a few nonprofit boards. He's very process-oriented and he thinks through how to engage all the stakeholders. His leadership is just Epic. I would pretty much do anything for him. His values and his commitment to the community is just inspiring to have in your corner. One other person that I mentioned is Jack Ramsey, he's been a brand and marketing person. He worked for Regis McKenna, which is one of the most successful PR and marketing firms, then Apple and Intel, and companies like that in the early days. He really helped me bring the brand to life and define our differentiation early on with both firms and again, for little or no money. And his thing was acknowledging that people helped him along the way. His expectation of me is that I pay it forward. So I try to also support other entrepreneurs as well. How'd you get into podcasting, how'd you discover it or decide that you wanted to do it? It was born out of a need. So you know, it's called How I Hire, where I interview VP and C level executives to learn their best executive hiring advice and insights. So I started looking for that content in the podcast sphere. And what I found was there were some recruiters and search consultants sharing their own views and some interviewing other recruiters and talent acquisition professionals. But no one was interviewing the actual hiring executives on how they hire. And I saw a huge gap in information that existed out there. And so, you know, people don't want to hear what I have to say. They want to hear what my clients have to say. I love the format because I've interviewed thousands and thousands of people over the years and it's my fascination, learning, and interviewing. I found How I Hire dot com was available and I recruited a top-notch podcaster to help me get things off the ground. It's been about 10, 11 months and we've been doing about one episode a month and we're about to kick it up to two a month. I've been able to get some pretty inspiring leaders to be on the show and it's been really well received and I'm super excited about it. It's one of my favorite things to do. Where do you think that curiosity comes from? Hiring's not a perfect science, so I'm always looking for content and it's so broad and deep. There are so many different areas you can talk about, executive recruiting, selection, diversity, there's just a million topics. And so the curiosity just comes from a learning sort of mindset. The fact that I found that I'm always talking about with our clients and, even when we could go to parties, meet up with friends, I'm always fascinated by again what people do and, and whether or not they're good at it. In companies, there's a leader for marketing and an expert in finance and supply chain and operations and product creation people, and they're all masters at what they do, but everybody recruits and hires and not everyone is great at. Let's talk about any nonprofit work you do. I know you guys do a lot of that. Yeah. I mean, it really aligns with our mission as a B Corp and as a purpose-driven search firm, about 5% of our work is nonprofit. And we have some of that is pro bono. And some of it is at a discounted rate. We donate about 1% of revenue to nonprofits focused on equity and education and environmental conservation and outdoor education. So we work with and donate money to Nature Bridge and Open School and Big City Mountaineers, and Conservation Alliance, organizations like that. We also provide paid time off for volunteer work and match employee donations. We've done executive searches for American Alpine Club, Access Fund, Bicycle Transportation Alliance, OIA, Open School, and Period.org. Just to name a few off the top of my head. And then we also have donated space in our office building that we moved into last year. We have two of our desks are for nonprofits that we support. So, yeah. I try to make that central to our purpose so that 1% or more of revenue and we're trying to do more. I think the more success we have, the more we can do. What outdoor activities do you participate in, do you still out skiing? Not as much, I really have fallen off. My daughter's 12, almost 13, and she's become involved with the equestrian sport. So it's like a year-round thing. She's always training and competing as a Hunter jumper. And I love going to the barn and watching her train and compete. It takes away from our ability to go skiing and hiking on a lot of weekends because literally, it's both days and several times during the week. I'm learning a ton about the sport. It's fascinating. Do you have any suggestions or advice for folks wanting to get into the outdoor biz or grow their career if they're already in the industry? So I could focus on recent college grads or more experienced people, or do you have a preference? So to get into the outdoor industry, actually we have a ton of stuff on our blog and have information out there where people can check it out, but I'll give a good example too. Basically a lot of college grads come saying to me saying that they want to get their foot in the door, or I want to be in sports marketing. And, you know, when I ask if they want to work with athletes or in product marketing or in brand marketing, they're not really clear. They just think sports marketing is outdoor or athletic. So I think the first thing is you really need to do your homework and to understand what jobs are out there and where you might fit in and where the starting points are. and to get creative, you know, like if you just apply to Patagonia, there are 9,000 applicants, you know, for, I dunno how many internships, but a dozen at the most. So it's very hard to do that. And I'll give you an example of somebody who was successful, who I interacted with, from Michigan State. So I got a call. This was three years ago, from this guy named Oliver, Oliver Ambrose. He called me and he said, “I'm a student at Michigan State. I was looking at internships at Patagonia. I realized the recruiter there used to work for your firm, Alyssa Kessler. And so I started checking out your firm and I'm really interested in learning what you do. And wondering if you have any internship opportunities, I'll get myself to Portland for the summer. And these are some of the other things I'm doing”. And he started an outdoor blog, he did travel photography, he was a double major in philosophy and business and all this other stuff. He was obviously ambitious. And so I'm like, all right, well, well, let's talk some more. And we ended up hiring him and he came here for the summer. We got him a bike so he could commute. He was great. In fact, he worked for us for the entire rest of his senior year. Then he got an internship at Prana, probably because of some of the work that he did here. We even gave him a project around helping us become carbon neutral, like evaluating our footprint. And so he got an internship doing work on building a sustainability scoring system and then he got hired in product sourcing and sustainability. He made his way just by being really creative. I think that's a great example. And there are a few other programs that might be like the Portland State Athletic and Outdoor Industry certificate and Oregon State has a product management program. And I'm sure there are others. You are probably not going to get in the door doing the role of your dream job, but you'll get in the door doing something and then work your way into your dream job. If you could have a banner at the entrance to the OR show what would it say? I have two signs. One that says “hiring is a process, not an event”. And that is the more energy and effort and thoughtfulness you put into the process, the better the results you get. And on the other side of the banner, I'd say, “thank you for hiring my team. I love everybody in the industry and feel grateful.” How about favorite books or books you give us gifts? Well, lately I've been giving the book Made to Hire by Marin Huntley and that's about how to get the job you really want. And there are so many job seekers or people interested in making career moves. That's a book that I've been spending a lot of energy helping to promote cause I think it's really good. She has a background both on the corporate side and in marketing and she has also helped a lot of people. She has an online program as well as a book. Do you have a favorite outdoor gear purchase under a hundred dollars? Outdoor Research just came out with this essential face mask and it comes with a removable filter system and a special coating on the fabric that can provide some extra protection. I don't think they can make any claims that it's antiviral, but the construction, the ear loops, the shape, the way it's constructed looks really comfortable. Is there anything else you'd like to say or ask of our listeners? I'm so grateful for the outdoor industry and I feel honored to be on your podcast. I've really appreciated and enjoyed all of the friendships and relationships and professional support that I've gotten over the years. It's hard, you know, especially during these times, where we can't see each other. I really miss everybody and look forward to seeing things soon. Where can people find you if they want to reach out, email, Twitter, Instagram, go to the website? LinkedIn is great. You can follow us on LinkedIn. You can reach out to connect to me. You can InMail me. You can go to notogroup.com and subscribe to our monthly newsletter, which has updates on the jobs we're working on. And you can go to howIhire.com or wherever you listen to podcasts for How I Hire and subscribe. Other Links to what we talked about Noto Group Website    Noto Group Executive Search Services Noto Group Leadership Consulting Services Noto Group Job Board Noto Group LinkedIn Page How I Hire Podcast Website Certified B Corporations Made to Hire Outdoor Research Essential Face Mask Kit Link to Roy on LinkedIn   Please give us a rating and review HERE    

Steven Reinhold wants his adventures to make an impact. Early experiences with Big City Mountaineers shifted his pursuits towards adventure philanthropy. He balances his time with guiding, brand ambassadorship, volunteer work, and leading cleanup initiatives with the Trashtag Project. He and Jason spoke in a windy AT shelter one afternoon about his path to philanthropy, the realities of being a brand ambassador, and the inspirations and goals for #trashtag.    LINKS: https://cleanup.earthday.org https://www.instagram.com/theappalachianadventurecompany https://www.facebook.com/appalachianadventureco http://appadventureco.com https://www.instagram.com/trashtag_project https://www.facebook.com/thetrashtagproject https://www.bigcitymountaineers.org https://www.allhandsandhearts.org South Beyond 6000 Challenge: https://www.carolinamountainclub.org/index.cfm/do/pages.view/id/23/page/South-Beyond-6000   Call us and leave a message (up to 3 minutes):1-818-925-0106

Show #88 – #homogenize – This month's Trail Show is in the running for the LTSE (Longest Trail Show Ever) so buckle up and enjoy the ride! The entire crew is in Boulder's Historic Beer District for Show 88 along with a revolving door of incredible guests:  Zuul from Big City Mountaineers talks about all […] The post The Trail Show #88: Trans Ecuador Mountain Bike Route first appeared on The Trail Show.

Show #88 – #homogenize – This month’s Trail Show is in the running for the LTSE (Longest Trail Show Ever) so buckle up and enjoy the ride! The entire crew is in Boulder’s Historic Beer District for Show 88 along with a revolving door of incredible guests:  Zuul from Big City Mountaineers talks about all […]

Jim Kern is a name you ought to you know. He's the founder of the Florida Trail Association, co-founder of the American Hiking Society, founder of Big City Mountaineers, founder of Hiking Trails for America, author, and passionate outdoorsman. He gives us his best pitch on why someone should hike the Florida Trail, how his organization has been getting at risk youth into the backcountry for three decades, how he's fighting to guarantee a continuous footpath on our national scenic trails for posterity- and how you can help. We also catch up with Pox Holiday of the Pox and Puss Podcast to talk about the future of their show, emergency brown in the whites, and Baltimore Jack stories. Subjects discussed in the episode include: The Jordan Trail  Sawyer Permethrin The Trek is hiring a Lead Developer / CTO JIM KERN The Florida Trail Big City Mountaineers American Hiking Society Sign the petition Hiking Trails for America  Friends of the Florida Trail Interview with MACHO POX HOLIDAY The Pox and Puss Podcast Baltimore Jack at The Doyle Song: Walking Slow by Animal Years Check out Trail Correspondents! Have any praise, questions, praise, comments, praise or praise for Backpacker Radio?  Reach out to podcast@thetrek.co. Subscribe to this podcast on iTunes (and please leave us a review)! Download this podcast.  Find us on Stitcher and Google Play. Support us on Patreon to get bonus content. A super big thank you to our Chuck Norris Award winner(s) from Patreon: Michael W Hinkley, S11N, Todd Cartner, Sawyer Products, and Travis Smith A big thank you to our Cinnamon Connection Champions from Patreon: Gregory Gardner and Peter Leven Follow Pox Holiday, The Trek, Chaunce, Badger, and Trail Correspondents on Instagram. Follow The Trek and Chaunce on YouTube. Follow Backpacker Radio, and Chaunce on Facebook. Follow The Trek on Twitter and sign up for our newsletter. Intro music via.

Big City Mountaineers talks about their non-profit organization and their mission to get more kids in the outdoors

"Love, friendship, networking - these are all critical connections and the foundation of a healthy, happy life." - Whitney Wolfe Herd This episode is another solo round! If there is anyone you would like to hear on the podcast, please send an email to tosummitup.story@gmail.com. In this episode, I talk about the importance of building up your LIFE network and how to develop the lasting relationships that will bring you towards the most fulfilled life that you can have. You probably already have many beautiful relationships with those around you that you have worked on for a while. But are you limiting yourself and stunting the potential for opportunities to reach a higher level of being and fulfillment? I hope that this podcast episode allows you to think about the relationships that you currently have and if you are doing everything in your power to both grow them and to create new relationships that will expand your life's network. In this episode I talk about: The definition of a true, meaningful relationship with another person. The hub and spokes that make up my relationship wheel. The path to forming and growing meaningful relationships and expanding your life network. You will also hear me talk about an event that I am fund raising for called 29029 Everesting (https://29029everesting.com/). The event is a mountain endurance event that involves climbing vertically up a mountain as many times as it takes to match the elevation of Mount Everest. This means climbing up Mount Stratton in Vermont 17 times within 36 hours. Training and competing in this would be an endurance feat unlike anything I have done to date. There is just one thing. The event costs $4000 and I need your help to get there. Getting people aware of and exposed to the mental and physical benefits of the outdoors is something that I love. I get so pumped up about seeing people's reactions to views and experiences in the mountains! Eventually, I want to get To Summit Up to the point where I am guiding expeditions with it. For now, there are many organizations working to make mountains more accessible for those who don't have the easiest access. There is a charity that I am fond of called Big City Mountaineers. The organization is incredible and their mission aligns with that of To Summit Up. They work alongside the transformative powers of Mother Nature to leave a lasting impact on the lives of under-resourced youth. Their wilderness expeditions bring kids out of their comfort zones and into the wild, where they develop the confidence needed for more promising futures. My training, participation in, and any money raised beyond the $4k would go right to big city mountaineers. My awareness action plan will be to document my mental and physical journey through photos and videos. To donate, check out https://www.gofundme.com/manage/everesting-for-outdoor-awareness. To Summit Up Theme Song by Jordan Wolf https://www.instagram.com/jwolfy3/. Be great and build your relationships.

Big City Mountaineers takes under-resourced kids on wilderness adventures. Here’s how they do it (and the story of Bix Firer, BCM’s Director of Programs). Resources: Big City Mountaineers (you can get involved in your area or donate!)

Bryan Martin tells us how he got into the outdoor lifestyle his first job with The Nature Conservancy and all the great work done by Big City Mountaineers.   Facebook Twitter Instagram   The Outdoor Biz Podcast   Support the show   Please give us a rating and review HERE   Show Notes First Exposure to the Outdoors I have to kind of go back to when I was a little kid. My dad was born and raised in New York City in the flushing area. He met my mom and my mom was from the country. She was born and raised in Pennsylvania. That's where I grew up, in the Lehigh valley area. My maternal grandparents were really connected to the outdoors, not so much in a kind of high octane adventure kind of way, but just exposed to nature and kind of being around it. They owned some land, 10 acres, in the Appalachian Hill country in Pennsylvania. That abutted to 10 more acres that my great aunt and my brother and I just kind of stumbled around on summer after summer. Things we talked about Big City Mountaineers Outdoor Rec and Park Management degree, Penn State University The Nature Conservancy Continental Divide Trail Coalition Colorado Mountain Club American Mountaineering Center Three Saints Outdoor 8000 Meter Challenge Advice, tips The number one thing that I always tell the younger professionals that I sit down with and have these informational interviews with his perseverance, you've got to stick with it. You're not going to find the perfect job right away. You might even have to supplement your income a little bit. I worked a part time job the first couple of years when I was working at the nature conservancy. But I, I knew that was the track I needed to be on and until I was able to grow my resume a little bit more I wouldn't be able to get that next opportunity. So I did what I had to do to, stick with it. There's folks that have gotten that job and then the nonprofit falls on hard times. It lets a bunch of people go and they get discouraged and now they're no longer in the nonprofit sector. Um, yeah. And that's where I, I kinda come back to having that perseverance and tenacity piece. Because if you want to make a career in it, there's going to be tough times that you're gonna have to be willing to fight through. But at the end of the day it's going to be so worth it because you're going to look back on an incredible career of having done a lot of great work and having met a lot of great people, it sneaks up on you. Other Outdoor Activities Running Fishing Hiking Favorite Books/Apps Endurance by Alfred Lansing The River of Doubt by Candace Millard Coach Wooden and Me by Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Best Gear Purchase under $100 Uco Candle Lantern Connect with Bryan bryan@bigcitymountaineers.org

Chris McNamera is the founder of Outdoor Gear Lab, Tech Gear Lab, and Supertopo. If you are a climber or gear head, there’s a chance you’ve heard of these. He’s also well respected climber, holds some serious big wall speed records and has climbed El Cap 80 plus times. In the early 2000s, Chris was one of the pioneers of wingsuit base jumping, but he eventually quit the sport because of it's risk. Today, he's reinventing South Lake Tahoe one of the best mountain towns in the US. In today’s Company Spotlight, we feature Sufferfest Beer Co., and it’s founder, Caitlin Landesberg. Sufferfest is a beer built to reward you post-adventure – or maybe during your adventure, depending on what you’re in to! After the interview, Hannah Van Wetter and I review the beer and have a few drinks. For 20% off at their online store, use the code “meister” at www.sufferfestbeer.com. You can buy the beer online at Craft City - https://www.craftcity.com/all-beers/all-breweries/sufferfest This summer I am reporting on Big City Mountaineers and their Summit for Someone trip on Longs Peak from September 7th to 9th. I have reported on these trips in the past, and this year, we’ll be promoting their Corporate Challenges program, where a company can host a trip of it’s own. I think it’d be a cool story about team-building and corporate social responsibility (plus your company will get some good PR out of the whole thing). Everyone who signs up gets a 70L pack, Mountainsmith trekking poles, a BCM t-shirt, and their voice on MtnMeister! If you or your company are interested in getting involved, shoot me an email at ben@mtnmeister.com. Links Outdoor Gear Lab - https://www.outdoorgearlab.com/ Tech Gear Lab - https://www.techgearlab.com/ Supertopo - http://www.supertopo.com/ South Lake Tahoe - https://tahoesouth.com/ Buy Sufferfest Beer - https://www.craftcity.com/all-beers/all-breweries/sufferfest Chris McNamara on Enormocast - https://enormocast.com/episode-88-chris-mcnamara-living-the-ever-changing-dream/

This is MtnMeister's annual episode about Big City Mountaineers’ Summit for Someone program, where passionate climbers can ascend their dream peak and raise money for charity in the process. On these trips, I bring a portable recording device with me while I try to climb a mountain that’s outside of my comfort zone.    Summit for Someone is the fundraising arm of Big City Mountaineers. Similar to how marathon or cycling fundraisers work, hiking and climbing enthusiasts can take on a big physical challenge and raise money for an organization that aligns itself with the challenge. In this case, outdoors enthusiasts are raising money to give underserved urban youth the opportunity to discover the outdoors and learn critical life skills along the way.   This year was an especially exciting trip for MtnMeister. We invited invited listeners of the podcast to join the climb - all of them had to fundraise $4,000, physically train to climb the Grand, and be open to spending 4 days climbing with people they have never met before. We also had a professional photographer, Chris Shane, and a designer/illustrator, Adam Danielson join to visually document the trip.     In this episode, you’ll learn more about Big City Mountaineers and hear from one of the program participants, Kim, about how BCM has had an impact on her. Then you’ll hear about our experience climbing the Grand Teton with Jackson Hole Mountain Guides. Finally, we’ll wrap things up with how you can do your own Summit for Someone climb.   Special thanks to: Osprey Packs for providing our climbers with the Variant 52L pack. American Alpine Club for their support of MtnMeister. Former host of MtnMeister Russell Wilcox. Save up to 50% on solar installation with Do-It-With at https://www.diwhome.com/ or email Russell at rwilcox@diwhome.com Jackson Hole Mountain Guides for keeping us safe. We highly recommend our guides for your next adventure: Nate Opp, Michael Wachs, Jacob Schmitz  

Jeff and I talk about first exposure to the outdoors, his retail and repping career and the great activities provided by Big City Mountaineers. Facebook Twitter   Instagram Website   Please rate and review HERE

Today's guest is Dan Richards, the CEO of Global Rescue. Global Rescue provides travel and health risk management services, ranging from specialty care to evacuation. In this episode, we talk to Dan about Global Rescue's business model, how having a "backup" impacts decision-making, and whether Dan has ever had to use the services of his own company. Gear up and support Big City Mountaineers’ Summit For Someone Grand Teton Climb sponsored by Osprey and MtnMeister. Save some cash – 20% - and make a donation to Big City Mountaineers all at once!  Click through here to get your discount and make your donation!   http://www.mountaingear.com/webstore/?voucherCode=20BCM5&cmp=emc-20BCM5   OR just type 20BCM5 at checkout in the Keycode box.  Offer good from 6/7-6/9.

Bryan Martin and Elizabeth Williams work at Big City Mountaineers, a Colorado-based nonprofit that transforms the lives of underserved youth through wilderness mentoring expeditions. Through partnerships with community youth programs around the United States, Big City Mountaineers exposes close to 1,000 youth per year to outdoor adventures in some of our country’s most spectacular public lands. Not only do these young people learn outdoor skills, but more importantly, they learn critical life skills while also improving their self-confidence, communication skills, and leadership abilities. • Prior to assuming his role as executive director at BCM, Bryan enjoyed great success with a wide variety of conservation and outdoor-related organizations including the Nature Conservancy, Continental Divide Trail Alliance, Colorado Mountain Club, and the Land Trust Alliance. Elizabeth was a teacher in India and Nepal before joining BCM as a marketing intern—10 years and a lot of hard work later, she has risen through the ranks and is now the Director of Programs. Bryan and Elizabeth share a deep enthusiasm for the outdoors and a belief that outdoor experiences can be transformative. Their passion for the work and BCM’s mission is palpable, so I know you’ll enjoy getting to know them. • I met Bryan and Elizabeth at the BCM offices in the American Mountaineering Center in Golden, Colorado, where we discussed BCM’s mission, the details of their wilderness expeditions, and why outdoor adventures can be such life-changing experiences. We chat about Bryan and Elizabeth's professional backgrounds and learn what drew them to careers centered around the outdoors and service. They also tell a heart-warming success story in which a student overcomes her initial fears to thrive on a weeklong wilderness trip. • Thanks to Bryan and Elizabeth for taking the time to chat. Hope you enjoy! ••• http://mountainandprairie.com/bryan-elizabeth-bcm/ ••• TOPICS DISCUSSED: 3:30 - Details of Elizabeth and Bryan’s roles at BCM 5:00 - Building teamwork through outdoor experiences 7:45 - Details of the wilderness expeditions 9:10 - Areas in which BCM operates 10:00 - Teaching students with no outdoor experience about wilderness travel 14:00 - BCM’s focus on personal development and critical life skills 15:50 - Ensuring the lessons stick when the students return home 17:00 - How BCM measures success 20:00 - Evolution of BCM’s measurements of success 22:45 - How BCM selects its mentors 25:00 - Areas where the expeditions take place 26:45 - Thoughts on public lands 29:00 - Elizabeth and Bryan's personal backgrounds 34:30 - Bryan’s biggest surprise since becoming BCM’s E.D. 36:30 - Overarching lessons learned from their careers 40:40 - "Summit for Someone" program 44:45 - A recent BCM success story 49:00 - Favorite books 52:50 - Favorite documentaries 53:50 - Craziest/most powerful outdoor experiences 59:10 - Request of the listeners 1:00:40 - Connect with BCM online

April 15-23 is National Park Week, and this coming weekend, April 22-23, you get free admission to every National Park in America. In this episode, I interview Mikah Meyer, who is on a mission to become the youngest person to experience all 417 units in America’s National Park System. He started around this time last year, and as of the release of this episode, he’s a little over a third of the way. In today’s episode you’ll hear about his motivation for the project, how he makes it work, and a change in lifestyle that makes it all worth it. Follow along Mikah's journey on his website tbcmikah.com or follow him on Instagram @TBCmikah. To sign up for our Grand Teton climb this summer to benefit Big City Mountaineers, visit mtnmeister.com/teton

“There’s competition between outdoor companies in the industry. ͞But at the end of the day there is an incredible culture of collegiality and respect for everyone and their work.” – Bryan Martin The outdoor community has been very fortunate to have Bryan Martin working as a non-profit professional for the last 15 years. He cut his teeth with organizations like The Nature Conservancy, the Colorado Mountain Club and the Land Trust Alliance and now heads up Big City Mountaineers (BCM). Bryan learned to love the outdoors as a kid on his grandparent’s farm in northern PA. The experiences he had there gave him a sense of freedom and independence, eventually leading him to build confidence and leadership skills. Through BCM, he can now pass these character building experiences onto others. Bryan has been leading BCM as the Executive Director for over two years. As one of the most revered non-profits in the outdoor community, BCM boasts a track record for transforming the lives of underserved youth. Since 1990, BCM has operated under the strong belief that meaningful experiences in the outdoors have the ability to change a life and create a deeper connection to the outdoors through experiential learning. As a bonus, Verde client and BCM partner Ibex is giving away a prize package for one lucky listener! Upgrade your base layers with the ultimate cozy Woolie 1 top and bottom, plus a Knit Logo Beanie. Enter the BCM Ibex Giveaway here! Bulletpoints: For 26 years BCM has focused on providing critical life skills to unserved youth through transformative wilderness mentoring experiences BCM currently serves Boston, Denver, Miami, Minneapolis, Portland, San Francisco, and Seattle Curriculum is built in partnership with the youth agencies, like I Have a Dream Foundation and the Boys and Girls Club, to ensure kids are getting what they need BCM uses the 40 Developmental Assets Youth Development Survey to identify progress and change within the youth on both internal and external assets which are an indicator of success later in life – 90% of BCM youth show positive results after completing an expedition BCM inspires youth in the wilderness to give them the confidence to take on challenges that happen at home and in their communities Get involved in BCM by completing a Summit for Someone, sponsoring a kid or an expedition, volunteering and/or becoming a mentor, throwing an event for BCM, or as a brand you can donate technical equipment and apparel to be used on trips Links: WIN the prize package from Ibex: https://verdebrandcomm.leadpages.co/ibex-bcm-giveaway/ Big City Mountaineers: http://www.bigcitymountaineers.org/ Summit for Someone: www.bigcitymountaineers.org/summit-for-someone/ Ibex: www.ibex.com Skip Yowell: http://www.bigcitymountaineers.org/about/mission-and-history/skip-yowell/ 40 Developmental Assets for Adolescents: http://www.search-institute.org/content/40-developmental-assets-adolescents-ages-12-18 Are you loving Take Me Outdoors?  Please write a review on iTunes!

This episode was originally recorded in February of 2016.  In 2009, Adam Kimble ran his first 5k. In 2011 his first half, 2012 his first marathon, and 2014 his first ultra. Now, in 2016, he is attempting to become the fastest person to run across the USA. The time to beat is 46 days, 8 hours, 36 minutes, and to do it he will have to average 68 miles a day. On February 15th, he will leave Huntington Beach and head west to hopefully finish around March 30th in NYC. Follow Adam @thebeardedsole on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, or his website. To express interest in MtnMeister's Summit for Someone climb to benefit Big City Mountaineers, fill out this form - https://goo.gl/forms/k9xaPQB4jW3Ai31i1 Buy a MtnMeister t-shirt here - https://gumroad.com/l/QiebU  

At 80 years old, Dale Sanders is the oldest person to paddle the entire Mississippi River. "The grey beard adventurer" paddled 2,345 miles from Lake Itasca to the Gulf of Mexico. Dale’s passion and enthusiasm are evident in our conversation, and I think you’ll find yourself smiling while you listen. Dale raised over $23,000 dollars to promote awareness and fight type 1 juvenile diabetes, a disease from which his 10 year-old grandniece, Anna, suffers. For 20% off Stio, use the code "meister" at checkout at http://www.stio.com/ For 5% off Bulls Bikes, use the code "bullseye5" at https://www.bullsbikesusa.com/ If you are interested in joining MtnMeister for a Summit for Someone climb to benefit Big City Mountaineers, please fill out this form - https://goo.gl/forms/8Y0bgqw650RYA8qE2

  In June, I had the opportunity to join a Summit for Someone climb on Mt. Hood to benefit Big City Mountaineers. In this episode (part 2 of 2), you'll hear about our summit bid, how we reflect on the experience, and how you can do your own Summit for Someone climb. BCM takes underserved urban youth on wilderness expeditions to help them learn critical life skills like leadership and teamwork. Summit for Someone is the fundraising arm where climbers pick their dream peak and raise money for the organization in the process. Joining me on this climb were Rob and Jasper, a father-son duo from Positive Tracks. Positive Tracks is a nonprofit that promotes the combination of philanthropy and athletics (or "sweat for good"). For 20% off our sponsor Stio, use the code "meister" at checkout at www.stio.com/ For 5% off our sponsor Bulls Bikes USA, use the code bullseye5 at checkout at www.bullsbikesusa.com/

In June, I had the opportunity to join a Summit for Someone climb on Mt. Hood to benefit Big City Mountaineers. It didn't look like the month of June though - the weather was, quite simply, terrible. The rain, snow, and wind made everything less certain and a summit bid unlikely. In this episode, you'll hear about my introduction to mountaineering, battling the elements, and how social influence impacts our decision making. BCM takes underserved urban youth on wilderness expeditions to help teach them critical life skills like leadership and teamwork. Summit for Someone is the fundraising arm where climbers pick their dream peak and raise money for the organization in the process. Joining me on this climb were Rob and Jasper, a father-son duo from Positive Tracks. Positive Tracks is a nonprofit that promotes the combination of philanthropy and athletics (or "sweat for good").  For 20% off our sponsor Stio, use the code "meister" at checkout at http://www.stio.com/ For 5% off our sponsor Bulls Bikes USA, use the code bullseye5 at checkout at https://www.bullsbikesusa.com/              

From July 24th to 26th, we moved the MtnMeister studio to southern California and climbed Mt. Langley with Summit for Someone. Summit for Someone runs charity climbs that benefit Big City Mountaineers, whose mission is to transform the lives of under-resourced urban youth through wilderness mentoring expeditions. In this three part series, we talk about the experience of climbing for a cause on the southernmost 14,000 foot peak in California.

Jeff Weidman is a board member of Big City Mountaineers, an organization which gives inner city youth the opportunity to explore the mountains. Join us as Jeff shares his inspiring journey in the outdoor industry.

Ryan Wichelns and Gabe Messercola have spent the last half-decade in the Adirondacks. They have been fortunate to have this park in their backyard and have gained an appreciation for the wilderness through backpacking and climbing.  To raise awareness and support for Big City Mountaineers, an urban youth outdoor mentoring organization, Ryan and Gabe spent 20 days this summer traversing the Adirondack Park from South to North, blue line to blue line, a 205-mile adventure of cycling, canoeing, and hiking.  You can check out their adventure at adirondacktraverse.org.  Ryan Wichelns and Gabe Messercola welcome to The Pursuit Zone.