10 people making waves in the outdoor recreation industry

A few weeks ago, I headed to Boise, Idaho for the Outdoor Media Summit conference to speak on content creation and accept an award on behalf of OutThere Colorado as the 'Best Outdoor Blog of the Year.'

For starters, anyone reading this in outdoor media realm should strongly consider attending this conference next fall when it's in Missoula, Montana. It's a great place to learn from and mingle with those in the industry.

One of the best parts of the Outdoor Media Summit is getting to meet people making moves in the world of outdoor recreation.

Here's a short list of some of the great people I met while at the three-day show that you should know about.

1. Alison Kondler

Best known for her 'Birding by Ear' social media presence, Alison is a master birder and avian educator headquartered in Colorado. Her skills were put on display throughout the conference, as she could repeatedly identify a bird overhead or in the trees after only hearing a few faint tweets. She uses her knowledge to help introduce people to the activity of birding, bringing more people into the outdoor space and adding to a new exciting layer to the outdoor recreation experience.

Follow Alison on Instagram here.

2. Stephen Starks

Camping is always a bit more satisfying if it comes with a great meal – and great campsite cooking is what Stephen Starks is all about. A 'mountain chef,' splitboarder, and avid outdoorsman, Starks provides plenty of inspiration to get out into nature through his social media channels. With a memorable personality and an entrepreneurial mind, Starks is sure to keep finding success in the culinary world.

Follow Starks here.  

3. Tayson Whittaker

Buying outdoor recreation gear can be a complicated process, from finding the rights sizes to making sure the gear actually lives up to the hype. Those buying something from Outdoor Vitals should have no fear in their purchase knowing that company founder Tayson Whittaker is an outdoorsman through-and-through. His favorite activity is hunting – and we're talking long trips into the rugged backcountry where he's sure to encounter dangerous predators like grizzlies and wolves while being totally self-sufficient. When it comes to knowing what gear gets the job done, Tayson has plenty of first-hand experience.

Find Tayson on Instagram here.

4. Cam Vigliotta

Everyone's heard of Forbes, but have you heard of Forbes Vetted? It's all about finding the best products around, and one of the key people behind that effort is Cam Vigliotta, who has a focus on outdoor recreation gear, training equipment, and more. When it comes to finding an opinion you can trust, Cam is a great bet.

Read some of Cam's content here.

5. Earl B. Hunter

A man with a plan, Earl is the mastermind behind Black Folks Camp Too, a company that's all about increasing accessibility in the outdoor recreation space. Earl shares his powerful message around the country, helping to remove barriers and encourage more people to get outside, also helping those outside of the Black Folks Camp Too community obtain a better grasp on why this company serves such a crucial role.

Learn more about Black Folks Camp Too on their Instagram page or website.

6. Lawson Glidden

Never in my life would I have thought that I could be sucked into an hour-long conversation about how socks are made, but I hadn't met Lawson yet. The current president and former lead sock designer of Minus33, I'm convinced no one knows a sock better than this man. Minus33 has been around since 1916, making some of the highest-quality and most durable wool socks on the planet. Trust me, they're worth checking out.

Learn more about Lawson here.

7. Yoon Kim

The man behind Outdoor Media Summit, Yoon had a vision of bringing those in outdoor media together to share in knowledge and community. Over nine years, he's created a budding conference that continues to grow and add value for those creating content that's enjoyed by outdoor recreation enthusiasts around the globe. Outdoor Media Summit started with just 40 bloggers. Today, it attracts some of the biggest names in the industry around, gear companies included.

Those interested in working with Yoon can find his LinkedIn here.

8. Lucie Hanes

Another Outdoor Media Summit staffer (and a fellow journalist), Lucie hails from Colorado. While she's not one to brag, she's one of the best ultra-distance trail runners around, recently placing second in the Leadville 100 and winning the Ring the Springs 100K in Colorado Springs. Oh – and she's also a pretty darn good rock climber. Between her incredible athleticism and her ability to plan and execute a great media conference, she's a woman of many talents.

Follow along with Lucie on Instagram.

9. Brannon Pack

Avid mountain bikers in Colorado are sure to know about the many popular trails in Bentonville, Arkansas, but the nearby city of Fayetteville should definitely be on their radar, too. And the man behind getting that information out there is Brannon Pack, Experience Fayetteville's Director of Cycling Tourism. Pack has spent a ton of time and effort helping to expand the local trail system in this region, making outdoor recreation more accessible than ever for locals and tourists, alike. Chatting with Brannon about all of the plans he's got in the works had me wanting to book a trip to Fayetteville on the spot.

Learn more about Fayetteville cycling here.

10. Joshua Kerns

Another outdoorsy gear guy that lives a life that puts the gear his company creates to use, Kerns has worked for Golden-based company Mountainsmith for close to five years. While chatting with him about how the company designs their products to better fit outdoorsy folk – from professional athletes to weekend warriors, his knowledge of the needs that outdoor recreators have became immediately apparent. It's always great to see people involved in the gear industry that help to influence the direction of what's being created by pulling from their own experience, and Kerns is one of those people.

Learn more about Mountainsmith here.

Following along with happenings related to Outdoor Media Summit here.