The Rock Fight: Outdoor Industry & Adventure Sports Commentary

Today on THE ROCK FIGHT (an outdoor podcast that aims for the head) it's Gear & Beer Friday and on this episode we're talking about two classics. If you can only have one sleeping bag would you make it your super high end backpacking mummy style bag? You could, but when you go car camping wouldn't you be so much more comfortable in an old school flannel bag? And when pairing the perfect beer w...

Today on THE ROCK FIGHT (an outdoor podcast that aims for the head) we're going deep on INGREDIENT BRANDS! Ingredient brands are material and textile manufacturers like Gore, Cordura, Polartec or Primaloft. Folks that actually make the materials and fabrics that brands use in order to craft the gear and apparel we all love to buy. A history of innovations by ingredient brands have led to amazing b...

Today on THE ROCK FIGHT (an outdoor podcast that aims for the head) Colin is joined by Wes Allen to talk about what is happening at outdoor retail. Wes is a principal of Sunlight Sports in Cody, WY and has had a long career in the outdoor industry. In addition to his work at Sunlight, Wes has also spent time at both REI and Chaco. Today Wes talks with Colin about the state and mission of outdoor r...

Today on THE ROCK FIGHT (an outdoor podcast that aims for the head) it's time to run through some headlines that have come out of the outdoor industry and community over the past week. Colin & Justin run through the following topics: Ethical concerns for our backyard trails (06:56) A new welcome to basecamp sign for Mt. Everest (09:30) A lawsuit over the ability to use cash to enter our Nation...

Today on THE ROCK FIGHT (an outdoor podcast that aims for the head) it's Friday, which means it's time for... GEAR & BEER! This week we're prepping for hiking and backpacking season as Justin gives us his review of the Scarpa SL Active and pairing this classic full grain leather hiking boot with Deschutes Black Butte Porter. How do these boots compare to other hiking footwear options? Why is a...

Today on THE ROCK FIGHT (an outdoor podcast that aims for the head) environmental fashion journalist Sophie Benson returns to talk about what is happening on the sustainability front. Topics today include: Adidas has quietly made a single use shoe (01:57) Inside the Sustainable Apparel Coalition name change (08:17) This week in greenwashing: The Kardashian Comeuppance (18:10) Be sure to buy Sophie...

Today on THE ROCK FIGHT (an outdoor podcast that aims for the head) Colin takes a peek under the hood of Cotopaxi following their announcement last week about the return of the Questival , their college student focused outdoor adventure race series. Over the past ten years Cotopaxi has grown because of their vibe, their stated purpose of creating 'Gear For Good', and their colorful outdoor basics...

Today on THE ROCK FIGHT (an outdoor podcast that aims for the head) Colin and Justin kick off your week with a batch of headlines to come out of the outdoor industry and community. This week the boys hit the following: Gear & Beer first episode mailbag (10:02) Black Diamond's big line cut (18:26) The tragic death of an avalanche forecaster (28:43) Celebrating the accomplishment of round the wo...

Today on THE ROCK FIGHT (an outdoor podcast that aims for the head) we are excited to debut a new weekly segment...GEAR & BEER! This is reviewing gear, THE ROCK FIGHT way because largely speaking gear reviews have become pretty boring. There's rarely a 'so what' in these reviews because stuff mostly works. So Colin and Justin are here to throw rocks at the status quo and approach gear reviews...

Today on THE ROCK FIGHT (an outdoor podcast that aims for the head) design executive Michelle Rose returns to break down a recent story about unisex sizing at outdoor apparel brands. A recent REI blog post talked about how unisex sizing is starting gain traction in the outdoor apparel world. But a deeper look reveals shallow penetration with outdoor brands and that there are significant gains left...

Today on THE ROCK FIGHT (an outdoor podcast that aims for the head) we are celebrating the return of spring with a running diary of Colin's most recent mountain bike ride. Trail etiquette is super important and bad behavior during our time on trail can result in bad karma. Today on the show Colin keeps a running diary of the people he encountered on a recent 20 mile mountain bike ride; awarding ka...

Today on THE ROCK FIGHT (an outdoor podcast that aims for the head) Colin and Justin take their weekly look at headlines coming out of the outdoor industry and community. This week the boys talk about the following: Khumbu authorities ease helicopter restrictions on Everest; you still have to bag your poop though. (05:16) A record number of bikers have been killed while riding in New York City. Ar...

Today on THE ROCK FIGHT (an outdoor podcast that aims for the head) Caley Fretz from Escape Collective joins the show to talk about the future of outdoor media. Escape Collective is a cycling focused digital outdoor media company that relies entirely on paid subscribers. No print magazine or online advertisers and a year into their existence they are able to make the content they want to make and...

Today on THE ROCK FIGHT (an outdoor podcast that aims for the head) it's an emergency reaction to Tuesday's breaking news: the release of the 'super sneaker' from Deckers. On Tuesday afternoon Footwear News dropped an article with all of the details around the much hyped super sneaker brand that Deckers has been teasing since last year and (spoiler alert ) Deckers is just bringing Ahnu back. Today...

Today on THE ROCK FIGHT (an outdoor podcast that aims for the head) Colin reacts to the news that came out last week that TJX is going to open 26 new Sierra stores over the next year. Using his own experience working with a closeout ninja, Colin looks at the real problem we have in the outdoor industry: making too much stuff. Be excited because this episode has everything: wolves, PFAS, vultures,...

Today on THE ROCK FIGHT (an outdoor podcast that aims for the head) Colin and Justin gather to tackle the following topics and headlines to come out of the outdoor industry & community from the past week. Are you planning on swapping your current outdoor apparel for PFAS free replacements? (04:47) New moons discovered orbiting Uranus & Neptune (15:15) Are we excited for the upcoming eclips...

Today on THE ROCK FIGHT (an outdoor podcast that aims for the head) Emily Holland returns to chuck a few rocks at mountain towns. Colin and Emily redefine how we should view outdoor towns as they recount their journeys and moves to various outdoorsy locations in the United States. Then Emily (currently a Colorado resident) picks apart Colin's rules (biased against Colorado) for moving to a mountai...

Today on THE ROCK FIGHT (an outdoor podcast that aims for the head) our expert on all things rock climbing Kris Hampton returns, this time to talk about the latest offering in climbing entertainment: Arctic Ascent with Alex Honnold . The new 3 episode show by National Geographic (available on Disney+) has Honnold leading a team of climbers and climate scientists to an unclimbed big wall in Greenla...

Today on THE ROCK FIGHT (an outdoor podcast that aims for the head) we are going back in time and talking about the history of the outdoor industry. Thanks to the fine folks at Utah State University's Outdoor Recreation Archive we've been having a look at some old copies of Specialty News (aka SNEWS) and you know what we have learned? The business of adventure in 2024 is pretty much the same as it...

Today on THE ROCK FIGHT (an outdoor podcast that aims for the head) Colin and Justin Housman celebrate Justin's one year Rock-aversary by running through the headlines! The two hit the following news stories to come out of the outdoor community and industry this past week: A cougar attacked 5 cyclists just east of Seattle (07:18) Wolverine CEO announces that Merrell and Saucony will both pursue ex...

Today on THE ROCK FIGHT (an outdoor podcast that aims for the head) we're talking about WEAK LAYERS ; the movie taking the outdoor community by storm from filmmaker Katie Burrell . Lauded as a throwback to the hilarious ski movies of yore but with a refreshingly different perspective, WEAK LAYERS tells the story of a filmmaker in a ski town who needs to win a ski film contest in order to pay for a...

Today on THE ROCK FIGHT (an outdoor podcast that aims for the head) Paddy O'Connell comes back for his record setting 5th appearance to check in on how things are going in the mountains this winter. Dubbed by some as the "Mayor of Skiville", Paddy has a straight passion for making turns and today the mayor is here to give us a state of the season. Colin & Paddy check in on the up and down stor...

Today on THE ROCK FIGHT (an outdoor podcast that aims for the head) Colin reflects on what he's learned from Batman and reflects on the different ways we fall down when we pursue outdoor adventure sports. There are 10 classifications of the way we fall when we go skiing, hiking, paddling, running, biking, surfing, climbing and all the other cool stuff we do outside. Today Colin runs through all 10...

Today on THE ROCK FIGHT (an outdoor podcast that aims for the head) Colin and Justin Housman take a spin through some of the stories to come out of the outdoor industry and community over the past week. This week the pair take on the following topics: Everest climbers will be required to pack their poop off of the mountain and local authorities in the Khumbu region are limiting basecamp amenities...

Today on THE ROCK FIGHT (an outdoor podcast that aims for the head) Mountain Gazette's Kyle Frost returns to break down his latest column. You may have heard of Blue Zones, which are places on our planet where residents tend to live longer than in most locations. But how much of that is a packaged lifestyle trend and what is actually real? Kyle took on this topic in last week's edition of his news...