The Rock Fight: Outdoor Industry & Adventure Sports Commentary

Today on THE ROCK FIGHT (an outdoor podcast that aims for the head) we're going there. Enter: Teresa Baker. Teresa has been a force for change in the outdoor industry when it comes to DEI and environmental initiatives for the past 7 years. She founded the In Solidarity Project to build a more diverse outdoor industry with a core component of her work being the Outdoor CEO Pledge which is aimed at...

Headlines on THE ROCK FIGHT (an outdoor podcast that aims for the head)! Colin starts the show (01:03) with his take on how REI's recently announced vendor of the year awards only show how boring they've become and the risk they're taking by trying to become everything to everyone. Justin and Producer Dave then weigh in on what REI can do to get their mojo back. Then the crew hits the following to...

Today on THE ROCK FIGHT (an outdoor podcast that aims for the head) we take a look inside the Outdoor Industry Association's latest participation trends report . Since 2007 the OIA has published the trends of who is going outside. And this year participation hit an all time high while core participants dropped. And it begs the question: how will these numbers impact the industry? In order to make...

Today on THE ROCK FIGHT (an outdoor podcast that aims for the head) it's time for Outdoor Industry headlines! Colin kicks off the show with a recap of the Outdoor Market Alliance Media Show , highlighting an event that fills a longstanding industry need as well as uncovering a problem that persists in the Outdoor Industry. Then Producer Dave joins Colin to run through the following topics: Colin's...

Today on THE ROCK FIGHT (an outdoor podcast that aims for the head) Colin digs into the recent OIA report that shows how outdoor participation is at an all time high. But it also shows that hardcore outdoor enthusiasts are on the decline. How can both of these things be the case? Because more people than ever have learned The Secret of going outside and the old guard is aging out. Head to www.rock...

Today on THE ROCK FIGHT (an outdoor podcast that aims for the head) it's time for our weekly round up of headlines from the outdoor industry and community. Colin is joined by Producer Dave for today's rundown (Justin has the weekend off) and here's the lineup: More with Thermore! (01:40) Colin's final summer 24 events & trade show thoughts (04:20) A herd of elephants tramples a tourist in Sout...

Last November the show director of Outdoor Retailer, Sean Smith, joined THE ROCK FIGHT to tell Colin why the stalwart outdoor industry trade show was going to make a comeback starting in June of 2024. And if you listened to Colin's instant reaction of the June 2024 edition of Outdoor Retailer you know that Sean and his team delivered. Today on THE ROCK FIGHT (an outdoor podcast that aims for the h...

Today on THE ROCK FIGHT (an outdoor podcast that aims for the head) it's time to bust out the headlines! Come along as Colin & Justin run through the more notable stories to come out of the outdoor industry and community including the following: More with Thermore ! (04:57) A new article on Outside Online says that fireworks should be banned (11:45) The Conservation Alliance welcomes seven fis...

Today on THE ROCK FIGHT (an outdoor podcast that aims for the head) it gets a little techy around here. A couple of weeks ago Colin & Justin spoke about the outdoor upgrades coming to Apple Maps and the impact of technology on outdoor pursuits. To go deeper on this topic Mountain Gazette writer and career tech-guy Kyle Frost has returned to break down the following topics: Changes coming to Ap...

Today on THE ROCK FIGHT (an outdoor podcast that aims for the head) it's time for a round of outdoor headlines! Come along as Colin & Justin run through stories to come out of the outdoor industry and community including the following: A new edition of More with Thermore! (08:03) A 4 year old sets a record for the youngest hiker to hike all of New Hampshire's 4000' peaks. Badass or a little mu...

Today on THE ROCK FIGHT (an outdoor podcast that aims for the head) Colin & Justin welcome Brendan Leonard back to the show. Brendan was the fourth guest ever on THE ROCK FIGHT and today he joins the boys to talk about the state of outdoor media, how his son has impacted his outdoor adventure lifestyle and of course his new book Ultra Something, which is available for purchase over at www.semi...

Today on THE ROCK FIGHT (an outdoor podcast that aims for the head) we're wrapping up a very busy trade show month by breaking down the newest trade show of them all: Switchback Spring! THE ROCK FIGHT had a busy trade show season. We attended GOA Connect and Outdoor Retailer and we even broke the news about the solo debut of Switchback (the outdoor show that launched at The Running Event in 2022)....

It's time for a round of outdoor headlines here on THE ROCK FIGHT (an outdoor podcast that aims for the head)! Today Colin & Justin run through stories to come out of the outdoor industry and community including the following: The Outdoor Industry Association trend report shows that outdoor participation is up but hardcore enthusiasts are declining. (09:23) Snowboarder Shaun White announces th...

Another week another trade show. Today on THE ROCK FIGHT (an outdoor podcast that aims for the head) Colin is fresh off a flight home from SLC and is here with his off the cuff thoughts Outdoor Retailer. You know, Outdoor Retailer. The most popular topic of discussion within the US based outdoor industry! So what happened at OR this week? Was it a return to form? The bottom of the barrel? Well, yo...

It's Headlines day on THE ROCK FIGHT (an outdoor podcast that aims for the head) as Colin & Justin run through stories to come out of the outdoor industry and community including the following: How will Colin & Justin get MORE out of their weekends? (05:24) A new bike saddle has been introduced that aims to reduce sore tushy's everywhere (spoiler: the boys aren't sure this is gonna get tra...

Today on THE ROCK FIGHT (an outdoor podcast that aims for the head) Colin is back from Reno and is ready to talk about his instant reaction to attending GOA Connect. The Grassroots Outdoor Alliance ( GOA ) is a coalition of 104 independent outdoor specialty retailers and Connect is their twice annual trade show. This week Colin had the opportunity to spend a day at Connect and today Colin offers h...

Today on THE ROCK FIGHT (an outdoor podcast that aims for the head) we're dipping our toes back into the trade show world with some retailer feedback on the recently announced Switchback Spring show that's coming to Nashville next June. When news broke about Switchback adding a spring version of the show that has been historically part of The Running Event, Wes Allen (former guest of THE ROCK FIGH...

Today on THE ROCK FIGHT (an outdoor podcast that aims for the head) Colin & Justin run through headlines to come out of the outdoor industry and community including the following: Colin & Justin's goals for the summer. (06:11) Red Bull Rampage will allow women to compete for the first time. (18:35) Ever want to talk to a headlamp? Now you can! (28:01) Fitbit makes a smartwatch for kids. We...

Today on THE ROCK FIGHT we're featuring an episode from the new addition to The Rock Fight Podcast Network: GEAR & BEER! That's right, Gear & Beer has it's own podcast feed. But we'll still share Gear & Beer episodes here on THE ROCK FIGHT for the time being. But head to Apple , Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts and follow and rate Gear & Beer. Today Justin talks about Rad...

Today on THE ROCK FIGHT (an outdoor podcast that aims for the head) we hand out the prestigious Ugliest Shoe of 2024 Award. There have been plenty of ugly shoes that have succeeded in the past because while they may not have been lookers, they served a real purpose. And then there are those that straight up look bad and leave us all wondering simply... why? Today THE ROCK FIGHT goes deep into the...

Today on THE ROCK FIGHT (an outdoor podcast that aims for the head) Colin & Justin run through headlines to come out of the outdoor industry and community including some breaking trade show news ! Here's the rundown: It's trade show season and Switchback , which launched at The Running Event in 2022, is adding a spring event to be held in Nashville in 2025 and THE ROCK FIGHT has the scoop. (04...

Today on THE ROCK FIGHT it's the pairings that matter most... GEAR & BEER! Most hiking shoes are just overbuilt sneakers and leave you wanting either a pair of trail runners or an actual pair of leather boots. But what if you could truly blend those two worlds into an athletic looking shoe that is well made and built specifically for hiking? Well then you'd have the Obōz Katabatic Wind Low . A...

Today on THE ROCK FIGHT (an outdoor podcast that aims for the head) Justin and Colin sit down with Fitz Cahall to talk about the industry of podcasting and how one of the original podcasts, The Dirtbag Diaries, fits into that industry. At 17 years old, The Dirtbag Diaries are endemic to anyone who listens to outdoor podcasts as part of their adventure lifestyle. And while most podcasts rely on adv...

Today on THE ROCK FIGHT (an outdoor podcast that aims for the head) Colin & Justin run through a slate of headlines, their top 5 all time coolest looking sports and have a special conversation with Bryce Covert who has been covering efforts by REI employees to form a union. Here is the full rundown with time codes! Our top 5 coolest sports; outdoor or otherwise. (07:44) Thomas Robison posts hi...

Today on THE ROCK FIGHT it's the pairings that matter most... GEAR & BEER! What kind of shorts do you wear when you go mountain biking? Straight spandex bibs? Jorts? Whatever you have lying around? Today Justin and Colin talk about their mountain biking preferences while reviewing two outdoor brand entries in the cycling apparel space. The Rab Cinder Crank Shorts and the Outdoor Research Freew...