Full Circle with The Christi Reece Group
Chandler Smith - Grand Valley Outdoor Recreation Coalition - Full Circle with The Christi Reece Group
Christi sits down with the Grand Valley Outdoor Recreation Coalition's new Executive Director, Chandler Smith, on this month's Full Circle Podcast. Hear from Chandler on the GVORC's mission, the state of outdoor recreation in the Grand Valley, and his own fascinating background in the industry.
Learn more about GVORC at https://gvorc.org/
If you prefer to watch your podcasts, head over to our YouTube page to check out this and all our episodes!
Christi sits down with the Grand Valley Outdoor Recreation Coalition's new Executive Director, Chandler Smith, on this month's Full Circle Podcast. Hear from Chandler on the GVORC's mission, the state of outdoor recreation in the Grand Valley, and his own fascinating background in the industry.
Learn more about GVORC at https://gvorc.org/
If you prefer to watch your podcasts, head over to our YouTube page to check out this and all our episodes!
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Speaker 2:The Full Circle podcast, compelling interviews and incredible tales from Colorado's Western Slope, from the mountains to the desert. Christy Reese and her team here from the Movers Shakers, and characters of the Grand Valley and surrounding mountain towns that make the Western slope the place we all love. You'll learn, you'll laugh, you'll love with the full circle. Hi everyone, Kristy Reese here, and I'm super excited to bring you another episode of the Full Circle Podcast. And our guest today is Chandler Smith, husband, father, all around good guy, grand Junction resident. And now the executive Director of the Grand Valley Outdoor Recreation Coalition. Welcome Chandler.
Speaker 3:Thank you, Christie . Yeah.
Speaker 2:Um, so tell us a little bit about yourself. Uh, we always start with that. Where did you grow up?
Speaker 3:So I'm a Colorado native. Mm-Hmm. <affirmative>. I grew up in Fort Collins , uh, spent most of my time in the front range, but , uh, school in Boulder. Mm-Hmm. <affirmative> . Um, which , uh, was not to my dad's pleasure because he was , uh, administrator at CSU for 30 years. Mm-Hmm. <affirmative> . But I did make the move to , uh, Boulder spent , uh, my college years there. And then ultimately , um, spent a little bit of time in Vail. Um, part of my degree there was Tourism Resort Management, and then actually did a short stint out in Northern California, and then 15 years in Denver before I relocated here.
Speaker 2:Wow. And , um, well , a lot of people draw parallels between Fort Collins and Grand Junction. Do you think they're pretty similar?
Speaker 3:Absolutely. Certainly Fort Collins in its earlier years. Mm-Hmm . <affirmative> , um, that was part of what drove , uh, my wife and I to move out here. Mm-Hmm . <affirmative> was , uh, the, you know, the similarities. You know, when you look at , um, the population of Fort Collins at the time when I grew up in the eighties, early nineties , uh, very similar to Grand Junction , um, the access to the outdoor , uh, infrastructure. Mm-Hmm . <affirmative> , uh, putter Canyon, lower State Park. And then certainly having that university as a anchor to the community was very similar to CSU and obviously CMU here. Um , so yeah, so that was a big piece of it. 'cause I thoroughly enjoyed my childhood and really wanted to have my children experience that same thing. Mm-Hmm . <affirmative> , um, in the community and , and even the downtown charm, right? Yes . I mean, the downtown was very similar , uh, back in those days. So yeah. A lot of parallels and I'm really grateful to call Grand Junction home. Yeah.
Speaker 2:So , um, what year did you move here?
Speaker 3:So we were, I wanna say October of 2018. Okay .
Speaker 2:And , um, when you were at CU Boulder, you studied marketing and outdoor recreation , uh, kind of focus.
Speaker 3:Yeah. So I was a business administration Mm-Hmm . <affirmative> , uh, secondary emphasis in tourism resort management, but really my family at CU Boulder was the outdoor program, which they have a similar program here at CMU. Uh , but that was my fraternity for a lack of a better word. Uh, it was , it was my people, it was my community. And , uh, did everything from marketing, administration for the program itself, but then guided tours, kayaking, fly fishing, rock climbing , um, and thoroughly enjoyed it. And that , you know, that's really what sparked , uh, my, my love and passion for the outdoors and started to get me thinking about, you know, how can we make a career in
Speaker 2:This industry? Mm-Hmm . <affirmative> . And are those the three of your favorite outdoor pursuits?
Speaker 3:They're , they're certainly up there. You know, I , I'm, I'm by no means an expert of any of 'em. I'm kind of a , a jack of all trades in those , um, you know, can, can do 'em and do 'em well and do 'em safe, but not, not a don't, don't pretend to be a pro of any of 'em . Um, grew up , uh, with a cabin on the Pooter Canyon. Nice. And , uh, so, you know, the hiking , um, playing in the river, kayaking, fly fishing. Yeah. Those were the ones that I was introduced to at a young, young age. But skiing, snow sports , um, you name it, there's really not anything I don't enjoy doing. You know, as a family now, we spend a lot of time on the river rafting , uh, fly fishing.
Speaker 2:Yeah. It's , uh, I think such a challenge , um, to find time to rest <laugh> when you live in Colorado, right. When you're not working, you're like, there's so many things to do.
Speaker 3:There is. Yeah. And , um, but, but that's good. It keeps you young, it keeps you healthy, and , uh, you get to rest once you die, does
Speaker 2:<laugh>? I agree. I agree. So , um, are you a cyclist too, because you've got a history with some cycling events?
Speaker 3:Yeah, I am . I should have , uh, probably led with that. Um, so yeah, cycling has been a part of my world for a better part of 20 years. Mm-Hmm. <affirmative> . Um, when I moved back to Colorado , uh, from the Bay Area , um, I was introduced to the National Ms. Society from multiple sclerosis. And at that point in time , um, I led their, what was a three day 50 mile challenge, walk a fundraiser , um, and a year later.
Speaker 2:And that , that happens all over the country, doesn't it? It does.
Speaker 3:Yeah. Exactly. And , uh, a year later they asked if I'd want to take over their largest fundraiser, which at the time was called the MS one 50 now called Bike ms , uh, nationally. Mm-Hmm. <affirmative> . And I cut my teeth in the industry there , uh, you know, championing that bike tour for four years, and then got the opportunity to take over ride the Rockies, which was this, you know, statewide kind of jewel of an event. Yeah . Um , tied to the Denver Post, and I was the second director in its history and , uh, really honored to have that opportunity. And I , uh, ran that event for better part of 10 , uh, years. Wow. And , um, part of that coincided with Governor Hickenlooper's , uh, time in office, and he wanted to start an event similar to ride the Rockies, but on the Eastern Plains of Colorado to highlight , um, you know, the agricultural community and help stimulate those economies. Mm-Hmm . <affirmative> . And so we launched what was called Pedal the Planes. Mm-Hmm . <affirmative> . And I directed that for five years in conjunction with Ride the Rockies.
Speaker 2:Talk about the incredible logistics that go into , uh, organizing an event like that. I mean, I, I can't imagine what it's like to, you know, and then when you finally get to event day, like how does it feel?
Speaker 3:Yeah. You know, it's, it's funny. Often people will say, oh, you put on a bike tour, and that's, that's a full-time job, <laugh> . And , uh, the answer, you know, is always yes, it's a full-time job. Um, there's so many moving parts to that, you know ? Mm-Hmm . <affirmative> and early on it's everything from the marketing of the event, but the logistics, pulling permits , um, recruiting volunteers, obviously managing your staff , um, you know, building an experience both on and off the bicycle. Mm-Hmm . <affirmative> curating routes. So there's a , there's a lot of moving parts. Yeah . Um , yeah. If you're not , uh, one that enjoys juggling a lot of balls, it's probably not the, the right industry. Yeah. But the, the great piece of it is seeing it all come together, and that event day or event weekend is, you know, that pinnacle, it's reaching the summit and , uh, there's really no better filling than that. But then there's obviously that kind of element after the event too, where you decompress and Yeah . And if you're, you know, somebody that really enjoys that industry, then you're always looking for the next thing. But , um, really enjoyed it as a great way to spin , you know, what's now 20 years. 'cause we broke off from Ride the Rockies , started our own company. Mm-Hmm. <affirmative>. And , uh, now it's gone through some various names and ownership, but now it's the Ride Collective, and I'm a principal on that. And here locally we produce Tour of the Moon and tour the vineyards.
Speaker 2:And , um, that company, where were you living when that company formed, and how did you make that transition to Grand Junction?
Speaker 3:Yeah, so that company formed in 20 16, 20 17. Mm-Hmm. <affirmative> . And we've gone through, it was called , um, can't even remember the first name, <laugh> , but it was role Masse for a long time. Yeah . And then we became part of that . This is
Speaker 2:Like such a cool name
Speaker 3:Outside. And then , uh, as of today, we're the Ride Collective. Uh, but when we launched that company, we had , um, close to 10 events. I think we acquired one two years into the, to the company's existence. Um , but it was cross road cycling, mountain bike races and gravel events. And so it , we had nine events in Colorado, one in Red River, New Mexico. Mm-Hmm. <affirmative> . And we just recently actually sold off the mountain biking in gravel events. So we're back to just our four staple road rides. Mm-Hmm . <affirmative> , uh, copper Triangle, tour of the Moon, tour of the Vineyards. And then
Speaker 2:Copper Triangle is where ,
Speaker 3:Uh , copper Mountain Resort. Okay. And that's , uh, three passes. You do , um, Fremont Pass, Tennessee Pass, and Vail Pass. So it's a 79 mile loop, kind of a Alpine Classic,
Speaker 2:And then the two here, tour of the moon and tour of the vineyards.
Speaker 3:Exactly. And tour the , the vineyards coincides with the wine festival. Mm-Hmm. <affirmative> . Um, and that's about a thousand people based downtown. And we do the kind of the traditional scenic wine fruit and wine byway . Yeah. Or if they want a longer course, they'll go up and over reader Mesa Circle back in. Um, that event's great. Obviously a great way to , uh, showcase the beautiful vineyards, orchards, yeah . Um , kind of the, a agritourism component.
Speaker 2:Yeah. And you get all your exercise in and then go to the festival and drink wine and eat some amazing food. I mean, Palisade has really got some amazing cultural aspects to it. It
Speaker 3:Really does. Yeah . Yeah. And so really grateful to and fortunate to be able to host that event and work closely with Cassidy at Cave to, to make that a possibility. And then Tour of the Moon, I mean, that's a , a Gym of a Ride. I mean, to go through the National Monument and have su the support of the park and the Superintendent , um, is, is, you know, a unique opportunity. And that event has been, for the most part, for the history of the event, which I wanna say we're coming up on , uh, 10 years of that ride has been , I
Speaker 2:Was just gonna ask how long that's been going. Yeah.
Speaker 3:It might be 11 actually. But that , uh, traditionally has about 2000 people that we take through the monument. Um,
Speaker 2:Why is it called Tour of the Moon?
Speaker 3:So that goes back to the days of the Red Zinger and the Coors Classic, which was a professional cycling event that was held here on the Western Slope. And , um, they dubbed that stage Tour the Moon. And so we've kind of carried that forward. And now if you actually go along that route, you'll see the signs and the plaques dedicated to Tour the Moon that kind of guide you through the Redlands Yeah . And Open over the Mesa. Yeah.
Speaker 2:So , uh, we were talking earlier before we started today about the fact that , um, ride the Rockies was canceled this year, which is really disappointing. Why do you think that happened?
Speaker 3:Yeah, you're putting me on the spot on that one. Um, I mean, there , I think there were several factors to be, to be honest, and I have to, you know, start by saying I haven't really been involved in that event for the better part of 10 years now. Yeah . So, I , I can only kinda speak from my observations and assumptions, but first and foremost, this market in Colorado is saturated with events. It used to be, back in the early days, it was Iron Horse Classic and Durango and Silverton ride the Rockies and maybe Elephant Rock. But now, I mean, rides are a dime a dozen every weekend you could pick, you know, your location, your discipline, mountain bike, gravel road, and you're to a certain degree pulling from the same pool of participants. Mm-Hmm. <affirmative>. So I think just saturation , um, is one thing
Speaker 2:Because they announced that they just didn't have the registrations that they needed in order to go forward.
Speaker 3:Yeah. And I do believe there's that, you know, that is a true statement. Um, ride the Rockies in its heyday. Um, you know, certainly my predecessor, during my time, it was a lottery and , uh, we'd have, you know, three, 4,000 applicants and we'd take 2000. Wow. Um , so there, there's that piece. And then just the, the reality of that event , um, has changed. Um , directors in the last seven years, I think they've had five directors, and it's been in two different hands of ownership. And I think anytime , um, a company goes through that much transition, you lose some of that , um, just institutional knowledge and , uh, you know, continuity with the volunteers and the partners and the sponsors and , um, you know, that ultimately has some impacts on your Mm-Hmm . <affirmative> ability to succeed.
Speaker 2:Mm-Hmm. <affirmative>. And obviously we have a great cycling community here, and it's really nice to have some local events. Uh, do you anticipate growing any further events here in Grand Junction?
Speaker 3:If I were to grow events at this point, it'd probably be, you know, at , with me wearing my New hat as the executive director of the Grand Valley Outdoor Rec Coalition. Mm-Hmm . <affirmative> . I mean, that's my full-time gig now. Yeah. Um, the Ride Collective, I think at this point, you know, both my partner and I have been in the industry for over 20 years. I think we're both , uh, seeking new challenges and opportunities and to , uh, be at the seat as the ED for the ORC is , um, a , a real honor and something I'm really excited about. And I think the future is bright for that. Yeah. That industry.
Speaker 2:Well, a great segue. Um, let's talk about Grand Valley Outdoor Recreation Coalition. Um, what can you tell us about its history? How did it get started?
Speaker 3:Yeah, so the history of that , um, will , predates my time in the Valley. Uh , it was 2015 , um, when really just a , a passionate group of , um, outdoor professionals , um, you know, business owners came together and they really wanted to, you know, shine a bright light on the outdoor recreation industry and its economic impact to the valley. Mm-Hmm. <affirmative> and , um, you know, the , this in ,
Speaker 2:In order for civic leaders to, to take note or would you say that was the, the main goal? Like, Hey, we're important and we need to be acknowledged and recognized and, and we're driving a lot of economy here
Speaker 3:Bit . Yeah. That , that's exactly right. And you , you speak as though you have a lot of knowledge of this, and you should, because it should be stated here that Christie is part of the board and a , a really valuable member and contributor.
Speaker 2:So thank you. I'm proud to be on the board. So
Speaker 3:Please fill in any blanks here, because you probably have just as much knowledge as I do <laugh> , but you're exactly right. It was when , uh, they were the , A group was participating in what was called the North Star , um, marketing, I think it was a , a conference or , um, a , a summit of such. And it was a , a project that was commissioned by GEP . And it was during that time that this group kind of came together and said , recognized this need to change the narrative a little bit about outdoor recreation industry. Yeah. Um, and, and I would say they succeeded greatly in doing that. Um, this coincided when Governor Hickenlooper was standing up a state outdoor rec industry office as well. Mm-Hmm . <affirmative> , um, in 2015. And it , I mean, that story in itself is fantastic at this point. Now, I think Utah was the very first state to
Speaker 2:Have an an outdoor,
Speaker 3:Have an outdoor rec rec office. And then Colorado fell in shortly, but high . But as of now, there's 22 states that have outdoor rec offices , um, you know, at the, at the state level , um, as part of the government's office. Um, North Dakota this last week just
Speaker 2:Announce theirs . Yeah . Just, oh , that's great. Um, why do you think it's important for states to have a state outdoor recreation office?
Speaker 3:Well, I think, and, and I can share some numbers here shortly, but I think the, the, the numbers are very telling when you look at , um, the impact to the GDP , the , um, jobs, job creation Mm-Hmm. <affirmative> . And then, you know, if you get into the kind of the wellbeing, the health, the mental element of this, the, the social element of it, I mean, it's a, it's an incredible tool and vehicle , uh, to, you know, people's livelihood. Yeah. And I think more and more states are recognizing that , um, certainly some states are better positioned to capitalize on it than others. Um, but I think , um, you know, there , there's a, there's a fun and engaging movement right now on that front. And so I think , uh, I , I would , I would imagine before long, every state will have some kind of office in that
Speaker 2:Capacity. Yeah . And , um, you know, we can talk about the state office and also the local outdoor recreation group, but , um, it focuses on not only industries within outdoor recreation , um, manufacturing , um, uh, tour guides, things like that. Um, uh, big businesses like ski areas, but also , um, people who recreate and how do we preserve , uh, all the great things that we have in Colorado in order for our outdoor recreation industry to thrive.
Speaker 3:Yeah, that's exactly right. And, you know, so we were real fortunate in that , uh, a partner in Zoma Foundation came on board here about two and a half, three years ago. And they've provided us with now two grants. And the first one was for kind of planning and strategy , uh, building, and then the second one was for capacity. And in that planning period, we're able to sit down with a professional firm and go through kind of building out this new three to five year strategic plan. Mm-Hmm . <affirmative> . And we adopted that just recently. And that new plan has a much broader reach and scope than it did before where it was very industry focused , and it still is. And I would say, you know, our voice is that of the industry. But now we're talking about, you know, engaging in the realms of conservation and stewardship , um, access and equity. Um, and, and that's a bigger, that's a bigger , um, ambitious Yeah. Um, mission. Um, but , um, you know, one way I kind of, and we're , we're still kind of fine tuning our elevator pitch, if you will, but one way to kind of look at things is the ORC really wants in , in its effort to champion intentional future for the Grand Valley and ensure that optimal recreation continues to be this vibrant and sustainable , um, ecosystem, if you will. We really wanna be that tide that raises all boats. Yeah. And that's to bring more awareness to the bricks and the mortars, the , the guides, the outfitters, but also the conservation and stewardship groups, the land managers, and really be a convener and mobilizer, bring all those people together, have conversations, talk about the future, the good and the bad. Um, you know, what are the threats? Obviously this region is growing, people are coming. Yeah. It's no longer , uh, you know, a secret Yeah. The word is out. Yeah. Um, I think, you know, as a realtor, I think recently through a Grand Junction, both where , you know, highlighted and recognized as like one of the top 10, top 50 regions to
Speaker 2:Yes. And we were in , uh, US News for being one of the best small cities to live in. Yeah. It , it , we keep getting pressed like that and, and that's why we live here. Right. Right . I wanna talk a little bit about, I want to shout out to Sarah Schrader, who had , um, a big leadership role in getting the ORC together. And , um, she's been such an advocate for the industry. She and her husband have owned , um, bonsai Designs, the zip line manufacturing company, and , um, a core group, a a small core group of people, and then a larger group of affiliates kind of gathering and, and , um, talking about things and how can we kind of flip the narrative about Grand Junction and, and the whole valley and, and make it more outdoor recreation focused . Um, and it seems to have happened, and I think that the C'S role in that it is, is really , um, imperative. I mean, I think lots of people come here and are starting to realize the great recreation here, but having that voice , uh, and that group promoting things and standing up for the Valley and the industry has been really important, don't you think?
Speaker 3:Yeah, absolutely. Um, and we'll start with Sarah . So we wouldn't be here today without , uh, Sarah Schrader. I mean, she was the founder of this organization , uh, currently the president and chair of the , uh, board. Uh , but she really carried this through. You have to remember, for the first 10 years , this was just a group of volunteers. Yep . You know, very passionate volunteers, but they all had their own, you know, day jobs and businesses to run. And she was that glue. She kept it together. Yep . Um , she kept the board meetings running. She kept engaged , uh, doing letters of support, interviewing candidates for , um, you know, be it city council or county commissioners. Um , and , and so she is definitely , um, our , our foundation. Yeah . And , uh, we wouldn't be here without her. And , uh, really grateful too, because she's been a great , um, partner in this and kind of champion and helping Yeah . Bring me along because to a certain degree, I'm drinking from the hose right now. There's a lot of history to learn, and I wanna be very intentional , um, in how I kind of engage with the community and learn about the different organizations, the different businesses, the history before we really execute on too many of our programs or our initiatives. But there are some coming down the pipeline here, so ,
Speaker 2:Yeah. So how did the Outdoor Recreation Coalition go from being just a small group of volunteers that met monthly? Sometimes not a whole lot to talk about, sometimes lots to talk about to being funded , uh, by Zoma and talk about who Zoma is and, and how that all happened.
Speaker 3:Yeah. So that goes back to the Zoma Foundation. Um, and that is , um, Ben Walton. So part of the, the Walton family. And , uh, Ben and I , I can't speak for why, but the Western Slope is definitely a region of interest , uh, for him. And so he's been very integral in things like, I mean, even Powderhorn Ski Resort for that matter , um, I don't know for certain, but I believe they invested to help bring some of the ski , uh, snowmaking operations , uh, to the resort. And so, you know, there was various , uh, relationships tied back to Sarah . I kind of had some my own , um, ends and partnerships with the Zoma Foundation, but it was kind of just serendipitous and the timing and how it all, all came together. And about the time I came onto the board as a volunteer , um, on kind of, I wanna say it was right on the heels of the pandemic. Mm-Hmm. <affirmative> , um, Zoma had expressed interest in really helping elevate this ORC and making it be more of a, you know, stable and integral player here in the community. And so, through a number of conversations that involved myself, Sarah , the board, we were able to , uh, present a plan to them that they ultimately funded, which led to the strategic planning, and then the next round of funding for capacity building that allowed me to step into this position. Yeah. Uh , full time ,
Speaker 2:Which is so exciting. So, talk about the O C's mission now. Um, what is the plan? What is the intention? What's the goal?
Speaker 3:Yeah. So , uh, you know, our, our mission is really to, to champion that intentional future , um, to contribute to a thriving local economy and, and create community connectedness and wellbeing for, for all. And , um, you know, in the short term , we're gonna do that through what we call our three guiding pillars. And that's , um, community connection, education, and awareness, and in industry advancement. And , um, you know, how we achieve that is really gonna be through advocating for our stakeholders. We're gonna start to host some , uh, what we call and hopefully our impactful events. Um, I can dive into that here in a bit. Yeah . But one of 'em will be these campfire sessions that we're gonna launch here pretty soon , um, you know, continue to forge strategic partners and then , uh, disseminate information about the industry and what's going on. And right now, the best way we're doing that is through our new website , uh, gbo rc.org, which is kind of the hub for all things outdoor recreation. So whether you're a resident or a visitor, we invite you to come to the website and it's kind of your one stop shop to navigate the recreational landscapes here. Yeah . And then also your discipline. So if you're an avid bicyclist, you can go into, you know, our bike tab and that drills down , down into where to bike. Yeah. What shops to go to, to get your bike to or buy the gear and the equipment. Um, two, ultimately how to recreate responsibly , um, and be good stewards Yeah . Of , of our landscapes.
Speaker 2:And there's a wealth of information on the website, and it will continue to grow and we'll just keep adding. Right. Um, one of the things I love is this is not , um, uh, the , the businesses that are listed on the website are not members or, you know, there's no donation required in order for you to be , um, included. So , um, if you're a business owner in the recreation industry , um, you know, make sure that you're on the website because it's a , it's gonna be something that I think not only locals turn to, but tourists as well.
Speaker 3:Yeah, exactly. And I appreciate that plug. And I would also say, you know, be an extra set of eyes , uh, for us on that. Mm-Hmm. <affirmative> , you know , um, we'd like to think we have all the right information, but it , it's a lot of information, and so if , uh,
Speaker 2:It's hard to keep it updated for
Speaker 3:Sure. Yeah. So, so please , um, we welcome that feedback , um, all the time. Great.
Speaker 2:Um, so talk more about the events coming up. I love the campfire sessions. That's gonna be really fun.
Speaker 3:Yeah. So the campfire sessions really gonna be our first effort of just bringing different groups to the table. And that could be different land managers, it could be different user groups, but have people start to connect and communicate and talk about what they're doing kind of in their world of work. Um, but to, to a certain degree, kind of break down these silos and , uh, you know, as a group look forward into the future and how we can best steward , uh, this region. Um, especially with the, you know, the , the growth and the, the movement of people coming here. Um, and so these campfire sessions, they , they'll vary in topics and, and discussions. Mm-Hmm . <affirmative> , that could be as broad as how not to love our space to death. Mm-Hmm . <affirmative> . Or it could be about the, the balance of conservation, wildlife, and recreation. And , um, you know, the format's gonna be different. Um, I think these first couple will bring a , a panel of experts in, have some q and a, and then , um, all of these are open to the public free. Good chance. They'll usually be hosted at , at , at a brewery or distillery and have some libations. But , um, it's really just to, to, to convene and have good conversation.
Speaker 2:Will you be having some , um, like authors and artists and things like that who are, you know, maybe writing about the outdoors or,
Speaker 3:Yes, absolutely. You know, there's really no , uh, limitations to who and what we can bring in other than it'll be very, you know, outdoor focused in nature, outdoor recreation focused . Um, and , uh, and we welcome people to submit ideas and , um, for topics and or , uh, speakers and presenters. Yeah.
Speaker 2:That'd be great. What other kind of events do you have planned besides campfire sessions?
Speaker 3:Well, for us right now too , just a big charge is just awareness and education about who we are. So I'm starting to host a lot of lunch and learns, and , um, again, another invitation to the public. Like if you're an organization, a social group, a rotary , uh, a business, and you'd like to learn more about our mission, our purpose, we'll come in, we'll cater the lunch and we'll, we'll speak to your, your community. Um, and, and hopefully from that there'll be kind of a new appreciation, understanding of what we're doing. But then also you'll walk away with a sense of how you guys can , uh, plug in and support the mission. And , um, you know, probably worth noting, we're also here to champion some other efforts that are happening, one of which is the West Slope Outdoor Volunteers. Yes . And there's a new website tied to that, which hopefully will play a bigger role in championing in the future. But that is this kind of landing page for the outdoor volunteer needs right now with seven different groups. Colorado Canyons Association, the Colorado West Land Trust, Colorado National Monument Association, the great old broads for outdoor Wilderness Rivers, edge West, and the Grand Valley, Audubon , and Eureka. And all of these groups are the groups that are boots on the ground doing the work to protect, maintain, enhance. Mm-Hmm . <affirmative> , our outdoor infrastructure. Mm-Hmm. <affirmative>. And , um, it's kind of this one, again, one-stop shop to where you can build a volunteer base and go out and, you know, through a calendar, seek the opportunities that are best for you.
Speaker 2:Well, and I know that , um, some people don't have time to volunteer, but we are getting a lot of people that come to our community that really do wanna volunteer. And what a great thing to say, especially if you wanna be outdoors, here are a lot of opportunities for you all in one space. Yeah,
Speaker 3:No , that's exactly right .
Speaker 2:Yeah . Um, talk, you know , in a lot of my interviews that I do on the podcast, we talk about the wonderful collaboration that's been happening in the last few years with all the different organizations and , um, leaders in our community, whether it's , um, you know, city council and , uh, the tourism boards , um, the three different communities and their governments , um, but also Chamber of Commerce's and , um, you know, all, all the different players in town and GGEP especially. Um , how, how does the ORC collaborate with some of the other groups in town, and what are the benefits?
Speaker 3:Yeah. So, you know, I , I'd probably start with just sharing that from the time we've moved here, just in this last six years, the change that I've seen in the evolution of that and the spirit of collaboration Mm-Hmm. <affirmative> has been remarkable. Yeah. Um, so it's a great time for us to be able to like, hopefully get a seat at that table. But yeah, the intent is for us to work very closely with all those entities that you mentioned. Um, you know, city council certainly right now seems very , um, forward thinking and proactive and , um, wanting to nurture and under , you know, their understanding of what outdoor recreation means , uh, to this Mm-Hmm . <affirmative> , uh, community and region. Um, the different tourism boards visit gj , and then you have tourism advisory boards for Palisade and Fruita . Obviously, outdoor recreation is a key component , um, you know, to their business. Um, and, you know, the , the spirit of collaboration is great. We just had a panel at the , um, economic summit Yeah. And we had representation from fruit to Palisade, grand Grand
Speaker 2:Junction. That was a really great session, by the way. Good job with that.
Speaker 3:Yeah. Well, they , they did the, the heavy lift, but , um, it , it was remarkable just to see that the spirit in which they're playing and supporting one another. Mm-Hmm. <affirmative> . Um, and because the reality is when they come in, the way the Valley lies here is more times than not, people are playing in all three regions, or at least a couple of the regions. And so that , uh, ability to work hand in hand and support one another is key. And , and we'll do that too through our platform. We will , you know, direct people to the actual tourism sites or visit gj because they have a wealth of information that goes beyond what we're doing in terms of the, you know, the lodging components, the retail, the dining. Mm-Hmm.
Speaker 2:<affirmative> . And how about the relationship with Grand Junction economic Partnership and their , uh, efforts to bring new outdoor recreation businesses to town?
Speaker 3:Yes . I mean, that movement now is, you know, that that was going on before I was , uh, here in the valley, but that is now, from what I can understand, one of their key components of economic development, if not, you know, at the forefront of what they're doing. Yeah. And that's continuing to re recruit and , um, court companies that operate in that space , uh, to bring 'em here. And , uh, you know, kind of our role in that is, you know, if and when that time's appropriate for us to like, host and, you know, tour somebody around the region, then we would step in and support that. And we have representation on our board with Steve , um, on , you know, for that. So there's a nice kind of connection Yeah . Between the two groups.
Speaker 2:Well, we've talked a lot about the great things that , um, G-V-O-R-C is doing to , um, convene and collaborate. What do you think the biggest threats are for our outdoor recreation industry and our outdoor recreation in general here? What do we need to be doing as a, a group and a community to make sure that we continue to thrive?
Speaker 3:Well, it's a great question. I think it's a , it's a question that a lot of communities are asking themselves. Um, you know , there's just inherent challenges that come with population growth. Mm-Hmm. <affirmative> . And what's, you know, exciting about this region is, I think we can still get in front of that. Whereas on the front range, you know, certainly in my adulthood I was a part of and or witnessed, you know, the good and the bad in terms of how they went about those things in a sustainable way. And so I think we have great models in the front range that we can, you know, take best practices from and implement 'em here. But I think ultimately how we continue to steward our landscapes, not love them to death , um, is gonna be really, really important. And I think to best do that, you know, we need to all work in tandem, kind of break down silos, have good dialogue with the land managers , um, you know, bring different user groups together. So I think that's one thing. You know, another issue, and this is something that's plaguing the country, <laugh> for that matter, but is affordable housing. Mm-Hmm. <affirmative> . So when you talk about the businesses and being able to recruit good talent here , um, to live, to raise families, you know, the housing piece is a component of that. And yeah . I mean, you , you probably know that super
Speaker 2:Challenging far better than I do. Yeah. Um, high rates and low inventory means high prices and , uh, it's, it's hard to , to buy a home in Colorado anywhere. And we used to be considered super affordable compared to a lot of the other communities. And, and , uh, I don't , uh, maybe we're, we're still more affordable than the resort towns, but still it's, it's gotten a little bit more difficult for buyers here.
Speaker 3:And then I think, you know, the other thing we really needed to focus on is just right here in our own backyard, our residents and our people. And, and when we think about , um, access and equity, you know, it's, it's actually alarming, you know, in talking with some of these different groups of Mm-Hmm . <affirmative> , how many people right here in Grand Junction , um, you know, they live at the base of Mount Garfield and the book Cliffs , you know, stones throw away from the Monument one riverfront trail, the river. And some of these kids have never touched foot or played on any of these. Yeah. Um, you know, landscapes and , um, resources. And so looking at how we can, you know, partner and there's groups doing great work in the space now. So it's not us stepping in and trying to, you know, move something on our own. Yes . But really partnering with these organizations , um, and, and elevating their work is gonna be key. Um ,
Speaker 2:Getting kids outside is a really important thing. And we know that , um, recreating outdoors is part of a healthy lifestyle, and in fact, love what Mesa County has done with tying the health department to trail maintenance. How cool is that?
Speaker 3:Yeah. Incredible. And, you know, we, we have a few people in that space, cop Moba obviously being a , a big one, but the work that Ross and his team of trail builders are doing now with , um, you know, the Mesa County Trails , uh, department, which falls under , uh, Mesa County Public Health is , is remarkable. And, you know, that stems from Ross raising a lot of money through grants Yeah. Uh , to, you know, enlist the support and services of their , of the Trail Builders 18 Road, the expansion that's happening out there. You know, that's a great , um, uh, a great example of the work they're doing. I think when it's all said and done, 30 miles of new trails Yeah . What we've created out there. It's exciting. But yeah, the , the , the , the public health and wellness pieced outdoor recreation, I mean, it's, it's remarkable. And, and, you know, before we do wrap anything up, I wanna share a few , uh, few stats with you. Please do. Yeah . That are kind of on a national level and then drill in. And so, the , uh, US Bureau of Economic Analysis , um, just recently announced for the first time ever, the economic contribution of outdoor recreation surpassed $1 trillion . Wow. Uh , that's more than oil and gas extraction combined. And mining. Amazing . 2.2% of the GDP and 5 million jobs created from that.
Speaker 2:Fantastic.
Speaker 3:You drill that down lower for , uh, Colorado, $13.9 billion , um, into the , uh, community, 19% growth , uh, from the year prior. And that's 130,000 jobs. And then here in Mesa County, we , um, actually it was GEP , I wanna say CMU. And the state outdoor rec office commissioned a economic impact study that Dr. Nathan Perry helped lead , uh, from CMU. And, and, you know, these stats now are a couple years , uh, old, but at that point in time , um, they found that 11% of jobs here in Mesa County were directly tied , uh, to outdoor recreation. So there's, there's truth in these numbers. Yeah . And , um, the other survey that was actually really interesting, we put out, during our strategic planning , um, we were able to decipher that 80% of the folks that call the Valley home , uh, they do so because of the access to outdoor recreation. Mm-Hmm.
Speaker 2:<affirmative> . So we just gotta get that another 20% <laugh> That's right on board . Right, exactly . All those kids using things. Um , I want to say too, that that , um, study that was done here in the Grand Valley, we're one of the only communities . So a lot of studies have been done on the national level, state level, but not on a community level. It's kind of hard to pull off,
Speaker 3:Perhaps. Lucky still to the , to this day, the only countywide , um, study Yeah . That's been produced.
Speaker 2:Super cool. Well, Chandler, thank you so much for joining us. Any , um, closing thoughts on , um, outdoor recreation or , uh, grand Junction?
Speaker 3:You know, none of that come to mind other than the get outside and play, enjoy this beautiful , uh, country that we live in. Yeah. And , uh, please , please tune in with the Outdoor Rec Coalition. Again, we're just standing up the organization, but a lot of great passionate people behind this. Uh, we invite everybody to the table. Um, but I really do believe this organization , um, stands to , uh, play a pivotal role in the future of the industry.
Speaker 2:Agree. And you're gonna start a podcast too.
Speaker 3:We are gonna start a podcast. So this was kind of my, my test, my experience, first time I've ever been on one, but I really appreciate you having us.
Speaker 2:Well, you're a great guest and I'm really excited about your executive director position. I think you're just the right person for the job. And, and the out the Grand Valley Outdoor Recreation Coalition is going to grow and flourish because of you and, and all the members. So
Speaker 3:Thank you. That makes a lot. Yeah .
Speaker 2:Thanks everybody for joining us today. I'm Kristi Reese here with Chandler Smith, and we'll see you next time on the Full Circle Podcast. Thanks for listening. This is Kristi Reese signing out from the Full Circle Podcast .