There’s this band called MGMT (pronounced Management) and most of their music sounds like a debaucherous 3AM party soundtrack, but I was listening to their song “Kids” the other day and I heard these lyrics:

“Control yourself,
Take only what you need from it.
A family of trees falling,
To be haunted.

…

The water is warm,
But it’s sending me shivers…

…

Decisions are made and not bought
But I thought this wouldn’t hurt a lot
I guess not…”

My interpretation is that these guys are talking about sustainability, global warming and considering the consequences of our actions, so that there will be something left for the “kids” in the future. I could be wrong. Whatever the meaning is, it’s a pretty good jam for a Friday.

It’s kind of a given that the people working at Nau have a passion for the outdoors: skiers, bikers, surfers, climbers and paddlers abound in our ranks, and when our team clocks out at the end of the day, many run (literally) from town to do something fresh and physical. But it came as a happy surprise to me that so many of the people I work with have separate creative lives outside the office. Among my immediate coworkers I have found authors, illustrators, photographers, painters, filmmakers and dancers.

Six months ago, when Eugenie invited me to a performance she was part of called “Endless Ocean Endless Sky” (playing in Austin, TX this weekend), I didn’t quite know what to expect. Choreographed and produced by Tahni Holt, the website for the Portland production was mysterious and poetic. The story, it seemed, was a collection of vignettes 100 “moments” long. Since only ten audience members are allowed in the performance at a time, I made sure to reserve a spot early. Read More »

Wend, one of our favorite outdoor magazines, went digital this month, meaning that you can flip through a virtual copy of the previous month’s issue online. Check out a free version here.

Based out of Portland, Wend is expanding its reach by allowing anybody with an internet connection a chance to dig their first-person adventure stories, environmental reporting and amazing photography. Not only will this allow for richer content in the future (think video journalism and podcasts), but it also has the potential to lower the amount of paper and energy used in circulation. Aside from experiencing “Wend 2.0″ and doing less recycling, subscribers to the digital version also save around ten bucks a year.

For the next year, Wend will offer the previous month’s issue online for free. After that, it will only be available by subscription.

Our Thought Kitchen meetings usually take place at the bar/creperie Le Happy, a little joint around the corner from the office that’s the perfect venue for our informal pitch meetings. It’s usually after a couple beers (or hot toddies) that the best subject matter is born. Such was the case this winter when we began an ongoing discussion about the worst cinematic interpretations of outdoor sports.

What started as a casual conversation about few ’80s date movies blew up into an email rally 20 replies long. From Keanu Reeves’ bro-brah Johnny Utah in Point Break to Stallone’s piton-firing gun in Cliffhanger, no phony stone was left unturned. A month or so later, we had a hefty list of the bad, the good, and the guilty pleasure flicks Hollywood has made about the sports we love.

The list grew so long that we had to break the post into categories based on the sport genre being butchered. Since it’s still ski season for some of us, we thought we might as well start there.

SKIING/SNOWBOARDING

THE BAD (click for clips):
Ski Patrol
Downhill Willie
Frostbite
Ski School 1 & 2
Snowboard Academy
Winter Break
Aspen Extreme

THE DECENT/FUNNY:
Downhill Racer
Hot Dog
Out Cold
Better Off Dead

THE GUILTY PLEASURES:
Ski Party
Fire & Ice

Stay tuned for the next installment: totally bogus surf films…

I killed a bird on the way home from the beach. There was no way of avoiding it. It crossed in front of my car quickly, emerging from the snowy bushes on the left shoulder and flying madly toward the other side of the road. I didn’t have time to react”to do so anyway would have put my family’s life in danger on the icy mountain pass.

I heard the small thud and looked in my rearview to see feathers flying and a black dot in the lane behind us.

I felt bad.

When I told my wife what had happened, it spawned a conversation about the cost of doing the things we love. We talked about the gas used to get to the ocean and my petroleum-laced wetsuit and toxic surfboard. Was the negative impact I had on the environment worth the positive impact the environment had on my life through surfing? Read More »

Based out of the UK, Drift Magazine strives to recapture the lost soul of surfing, similar to the way the esteemed Surfer’s Journal and Surfer’s Path highlight non-commercialized, environmentally-minded content in their publications. One look at the magazine’s design and photography clues you into the fact that something different is going on at Drift. Artful, thoughtful imagery and insightful stories grace the pages of their first three online issues, which are available for download HERE. Now the magazine is venturing into the printed realm, and I wish them the best of luck. Being a surf-blogger in my other life, I’ve always appreciated the respect they show for everyday surfers by highlighting blogs in their newsletters and soliciting content from “non-professionals” who have stories to tell about their experiences in the ocean.

Walking through my neighborhood, I came across a wooden post near the sidewalk with a small case at its top. Inside the box frame, there was a poem called “Bird Watching,” available to anyone who might be walking by. I was impressed with the work, especially a part that asked what the point is of bird watching:

What is the point
of spending precious time
and hard-earned dollars
to wander the globe, only to learn
that someone has gobbled up
the nesting ground,
or filled the marsh,
or paved the meadow,
or poisoned the pond,
or clear-cut the forest,
or built a boundary wall
at the river’s edge?

Read More »

There was a time when those numbers used to scare me.

Now I’ve grown accustomed to seeing that time blinking on the alarm clock as I bottle-feed the baby in the morning. So last week, when I decided to go surfing at 4:30 AM (leaving my wife with our infant until noon), I actually looked forward that ungodly hour. As a matter of fact, I woke up at 3:30 in anticipation of perfect waves peeling in the half-light of dawn.

The forecast promised epic conditions: 7 feet at 14 seconds with mild offshores. My surf buddy arrived right on time in his veggie-oil rig and we departed at quarter-to-five, leaving the smell of fried wontons in our wake. On the ride along empty freeways, over the oily river, past the drowsy city, and through the dark woods, we joked about our daily lives”the ups and downs of fatherhood (me), dating (him), and of course the surf we’d be enjoying soon.

The ocean obviously hadn’t read the report. We were the first ones in the water, but the waves were bumpy and crossed up. We surfed for a few hours, milking as much fun from the session as possible, but in the end only caught a handful of waves each.

A quick change and hike back to the car and we were on the road again, talking about the waves we got, the week ahead, and our next corn-oil-powered dawn patrol.

My wife asked me if it was worth it as I stumbled through the front door at noon with my surfboard under one arm and a dripping wetsuit over my shoulder. I smiled and she rolled her eyes. Would I do 4:30 again? Maybe 5:30, considering the time change.

This public service announcement by Transport for London is one the best viral campaigns we’ve seen to raise awareness of the cyclist in your rear view mirror. Check it out.

One of our favorite film festivals, Filmed by Bike is gearing up again for April, 2008. They need your bike-themed movies, so don’t be a slacker and miss the entry deadline: March 1, 2008.

FILMED BY BIKE ENTRY DETAILS
DEADLINE: March 1, 2008
LENGTH: 8 minutes or less
FORMAT: DVD
COST: Free
HOW TO ENTER: Download the entry form from Filmed by Bike.

Filmed by Bike embraces the art and innovation of bikes through the eyes of imaginative storytellers who use moving images to celebrate the world’s most efficient and creative form of transportation. Now in its sixth year, the festival showcases a love of two wheels in eight minutes or less. This premier festival happens once a year in Bike City, USA: Portland Oregon. The event grabs hold of an entire weekend of screenings and features movies from around the globe.

Entries are evaluated by an esteemed jury of bicycle and film enthusiasts from the Portland-Seattle area.

Why are you still sitting in front of your computer? Get out there and start filming!