Today on the show Justin Housman has the week off so Colin welcomes Shawnté Salabert as to the co-host chair! Together they run through some of the topics that have come out of the outdoor community over the past week.
First up, The North Face has yet another collaboration with a fashion brand that has (almost) sold out! There has probably been too much TNF chatter around here the past few weeks, but this collection is super cool. (05:05)
Jetboil has a new version of it's iconic stove out so Colin asks accomplished backpacker Shawnté to power rank the top 5 camp stoves ever! (13:25)
The Everest pregame is on! News has started to come out of Everest basecamp including this story about how the famed Everest Ice Doctors will use drones to help map this year's route through the Khumbu icefall. (24:00)
It's time for The Parting Shot! Colin is over the moon with his new pair of Norda's while Shawnté finds similarities between her recent experience at SXSW and the old days of Outdoor Retailer (33:46)
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Episode Transcript
Colin True
00:00:00.400 - 00:01:27.900
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Chris DeMakes
00:01:33.120 - 00:01:40.580
Rock fight. Rock fight. Rock fight. Rock fight. Rock fight. Rock fight.
Colin True
00:01:41.600 - 00:01:57.820
Welcome to the Rock Fight where we speak our truth, slay sacred cows, and sometimes agree to disagree. This is an outdoor podcast that aims for the head. I'm Colin True and joining me today. Why should I have to pod with Justin Halsman when I could have.
When I could pod with the goat? It's Shantae Salove.
Shawnté Salabert
00:01:58.720 - 00:02:07.588
I feel like I should make a goat noise. Like, not that kind of goat, the Serena Williams type of goat, but different, right? I'm into it.
Colin True
00:02:07.644 - 00:02:09.140
You're the pot. The goat of potting.
Shawnté Salabert
00:02:09.220 - 00:02:15.076
I'm just saying that right now this is all a lie. But you know what? Fake it till you make it is what I like to say.
Colin True
00:02:15.228 - 00:02:24.132
I don't know. Justin's had to miss a few episodes. We said before we hit recording, I don't think we've ever had a stand in for a co host. So this is a big.
This is a big moment for the show.
Shawnté Salabert
00:02:24.236 - 00:02:30.660
You know, I'M not as tall as Justin, but arguably maybe a little cooler. I don't want to start a fight.
Colin True
00:02:30.700 - 00:02:36.634
Here, but, you know, you did not throw any tantrums on our top five accessories episode, so.
Shawnté Salabert
00:02:36.722 - 00:02:39.070
Nor did I forget any major brands.
Colin True
00:02:40.130 - 00:02:40.906
I did that.
Shawnté Salabert
00:02:40.978 - 00:02:45.310
You did that. I'm now the sole host of the Rockfall.
Colin True
00:02:46.130 - 00:02:52.150
Dave apparently got multiple emails about how we were being mean to him on the pod when he wasn't there.
Shawnté Salabert
00:02:52.450 - 00:02:55.274
Oh, he can handle it. He's a sturdy guy.
Colin True
00:02:55.402 - 00:03:12.490
He is. He is. He thought it was very funny. And actually we are planning the last of the top five series, which is apparel.
And we were talking a little bit about how that's going to go down today and how it's going to be really, really hard because there's so many brands. So that'll be fun.
Shawnté Salabert
00:03:12.530 - 00:03:17.070
So many. But yeah, I'll be back for that. For better or worse.
Colin True
00:03:17.650 - 00:03:54.630
Oh, for better. But as we mentioned, our guy, Justin Hausman, he is off this week.
So today Shantae and I are going to be going talking about some of the brand news that come the brand news. That's last week's outline. We're talking about some of the news that come out of over the past week from the outdoor community.
But before we get any to any of that, if you miss Monday's episode of the Rock Fight, you miss what we the state of the outdoor economy. Go check it out and be sure to come back this Friday where I'll be giving one of my patented outdoor hot takes. What's it going to be about?
You might want to know. I'll let you know on Friday. I'm still writing it. I'm not sure. I don't want to commit on on Wednesday. So.
Hey, do you want to read Justin stuff or you want me just to keep going? Do you want to go full co host?
Shawnté Salabert
00:03:54.670 - 00:03:57.638
Oh my gosh, I totally do. What's just wait, does it say Justin by.
Colin True
00:03:57.694 - 00:03:59.494
It's the. Well, here I'll add Justin so you.
Shawnté Salabert
00:03:59.502 - 00:04:05.286
Can see Justin, considering how I messed up in the last one, you got to tell me what I should and shouldn't say.
Colin True
00:04:05.358 - 00:04:07.030
By the way, great.
Shawnté Salabert
00:04:07.070 - 00:04:13.378
By the I was that kid in school who was like, I would love to read every paragraph in this book. Teacher let me read.
Colin True
00:04:13.434 - 00:04:19.634
I just got the sense the way we played that is that you and I should go join an improv group together because I think we would both crush it. We did so well.
Shawnté Salabert
00:04:19.722 - 00:05:06.130
Perfect. All right, so I am now playing the esteemed role of Justin Houseman on this podcast at least for right now.
So, hey, listeners, have you subscribed to Rock Fight's weekly newsletter? If not, what the hell, man? This is a real newsletter with real content, not just another outdoor link aggregator.
So head over to Rockfight Co and click Join the mailing list to sign up. Do it or else me, Fake Justin would be very, very sad. But you know what? If you're new around here, we would love to subscribe.
You know, we would love to have you subscribe. We are already subscribed, guys. And join the Rock Fight by hitting the follow button on whatever podcast app you're listening to us on.
And also give us that five star rating that we so deeply deserve.
Colin True
00:05:06.690 - 00:05:27.066
All right, our top story today is presented by your hub for ultralight gear Garage Growing gear. Head to garagegrowingear.com and check them out. So the first story I want to talk about today.
Last week, the North Face launched another collaboration with a fashion brand. And this time it was. Is it Cecily Bonsen? Do you know, I don't know if I'm. I feel like I'm not pronouncing that correctly. Is. It's Cecily.
Shawnté Salabert
00:05:27.098 - 00:05:32.268
I'm assuming Danish. So Cecily, Cecily. Cecily, yeah, yeah.
Colin True
00:05:32.284 - 00:06:16.888
Because her studio based in Denmark. So we're gonna go with Cecily. We'll claim dumb American if we're wrong. That's Cecily Bonson, which is the brand name of their founder.
I wrote about this in yesterday's newsletter for Rock Fight and we've talked a lot about the North Face and the POD lately. But this collaboration, I thought bore some interesting fruit. So look, Shantae, you are a very accomplished backpacker and outdoors woman, all right?
Moa, you are. It's in print. You can go to bookstores and find your work. So either you're a very good liar or you're accomplished outdoor, outdoor Dorsey person.
But I mean, do you think less of the North Face when they do these type of collaborations? I've had a lot of folks, they kind of weigh in on the, oh, they're not core anymore because they're.
But they've done like a dozen of these sort of high fashion collaborations. What's your take on this?
Shawnté Salabert
00:06:17.024 - 00:07:36.460
Well, first of all, I mean, you have to ask what I think of the North Face before you ask if I think less of the North Face.
I mean, when I think of the North Face, I think of a brand that sort of straddles the line between, you know, outdoor geek, like long term sort of industry threshold, like a stronghold. Right. But then I also think about the fact that they are, you know, crossing over and they always have. This is nothing new, like you just said.
I don't look at the North Face and think it's just technical gear. In fact, I don't. I don't think I own a single piece of North Face clothing or equipment at all. And I'm. I'm pretty outdoorsy, as you mentioned.
But do I think less of them for doing this? Do I think less of them for their skims collab? No, no. I mean, this is what they do. They are doing.
They're in the mold of the Eddie Bowers of the industry.
They're in the mo of you can go back to Timberland and like, how they became like one of the main crossover brands that, that hit the sort of everyday consumer and the outdoor market. I don't think there's anything new or, you know, honestly, I hate to say it groundbreaking about this.
Like, what they're doing is similar to what we see coming out of Japan and all of those sort of crossover fashion, outdoorsy sort of things. They're just bringing it to a wider market, maybe with that sort of like tnf, you know, name recognition.
Colin True
00:07:36.960 - 00:07:46.072
I think people freak out about it because they're sort of like a Mount Rushmore outdoor brand. Like, if you were going to make your Mount Rushmore, you'd give it consideration even if you decided not to put them on it.
Shawnté Salabert
00:07:46.176 - 00:07:48.660
And I think that's why people get all 20, 25.
Colin True
00:07:49.440 - 00:07:52.824
Well, if it's the history, right. I mean. Well, who would it be?
Shawnté Salabert
00:07:52.912 - 00:08:10.116
I mean, sure, sure, you can, you can go back and look at that as like, this is a core brand. It's been around.
But I don't think, like, when I think about all of my friends who are out there climbing and paddling and running and backpacking and everything. I don't think any holds the North Face as some sort of North Star anymore as far as, like.
Colin True
00:08:10.188 - 00:08:15.044
No, not like that. Yeah, but what is. Is there anyone that is. Right. I don't think anybody falls into that role anymore.
Shawnté Salabert
00:08:15.092 - 00:08:17.316
Is there. That's a good. That's a really good question.
Colin True
00:08:17.468 - 00:08:18.020
Right?
Shawnté Salabert
00:08:18.140 - 00:08:41.360
Yeah, I mean, I think it's. It makes complete sense that they venture into these sort of, you know, cross. These collaborations.
I was going to say cross contamination, but that's not at all what I mean. I mean, you know, I think people love to see the weirdness of crossing high fashion and, you know, quote techie gear.
I think that's something people have come to assum. Assume they're gonna do because they have been doing it well.
Colin True
00:08:41.400 - 00:09:32.684
Good segue. Because this collaboration is almost sold out. If it's not, by the time you guys hear this, it might be sold out.
And looking at the products it created, I thought it was awesome. I don't know. I just. If you. I'll put a link in the show notes.
If you look at it completely different, I don't really know what the North Face brings to a collection like this.
I mean, it's like, it would be one thing to say this happened in like, in the 1990s when like, very few brands or, or fashion brands maybe had access to the kinds of fabrics that an outdoor brand would.
So I don't really know other than just plopping a name on it and being like, hey, look, it's the North Face on a really weird looking, fashiony kind of garment. I don't really know what it does or who comes to that thinking, that's so exciting. But of all these things I really liked.
The product that they created was like very kind of head, almost head to toe, sort of like big. I don't want to say ponchos. It feels like it's like, you know, diminishing if you call it a poncho, but it's kind of like a poncho if I'm being.
Chris DeMakes
00:09:32.772 - 00:09:33.100
It is.
Shawnté Salabert
00:09:33.140 - 00:10:01.718
I mean, that was kind of the, the, the, you know, center of the whole collection. Right. Is that sort of poncho y wind jackety situation. Right. I also saw a dress in there. I saw some shoes.
Like, it felt, going back to that, what I was saying earlier, it felt sort of Japanese. It felt like the kind of thing that you're going to wear in New York in the spring maybe. I mean, you know, it's. I thought, you know, it looked good.
I mean, it's not for me. I am not a wealthy person that's buying high fashion collabs with the North.
Colin True
00:10:01.774 - 00:10:09.044
Yeah, it's like a grand for one of these things. I mean, so it's like, you know, to pay. Yeah, Right. And it doesn't look very functional if I'm being.
Shawnté Salabert
00:10:09.132 - 00:11:04.510
It doesn't. It's about the vibe. I mean, I really like when you ask what they're bringing to it. It's.
I think it's this idea that of, you know, taking high fashion and, you know, you. I don't want to say like low brow because the North Face is not low brow. It's an.
It's a, It's a high quality brand, but it's that idea of like taking an everyman's brand, and I'm using that term loosely, you know, and mixing it with this high fashion. And. And the designer is Scandi, you know, so you have that sort of.
You have some elements of the scandi minimalist, but it is a little more maximalist than most scandi designers. You know, it's not just like a beautiful stark gray shift. It's got, you know, it is all black, but it is.
There's movement to it, there's lightness to it. It was kind of interesting.
Honestly, if someone wanted to give me a piece to try, I could go for a trail run and maybe go on a little hikipoo in LA with some of that.
Colin True
00:11:05.120 - 00:11:17.832
They're like, how many seating items did you. How many seating garments did you make?
Like, oh, yeah, we got all these extra thousand dollar, like, you know, giant garments laying around just to give out to people. Like, oh, try this out, see what you think. Maybe you'll buy one, but I'll go.
Shawnté Salabert
00:11:17.856 - 00:11:19.656
Prance around New York next time I'm there.
Colin True
00:11:19.808 - 00:11:38.084
That's where you'd have to wear not really much of an LA look, Definitely more of a colder weather kind of thing. I think the, I mean, like, we've.
I mean, I feel like I've talked a lot about the North Face on the show the last couple of weeks for, you know, because they kind of keep finding themselves in the news or apparently, you know, this is not a North Face show if they. In fact, I'm not going to talk about them again until they. They advertise.
Shawnté Salabert
00:11:38.132 - 00:11:38.292
So.
Colin True
00:11:38.316 - 00:11:40.004
North Face, there you go. This is your last chance.
Shawnté Salabert
00:11:40.052 - 00:11:41.444
Your last para.
Colin True
00:11:41.572 - 00:12:22.476
This is it. North Face. But. But we are going to talk about on the show next week are. Because, you know, the word innovation gets thrown around a lot for.
And I think there's a lack of agreement of what that word means for the modern outdoor industry. And when I look at this as a form of innovation, it's not that it's innovating for, you know, outdoorsy pursuits, but it's innovating the brand.
It's innovating kind of like the position of an outdoor brand in sort of the broader fashion market. And as people tend to ignore outdoors part of fashion, we all make the things the same way. A lot of times we're using the same type of fabrics.
That's it is a segment of the fashion world. So I think it's always interesting to kind of look at these things and, you know, kind of learn from them if you can.
Shawnté Salabert
00:12:22.548 - 00:13:25.540
Yeah, I mean, it Even makes me think. It makes me think of two things on a very different, you know, stylistic. And it makes me think of Outdoor Voices.
And it makes me think of REI when REI started doing collections that were aimed at the everyday person that's maybe going on a picnic, going to the whole, like, festival collection they kind of did a while back. But these are, you know, Outdoor Voices in particular was a brand that said, like, hey, you don't need to just wear like khaki outside.
Every women's outfit. Doesn't need to be pink it and shrink it. Let's actually make silhouettes that are flattering to a variety of body types.
And let's make some colorways that are really interesting in all genders. And I think they like.
When you talk about innovation, frankly, this to me is just kind of what's always been done when you cross pollinate different styles of fashion. It's like, oh, this is kind of like, ooh, edgy and cool for the North Face.
But if we're talking about real innovation, I would go back to something like Outdoor Voices because I think what they did changed people's perception of, like, what they would wear to go hiking, for instance.
Colin True
00:13:26.120 - 00:13:46.220
Next story we're going to talk about is Jetboil. I have never talked to you about Jetboil.
I'm sure you have opinions, but I did see that they put out a press release this week about a new product that they launched, which is a fast boil system, which is basically. They're promising to make igniting the stove simpler. I was actually sent one of these, yet I have not had a chance to use it.
I don't know if you were on the. If you got that initial thing.
Shawnté Salabert
00:13:46.760 - 00:14:00.950
No, but I want to know. Okay, so the Jetboil. I have my very first backpacking stove.
Well, no, my second ever backpacking stove was a Jetboil that I won when I was a student in an outdoor course because I got 100% on my navigation exam. Thank you very much.
Colin True
00:14:02.130 - 00:14:04.554
You can brag about dorky things all you want on this podcast.
Shawnté Salabert
00:14:04.682 - 00:14:07.910
That's pretty much I need anything. Just it gives me life.
Colin True
00:14:09.170 - 00:14:14.074
Come back later this week for the three part series of Shantae's navigation exam. It'll be great.
Shawnté Salabert
00:14:14.242 - 00:14:31.174
It's great. Listen, every time I've taught navigation classes, Kula Cloth used to do something called the Kula Academy.
Maybe they're still doing it and they just stopped inviting me. I don't know. But I taught.
I taught so many navigation classes, they just kept selling out and they'd have to get, you know, have to sign me up for new dates because you.
Colin True
00:14:31.182 - 00:14:32.966
Were just advocating for their products so much.
Shawnté Salabert
00:14:33.038 - 00:14:45.094
No. Yeah. When navigate into this corner and then pee behind that bush. No, it was just, you know, a way to bring something.
Some education to the masses, Colin. Okay. Navigation is cool anyway.
Colin True
00:14:45.142 - 00:14:46.086
Navigation is cool.
Shawnté Salabert
00:14:46.198 - 00:14:50.134
Have me on for a future podcast about navigation, and I will talk. I will talk.
Colin True
00:14:50.222 - 00:14:52.102
The navigation pod with Shantae.
Shawnté Salabert
00:14:52.246 - 00:14:52.854
Let's go.
Colin True
00:14:52.942 - 00:14:54.820
Sponsored by Kula clothes.
Shawnté Salabert
00:14:55.710 - 00:14:56.150
All right.
Colin True
00:14:56.190 - 00:14:56.598
But what.
Shawnté Salabert
00:14:56.654 - 00:14:58.518
Okay, well, let me just bring. Sorry.
Colin True
00:14:58.534 - 00:15:00.822
All right. Your first backpacking trip, you're using Jetboil.
Shawnté Salabert
00:15:00.886 - 00:15:33.032
This is the problem with having me on the podcast, Colin, is that I ping. My brain is like a little shiny object. Ping pong machine. So Jetboil. I won one that was my second ever backpacking stove.
It was kind of like the original Jetboil classic tall cylinder. And the thing is, I'm not sure what could make these things boil faster.
They come with the piezo ignition already, so you're just pressing the little button. It's an enclosed. Like, the whole thing is designed just to be fast. That was the point of the Jetboil.
So I want to know, like, what did they put in there? Is that a rocket? Is there, like a rocket fuel cell in there? What's happening in here?
Colin True
00:15:33.216 - 00:16:16.820
Yeah, it's a. It goes back to that innovation thing. Look, I'm sure. And I actually met with their PR folks, who's Darby, who we hang out with, and they. They have.
They. I got to see this at OMA last summer. I'm sure that it is a. An improvement on the product.
The thing about Jetboil, though, I mean, they're just kind of like. They're just a reliable kind of great product. You know, it's one of those things. Maybe if you're more lightweight. Backpacker, you don't.
It's not for you. But I don't know, I kind of feel like Jetboil is now just like, in the kit.
Like, if you're outdoorsy, you have a Jetboil, and it's like, oh, I'm gonna go for a hike. I want to make some coffee on this. Like, just like. I'll throw that in the backpack. You know, it's just. It's kind of ubiquitous. Awesome product.
The thing I wanted to ask you about, though, is given your background backpacking, you know, what is your. Like, I want to power rank camp stoves. Oh, yes. Okay.
Shawnté Salabert
00:16:16.900 - 00:16:17.300
Yes.
Colin True
00:16:17.380 - 00:16:48.600
All right, so we have. Here. Here are the candidates. All right, so we have the Jet Boil because you, you know, classic. Like if you're doing Mount Rushmore accessories.
Is Jetboil on there? Maybe. Right. That's another one of those. Right, right.
You had the MSR Whisperlight, like the original classic, lightweight, lightweight camping stove, backpacking stove.
The pocket rocket, which I found, which I knew about, but then I was reminded of, and I was kind of trolling around garage growing gear, their website the other day. And then the tin can stove. Gotta talk about tin can stove classic. And then of course, the Coleman double burner.
Shawnté Salabert
00:16:48.680 - 00:16:49.236
Wow.
Colin True
00:16:49.368 - 00:16:57.356
You know, so I want you on your preference, not on, like, what you would use in certain circumstances. Obviously it's easy to get there. But if you're going to power rank those five options.
Shawnté Salabert
00:16:57.548 - 00:17:04.760
If. If I were to power rank five through one. Those five through one. First of all, my number one option is not on your list.
Colin True
00:17:05.060 - 00:17:06.076
Oh, what is it?
Shawnté Salabert
00:17:06.148 - 00:17:22.090
It's the Soto Windmaster. Because it does.
It sort of like combines the wind protection of a Jetboil, but the minimalism of the pocket rocket makes a little lighter and interesting. And I love that thing.
Colin True
00:17:22.790 - 00:17:23.726
That's your number one?
Shawnté Salabert
00:17:23.798 - 00:17:48.478
That's my number one. It used to be a pocket rocket. That was my first stove, backpacking stove I ever got. Love it.
They are portable, they're affordable as far as backpacking stoves go. But they suck in the wind. They really do. And you don't have a whole lot of burner control. And I love to cook.
This is something you're probably learning about me for the first time. But I have taken fresh vegetables deep into the backcountry.
Colin True
00:17:48.574 - 00:17:50.042
I think you told me this before.
Shawnté Salabert
00:17:50.146 - 00:18:22.558
I've made. I will make. I will make four course meals out in the back country. I have made charcuterie boards. Oh, yeah. I do not mess around. In fact.
In fact, Colin, back when I was using Twitter before it got deranged, I tweeted a picture of a charcuterie board that I made by cleaning a slab of rock and adding all the accoutrement. All the delights that we brought on the trip.
Tweeted a picture of that, which was then retweeted and commented on by Chrissy Teigen, who you may or may not know.
Colin True
00:18:22.614 - 00:18:23.246
Get out of here.
Shawnté Salabert
00:18:23.318 - 00:18:26.926
Supermodel who also writes cookbooks. So I felt very valid.
Colin True
00:18:27.038 - 00:18:28.510
Validated power couple.
Shawnté Salabert
00:18:28.590 - 00:18:38.170
Hey, yeah, exactly. Come, you know, bring your hubs. He can serenade us while we eat some cheese in the backcountry.
And then you can borrow my bidet because we're gonna be besties like that.
Colin True
00:18:38.550 - 00:18:43.038
Right? And that's why she's hanging out behind you right now. You guys have never stopped hanging out since then.
Shawnté Salabert
00:18:43.094 - 00:18:43.970
Hi, Chrissy.
Colin True
00:18:45.660 - 00:18:49.012
Do you think pocket rocket has ever suffered by the fact that it's also a sex toy?
Shawnté Salabert
00:18:49.076 - 00:18:55.604
Yeah, I wonder when people. I do think about that when I tell people I can't get a pocket rocket. How are you not googling which one.
Colin True
00:18:55.612 - 00:18:59.044
Are you talking about? Because maybe I should get both Adam and Eve.
Shawnté Salabert
00:18:59.092 - 00:19:04.600
Do I get it from the lion's den out on the highway? Like the desolate, lonely highway.
Colin True
00:19:05.180 - 00:19:11.108
Missed opportunity by them. By the way. They should lean into that and make really irreverent, like, social media posts if they haven't already.
Shawnté Salabert
00:19:11.164 - 00:19:14.886
Or at the very least, just buy pocket. You know, buy the pocket.
Colin True
00:19:14.918 - 00:19:15.062
Right?
Shawnté Salabert
00:19:15.086 - 00:19:20.010
There's gotta be a pocket. Right? Like, and then they just sell their own, like, tiny vibe for the trail.
Colin True
00:19:20.750 - 00:19:27.846
They should. There should be, actually. Listen, trail worthy sex toys is a good topic for a podcast. We should probably have that conversation.
Shawnté Salabert
00:19:27.878 - 00:19:30.550
But that might be a Dear Abby conversation.
Colin True
00:19:30.710 - 00:19:40.358
I also like the idea of them acquiring that brand. And then, like, it's almost like an old school video store when you go to their website.
Like, it's like a curtain that you're not supposed to go behind. You know, like the kids are all trying to look in and see what's going on in there.
Shawnté Salabert
00:19:40.414 - 00:19:48.230
I was gonna say there will be some like, guy with a mustache over there, but then I'm looking at you right now on zoom and you a guy with a mustache. Maybe this all works.
Colin True
00:19:49.770 - 00:19:54.898
Okay, so, all right, so wait. All right, so we got Jet Boy, Whisper Light, the. What was it? Sorry, I closed. I closed the rank.
Shawnté Salabert
00:19:54.914 - 00:19:56.098
I got to go back and rank. I got a rank.
Colin True
00:19:56.114 - 00:19:57.458
Okay, here you got your power ranking.
Shawnté Salabert
00:19:57.474 - 00:20:01.266
Here's my ranking. So wait, what is number one on top? Is number five on top. What's my one's?
Colin True
00:20:01.298 - 00:20:03.170
Number one's? The bet is so go five through one.
Shawnté Salabert
00:20:03.210 - 00:20:08.498
Okay, five is going to be the Coleman double burner. I'm not going to talk about backpacking. Is this going to be backpacking?
Colin True
00:20:08.514 - 00:20:11.650
But if this is. If you're. No, this is just a, like, your favorite stove list.
Shawnté Salabert
00:20:11.690 - 00:20:18.430
All right, rewind. Five is going to be the tin can. I do not like. Listen, it's cheap, it's great. But you know what?
Colin True
00:20:18.470 - 00:20:19.726
People swear by that, though.
Shawnté Salabert
00:20:19.798 - 00:20:36.574
I know. Ultralight backpackers love these things. You make it out of a cat food can. You make it out of a beer can.
Whatever the problem is, you have to use alcohol. These are alcohol stoves. And so I have Watched people, like, set grass on fire using them. And I am much too clumsy. I cannot be trusted.
So I don't want to be the cause.
Colin True
00:20:36.702 - 00:20:41.022
Go back to listening to the last episode when Shantae was on about how she feels about fires.
Shawnté Salabert
00:20:41.086 - 00:20:51.866
Yeah, guys, not into that. So I'm trying not to start my own. I get my California campfire permit every year, and I promise those people that I will be a good Smokey Bear.
So we're going to put Tin can at number five.
Colin True
00:20:52.018 - 00:20:52.442
Love it.
Shawnté Salabert
00:20:52.466 - 00:20:54.698
Okay, then I'm going to Coleman.
Colin True
00:20:54.714 - 00:20:55.434
Then I'll go.
Shawnté Salabert
00:20:55.522 - 00:21:06.234
Oh, now, wait. Now, hang on, because we're going to put the. This is sacrilege. I'm going to commit some sacrilege right here. The Whisper Light is number four.
Colin True
00:21:06.402 - 00:21:06.826
Okay.
Shawnté Salabert
00:21:06.858 - 00:21:07.578
Okay.
Colin True
00:21:07.754 - 00:21:13.834
It's just the legacy, right? It was kind of that first one, the white G. The whole thing. Right. Yeah.
Shawnté Salabert
00:21:13.962 - 00:21:16.028
Although. Oh, I do a lot of.
Colin True
00:21:16.084 - 00:21:18.556
Do you want to swap out Whisper Light for pocket rockets?
Shawnté Salabert
00:21:18.668 - 00:21:23.720
No. Yeah. Oh. Because I do a lot of winter backpacking, and you do want the white gas for that.
Colin True
00:21:24.180 - 00:21:25.388
Okay. So it should be on the list.
Shawnté Salabert
00:21:25.444 - 00:21:27.436
All right. We're going to keep it on the list. We're going to keep it hot.
Colin True
00:21:27.508 - 00:21:28.268
That's number four.
Shawnté Salabert
00:21:28.404 - 00:21:39.132
We're going to put. Fine. We're going to do tin can 5. Pocket rocket 4. I'm so sorry. Pocket Rocket. You are my first. I love you. Ooh. Jetboil. Number three.
Colin True
00:21:39.236 - 00:21:39.500
Really?
Shawnté Salabert
00:21:39.540 - 00:21:43.404
Those things. Those things boil water. They're really good at it. They're also great for winter.
Colin True
00:21:43.452 - 00:21:49.726
That's what I mean. It's. But I don't see that as a. That's not a, like, disparagement on Jet Boy.
Shawnté Salabert
00:21:49.758 - 00:21:50.062
It's not.
Colin True
00:21:50.086 - 00:21:50.302
It's not.
Shawnté Salabert
00:21:50.326 - 00:21:59.374
They do their thing really well, and you can use kind of like wide, low, big ones where you can cook inside. But it's not the best cooking vessel, but it does.
Colin True
00:21:59.462 - 00:22:06.862
It's one of those, like, if you're outdoorsy, it's in your kit. Like, there's very few other products like Jetboil or in that kind of camp. So.
Shawnté Salabert
00:22:06.886 - 00:22:31.320
Yeah, I mostly use mine to melt snow these days, but, yeah, there you go. Yeah. All right, so then if we're going. And then. Then we'll put the Coleman double burner at number two, because that is a classic. I own one.
It was probably the first outdoor stove I've ever owned. They as advertised, and they're ubiquitous. You could see them everywhere. Anyone can learn how to use one of those suckers.
Like, you know, I've cooked A lot of good food on a Coleman.
Colin True
00:22:31.480 - 00:22:32.216
There you go.
Shawnté Salabert
00:22:32.288 - 00:22:39.032
And then, yeah, let's go ahead and put the Whisper Light at number one. Knowing that if I had my druthers, it would be the Soto Windmaster.
Colin True
00:22:39.096 - 00:22:41.324
It'd be the Soto Windmaster. I gotcha.
Shawnté Salabert
00:22:41.372 - 00:22:41.884
Yeah.
Colin True
00:22:42.012 - 00:22:45.036
Is that. Is the Soto Windmaster available on garage grown gear?
Shawnté Salabert
00:22:45.148 - 00:22:54.732
It might be. I. I would have to look. I'm gonna guess that if they could, they would sell it because it's really popular with backpackers.
In fact, maybe that is where I bought mine. That's a great question.
Colin True
00:22:54.916 - 00:23:24.528
Well, because, you know, if you're looking to lighten your load, garage grown gear is your go to hub for backpacking gear from the coolest, small and out ultralight brands out there.
If you're through hiking long distances or just overnighting with some friends, backpacking is more comfortable when you're carrying less, less weight in your pack. With free shipping on orders over $50, GGG makes Lightning your pack an easy and fun experience. Check out the most specialty of specialty shops.
That's a good tagline. Got to give them respect on that one. @garagegrowing gear.com GGG I've never, ever.
Shawnté Salabert
00:23:24.584 - 00:23:30.432
I just always say it out loud. It's like when I say Ross, I don't say Ross. I say Ross. Dress for less garage growing gear.
Colin True
00:23:30.496 - 00:23:31.408
You just say it all together.
Shawnté Salabert
00:23:31.464 - 00:23:32.000
Say it all together.
Colin True
00:23:32.040 - 00:23:34.980
Yeah. Are you a Scott Pilgrim vs. The World fan?
Shawnté Salabert
00:23:35.060 - 00:23:39.044
No. Oh, not because getting lack of. I just haven't seen it. Read it.
Colin True
00:23:39.132 - 00:23:40.100
You've never seen it?
Chris DeMakes
00:23:40.140 - 00:23:40.676
No.
Colin True
00:23:40.828 - 00:23:46.564
Oh. We need to figure out a way to make that outdoorsy so we can do it for the podcast because it's. It's like I can watch outside in parts.
Shawnté Salabert
00:23:46.612 - 00:23:47.876
I'm watching on my phone outside.
Colin True
00:23:47.948 - 00:23:50.580
There's snow. Like it's fine. Yeah, There you go.
Shawnté Salabert
00:23:50.700 - 00:23:52.020
Just like for the limit.
Colin True
00:23:52.100 - 00:23:56.884
There's a GGG logo in there. And I can't see GGG for garage room gear without thinking of Scott Pilgrim.
Shawnté Salabert
00:23:56.932 - 00:23:59.018
But anyway, I have zero reference.
Colin True
00:23:59.084 - 00:24:17.694
Nice. I know, right? So I have a new segment for the show that. And this next segment is presented by Oboz, but I need help naming it. Right.
So it's going to be. I got some options here. So more Everest, more problems. It's my first option. Everyone loves hiking. Everyone is annoyed by Everest. No. Yeah.
Ice doctors are spin doctors.
Shawnté Salabert
00:24:17.822 - 00:24:19.650
I don't know spin doctors.
Colin True
00:24:20.310 - 00:24:23.230
I could not. I was struggling. I should have used chat GPT.
Shawnté Salabert
00:24:23.310 - 00:24:27.006
You know, I immediately have that song in my head.
Colin True
00:24:27.078 - 00:24:30.862
Two princes are in your head now. Yeah. You're of a certain age. I'm there with you.
Shawnté Salabert
00:24:30.966 - 00:24:32.174
Thanks a lot for that.
Colin True
00:24:32.342 - 00:24:37.278
That's my gift to you. For the rest of the week, I'm gonna get random texts from you like, God damn it, it's still in my head.
Shawnté Salabert
00:24:37.334 - 00:24:38.530
I hate you, Colin.
Colin True
00:24:39.670 - 00:25:16.922
Well, the reason I'm bringing this up because it's Preseason time for Mount Everest stories. You got OTAs and training camp, and then that opens up the season because all of our annual Everest stories are going to hit soon.
It's like, they play the hits every year come sp.
But according to ExplorersWeb, this upcoming season, the famed Sherpa ice doctors who every year have to find a route through the Khumpu Icefall, which is known as the quote, shittiest job on Everest because that's a pretty shitty job. We have to figure out how to, like, let's.
Let's find a route through this massive ice ball where we could die at any moment and there's no clear path. We'll put ladders where we need to over things that will. We will die if we fall into it.
Shawnté Salabert
00:25:16.946 - 00:25:18.986
They will move by the inch every single day.
Colin True
00:25:19.138 - 00:25:54.134
Right? So they're getting a hand this year. This year, cargo drones will scout ahead of the ice doctors and find the safest line.
A team of drone operators are currently on their way to Everest base camp as of this recording. Recording. They will then map the best route through the icefall to Camp 1. Apparently, the ice doctors have also already begun fixing lines and.
But now they will have help as they work on the rest. I mean, I'm always sort of torn on these types of stories because on one hand it's like, this is great.
These poor people who have this shitty job, they're getting an assist. On the other hand, it's another case of, like, just more shit arriving on Everest.
They're like, oh, good, now we have drones, like, zipping around the Khumbu Icefall. That sounds great.
Shawnté Salabert
00:25:54.222 - 00:25:54.582
Yeah.
Colin True
00:25:54.646 - 00:25:58.050
So I don't know, do you have any. What are your thoughts on Everest?
Shawnté Salabert
00:25:58.130 - 00:26:35.612
My thoughts on Everest? I mean, I, you know, so one of the outlets that I've written for a lot over the years that I super duper respect is alpinist.
And there is a never writing about Everest rule for alpinist because it's so far removed, I think, from what we consider, you know, true mountaineering to be. And it's not to say that it doesn't take skill, especially if you're climbing out there on your own. You know, you see that every year.
You Know, and I've certainly never been up there. Not that I necessarily wanted to. I think it's, you know, I hate to say that it's been cheapened, but, you know, Everest is a. Oh, it's not cheap.
It's not cheap. Yeah, that's true. It will cost you a lot of.
Colin True
00:26:35.636 - 00:26:38.940
Money, potentially your life, you know, small.
Shawnté Salabert
00:26:38.980 - 00:27:19.992
Price to pay for Instagram photos and glory for the rest of your life. But, you know, I think it's a sacred place for a lot of people.
And it's also by all accounts a beautiful place that has been sort of of used and abused by many, many people seeking that glory. So I'm not a fan of the sort of like, let's go conquer mountains vibe. It's just same.
I think we should be so far past at this point in humanity, why do we still do this? Yeah. Everest, to me, it's interesting when you, you know, I've read, you know, Jon Krakauer arguably is why I got into backpacking.
I'm kind of mad about that. But. Yeah.
Colin True
00:27:20.056 - 00:27:25.100
Are you gonna pick fights with YouTubers on. On your podcast as well or on your YouTube Chann?
Shawnté Salabert
00:27:25.660 - 00:27:26.468
I will. Yeah.
Colin True
00:27:26.564 - 00:27:27.440
Okay, good.
Shawnté Salabert
00:27:28.220 - 00:27:40.880
But no, you know, I don't. I think to each their own. It's not. It's not on my list. It's not a place that I think I'll ever visit.
I would love to see it from afar when I don't have to see all the shit that's on it. Literal and metaphoric. So.
Colin True
00:27:41.180 - 00:28:16.460
Right, right. No kidding. Yeah. It's one of these things where I'm like, I'm not gonna talk about in the pod. I don't wanna bring it on.
But then every year there's just this parade of stories come out. So clearly they must be getting. They're getting clicks and people want to continue to read these things. I'm with you. Like, yeah.
And this is probably why the. Maybe the Spin Doctors reference works. Because again, we're of a certain age and like, you know, I read into, like I read into Thin Air, which I.
I've joked on this on the pod before.
Like, always cracks me up that, like, I read that this horrific story of people dying on the world's tallest mountain, and I'm like, I want to go do more outdoorsy things. Like, how the hell does that happen?
Shawnté Salabert
00:28:16.500 - 00:28:20.720
What is wrong with me? Into the wild. I would love to go solo backpacking. Yes.
Colin True
00:28:21.540 - 00:28:34.792
Well, that's where outside got it wrong with their recent, like, edicts about, like, what to write about. It's like, no, actually, it's this sort of reverse psych where people read these horrific stories, and they're like, I want to go outside too.
So it's bizarre the way we are wired.
Shawnté Salabert
00:28:34.856 - 00:28:45.180
I wonder, do you think that's because we think that subconsciously we think I could do it better? Or subconsciously we're like, maybe one day I could write a bestseller about the things that went wrong on my trip.
Colin True
00:28:46.480 - 00:29:05.522
You know, we should probably seek out some sort of, like, psychotherapist to come on and talk. There's gotta be some reason why the people find inspiration. Even, like, the Perfect Storm.
Like, I've never want to go on a fishing boat, but, like, there was a really inspirational thing about that that made me. I don't know. It's a bizarre thing. It's a weird human trait.
Shawnté Salabert
00:29:05.586 - 00:29:16.818
I mean, speaking of outside, I interviewed Tammy Ashcroft years ago for Outside. She is the woman that the movie Adrift was based on. She wrote a book about. I think it was called Red, Not Red dawn, something like that.
Colin True
00:29:16.954 - 00:29:17.874
That's another good movie.
Shawnté Salabert
00:29:17.922 - 00:29:23.150
Yeah, I didn't see it. Shailene Woodley. Good on her for being alone a lot in the water.
Colin True
00:29:23.610 - 00:29:25.346
Wait, are we talking about Red Dawn?
Shawnté Salabert
00:29:25.458 - 00:29:26.146
Red Dawn?
Colin True
00:29:26.258 - 00:29:29.490
Not Red dawn, the Patrick Swayze movie from We Are Not.
Shawnté Salabert
00:29:29.610 - 00:29:58.546
I'm forgetting, because her book isn't called Adrift, it's called something else. But I interviewed her, and I remember being done with the interview.
This poor woman has, you know, spent all this time just alone in the middle of the ocean without a working sail. Her partner's, like, gone overboard, missing, and I was like, boy, what an adventure. Like, what's wrong with me? I don't even.
Like, I live in California. I don't ever go to the ocean because it terrifies me. Why do I suddenly find the need to, like, get on a. A boat? I don't want to get on a boat.
Colin True
00:29:58.658 - 00:30:29.882
Boats are. Boats are scary. Yeah, I. I think, like, big, big, big ocean voyages are. Are. Justin and I have talked about this. It's. It's scary as hell. Yeah.
I don't know. I don't know what it is. And. And the Everest thing, it continues to just peak interest and.
And now I think some of it's a little bit of a car crash kind of interest because of the. The lines and things like that. We talked enough about that in the pod, but. Yeah, but I. I don't know. Here we go.
Drones now mapping out out the Khumbu Icefall. So that's the latest we have on Everest hopefully they pick up some bags of shit along the way. That would be great, right?
Shawnté Salabert
00:30:29.986 - 00:30:32.714
Maybe some human remains to bring them back to their family.
Colin True
00:30:32.802 - 00:30:33.226
Why not?
Shawnté Salabert
00:30:33.298 - 00:30:33.690
Why not?
Colin True
00:30:33.730 - 00:30:48.698
You know? You know. Anyway, this episode of the Rock Fight is presented by Oboz, who is helping us ask the question, how do I love hiking?
Let me count the ways and today's reasons. Number one, no WI fi, no problems. Except when you forget the map. Then it might be a slight problem.
Shawnté Salabert
00:30:48.754 - 00:30:51.246
Well, then you. You call me and I'll teach you how to navigate.
Colin True
00:30:51.438 - 00:30:57.730
See, that's true. And you'll sell them a kula cloth, because that was part of the process, apparently.
Shawnté Salabert
00:30:58.950 - 00:31:04.770
I've got like five at this point. I love one body. Five kula cloths. You do the math.
Colin True
00:31:06.070 - 00:31:11.534
Number two, tree conversations. They don't talk back. They sure listen well. Do you talk to trees?
Shawnté Salabert
00:31:11.662 - 00:31:19.954
I do. They talk back mostly when I'm hugging them. Colin. I like to think they're talking back. I mean, they have all.
Colin True
00:31:20.042 - 00:31:21.218
It's the ends of talk back.
Shawnté Salabert
00:31:21.274 - 00:31:23.550
Yeah. Yeah. It's emotional for me.
Colin True
00:31:24.410 - 00:31:29.810
Number three is that summit high. The unbeatable feeling of conquering something. Even if it's just a big hill.
Shawnté Salabert
00:31:29.890 - 00:31:32.754
What you're really conquering is what's inside of you.
Colin True
00:31:32.922 - 00:31:34.514
It is true. You're not conquering anything.
Shawnté Salabert
00:31:34.562 - 00:31:36.178
The hill does not give a shit that you're there.
Colin True
00:31:36.234 - 00:31:56.596
The hill could not care less. Number four means finding your soulmates. We keep telling you about Roads, Rivers and Trails of Milford, Ohio.
If you find yourself in the greater Milford area, pop in and say hi to the folks at Roads, Rivers and Trails. Maybe buy a pair of Oboz boots while you're there. Also, I think it's fun that we're shouting out Ohio when Owen Comerfruit comes on the show.
Lives in Michigan. A lot of beef between, you know. Oh, I don't have to tell you. You're from Wisconsin.
Shawnté Salabert
00:31:56.628 - 00:32:00.388
Oh, I know all about Midwestern beef. Literal and metaphoric, you know.
Colin True
00:32:00.444 - 00:32:01.028
There you go.
Shawnté Salabert
00:32:01.084 - 00:32:04.980
My stepdad just retired from 43 years in the beef industry. True story.
Colin True
00:32:05.020 - 00:32:05.588
Did he really?
Shawnté Salabert
00:32:05.644 - 00:32:18.970
He did. And he. He sent my sisters and I texts for, like, two weeks that he was going to be. And it was worded the same each time.
After 49 years of employment, 43 of them in the beef industry, I will be retiring soon.
Colin True
00:32:19.270 - 00:32:21.182
How many? He sent you the same text message?
Shawnté Salabert
00:32:21.246 - 00:32:23.850
Yeah. Very big business.
Colin True
00:32:24.550 - 00:32:27.502
He's like, I found this one joke. I'm gonna milk it for all that it's worth.
Shawnté Salabert
00:32:27.566 - 00:32:30.250
I'm gonna go with copy paste. Is the answer here.
Colin True
00:32:30.790 - 00:33:07.786
Listen, sometimes you just gotta, you know, play the hits. And apparently that one was working for him. Yep. At number five, hiking means the Obo's Katabata collection which has added.
Added the all new Katabatic lt which takes the whole collection to a new level with a lighter package, improved performance and additional environmentally friendly materials. Fast packing day hiking, whatever your fancy. The Katabatic LT is your hiking shoe of choice in this hiking appreciation moment.
It's brought to you by oboz of Bozeman, Montana. Certified B Corp, 6 million tree planter and proud inhabitant of the Greater Yellowstone ecosystem.
Oboz is the maker of premium quality foam footwear for the trail and the Cupid to the outdoor world.
Shawnté Salabert
00:33:07.858 - 00:33:08.202
Wow.
Colin True
00:33:08.266 - 00:33:10.202
Oboz love hiking.
Shawnté Salabert
00:33:10.346 - 00:33:15.194
The Cupid. Cupid to the outdoor world is quite a wow. Okay.
Colin True
00:33:15.242 - 00:33:22.778
Justin was commenting on that. Cupid is. You don't see Cupid like we used to. And I was wondering if, did Cupid get canceled somehow? Like, should we not be referencing Cupid.
Shawnté Salabert
00:33:22.874 - 00:33:26.106
Wandering around naked all the time? Why? You know, naked. Naked.
Colin True
00:33:26.138 - 00:33:26.970
Love diapers on.
Shawnté Salabert
00:33:27.010 - 00:33:33.310
I don't know about that. Seems very sensual. Maybe that's for the. The podcast where we talk about the outdoor sex shop or whatever.
Colin True
00:33:34.350 - 00:33:36.070
I do think that's a good. That's got to be a thing.
Shawnté Salabert
00:33:36.110 - 00:33:40.166
It's got. It is a thing. I mean, not the shop. The shop doesn't exist yet.
Colin True
00:33:40.238 - 00:34:34.147
Just pops up like magic on the trail when you need it. You know, it's like a. All right, well, it's time for the parting shot. My parting shot is that I want to let people know the hype is real.
The other day, I got my first pair of nordas. A pair of 002s. I'm still deciding if I'm okay with their naming convention. I kind of like it. It's just like double O and then a number.
I respect that. Yeah. So our normal Wednesday guy, Justin Hausman, has been raving about these shoes since last summer.
And I've heard many others also sing their praises. So my expectations could not have been higher. Like, I really was like, okay, I'm probably going to love these.
And as I've said on the POD before, I've been a lone peak guy, you know, ultra lone peaks for a long time. Last year I tried out the Topo Pursuit 2s. Thought they were great, great shoes. I also recently tried out the arc'teryx Norvans. They were okay.
They look good. Great looking shoe, I will say.
Shawnté Salabert
00:34:34.203 - 00:34:36.899
And it only costs $7,000 each.
Colin True
00:34:37.019 - 00:34:38.723
Yeah, I know. Actually, I was. Yeah.
Shawnté Salabert
00:34:38.771 - 00:34:39.219
Right.
Colin True
00:34:39.339 - 00:35:42.678
That's right. And you have to fly to China to get them.
I thought I'd probably end up back, though, in Lone Peaks, especially when I finally got a pair of the nine pluses, which I was excited to try out. Those are the ones with Vibram outsoles, but holy. As a new horse entered the race, the Nordas lived up to the hype and then some.
They really feel like the best parts of a Lone peak combined with the best part of a hoka.
And if they can truly achieve making something that lasts 1,000 miles like they say they want to do, I think everyone needs to look out because they're 300 bucks. But it's like, well, finally, if you're going to get 1,000 miles out of them, that's completely worth it.
The disposability of athletic footwear to me is one of the biggest problems we need to solve. So my parting shot is to Norda to, hey, figure out how to make that longevity a key part of what sets them apart. And the messaging.
They talk a lot about Dyneema, which is cool. We know our pal Lloyd at Garage Grown Gear is a big Dyneema guy. Guy. But most people who buy their shoes won't care about Dyneema.
I think what they'll care about is not having to buy two to three additional pairs of shoes every year. So parting shot to you or to figure that out. But overall, holy. Are these shoes good? Really, really surprised at how much I liked my nordis.
Shawnté Salabert
00:35:42.774 - 00:36:09.506
Wow. All right, well, you have finally convinced me. I keep hearing, hearing about Nordas. I have not checked them out.
I got to check them out because you mentioned ultras and you mentioned hoka's two shoes I wear on trail, so. All right, final look them up. I actually have been testing out a PA pair of flux footwears Adapt trail runners. They are.
Yeah, they're a barefoot style kind of, you know, or I should really say like zero flux.
Colin True
00:36:09.538 - 00:36:11.042
Like flex capacitor flux.
Shawnté Salabert
00:36:11.106 - 00:36:13.842
Yeah. No capacitor. Just adapter.
Colin True
00:36:13.986 - 00:36:14.962
No time travel.
Shawnté Salabert
00:36:15.026 - 00:36:21.842
I wish I will. Well, I do. I did run my fastest, fastest sprint the other day in them. So take of that.
Colin True
00:36:21.866 - 00:36:22.674
What you interesting.
Shawnté Salabert
00:36:22.722 - 00:36:28.430
I'm taking a look at these. You know, it could also just be because I have been working, I've been lifting. I don't know if I told you.
Colin True
00:36:28.730 - 00:36:29.554
You look pretty buff.
Shawnté Salabert
00:36:29.602 - 00:36:30.962
Thank you, thank you.
Colin True
00:36:30.986 - 00:36:31.270
Ye.
Shawnté Salabert
00:36:31.330 - 00:36:48.590
I've been lifting, so I'm going to attribute it to that and also the fact that I wanted to get home and eat breakfast, but I. So these Flux Shoes. I get them in the mail. I'm looking at them, I'm like, all right, they're. They're super duper lightweight.
They've got the kind of ultra giant toe box vibe going on, but not.
Colin True
00:36:48.630 - 00:36:49.550
Which all shoes should have.
Shawnté Salabert
00:36:49.590 - 00:37:00.164
Yeah, they should. Your toes don't want to be all scrunchy in there. So my toes have a nice splay to them, as the technical wording goes.
It feels gross to say that, but that's what they're doing in there.
Colin True
00:37:00.252 - 00:37:01.760
And way back to the sex.
Shawnté Salabert
00:37:02.140 - 00:37:06.628
Right back to the sex talk. Sex talk with Shantay. Wow.
Colin True
00:37:06.724 - 00:37:07.684
There's the podcast.
Shawnté Salabert
00:37:07.732 - 00:37:29.472
I apologize for all the listeners you've just lost. So. Yeah, but these. These Flux. So I have been running in them. I've been wearing them at the gym because they've got zero drops, so they're great.
And they've got a really thin sole, but the sole is super grippy, but it's not even Vibram. It's just like regular ass rubber. I shockingly enough, love. I.
Colin True
00:37:29.576 - 00:37:30.080
Awesome.
Shawnté Salabert
00:37:30.160 - 00:37:43.840
Yeah. I don't know what happened to me because I have arthritis in my feet.
So for me having, like, HOKA were recommended by my podiatrist and, like, old woman, you must wear these. And you know what? Don't tell him, but I kind of like these shoes.
Colin True
00:37:43.920 - 00:37:48.576
So is it the Adapt Trail Runner? Is that the one? I was just looking at that. Yeah. It's a good looking shoe, actually.
Shawnté Salabert
00:37:48.648 - 00:38:00.422
Yeah, yeah, that's the thing. It actually looks nice. It feels nice. It has like a nice little built in sock liner kind of situation. So I don't get any dirt in there. No schmutz.
Yeah, it's. I love them.
Colin True
00:38:00.606 - 00:38:01.190
Okay.
Shawnté Salabert
00:38:01.270 - 00:38:02.006
Yeah.
Colin True
00:38:02.198 - 00:38:03.366
Flux. Adapt Trail Runners.
Shawnté Salabert
00:38:03.398 - 00:38:03.558
Yes.
Colin True
00:38:03.574 - 00:38:05.926
Do you. Do you. Is that. Is that your parting shot? Do you have another parting shot?
Shawnté Salabert
00:38:05.958 - 00:38:29.458
Well, I'm gonna add. I'm gonna add a bonus parting shot. And this is more of like a meditative parting shot. I just got back from Austin.
I was there for south by Southwest for the music festival. For people who don't know, I actually have a whole day job doing music licensing. I lead a double life. And so I was there for music. And this is.
In all the years I've gone to Austin for South by Southwest, this is the most dead that it's ever felt. Reminded me.
Colin True
00:38:29.514 - 00:38:29.794
Wow.
Shawnté Salabert
00:38:29.842 - 00:38:34.818
Yeah, it was. It was just crickets for me. I think you had a different experience because you went earlier.
Colin True
00:38:34.874 - 00:38:37.506
Yeah, I was outside the festival, though. Yeah, yeah, yeah.
Shawnté Salabert
00:38:37.618 - 00:40:06.220
This was weird.
It reminded me of when or when the show was Sort of suddenly vacillating between doing the weird three times a year thing, and then, no, we're going to do it two times a year and then we're going to go to Utah, and then we're not going to go to Utah. And then, like all the stuff. It reminded me of one of those weird in between third shows that they did where it was just the.
The halls were dead and there was nobody there.
And it really got me thinking about what is the function of a trade show or a convention, a gathering of the people, as it would be in whether it's any industry, music industry, outdoor industry. It just got me really thinking about what makes for a good modern trade show.
Apparently they're going to combine all of south by Southwest next year into one week where everything is happening simultaneously. Music, film and TV and interact, which I don't think is a bad idea.
I think it's similar to the concept of, you know, that people have talked about with combining different trade shows and trying to make everything sort of happen, you know, simultaneously, where you have a more. Not maybe literally grassroots, but more like a grassroots and then the bigger stuff. Yeah, I don't know. It just.
My parting shot is like, hey, trade shows figure out what makes people tick in 2025. We want to be together, we want to find community, we want to have opportunities for discovery.
And we're so sick of, like, all of the bland corpor that has taken over trade shows. So that's my parting shot, is figure it out, guys.
Colin True
00:40:06.800 - 00:41:33.072
I don't think it's that hard. And it's funny. It's really funny you bring that up because we don't.
You kind of forget now, given between just Covid and everything else that happened that there was, I don't know, five, six years where.
Or just kept trying to, like, bend to the will of every tiny group of like, we want more shows, we want less shows, we want it here, we want it there, we want to have it this time of year. And so it was kind of. Everybody was a little ready to be done anyway. You know, you kind of forget that now. And. And I've said this. We've.
We're going to Switchback. Switchback is advertised on the podcast.
I'm optimistic, but I think the thing that they need to port over from the running event, and I think I've said this on the pod before. If I. If I have, I'm repeating myself, is that the running event is not a running.
It is a running trade show, but it doesn't feel like, it's a trade show. It feels like it is a running event, and it's like the running community showing up for this communal experience.
Experience every November, December, whenever it is. That's what Switchback or whatever show Wins needs to do. Because it's not.
No one's sitting around going, man, I really wish we had more opportunities to book orders, you know, and see. And see products and see line showings. No, everyone's saying, I wish we had more opportunities to get together and have the vibe of the show.
And Doug Schnitzbahn's been on here talking about how. Remember when we'd have, like, the Conservation alliance breakfast? It's kind of set the tone for, like, this is the thing that's going to matter.
And then booths had, you know, little, like, you know, footprints out front for their environmental things that they were working on. And. And you would then you come back six months later and be like, oh, what are you doing?
To kind of follow up on what you were working on six months ago?
Shawnté Salabert
00:41:33.176 - 00:42:08.684
It felt like there was a vision. It felt like people come together. We can each figure out sort of our role in it.
It felt like, you know, as a journalist, as a writer, there was a place for me there. Obviously, there's always a place for buyers and sellers, like, you know, or buyers, retailers.
It's, you know, it's something really important, though, I think, is this idea of human connection. And, you know, we see that especially coming off of the pandemic or like, you know, things like that.
Is that, like, yeah, let's be creative about this. Yes, we can get work done, but we get work done really well together. So let's.
Let's take all of the good things that worked, kick all the bad things out the door, and let's try again. Let's try to. Because it was sad.
Colin True
00:42:08.732 - 00:42:08.988
This.
Shawnté Salabert
00:42:09.044 - 00:42:21.680
This south by Southwest was sad. And it just took me right back to that empty, like, same feeling. I was just like, oh, my gosh.
I feel like I'm just walking around here, like, staring at nothing and everybody pretending it's the emperor's, you know, new clothes situation.
Colin True
00:42:22.310 - 00:42:37.406
So I'd never been to south by before. I still technically haven't, right. Because I went to this sort of.
This thing I went to Midwest House was happening kind of in it, you know, outside of the show, when south by is working at its best, what makes. What would make it, like, what was a good year at south by for you? You're like, oh, my God, that was incredible. I can't wait to go Back next year.
Like what made it good.
Shawnté Salabert
00:42:37.478 - 00:43:44.180
It's similar to what made good or is good is that you had a combination of knowing you could go there and learn and connect with people in the industry. So, like, the conference itself was popping. You would go to.
I would spend more time at the convention center during the day and then go to all the parties in the afternoon and in the evening because there were worthwhile things being talked about in the convention center. There were great conversations, great panels. It felt like it wasn't a waste of time. And this year there was hardly anything going on in there.
And then you had all of the things in a good or a good south by was the opportunity to actually discover music. So it was. There were enough artists, enough bands there, just like there are enough brands at a good or.
Or a good trade show in the outdoor industry that you felt like, okay, I could see the ones that I want to see and then I can discover ones that I'm not familiar with. And maybe that changes, you know, what I write about or whatnot in the music industry. Maybe here's a band that I want to pursue working with.
So it's similar. They're trade shows, they're conferences.
The best of the best is where you can get business done, you can get discovery done, and you can get connection.
Colin True
00:43:45.880 - 00:43:46.576
There it is.
Shawnté Salabert
00:43:46.648 - 00:43:47.728
There it is. That's all just guys.
Colin True
00:43:47.744 - 00:43:48.448
There it is.
Shawnté Salabert
00:43:48.584 - 00:43:49.584
Hire me, I'll be your.
Colin True
00:43:49.672 - 00:43:52.208
And pop up sex toy shops. That was the other thing we Listen.
Shawnté Salabert
00:43:52.224 - 00:43:56.826
That'S been missing from all purposes professional conferences. I hate to say all of them, except.
Colin True
00:43:56.858 - 00:43:58.778
Except for like the AVN Awards. That's the only one.
Shawnté Salabert
00:43:58.834 - 00:44:00.630
They've really cornered the market on that.
Colin True
00:44:02.450 - 00:44:12.154
We figured it all out. Look at this one time on the show. This is why you're the goat. You came on. Got it all dialed in now. Next week, Justin's going to be back.
Everyone's like, oh, man, where's the sex toy conversation?
Shawnté Salabert
00:44:12.282 - 00:44:16.430
I mean, Justin, listen, I passed the baton. That is not a euphemism.
Colin True
00:44:20.790 - 00:44:44.942
Well, we'll wrap it up right there. All right, that's the show for today. We want your emails, especially about this episode.
Send them to myrockfightmail.com the Rock Fight's a production of Rock Fight LLC. For Shantae Salibair, I'm Colin True. Thanks for listening. And here to take us out. It's someone who probably was not at south by Southwest.
I don't know if he's ever been there, but Chris Demaiks from Less Than Jake. He's here to sing the Rock Fight Fight song. And we'll see you next time, Rock fighters.
Chris DeMakes
00:44:45.006 - 00:45:40.940
Rock fight. Rock fight. Rock fight. Rock fight. Rock fight. Rock bike. Welcome to the Rock bike?
Where we speak our truth, Slay sacred cows and sometimes agree to disagree.
We talk about human powered outdoor activities and big bites about topics that we find interesting like pop culture music, the latest movie reviews, Ideas that aim for the head. This is where we speak our truth. This is where we speak our truth. Rock flight. Rock flight. Rock fight. Welcome to the Rock flight.
Rock flight, Rock flight? Welcome to the Rock flight. Rock flight. Rock flight. Rock flight. Rock flight, Rock flight? Welcome to the Rock flight. Rock fight. Rock flight.
Colin True
00:45:43.280 - 00:45:43.920
Rock right.