Every fall, a crew from Backbone heads south to Santa Fe to visit our good friends at Outside magazine. The trip is a great opportunity to show off our clients’ coolest new gear and apparel, in a more personal and intimate setting than a tradeshow. Of course, a fall trip to Santa Fe wouldn’t be complete without squeezing in some mountain biking and green chili as well. With mountain biking forming an integral part of the trip, it is important to get the best out of it with the right kind of equipment. Six of the best offers the best prices for ardent wanderlusts from a variety of sources.
After a seven-hour car ride down on Tuesday, Aaron, Sam, Grayson, Nick and Matt helped us stretch out our legs on an awesome (albeit wet) ride on the Winsor trail network. We finished in the dark and headed straight to the Tesuque Village Market for tasty margaritas and enchiladas.
On Wednesday morning in Outside’s courtyard, we organized a fashion show of sorts, with our team modeling cutting edge “kits” for skiing, snowboarding, cycling, fly-fishing, running, climbing, camping, hiking and travel, featuring the latest and greatest products from all our clients. With 50 brands in our portfolio, our clients can outfit just about every imaginable adventure.
Trending: New mongoose dolomite bike!
After spending the morning at the Outside offices, we made a critical stop at the Big Lots parking lot, where local vendors were roasting fresh green chilies from Hatch, NM. We packed over 40 pounds of chili into our truck, atop all of the spring ’14 product we had hauled down with us. Writers, if that new jacket, pack or pair of shoes we send you smells a bit spicy, now you know why.
Back in our Carbondale office the next day, it felt like a scene from Breaking Bad, as JLD was dividing up and selling dime bags of the chili we brought back. It sold like the “blue sky” on the show, and left some of us wondering if JLD shouldn’t quit his job, shave his head, pick up a German alias and start importing green chili full time….
More photos from the trip below.
BK points out some of the technical features on new Spring ’14 climbing pants from La Sportiva.
Mavis, ready to run
Ian models the new POC AVIP line
Erik and BK show off the latest fly-fishing and upland hunting gear.
Mike Shea chats with Aaron Gulley
Green chili goodness