When starting a new outdoor pursuit, should you buy your gear or rent it first?
Is renting gear only for beginners?
What kinds of outdoor gear should you rent, and which ones should you buy?
In episode 7 of the Outdoor Minimalist podcast, Reet Singh, co-founder of TripOutside, and I explore questions like this as well as the pros and cons of renting vs. owning, mindset surrounding having to own gear, and the ins and outs of the outfitter industry.
Reet gets stoked about mountain biking, scrambling mountains, backcountry camping, snowboarding, and introducing others to outdoor adventure.
Where to find him: Trying new experiences, meditating, playing with your dog, mountain biking, and falling from stuff.
Founded by Reet and his wife Julie, TripOutside helps people get outside and enjoy human-powered adventures. The platform provides outdoor inspiration for human-powered adventures and allows users to discover adventures, check availability across local outfitters, and easy online booking.
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TRIPOUTSIDE WEBSITE: https://www.tripoutside.com/
TRIPOUTSIDE INSTAGRAM: https://www.instagram.com/trip.outside/
This transcript was edited to remove some filler words and phrases and is not verbatim according to what is spoken in the audio recording.
MEG: In this episode of the Outdoor Minimalist Podcast, we'll be discussing a topic that's come up a few different times, but I think it's really important to discuss.
And it's renting versus owning your own outdoor gear.
There's pros and cons to both, but we're going to kind of discuss mindsets surrounding it, sustainability, and just accessibility.
So to help me explore this topic, I have the pleasure of talking to Reet Singh, the co-owner of Trip Outside.
Trip Outside helps people get outside and enjoy human-powered adventures. The platform provides outdoor inspiration for human-powered adventures and allows users to discover adventures, check availability across local outfitters, and easily book online.
So thank you for joining me today, Reet. I'm excited to have you on the show, and I know a little bit about your outdoor passions just from previous conversations. But before we jump into the topic of renting versus owning gear, can you share a little bit more about your love of the outdoors and how Trip Outside got started?
REET: Absolutely, thanks for having me on today, Meg. My partner, Julie, my wife and co-founder, and I used to travel a lot for outdoor activities. We used to live in Atlanta, and every weekend we were out for camping trips or mountain biking trips—either locally or traveling to places like Moab, where we are right now, or Sedona, and ski trips every year.
Overall, we just knew that that's what we loved doing in our lives, and our corporate lives were not making us as happy. We were surrounded in the retail environment, and it was just very different from what we enjoyed doing ourselves.
Neither one of us had any outdoor industry experience, but over time, we were looking for jobs at Backcountry or other outdoor companies like REI. Eventually, we decided that we came across a problem that we were finding on our travels a lot, which was researching outdoor things to do in certain destinations, figuring out who provides those experiences—whether it's rentals, tours, or lessons for a lot of these things that we wanted to do—and then finally, the booking process was really painful.
You have to call the outfitters, figure out what's available, book it, and then when you're on your vacation, you're still spending a lot of time filling out paperwork, waivers, payment—all that stuff—while you're on vacation. During that time, we had limited vacation.
After a few years of doing this, we really came to the realization that we wanted to do something ourselves. We wanted to build a solution to solve this problem that we were having, and that's where the idea of Trip Outside came around. We started building it in 2017, quit our jobs at our corporate careers, and hit the road in an RV in 2017 as well. That's how we've been building it since.
MEG: That’s really cool! I personally haven't used the Trip Outside platform, but it's probably something that I would use in the future. When I go places, I end up trying to find rental things if I don't bring all my bikes or something. I want to rent a mountain bike somewhere that I go, and it is hard to find. At least I thought during COVID, it was really hard to find places that were actually doing that. You had to call like 10 different bike places, and they were like, "Sorry, we're not renting anymore," or something like that. So a platform like that makes a lot of sense, and as far as ease of use, that would be really nice.
REET: It definitely became even harder during COVID because you could—before, you had to figure out which bike shops rented, and now you have to figure out which one to rent and if they even have availability of gear. So I think that availability challenge is really difficult because they all use different solutions. Some companies don't use anything at all, but that's a really great problem to solve that hopefully we can give people their time back, so you can spend more time doing the outdoor activity and less time researching and finding and calling or spending your time spinning your wheels online.
MEG: For sure! In previous episodes of the Outdoor Minimalist Podcast, specifically an episode that I did with R&D Financial, we talked a lot about how renting gear can save you money and how it relates to sustainability. But other than that, since you kind of work specifically in the rental outfitter space, what do you think some of the pros of renting gear are for just general consumers?
REET: Oh, this is such a great topic! And by the way, I'm so glad that you're doing an Outdoor Minimalist Podcast. Anything to do with minimalism is really great—any category that you touch, not just for the physical aspect but the mental aspect of not having to have all this extra, quote-unquote, baggage of things you have to take care of or store or just manage in your daily life.
When it comes to outdoor gear, I put a few thoughts together on this. I think renting—there are a few factors to consider before making a general statement. Some things you just want to think about, whether it's buying or renting outdoor gear: frequency of use—how much are you going to be doing this activity? Size—do you have the space to store that equipment? Cost is a huge factor. It's not just the cost of buying the product itself, but think about the total cost of ownership.
For example, if you go get a mountain bike, you still have to buy a bike rack, a lock, maybe a pump, and all the maintenance tools that you have to buy. So your total cost is not just buying the bike. And then you might have to buy a hitch to transport the bikes. All those things, along with the maintenance cost, and that's just one example specific to bikes.
If your frequency is high, then all those things don't matter as much. And then it just depends category by category as well. If you're maybe into skiing, you could buy your boots because they're so important in fit and comfort, but every time you're traveling, you can just rent the skis.
I think there are a lot of benefits that come along with not owning gear. It talks about cost; it's not just the initial cost, but every single gear that you want or every activity that you want to get into—you can't just keep buying all of it because there are so many things to try. Every day, there's a new activity coming out, so I think you free yourself up to try new things, new experiences, and adventures.
If you're open to spending some of your costs and trying new things, then when you really figure out, "Here's one thing I want to do all the time," and my frequency of use is really high, or if it's painful to rent the gear—either through lack of availability or it's really far from the actual activity you want to do—it totally makes sense to buy.
MEG: You touched a little bit on the mindset behind renting versus owning. I think sometimes, at least in my experience with outdoor recreation in some realms, it seems kind of like you should be owning the gear because it's like a status symbol, I guess. Renting can kind of be seen as, "Oh, you're such a beginner," or "You just can't afford to invest in this."
But I don't really like that stigma, I guess is what I'm trying to say, because it seems counterproductive. But I've seen it a lot.
REET: I totally see that.
Yeah, absolutely. It just gives you that newbie feeling. There's a lot of intimidation in the outdoors, right? Like maybe in everything. And there's a lot of marketing dollars spent behind wanting you to buy your own thing and the latest one all the time, right? So I can see how that happens.
But you're absolutely right; there is stigma attached to being a beginner. One thing we are seeing—and we interview a lot of users in different categories—is that we're doing a lot of research in skiing, so I can speak to that. Even advanced and experienced skiers and snowboarders are now preferring to rent more. They're seeing the benefit in trying new demo gear, so they get the latest and greatest because products are changing so fast. Like, every year there’s some new innovation or a new version of the ski or bike that they just can’t keep up with, right?
If they like having new gear or new skis and the latest and greatest, it's better for them to just rent. In some categories, maybe it's changing, where even more advanced users are still renting. Hopefully, that changes. But I really appreciate what you said because there is stigma around how nice your gear is or whether you’re good enough, I suppose, just because you're renting or buying.
MEG: Yeah, that's a really interesting example. Can you rent long-term, like for an entire ski or snowboard season, or is it usually kind of like a one-off thing? I mean, I've only ever rented for maybe five days maximum in my experience with other equipment. Can you do long-term rentals like that anywhere?
REET: Yeah, absolutely. Seasonal ski rentals are totally a thing, and I think it's big for kids as well because they grow out of their sizes so fast. I think that's where you see a lot of seasonal rentals. In a lot of places, yeah, absolutely! In Salt Lake City or a lot of the ski towns, they do offer seasonal ski rentals.
It's not so much in other categories as well, like kayaking and mountain biking and other summer activities. It would be great to see that transition.
MEG: Yeah, because like you're saying, then you can have the newest technology as far as gear goes and can kind of progress more efficiently. It makes a lot of sense for children as well.
What are your views on renting versus borrowing from a friend?
REET: I think borrowing from a friend could be really great. Again, it may vary by category. If it's like a stand-up paddleboard, that's pretty universal, or a kayak—I don't think that's a big deal at all. But when it comes to something that's more size-specific to you or comfort and fit, or it could even be a safety issue if you're sized too small or too big for that specific gear, I think it's probably best to make sure that if you rent, it's the same size—that's perfect.
Making sure that it's the right fit and the right gear for you is important. We absolutely love the idea of borrowing things. I grew up in a culture, actually, in India, where it's like a shared family. Everyone uses everything instead of buying their own things, and the concept of sharing is very common. You don’t even have to ask; if it’s available, you could borrow it.
So I love all the peer-to-peer marketplaces that are coming up in different categories, where one person buys and other people can use those things, especially in camping. Hopefully, that takes off more.
I think the biggest thing is, when you're renting, you do have a little bit of the uncertainty. If you're not sure about the maintenance of the equipment or how often it has been tuned or checked before it's rented, then you might have issues.
Outfitters, at least the ones we work with, make sure that they're going through checklists if rental checklists, and they have the latest gear. It’s not like five-year-old gear that's rusted and just sitting around, which could lead to a safety issue or a less enjoyable experience on that activity.
I think a big part of people not getting into an activity sometimes is because it's painful; they’re not on the right gear. If you borrow your friend's mountain bike and you end up on a really hard trail, you're going to end up hating your experience. Of course, you could still like it, but if it’s not shifting well or not braking well, you're going to think, "I don't like mountain biking; it sucked," and then you never try it again.
But hopefully, if you're renting, all those things are kind of worked out, and you're getting a little bit better gear. Again, it varies by category; every situation is different.
Of course, borrow first because you don't have to pay anything. Your friends are awesome, and you can share that piece of equipment among a lot of people. You don’t have to keep buying your own. Hopefully, you buy something that your friends can borrow too, and it's a great trade-off.
MEG: Yeah, that's really true! I didn't really think about that because I've borrowed gear from friends, but sometimes there are those little pieces that are like, "Oh, this is a little faulty." Like, when was the last time this was maintained? Or how old is it? So when you're renting, it's usually way better maintained and way better quality. That makes a lot of sense as far as the type of gear that you would rent.
But I've been seeing kind of a bigger push towards renting. I even read an article in the New York Times about renting camping equipment, which I thought was really interesting. They talked more about renting, say, backpacks and tents and even camp stoves. Honestly, I had never heard of that before! I've rented paddleboards and canoes—those types of larger ticket items when I'm traveling—but never really like a backpack or something.
Do you guys cover that with Trip Outside?
REET: Absolutely! We do lessons, tours, and rentals. In the rental space, to give you a perfect example, is the Boundary Waters in Minnesota. In the past, we used to rent everything—we got stove, sleeping pads, sleeping bags, even one of the years a tent. We basically just showed up with all the clothes that we were going to wear and our food because there’s so much stuff that needs to go into backpacking, right?
We were just brand new to it, and this was about eight years ago. It was a great experience, but then we started going more and more and thought, "Okay, checklist by checklist." We started buying some of those things that we used quite a lot. So we bought our own pads, then we got our tent.
As we started doing those activities more, it just made sense to buy some of those. But I think for a beginner, or if you're going to a place that's so unique that you're not going to need this gear all the time—like we still rent our canoe, we still rent nice paddles, and we still rent bear packs and bear ropes and canisters because it just makes sense.
Absolutely, I think another great thing is you get really high-quality stuff. We touched on this earlier; every time we rent one of the Outfitters’ pads or one of their camp stoves, it’s always the latest and greatest or good quality stuff. Even if it's a couple of years old, it’s well-maintained.
That's really a huge benefit—you can get off a flight with all your camping clothes and go directly to the destination and take your outdoor trip without the headache of packing. They’ll have your entire pack packed for you, and you’re just showing up and heading into the wilderness, which is really an amazing convenience.
MEG: I think Outfitters have kind of changed the travel game as far as outdoor recreation goes because it does kind of stink sometimes to have to check your entire backpack to go backpacking. Even if it might be a little more comfortable to have the stuff that you’re used to, do a lot of Outfitters also do guided trips, or do they usually just rent out the gear? I guess I don't know.
REET: We work with Outfitters that rent gear, so if you want to do it all yourself, you just need the gear and want to go out on your own. Then we have expanded into tours and lessons as well because we saw a huge need for beginners who are not comfortable sometimes going out for a paddle in maybe a swamp in Louisiana that might have alligators, or they've never kayaked before.
I think guided tours and lessons were huge to make sure that we were including beginners and making it less intimidating for those who have never done these outdoor activities to allow them to try them.
MEG: I like that you mentioned the safety piece because even if you're familiar with, say, backpacking in the Midwest—since we’re kind of using that as an example—going to the Rocky Mountains or even to a desert landscape like the Sonoran Desert would be really dramatically different and could potentially be dangerous. So having that access to, I guess, experts in that specific ecosystem would bring me a lot of comfort.
REET: Yeah, absolutely. Even if you're going out on your own, we really recommend just checking in with an outfitter. They're always happy to answer calls and tell you about the routes that you're going to take. Are there trees down? Are there other factors that you need to be aware of, like animal activity?
We're just seeing a huge growth in outdoor recreation in general, and I think a lot of the apps have made it extremely easy—like AllTrails—for anyone to open up an app, find a trail near them, and just go for it. But I think what you end up missing out on is maybe awareness of local issues and Leave No Trace principles.
I know Leave No Trace organizations are doing a lot with the outfitters to make sure that they can serve as this barrier of a checkpoint. Similar to the way you go to some national parks where there are areas that require permits because you're supposed to watch a video and understand the rules of recreating in that specific area.
Our goal and our hope is that we can use that checkpoint at the outfitter to educate and improve awareness of a lot of those negative impacts we see from over-recreation in some areas, or just improper recreation—not necessarily over-recreation.
I think even if you're going out and doing something on your own, it’s nice to check in with a local expert, whether it’s a friend or an outfitter. Hopefully, they can guide you through some of the things that maybe you haven't thought through or considered, like access to water or the time of year.
To give you an example, so many people come to recreate in Moab in the middle of summer just because it’s so beautiful and that’s the time they have the most vacation. But it is so hot here, right? They will not let you go mountain biking during that time. You have to bring your mountain bikes in during that time, so you pick it up the night before.
Before you plan your trip, it’s nice to know about some of those local things that you may not know about.
MEG: And in some instances or locations, if you're not going into a state or national park, you also don’t have that ranger to go to and ask. There’s not going to be a ranger station in every national forest or something. You can call the forest service, but that doesn’t always work—there’s not always someone in that office because they’re out doing so many other things.
So the outfitters are kind of like that middle ground where they have local experts with frequent experience in those places where you’re going to recreate. I like that.
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MEG: So, you touched a little bit on mindset, and as you are probably well aware, since I know you have a lot of meditation background and stuff like that, minimalism has a lot to do with your perception of the world and the things that you own, and how you interact with everything around you. I kind of want to talk about that mindset around renting gear. I feel like we talked a little bit about it, but I just feel like it can be explored in more depth.
REET: Sure, absolutely. You know, there are so many different ways to think about ownership. Sometimes it feels like, "Yes, I own this stuff, so I feel better. Maybe I’m more outdoorsy now because I own all this gear." Then there's just the headspace that it takes up by owning all this gear. You feel like you should use it. If your gear is sitting around, you’re looking at it all the time or you have a closet full of stuff, you might think, "Oh, I should be using it." Instead, maybe we should stop should-ing ourselves and just want to do those activities. When you want to do it, just go find the best way to do it and try new things.
I think a common mistake is thinking, "If I buy this piece of gear, I will use it." Or, "If I buy this kayak, all of a sudden I'm going to get really into kayaking or be super outdoorsy." We make these mistakes in all areas of our life, not just with outdoor gear; it could be technology. I have to constantly catch myself: is this really a pain point that I'm trying to solve, or is this just marketing? I saw a lot of commercials or I saw other people using it. It’s tough to be a minimalist in our world right now because it's so marketing-driven and consumer purchase-driven. You're constantly bombarded with 100 messages, directly or indirectly, on social media.
The big thing is making sure to do a quick inventory: is this really a problem, or am I letting that impulse passive buying dictate my choices? Consider doing the outdoor activity and think about other ways of solving that problem that might not involve buying, like you mentioned: borrowing from a friend, renting, or taking a tour. Hopefully, with that, you can save some money and free up your space, not feel like you need a bigger place all of a sudden or a three-car garage because your kayaks and outdoor gear take up half of it. It opens up the conversation and the thoughts or options to think differently about renting versus just buying everything.
MEG: That’s a big part of the general outdoor minimalist concept; one of the 7 R’s is rethinking.
So, rethinking that general impulse, like you’re talking about, is important. If you have an interruption in reading that ad copy or even having a conversation with friends, if all your friends are gearheads and stuff, you don't need to fall into that all the time. A lot of times, I think gear rental is seen as a beginner platform. But we also need to rethink those intentions.
I'm just rambling; I’m so sorry!
REET: No, that actually took me in a good direction! It makes total sense. Questioning everything is important. But when you're surrounded by people where everybody owns the nicest gear, maybe you have to question your friend group if that's how you feel. Is that aligned with your core values, or do you need to jump in and be just like everybody else? It’s okay to do what's right for you.
Sometimes, if you think about the greater goal of minimalism and how it ties into environmentalism, it feels weird or different to be that outcast. Sometimes that's what you have to do to do the right thing.
Imagine if 100 people wanted to go kayaking but they all wanted to own their own kayaks. That’s a lot of plastic manufacturing, shipping of bulk items from China to the U.S., and everything that goes along with it.
Instead, if 100 people rented or were open to sharing 10 kayaks, right? You could create a calendar and a schedule where everyone can enjoy that activity without the burden of ownership or maintenance. That’s a huge environmental impact we can all reduce just by creating a better sharing economy and changing that mindset a little.
MEG: Thank you for tying it back to that sustainability piece. I really like the idea of a sharing economy because, at least since I grew up in a northern climate, I feel like a lot of people can be cold and separate. It can be hard to find those communities where everyone wants to share and help you; it feels kind of isolated.
That can be cultural, I guess, and it isn’t true for all parts of the U.S., but in different areas I’ve lived, that has been true. So it can be hard to break into those outdoor communities, and then you feel obligated to buy things and go on your own.
REET: Absolutely, geographically and culturally, it depends on where you live and what your environment is like, for sure.
MEG: I’ve heard a lot of people say that about Seattle, now that I’m living in Washington, but I don’t want to throw them under the bus.
One thing we talked about in the financial episode was that renting gear can save you a lot of money, and I think that’s true. You talked a little bit about frequency of use and reevaluating: how often am I actually going to do this activity before I buy something?
For instance, if you go backpacking once a year, do you really need every single piece of equipment that goes along with it? Maybe you can buy one thing at a time, like you and Julie did as you integrated it more into your life.
I like the concept of evaluating the frequency of use. What did they say in that financial episode? They said cost per use breaks it down differently, and renting changes that.
REET: I see it happen all the time around my friend group, and even with myself, trying to be really conscious of it. Buying something and then just letting it sit there, then knowing you only used it twice.
To give you an example, if you go out and buy a $3,000 mountain bike, you have to really do the math: how much are you going to use it, and what's your cost per use? If you only use it six times a year, that’s a pretty expensive toy to own. Plus, you’re responsible for all the maintenance and repairs. If you can come up with a number in your head and say, “If I rent a kayak more than six times this summer, or if I rent a kayak and it’s starting to get expensive," eventually, when your frequency of use goes up on renting, it will get more expensive to rent than just buying it for half the price.
Maybe we should build a calculator around this! Have your total cost of the purchase and then estimate how many times you think you’re going to use it. What’s the total cost of ownership along with everything you have to buy, not just the gear? Because transporting the gear is going to cost you too; you might have to buy a rack and all these other things—maybe even a different vehicle all of a sudden. So think through not just the gear itself but everything that’s going to be involved, and then frequency of use. As soon as you start using it more and more, you can just easily buy it.
When it comes to buying, there are a couple of tips that could really benefit you: consider buying used. The Outfitters always have demo sales for gear—bike, paddle, ski—at the end of the season. You’re buying something that has already been rented a lot of times.
MEG: Oh, really? I didn’t know they sold their gear!
REET: Yeah! In a typical year, when it’s not COVID or facing supply chain issues, at the end of the year, they have demo gear sales. That’s how we picked up our mountain bikes. We’ve always bought used mountain bikes.
The best part is you get a really great deal as well, so that’s another option. They inspect the gear, and it’s tuned before selling it usually, and they have a history of use on it too.
If you’re buying, buy high-quality gear that will last a long time instead of cheap stuff. That’s one thing we can all do to reduce our impact. Instead of buying a lot of small backpacks that keep breaking, buy one that’s going to last you forever.
MEG: Sometimes I think it can be hard to tell too, because some companies—I feel like maybe not so much in the outdoor industry—will have planned obsolescence, where their products are only intended to be functional for, say, four months or four years, and then they’re intended to be replaced. Like iPhones!
REET: Exactly! That’s a good lesson, but I think buying used and really doing your research on what fits as a high-quality piece of equipment would be ideal. But not everyone knows how to start—that’s why you should rent!
MEG: Just wrap it back around to that!
REET: Okay, but definitely, frequency of use is a big deal. Renting can also be really inconvenient, right? We understand that. If you're in the middle of nowhere and you want to go snowshoeing, there may not be a rental shop 50 or 60 miles from you. So it makes sense to own some snowshoes or cross-country skis. It’s not just one size fits all, but we’re mostly talking about the benefits. Renting can also be really painful.
The outdoor industry is moving fast, and they’re trying to make the rental process or tour process easier. For example, in skiing, we offer a delivery service where the Outfitters will show up at your condo or Airbnb, custom-fit you on your skis right in your own place, and when you’re done, you just leave them at the condo.
So those types of innovations and service improvements are coming along, but it can be painful if you want to do an activity and there’s just not enough availability of Outfitters or you don’t know where to go. Hopefully, we can make those things easier.
MEG: Or like in the Boundary Waters, since you used that example before, they’ll do shuttle service where you can go to the Outfitter, leave your car there, and they’ll drive you to and from the drop-off point.
REET: Yep, absolutely.
MEG: So, you touched a little bit about Trip Outside in general, but how does that platform make these types of services and trips more accessible?
REET: Thanks for asking! The biggest thing we focus on is offering human-powered adventures. We want to focus on getting people outside responsibly, using your own body.
We say, “Burn calories, not fossil fuels.”
First, we look for outdoor activities and adventures that are human-powered. Then, we seek the highest-rated Outfitters. We check reviews; we want to make sure you’re going to have a great experience, whether you're a beginner or new to that area.
There are many times when the gear could be really old, or the bike tech could be condescending when you ask a basic question. It can be intimidating to get into the outdoor industry if you're a beginner or trying new outdoor activities. Those are some of the things we look for when seeking Outfitters.
Finally, we’re trying to make the booking process easier, so you don’t have to call five different shops to see what’s available, give your credit card over the phone, and then, when you show up, still be signing waivers and doing all this manual paperwork while you’re on vacation.
Hopefully, by making it easier, we can enable more people to go do outdoor activities and have experiences available around them—whether they live in a city, like San Francisco with kayaking right around the corner, or even in New York, where we have bike rentals and kayak rentals within 30 minutes of the city. Our mission is to show people all the available options, compare them, and then book everything online.
MEG: Yeah, even if you’re already on vacation, you’d be able to find something pretty quickly.
REET: Yes! I know we have a ton of work to do on this, and we’re constantly trying to improve the way we serve those experiences without having to spend a lot of time on our platform. We want you to just jump on, see what’s close to you, see all the relevant information, and hopefully get off your device as soon as you can so you can be outdoors.
MEG: I love that! So how can listeners find Trip Outside if they’re interested in using it?
REET: TripOutside.com is probably the best way. We would love it if you joined our email list. We send out emails with some secret spots and hidden places that aren’t widely known.
Over the last four and a half years, we’ve been traveling in an RV, and while there are great places like Moab and Sedona that are amazing, we’ve found incredible places in the U.S. that are still undiscovered. Hopefully, we can help you discover some of those!
On Instagram, it’s @trip.outside. I think those are the best places to catch us. I’ll share that in the episode description.
MEG: I really like that you’re sharing lesser-known areas. Even though some people don’t like that concept, it helps distribute people more evenly so places aren’t being overrun and overwhelmed. It opens up the opportunity for other landscapes to be experienced and enjoyed, which can help prevent overcrowding.
REET: We want to help bring outdoor recreation to amazing places, with the support of the states themselves. States are focusing on areas that are shutting down mining and those economies have no idea what they’re going to do.
Building trails, bringing outdoor recreation, and growing that infrastructure in places like New Mexico and Colorado—small towns that have amazing mountains and recreation opportunities—creates jobs and opportunities in areas that are going to be disrupted by a lack of coal or mining industries in the future.
MEG: That could be a whole episode in itself! I’d love to learn more about that.
REET: We’re really excited about it. If you have a mountain that you can look at, at the end of the day, it’s about making money off that landscape, however that works. But if outdoor recreation can make more money than mining, the state doesn’t really care, right? So instead of destroying that mountain, how can we coexist with it and use it?
MEG: It’s really interesting to think about how those transitions start and grow. I don’t want to keep you on here too long. Thanks for being on here!
REET: Thank you! I could keep talking forever otherwise.
MEG: Thanks to Reet and the Trip Outside team for their help on this podcast episode. I really enjoyed the conversation with Reet, and I hope you did too!
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