Journal

A collection of stories, tips and advice.

April 16, 2024

Pro Skier Alex Armstrong Adds Spot to Her Ski Packing Checklist

“When you stand on the ridge across from an Alaskan spine wall, you play on this teeter-totter of excitement and fear.” For Alex, the key to staying focused is dialing her “have it and hope you don’t use it” gear—a proverbial bin of must-haves like helmets, transceivers, avalanche gear and Spot.

February 20, 2024

Austin Smith's Crusade to Get Action Sport Athletes Insured

We connected with Austin over a shared passion to protect people in their pursuit of adventure—and we jumped at the chance to support his recent Antarctica excursion, as well as work with our partner Blister+ to provide him with injury insurance coverage. Here’s more from Austin.

February 2, 2024

Team Spot: Meet Outdoor & Data Enthusiast, Lacey Rivette

Spot’s Integrations & Ops Analyst, Lacey Rivette, is at her best when her mind and body are in motion. We talk van life, solo 14’ers, 100-mile MTB rides and partner integrations.

January 23, 2024

On the Water with AnyCreek, a New Platform that’s Making it Easier for You to Get Outside and Play.

As a novice, the idea of booking a fly fishing trip for myself was intimidating… but I took the leap and used AnyCreek, an online resource that makes it easier for you to access guides, as well as book and pay for outdoor excursions. Here’s how it went, from booking to boat launch.

December 6, 2023

Ori is Empowering Storytellers and Bringing Cultural Exchange to Your Actual Mailbox

Kade Krichko is a journalist, editor and teacher pursuing stories all over the world. His latest project, Ori Magazine, inspires cultural exchange through unique stories and photography from locals living in all corners of the world.

November 20, 2023

Dialed In: Summit County Commissioner Nina Waters on Making the Outdoors a More Equitable Place and Après-Ski Bacon Bloody Marys

Nina Waters planned to live in Colorado for about three months—just long enough to perform in the community’s summer musical series. But after quickly falling in love, she made it her home.

September 21, 2023

Phil Clark Chats About His Approach to Fly Fishing and the Spot Brand

When not fishing or working on the Spot brand, you’ll catch our creative director Phil Clark outdoors via bike, skis or wood fired hot tub. We recently caught up with him to chat about fish, gear and creating content you believe in.

September 18, 2023

Dialed In: Rapha’s Matt Duer on Community, Gear and Driftless Gravel

Matt Duer opened Rapha’s third US store in Chicago. Now, he travels across the US managing Rapha’s wholesale network and riding with those communities. He recently took over the Ten Thousand, an annual gravel ride through the Driftless region of Illinois.

August 22, 2023

Justin Olsen on Adventure, Highlining and Living in an Adult Summer Camp

Justin Olsen is based in Yosemite, but he rigs highlines, climbs, bikes and skis all over the world with a camera in tow. We recently caught up with him to chat about the adventure of rigging highlines, how he captures it all through photography and life in Yosemite.

July 24, 2023

Dialed In: Field Mag’s Graham Hiemstra on the Intersection of Good Design and the Great Outdoors

Field Mag does what other core outdoor mags don’t—it speaks to outdoors lovers in major cities. We chat with Graham about all things film photography, the best gear, good design and balancing outdoor time while living in NYC.

June 7, 2023

Maria Goy is Blazing Trails and Bringing Peace of Mind with Her

We spent the morning sipping coffee and cruising around Austin with Maria to learn how she’s making it easier for the active and travel communities to pursue more of what they love with peace of mind.

May 18, 2023

From Stoke to Shock in Less than a Second

Imagine waking up to 17 inches of fresh powder and then getting to the mountain in time to snag first chair. Seconds from dropping in, you eye an untouched powder stash near a cliff band and you’re stoked for the surge of adrenaline that’s sure to follow.

April 24, 2023

Spot Joins Protect Our Winters

We’re thrilled to join the Protect Our Winters (POW) Alliance—a nonprofit that protects the places and lifestyles we love from climate change. Spot was founded by avid skiers, cyclists and outdoor enthusiasts, so it’s important for us to protect the spaces where we live, work and play and support...

April 19, 2023

Dialed In: Fly Fishing, Community and Conservation with Brooks Scott

We recently sat down with our good friend Brooks Scott to chat about his role at Yellow Dog Community and Conservation Foundation (YDCCF), what he’s been up to and his passion for fly fishing… he even lets us in on where to go for the best smallmouth bass fishing in the world.

March 14, 2023

Dialed In: On the Hill with Claire and Warren

We sat down with two of our ski patroller friends, Warren Bunnel and Claire Joubert, to get their insider perspectives on mountain safety, common injuries and what patrolling is really like.