Summertime in the Rockies is tough to beat. Backpacking, cycling, river running and trail wandering are the usual staples that fill the always-too-short summer months. Fall is already in the air, and the Blue Fire team has been a little quiet on the sharing front, but for good reason. Here is a glance at the work projects and travel adventures that made the dog days of 2022 go by so fast.
We've welcomed a few new clients into our mix. Each has their own character, mission and identity. What we do for each client varies too, which always keeps us on our toes.
Town Hall is new to the 'outside' scene. They love kids and their mission is to get every kid to "love outside." They do this by building the best and most sustainable outerwear and apparel, designed just for kids. The passion is palpable with this brand and Blue Fire helps them to get their message out to a broader audience through social media management and email marketing. To learn more about this small, but mighty crew, visit: https://www.townhallco.com/.
Save the Date: Back to Snow Pre-Sale event on Sept. 30 4:00-7:30pm in Steamboat Springs. This is your kids' chance to preorder the new fall styles and share in some good community fun and welcome the 2022-23 winter!
RCR, for short, has been making a difference for all types cyclists in the Yampa Valley for a long time. They advocate for access to trails and bikes for anyone who wants one, and so much more. They came to Blue Fire looking to revamp and refine their brand messaging and communications strategies. We are helping to do just that but we aren't quite ready to share our work. Stay tuned!
Wait, are YOU a member?
No! Well, if you ride in Steamboat, mountain, gravel or road, RCR has advocated for you to have a better experience while you're out there. The annual membership is ridiculously reasonable. Sign your whole family up for only $50, while an individual is only $20-39 per year depending upon your age. Become a Routt County Rider today to support cycling advocacy here in Northwest Colorado. A small portion of your membership fee will go to our IMBA management system, and the rest stays locally in the Yampa Valley. If you ride, you are a Routt County Rider, so join today!
What in the world? Oh, yes of course. We are talking about the entire Yampa, Green and White River Basin. A diverse group of stakeholders came together, over a four-year period, to conduct assessments and identify consensus-driven strategies that seek to maintain a balanced river system well into the future: the IWMP. With climate uncertainty, long term drought and rising temperatures, this group of ranchers, recreationists, municipal water users and environmentalists joined forces to collaborate on realistic solutions that will keep the Yampa River flowing for generations to come. Blue Fire has spent the last half year developing the marketing framework (from copy to design) so that the IWMP can be shared with the world. It's technical and important, but we are helping to tell a story that can bring everyone into the conversation. You just have to wait a little bit to read the full 30-page report. Can't wait...it's so pretty.
Last, but not least is West Lyfe, a sustainable apparel start-up based in Steamboat, Colo. This is not your typical brand; they are looking to create something different. Sure they sell great, sustainably sourced and packaged clothing, but they are using profits to be 'Guardians of the Wild.' The West Lyfe is at once a lifestyle, a sustainable clothing company, and a steward, if not defender, of the American West’s most wild and remote places. Yeah, Blue Fire came up with that, built them a new website, and is currently supporting their brand marketing strategies. This scrappy brand is getting noticed. Check them out online or at their retail location at 729 Lincoln Ave, Steamboat Springs, CO 80487. The owner/artist is currently getting his #MBA, aka management by absence, bike-packing from Steamboat to the Wind Rivers and back, thanks to Big Agnes and BarUEat. Follow his journey on Insta.
Our work is fun, but it's always mixed in with real life and this summer Blue Fire's founder spent the summer working and playing in Europe. Speaking French and traveling about are Erin's (mostly dormant) passions and for 9 weeks, those passions were reignited.
With the family at her side, Erin biked in Ireland, Germany, France, and Spain. (Gravel biking is not really a thing over there, so there were plenty of fast Frenchies on road bikes that whizzed by.) The two-wheeled adventures included 3-days camped on the Alpe d-Huez for an up-close viewing of Le Tour de France with daily grinding ascents and screaming descents that make your brakes heat up and cry out. Maybe that is just the rider...but anyway...
Surfing in Hendaye, biking and kayaking in Provence, and racing at night in the Montreux Trail Running Festival (Switzerland) were a few of the highlights. Doing these things with your kids makes it even more meaningful. A lifetime of memories were made and packed into 2.5 months, and now, the gratitude for life and love flows deep. Enjoy a few pics from the EuroBroster Escape.
