We've just received word of an exciting new event, set to hit Hood River for the first time this year. The Outfound series team are on a mission to take networking and the festival experience to the next level. Here's the press release – for more information and to buy tickets head to outfoundseries.com
3-Day Adventure Sports and Outdoor Innovation Festival Blends Expo, Talks, Networking, Adventure and More
The only event of its kind. On a mission to create a new type of gathering for the most innovative minds in the outdoor space, OUTFOUND Series (http://outfoundseries.com) will hold its inaugural adventure sports and outdoor innovation festival in Hood River, Oregon, from June 9 to 11, 2017.
A must-add to any festival schedule, OUTFOUND Series is the first ever event that blends outdoor innovation in business with social and recreational activities in an adventure-packed setting along the Columbia River Gorge. The 3-day event includes Outfound Talks: 20-minute lightning presentations from inspiring leaders in the outdoor space (speaker list below); OutFounder: a pitch competition for outdoor driven startups; and The Expo: an adventure sports consumer show where innovative brands showcase and demo the latest products. All of these activities take place on a scenic, 30-acre waterfront outdoor playground filled with sports activities, workshops, outdoor films and music performances.
The event is designed to draw the most passionate outdoor enthusiasts and offer a unique opportunity to come together, meet the creators behind the newest outdoor brands, hear about the latest innovations, master new skills through workshops, try out new sports from kiteboarding to acro yoga as well as enjoy music, films and food. Current sponsors include Dogfish Head Beer, Red Bull, and Vibram. New sponsors are signing up weekly.
In 2015, event co-founders and adventure seekers Antonio Aransaenz and Drew Neumann hatched the idea of OUTFOUND Series. As entrepreneurs themselves, Aransaenz and Neumann aligned around the mission of creating a dynamic opportunity for people to gather and share their passion and ideas around the outdoors all while enjoying the activities they love.
“There are so many innovative and passionate people in the outdoor world, and with OUTFOUND we set out to create a festival that brings them all together to create a synergy that just can’t happen at a traditional trade show or expo event,” said Aransaenz, OUTFOUND Series co-founder. “There’s a push in the outdoor industry for more authentic experiences and opportunities where people can really connect with people, meet top athletes and the innovators behind top brands and hear the stories behind adventures and products. At OUTFOUND, all of this can happen while people are experiencing kiteboarding, mountain biking, and truly enjoying the outdoors.”
Hood River is known as a world class destination for an incredible diversity of sports including mountain biking, windsports, trail running and whitewater kayaking. This is one of the major reasons Aransaenz and Neumann determined it to be the perfect location for OUTFOUND. “There aren’t many places where you can go kayaking in the morning, pack up and go summer snow skiing 30 minutes away and then top it off with a sunset mountain bike session, all in one day”, said Drew Neumann.
As a long-term goal, OUTFOUND Series hopes to help further solidify Hood River as one of the outdoor innovation capitals of the US and give outdoor enthusiasts and innovators a springboard to launch their own projects. “We are all about helping Hood River become a bedrock for outdoor innovation. It’s an awesome community with a rich sports culture,” added Neumann.
Learn more about and buy tickets for OUTFOUND Series at: outfoundseries.com
Confirmed Speakers:
– Bryan Pape (Founder Miir Water bottles)
– Damien Leroy (Professional Kitesurfer/Waterman)
– Sally Bergesen (Founder of Oiselle)
– Kevin Rutherford (CEO of Nuun)
– Mark Healey (Big wave surfer and conservationist)
– Stephan Jacob (Co-Founder of Cotopaxi)
– Alison Vercruysse (Founder of 18 Rabbits)
– Bill Worthington (Founder of Olukai)
– Joe Desena (Founder of Spartan Race)
– Rex Burkholder (Scientist and Social Entrepreneur)
– Cedar Wright (professional Nat Geo climber)
– Steve Jones (Founder of Teton Gravity Research)
– Jamie Danek (Founder of Humm Kombucha)
– Rob Little (Founder of Cairn)
– Boone Speed (pro photographer)
