SMITH x Sea Otter Classic
Showcasing the best of our bike product alongside the best in the industry.
“What Was Your Highlight?”
Asked Bike Category Manager Sheila. The question left the gears in my brain spinning faster than someone riding downhill in their easiest gear. The question itself was hard simply because, well, what wasn’t my highlight? Being at the biggest event in the bicycling industry with a company that I have idolized for nearly my whole life felt surreal. Let alone spending time with my “coworkers” who I had dreamed of networking with since getting hired on at SMITH.
When it came my turn to share, still overwhelmed with excitement I didn’t have a gem of a highlight like I had hoped. Fortunately, this was day 1 and Sheila asked the question daily for the rest of the event.
Each day I worked to come up with a concise and eloquent highlight that effectively shared my stoke. My day two highlight was that I was able to share a discount code with a Canyon intern who had been riding with a broken Session helmet for nearly 6 months. They were hyped and incredibly grateful, plus we were able to connect about being recent graduates muddling through the outdoor industry, not sure what we really want to do, but just very happy to be included. The third day, my highlight was running into a trail builder from my home town, getting to chat about the new projects in the works for the trails that I learned how to hit jumps and ride berms on!
The fourth day I flew back to Portland, having to leave my hotel at 3 am to make the pilgrimage from Monterey to San Jose Airport. The question didn’t leave my brain though.
“What was my highlight of the whole event?” “Was there something that made Sea Otter so amazing?” “Was it the people? The brand?'“ I knew I was the most stoked I had been since graduating college (possibly even longer) I was riding a high that was fueled by a lack of sleep, more Modelo than I’d like to admit, and an achy body. But I still could not stop grinning ear to ear.
As I arrived home it came to me. My highlight was being a part of something bigger than myself, bigger than SMITH, bigger than even the bike industry. Being a part of the stoke that gets people up in the morning and gets them through the workday (myself included) I was lucky to simply be a small cog that was able to perpetuate that stoke. When people came by the booth I was able to see the joy that the products we sell bring to them. I was able to see in their eyes just how impactful biking has been in their life, whether they had just started yesterday, or they were a professional athlete, it didn’t matter. They were hyped.
The community aspect of the outdoor industry was on full display at Sea Otter, and it made me fall deeper in love with my job, the company I work for, and the sport of bicycling as a whole.
