Welcome to episode of The Outdoor Biz Podcast, today I’m talking with Alex Brown from the Texas Outdoor Recreation Alliance. The Alliance was established to assemble an engaged network of outdoor enthusiasts, value aligned businesses, innovators, and workforce leaders; organized and resolved to continuously shape, grow, and elevate the Texas’ outdoor recreation ecosystem and natural resources it depends on. Facebook​ ​Twitter​ ​Instagram​ Love the show? Subscribe, ​rate, review, and share!​ Sign up for my Newsletter ​HERE​ I’d love to hear your feedback about the show! You can contact me here: ​[email protected] Show Notes 04:34 Alex's says his passion for nature has always kind of been there. he was always the little kid now kind of running off into the woods or into the creek. They grew up around, and were in a pretty rural area, but you know, kind of on the outside of the suburbs, but had access to creeks and farm fields that they would climb fences and go over and, he was just always out there spending as much time as I could. 5:00 His Grandparents got him into nature camps as a kid when he was in elementary age and, learned a lot about it and just learned to appreciate it and learn to spend time in it and just valued it and kind of just stuck throughout the rest of his life 05:22 Alex's venture Geared Up was a startup that I saw as a way to maybe transition out of my career, which at that time was working as a project manager or a laboratory program manager with the DOD doing a lot of biomedical research programs 06:56 The inspiration came from a bit of a bit of situational awareness just keeping an eye on what was happening with the outdoor industry. Geared Up was my sort of inundation into, you know, the Outdoor Industry Association and ORR and all these resources. And I saw These offices of outdoor rec popping up across the different states. And at that time I was looking for any kind of support I could get as a small business startup that was just, you know, burning the candle at all ends.  12:38 Coordinating various groups for networking and idea exchange. 15:25 Challenges in organization growth, prioritizing Texas first. 19:03 Collaborating with nonprofits for mission alignment, soon to be announced. 21:57 Launching platform, tapping into collaborative workspaces, engaging with local chambers of commerce. 24:05 Exciting developments in Texas, momentum building for the future. 26:16 Favorite Books: Into Thin Air and Unbroken Thanks for listening and don't forget to subscribe and spread the word! Learn More Learn More The Campaign website, which is: trailblazetx.com IG Linkedin You can follow up with Alex on Linkedin and email: [email protected] Next Steps If you enjoy interviews devoted to the outdoor industry, find us online at ricksaez.com/listen. We love likes and comments, and if you know someone who is also an outdoor enthusiast, go ahead and share our site with them, too. And be sure to Subscribe to our newsletter Keywords #Texas Outdoor Recreation Alliance, #Outdoor Recreation Brands, #outdoor industry, #networking, #fundraising, #Texas, #small businesses, #outdoor gear, #outdoor events, #collaboration, #non-profit organization, #economic impact, #infrastructure development, #outdoor space Podcast produced using Descript, CastMagic Podcast hosted by Libsyn use code 'outdoorbizpod' for 20% OFF Show Notes powered by Castmagic Website powered by Wordpress Note: As an Affiliate of Amazon and others, I earn from qualifying purchases.