2019 Categories
GTFO, Experience Catalyst, Outdoor Events, Media, Engaging Youth, New Business, and Manufacturer, Community Collaboration
GTFO
Geocaching
Bryan Roth
Experience Catalyst
Radical Roots MTB
Angi Weston
Outdoor Events
Whatcom Events
Anna Rankin
Media
Freehub Magazine / Craft MTB
Brandon Watts
Engaging Youth
Y.E.T.I. – Youth Experiential Training Institute
John Nelson and Talia Hirsch
New Business
Prime Sports Institute
Kerry Gustafson and Erica Quam
Manufacturer
Eddyline Kayaks
Tom Remsing
Community Collaboration = Galbraith Access Preserved Forever!
City of Bellingham Parks and Recreation, Leslie Bryson
Galbraith Tree Farm, Rob Janicki
Whatcom Land Trust, Rich Bowers
Whatcom Mountain Bike Coalition, Eric Brown
2019 Nominees for Great Outdoors Awards
Laurie Benson, Washington State Department of Natural Resources
Fairhaven Runners
Family Care Network
Brian Morrison, Fleet Feet Sports Seattle
Kip Zwolinski, Incite! Cycles
Kristi Kucera, Moondance Sea Kayak Adventures
Heather Saulsbury, PNW Bushcraft
Nadine Van Niekerk, Shifting Gears
Tim Wahl, Retired, City of Bellingham Parks and Recreation
The Backstory: For the past 3 years, we have hosted our Breakfast of Champions fall fundraiser at Boundary Bay. We were able to boast about our program work, celebrate our events and highlight some of our Parkscriptions Providers. The room was consistently filled with OUTDOOR RECREATION CHAMPIONS, representing the breadth and depth of our industry and community. We wanted the opportunity to shine the light on YOU and your colleagues who work and play in the outdoors.
The Great Outdoor Awards on Saturday evening, October 12th at Bellingham Technical College will be your chance to recognize and celebrate colleagues, organizations and businesses who inspire and enable people to enjoy, preserve and improve the places we play in Washington State. Celebrate our Champions in style at our awards dinner, ceremony & fundraiser for Recreation Northwest’s programs. See the full list of fun: 2019 Great Outdoors Awards.
Who was eligible? We didn’t list specific categories – we let you drive, this first time around. To give you a nudge in the right direction, we asked you to consider the breadth of the OUTDOOR RECREATION INDUSTRY as it relates to the following categories and the people and companies making it happen: Gear & Equipment • Retailers • Guides & Tours • Health & Fitness • Outdoor Activity & Clubs • Stewardship & Education • Government / Land Managers • Events • Media • Professional Athletes.
Nominations were due August 15th. We expressly thank the nominators for bringing all these superstars of the outdoor industry to our attention.
With the nominations we received, our volunteer committee* had the challenging task of narrowing it down to 8 out of the impressive list, many receiving multiple nominations. After we chose the winners, we assigned titles to the categories that we felt best represented the work they have accomplished.
*Our Awards Selection Committee consisted of Recreation Northwest Board Members Andrew Olive, Coastal Insurance; Kristi Kucera, Moondance Sea Kayak Adventures; Linda Balfour, Superfeet; Niki Moltumyr, Backcountry Essentials; Jack Pflueger, Stones Throw Brewery; and myself- Todd Elsworth, Recreation Northwest.
