Last week I attended the inaugural PTC Colab event at Riversport OKC in Oklahoma City. As a board member for the Paddlesports Trade Coalition, I had the opportunity to serve as a facilitator and moderator during the event. It was an absolute joy to spend time with so many passionate industry professionals from brands, to retailers, to reps and associates. That's not to say that we didn't have some tough conversations as well. Because we most certainly did. They are needed at this moment in our industry.

I left grateful and proud of our board, and the leadership of PTC, for curating this event in 8-9 weeks. I was also inspired by all the conversations shared. If you weren't there, don't miss the next one. We discussed challenges and opportunities in the paddlesports / outdoor industry for 3 days and we'd love to have you in the room next time. It's going to take all of us to forge a vision forward for paddlesports.

It wasn't all serious talk though, as the PTC Colab was hosted at Riversport OKC. We held panel discussions, presentations, etc in the morning and then after lunch everyone hit the water to try out gear and have fun. The first few hours were for flatwater demos, then the jets got turned on for some whitewater paddling, including Emily Jackson styling an NRS packraft!

On the first day the whole industry came together for an engaging exercise designed to rank challenges each subset will face in the next 5-10 years. Each group; retailers, brands, reps, and associates were asked the same question about their top challenge. Then through an interactive process we ranked those challenges. The challenges were then reported out and shared the next day. Committees will be formed to start more in depth conversations around these challenges and they will help shape the focus of the PTC board going forward. So, it truly is important for you to play a part if you care about this industry. 

The full agenda can be found here ; PTC Colab Agenda. If you haven't become a member yet, do so soon. We want you to play a part in our future.

Special shoutout to the Day 3 closing discussion panelists who joined me on stage : 
- Terry Feigenbutz - NRS Director of Sales / International Wholesale Account Manager
- Simon Coward - PTC Board Member/ Board Treasurer/ Owner of AQ Outdoors
- Kelsey Bracewell - Director of Education, Insurance, and Membership for American Canoe Association
- Emily Jackson - athlete / Co-Owner of Jackson Kayak & Werner Paddles
- Jeff Moag - freelance writer / Paddling Magazine
They crushed it!

Some of the fun stuff we saw on the water as each mornings talks gave way to afternoons filled with play:

Nova Craft Prospector fully rigged out.

The return of the Ocoee by Esquif Canoes.

The Native Watercraft Slayer Max LTE 

The new Eddyline Kayak seat looks and feels great! 

One of the most informative and engaging breakout presentations of the whole event was from Marty Bhatia from Digital Ninja Consulting. His high level discourse on digital workflow, communicated in terms that were easy to follow, was a big success and very relevant to our industry today.

From my vantage point this PTC Colab had great bones. We accomplished the vision of executing a hybrid event that featured learning, sharing, and play. It felt good to get everyone in that same room to talk through what we are seeing in the paddlesports industry.

A giant thank you to Jeff Turner our PTC Executive Director, Pam Dillon our Staff Director ( and rockstar), the Colab committee, the Board leadership and all involved. And a big thank you to Riversport OKC or hosting us and being so welcoming!

I think one of our members, and attendee at the Colab, had the best wrap up. Thank you Troy! 

Greetings!  I'm sending this email to 30+ brands, manufacturers, and independent sales reps who supply my business with products for paddlesports following my return from the first-ever Paddlesports Trade Coalition Colab in Oklahoma City last week.

Some of you were there - thank you.  I believe this event was a solid first step to forming an industry group consisting of all stakeholders:  brands, retailers, reps, outfitters, etc.  If you weren't there, I'd like to ask you to prioritize attending this event in 2025.  If you are an independent sales rep, please forward this request to every brand you represent for me.  If you are a brand or manufacturer, please share this feedback internally with others.

There is much to gain from collaboration. I intend to slowly begin voting with my open-to-buy dollars, choosing to prioritize my investment in inventory with those individuals and institutions willing to invest a little time and money into the 'greater good' for the industry as a whole.  The conversations held, both informal in the hallways and formal from the stage, prove there are many things we can work on together for the benefit of all.

I hope to see all of you there next year.  I look forward to discussing this with you.