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Diamonds in the Rough: Personal perspectives born from global disorder. BD online exclusive:

Personal perspectives born fromglobal disorder

D I A M O N D S I N T H E R O U G H

Personal perspectives born fromglobal disorder

D I A M O N D S I N T H E R O U G H

Copyright © 2020 Black Diamond, Inc. All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written per- mission from the publisher and copyright holders. Requests should be mailed to: Marketing Department, Black Diamond, Inc. 2084 E 3900 S, Salt Lake City, UT 84124

First Edition – August 2020 Authors: BD Athlete Team Editing: Mary McIntyre, Allison Vest, Angel Collinson, and Joe Grant Cover Photography: Joe Grant Book Design: Grant Nickle Publication Manager: Blake Frye Printed in Utah, U.S.A.

Published by Black Diamond, Inc. www.Blackdiamondequipment.com

NDN realizes that Native Nations and Indigenous communities will experience unique impacts and challenges with the COVID-19 crisis, in no small part due to the reality and history of social, economic and political disenfranchisement of our people. While our elected Tribal officials navigate the crisis and lead their respective communities, NDN is doing our part to coordinate resources and offer our assistance during these unprecedented times. We are grateful to collaborate with Black Diamond to expand and deepen our impact at this time. In addition to supporting Tribes, First Nations, and Indig- enous organizations, we have also committed to supporting Indigenous artists and entrepreneurs throughout the pandemic, many of whom recreate and carry on their traditional sports and activities. What has been apparent with all of our COVID-19 grantees, is that relationship to land is paramount in getting through not just this moment, but in surviving and thriving as Indigenous Peoples. This grant is designed to not just be a response to a crisis but a way to prepare for growth, regeneration, and the continued protection of our home- lands, cultures, and traditions.”

www.ndncollective.org @ndncollective info@ndncollective.org

C O N T E N T S

Kyle Richardson MaryMcIntyre Daila Ojeda AllisonVest Angel Collinson MattyHong Hazel Findlay ColetteMcInerney

12 16

20 40 46 58 68 72 92 98

Carlo Traversi Hillary Gerardi

Will Gadd Joe Grant

104 108 116 130 142 160

Tobin Seagel Babsi Zangerl SamElias TylerWillcutt

AnOpen Letter to the Community

As athletes, we are tasked to climb, run, ski, or ride, and then manicure the rough version of ourselves and our experience into a more polished, superfluous image, packaged for consumption. These glorified narratives accentuate results over process, and are self-serving, elitist, and exclusionary. With the world on pause following the outbreak of a global pandemic, we were challenged to reflect on our roles as athletes beyond the singular lens of athletics and take a deeper look at what really matters to us as people. We gathered virtually around the campfire with the purpose of creating something tangible to share about ourselves that cuts through the bullshit, that does not glorify the highlight reel of our athletic accomplishments, but reveals a more honest, imperfect portrait of who we are. We seek refuge around the campfire, a sense of community, a place to be ourselves. This is where lore and legend is passed on, and the seeds of change are planted. Old structures and beliefs are held to the flame, burned, and given an opportunity for renewal. The campfire is a place to be vulnerable and open about our fears and insecurities, and our struggles to make sense of the enormous complexities of present day life. Through our sharing, two main tenets emerged: we respect each other not for how hard we climb, or how far we run, but for the realness in our relationships. In turn, we recognize that the space around the campfire has always been small and exclusory, dominated by a narrative of conquest and false heroism hidden in innate privilege. The general sense of malaise experienced during the initial COVID-19 lockdown catalyzed the emergence of a far

greater paradigm shift. This shift is revealing the need for urgent action to fight the injustices endured by life on this planet, and in particular BIPOC and other marginalized communities, for centuries. The success of this paradigm shift will not solely be defined by economic and political change, but also by the funda- mentally altered consciousness and the ensuing behavior of all those involved. Our responsibility lies in re-imagining a thriving outdoor community represented through a rich diversity of people and place. We offer the following collection of work which was conceived in response to the world shutting down in the face of COVID-19. Though the personal and artistic works within this book would look drastically different if rewritten today, we share them as a snapshot in time: encapsulating the fear, loneliness, and confusion experi- enced by many as the pandemic swept across the world. We share them in the midst of this social movement as an invitation to join us around the campfire, to share your story, and be heard. A 100% of the proceeds fromDiamonds InThe Rough book sales will benefit the NDN Collective, an organiza- tion working to decolonize and transform social systems while providing tools and strategies for Indigenous self-determination and movement-building. Specifically, donations will benefit the NDN Collective’s COVID-19 Response Project which is providing immediate relief to some of the most underserved communities in the country. We are honored to contribute to the NDN Collective’s overarching goal of fostering a world of justice and equity for all people and the planet.

M A T T Y H O N G

“People'smemories are the fuel they burn to stay alive." -Haruki Murakami, After Dark

C O L E T T E M C I N E R N E Y

Freedom

It’s been a strange time to be looking for inspiration. Sometimes I’m moving too fast to take the time to stop and think about the things that might move me. Sometimes even the most overwhelming events float right by without notice because I’m focused on other goals, or am just too caught up to care. The desert hasn’t always been a source of inspiration for me. I remember when I first moved here 5 years ago. I wanted to be a writer, but instead, I was waiting tables at Caesar’s Palace. I remember starting to write an article about Freedom. I wanted

to know how people defined freedom, and if they felt free or trapped by their lives and the choices they had made. I thought it was cool, but I don’t really think I knew what I was writing about, who I was writing for, or why. The piece on Freedom was mainly about asking others questions as a way to find my own path. When I visit the desert today, I’m awestruck by the beauty and can’t wrap my head around the wild there. It’s so untamed, harsh and yes free. I still haven’t figured out what true freedom is, but I’m making choices everyday to try and find out.

Travelers

We are travelers, vagabonds. We go to different places, find what we like and don’t, and then try to formulate a plan to reach the most perfect, ideal place, one that exists only in our minds. Someplace we may dream of. We know it may be out there somewhere. It may be right under our noses but we just can’t see it yet. Maybe it’s a time we are looking for and not a place. Who knows? We don’t. Until then, we travel.

The Ocean

A dreary day, something that reminds you of the coast. What would it be like if right past the shed, down the road, were crashing waves, a scene where pale sand met gray and white water -- immensity at its greatest. And you look out thinking, ‘oh my life isn’t so big,’ but how then does life weigh you down so much and the simplest things have such a massive effect on the mind and soul. Perhaps it’s not that simple, and the ocean is not that big. The real size isn’t the issue, but the impact something has is the key to its significance. And not to say that the ocean has no impact, but so do the small thoughts and feelings that float through the mind on most days.

Time

Timing is everything. It can bring someone to you or keep them away. It can make a place right or wrong. If you’re floating along with the rhythm of life, how much do you pay attention to the timing of it? Is your flow actually trying to tell you something deeper about the path you’re on, where you are, who are you with? Or are you just looking to create some kind of meaning from the simple moments of life so you don’t feel like you’re wasting your time?

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