We’re looking for a tag line and we think you’re smarter than an ad agency so, we wanted to go straight to the source, our Tribe. What do you say? Got any clever tag lines you’re just dying to get off your chest? Send us your thoughts via tweet to @TevaMeansNature. If your tag line gets chosen, we’ll hook you up with 50 pairs of Mush flips. (Just think about it…your Christmas shopping would be all wrapped up!)

 Here’s a little on Teva to get the creative mojo flowing: Teva makes shoes for people who are passionate about leading an adventurous life, whether it’s in the woods or in the city, and we’ve been at it for over 25 years. In the beginning the name Teva was chosen because of its meaning in Hebrew, nature. So, for the past quarter century we’ve been dedicated to performance, comfort and the environment in which we play but especially committed to our fellow adventurers better known to us as the Tribe.

 What do you say?? Got any clever tag lines you're just dying to get off your chest?

PS... Important: Make sure to read this "short" message from our legal team here before participating

Hello all! 

I found myself thinking today how much I love my life! This thought came to mind while coming home from a random bathroom destruction job. Having recently graduated from college, I've had some time to ponder what I will do now that I'm not in the normal pattern of school. Finding happiness in random jobs as of late to make the strings attach, I've been getting some great time to ponder just how amazing this lifetime of trips has been - and spending time doing some manual labor is a great way to get a little extra money together for the next trip! ...Always scheming and planning... But more about that later...

I've got a few photos and stories that I wanted to share. My foot has healed up completely from the bike wreck I spoke of previously, and Colorado was a great testing environment for getting back on the horse. Amazing the amount of quality experiences one can have in just a matter of a few weeks, and this year I made a point of living it up out there trying to get it as much as I could out of each experience, each moment. And what a great trip that provided!!

Here's a few of my favorite images from the Colorado experience this year... 

 

Looking up from the maw. Never have I found a place where water reminded me so much of a diesel freight train going wide open. Terrifying yet delightful with the right amount of respect.

 

 

 

Author peeling out into the current, flowing into the top of Upper Death

 

 

 

A few moments later, working it out just past the maw

  

 

Another angle, still working it out...the runout is called 'Life after death'...but there is no relaxing yet! Still two big holes to avoid. One about 20 yards below me past the end of my right blade, and another massive one to the right of the house sized boulder downstream.

 

 

Notch Mtn. We were lucky enough to drive past this view every time we went up to Homestake Creek to practice for the creek race. Aahh.

 

 

 

My other passion, as I've mentioned in previous posts, is mountain biking. During the Teva Mountain Games, I was stoked to spend any spare minute over at the Slopestyle course, watching the pros of the dirt jumping world do what they do best.

 

 

 

Tyler McCaul in full extension.

 

 

 

Cam McCaul, spotting his landing just moments before hucking a massive front flip that caused the whole valley to explode in shouts and cheers.

 

 

Got my race face on. Boat or two wheels, its the best feeling in the world to go fast and take chances.

 

 

I started working for Teva’s marketing team less than a month ago.  And considering the Mountain Games—the company’s biggest event—has been looming the whole time, my experience here so far certainly would not be described as relaxed. 
  I had heard so many great things about the Mountain Games, so I was really looking forward to have a chance to go to Vail with the team.  Upon arriving, late Wednesday night, I didn’t feel tired in the least, as I had napped for hours that day on the plane and in car rides.  But I figured I had nothing better to do, so I crawled into my cot.  Thinking back, these extra few hours of were vital to the rest of my time in Colorado, as it was one of the more exhausting times of my life. 
 Thursday morning began my 4-day span of 12-13 hour work days.  During those shifts, I would sit down a grand total of about 30 minutes, for a lunch quick break.  Other than that, I was either setting up our trailer, branding the different areas of competition, helping give out Teva gear, or walking around Vail taking surveys from the attendees of the Games.  It also happened to be my first week of official cross-country training for my college team, so I felt compelled to get in a run every day.   This all culminated to a very tired body after just one day.  But of course, there were 3 more days to work through. 
 In a way, my time at the Mountain Games felt like an eternity, as we were working hard and getting a lot much done.  But at the same time, there weren’t enough hours in the day to do everything that needed to be done.  On Sunday morning, I woke up and the stress and the work of the week hit me all at once.  I could barely open my eyes, I was so tired.  My head was pounding from the altitude.  And there was a deep ache in my muscles and bones.  Running in the 10k Spring Run-off, which I was registered for, was the very last thing I wanted to do that morning.  But I figured it couldn’t hurt to just jog it.  I stupidly drank 3 cups of coffee to wake up.  But as I never drink caffeine, my body was soon shaking like a massage chair.  I could barely manage to tie the laces of my new Teva X-1 Evolutions.  I quickly went down to the Teva trailer to help unload, and then was off to the starting line.
 I had none of the pre-race nerves that I normally get, as I wasn’t trying to seriously compete in the race.   When the gun went off, and the front of the pack took off like a pack of wolves chasing a deer, I tried to find Andrew Maxwell, a Teva triathlete, as he was not planning on running hard either.  Unfortunately, with this course, ‘taking it easy’ is not an option.  There are parts so steep that even the best runners have to walk.  As I have never run a trail race in my life, I tried to charge up the first hill like it was part of an NCAA cross country course.  Not a good idea.  I was soon way more tired than I was hoping to be, and was only done with the first climb.  I hadn’t looked at the course map, so I had no clue that what I had just done was probably only a quarter of the total climbing I would do in the race.  At one point I had to stop, which I have never done in a race, and thought I might throw up some of my breakfast and coffee.  I did manage to hold it down, but proceeded to have a coughing fit on the side of the trail.  I wiped my nose and noticed it had been bleeding, but I don’t remember giving this any mind.  I willed myself to ignore the beating of my head and the thin air that I couldn’t seem to breathe, and instead focused on yet another steep incline that I would have to run up.
 I did manage to finish the race, but it certainly won’t be a PR for me.  In fact, it’s over 20 minutes over my best time for a 10k.  But I wouldn’t say the circumstances or the course were prime for me to run my fastest.  In fact, as I crossed the finish line, I heard the PA announcer say that this was actually the most difficult 10k in the entire country.  So much for a nice little jog!
 I learned a great deal at the Mountain Games, and loved the vibe in Vail.  All of the sponsors and workers at the Games did a great job putting on the event, and the many athletes did a great job.  But it was certainly a rigorous introduction, as a first business trip.

Teva Mountain Games: Final Update from Lunch Video Magazine on Vimeo.

 Post by Serac Adventure Film School:

Serac Adventure Film School - Student Film Festival June 9, 2009 7 pm