Mike Harvey, on Badfish & his life’s work, river surfing & a profound shift in perspective, whitewater park design & the Scout Wave … & ‘Derry Girls’

Overview: Mike Harvey has been at the heart of the river scene in Salida, Colo., for more than 25 years. As a river guide and a competitive freestyle kayaker, a whitewater park designer and an entrepreneur carving out a market for river surfing and paddle boarding through Badfish, the manufacturing Read more…

Tim Brown, on adventure & tintype photography, impacts of photography’s tech evolution, 1980s housing affordability, and heartbreak & healing

Overview: Tim Brown probably is most known for his tintype photography these days. But he also had many exciting years of globe-traveling as a rarely skilled kayaker-slash-adventure photographer. He talks about both with Adam.  As well as his dive into the mid-19th century techniques of tintype photography after opportunities for Read more…

Ken Brandon, of Box of Bubbles, on Dalí & da Vinci, Absurdism & Stoicism, & channeling a character of love, joy & weirdness on a bicycle

Overview: Ken Brandon seems to be a kind of philosophical Stoic, Buddhist, absurdist Spartan, who is known for riding a bicycle around Salida, Colo., while wearing a giraffe head and a three-piece suit. And yet he describes himself as “boring.” Ken also is a designer, a painter and a screenwriter, Read more…

Thuy Nguyen, on self-empowerment & breaking free from a cult-like religion, overcoming postpartum depression, choosing gratitude & the pursuit of joy

Overview: In this episode of We Are Chaffee’s Looking Upstream podcast, Adam Williams talks with Thuy Nguyen, a poet, writer and speaker on self-empowerment. Thuy came up in a cult-like religious environment. When she was a teen, she was preyed upon by a church leader and, ultimately, shunned by that Read more…

Mahting Putelis, on his Latvian roots in Michigan, his ‘dirtbag’ 20s, realities of adventure photography, emergence of AI & the three things people want

Overview: In this episode of We Are Chaffee’s Looking Upstream podcast, Adam Williams talks with Mahting Putelis. Mahting grew up in a Latvian community in Kalamazoo, MI. It was extraordinarily formative, and is a source of great pride for Mahting. Adam talks with him about that upbringing and community, and Read more…

Jennifer Dempsey, on the value of social circus, Belfast during ‘The Troubles,’ creating resilience through humor and being the world’s worst waitress

Overview: In this episode of We Are Chaffee’s Looking Upstream podcast, Adam Williams talks with Jennifer Dempsey, founder of the Salida (Colo.) Circus and former director of the Belfast Community Circus in Northern Ireland. They talk about what a social circus is and the good it serves in a community. Read more…

Shane McNeil, on ‘Guy with the Chevy Tattoo,’ straight-edge punk, three chords and the truth, psilocybin, PMA & living in the gray

Overview: In this episode of the We Are Chaffee: Looking Upstream podcast, Adam Williams talks with Shane McNeil, singer-songwriter-guitarist, auto mechanic and jack-of-all-trades.  In this conversation, Adam talks with Shane about tattoos and Shane’s autobiographical song, “Guy with the Chevy Tattoo.” They talk about the early influences in Shane’s life, Read more…

Zac Baird, keyboardist, on hanging out with rock stars, balancing life as a touring musician and dad, the hardest job he ever had & how he hooked up with Korn

Overview: In this episode of the We Are Chaffee: Looking Upstream podcast, Adam Williams talks with Zac Baird. Zac is a keyboardist and composer. He’s known across musical genres for his electronic talents, including his use of synthesizers and computers. He has toured the world far and wide, playing with Read more…

Jed Selby, South Main developer & former pro kayaker, on affordable housing, building the future, his love of live music & what motivates him

Overview: In this episode of the We Are Chaffee: Looking Upstream podcast, Adam Williams talks with Jed Selby, co-developer of South Main in Buena Vista, Colorado. That includes the Surf Hotel, the bar and restaurant Wesley & Rose, and the concert venues of the Ivy Ballroom and the Lawn, among Read more…

Rob Dubin | We Are Chaffee's Looking Upstream Podcast

Rob Dubin, happiness expert, on gratitude & resilience, employee happiness & ‘quiet quitting’, a story of surviving against all odds & learnings from 17 years at sea

Overview: In this episode of the We Are Chaffee: Looking Upstream podcast, Adam Williams talks with Rob Dubin, an international keynote speaker and former filmmaker who has become an expert on happiness and resilience. Rob and his wife, Dee, made national news 30 years ago when they survived several days Read more…

Alf Rudd | We Are Chaffee's Looking Upstream Podcast

Alpheus “Alf” Rudd, 10th-generation master blacksmith, on times gone by, the value of old-world skills and self-sufficiency, and ‘Forged in Fire’

Overview: In this episode of the We Are Chaffee: Looking Upstream podcast, Adam Williams talks with Alpheus “Alf” Rudd, a master blacksmith with a family lineage in the trade, dating back to at least the 1600s. Adam and Alf take a ride through history and stories of a time gone Read more…

The Fites (Mars & Ashley), on family #vanlife, living dreams now, finding commonality with strangers of all stripes, and authenticity as digital creators

Overview: In this episode of the We Are Chaffee: Looking Upstream podcast, Adam Williams talks with Mars and Ashley Fite.  The Fites are married digital creators who were early to living adventures on the road before #vanlife became a thing on social media. Ashley and Mars share fantastic insights and Read more…

Jonathon Stalls, author, artist and advocate, on shedding painful life stories, learning to love himself, and advocating for connection through unhurried movement

Overview: In this episode of the We Are Chaffee: Looking Upstream podcast, host Adam Williams talks with Jonathon Stalls, author of the book, “Walk: Slow Down, Wake Up and Connect at 1-3 Miles Per Hour.”  They talk about Jonathon’s 242-day walk across the United States as a pivotal experience for Read more…

Rob & Sarah Gartzman (‘The Biker & The Baker’), on balancing fear and love in business and marriage, and building a future that works

Overview: In this episode of the We Are Chaffee: Looking Upstream podcast, host Adam Williams talks with Rob and Sarah Gartzman, a married couple who also are entrepreneurial partners who own multiple restaurants in the town of Salida, Colorado. Sarah and Rob met as high school seniors in Evanston, Illinois, Read more…