Riding the Sync’r the past couple of weeks reminded me that bikes don’t make me happy, but getting out and riding does. Sure, I know there’s a difference between a $750 bike and a $9,000. But since I’m not clearing 30-foot gaps or racing on the EWS circuit, why do I think I need some hot commodity of a high-end bike? It certainly won’t make me happier, nor mean I enjoy riding more. No, this is not some anti-consumerism rant. Instead, it’s a reminder of the fun we can have out on the trail regardless of what kind of bike we have … even if it’s a budget bike.
Every now and then, I receive questions about Loam Coffee as to who we are and what we’re about. Just yesterday, I met up with a couple of graphic designers, and I was sharing a bit about Loam Coffee. More than that, I mentioned that as a brand, I see ourselves more in the bike or outdoor industry than coffee which is probably odd to admit. Meaning, I see Loam Coffee as a lifestyle coffee brand within the bike industry.
The best part by far of taking Loam Coffee back over has been reconnecting with many of you. I continue to receive emails and DMs from many customers and ambassadors whom I’ve not chatted with in several years. There’s a lot of excitement again about Loam Coffee. At the same time, I understand I have a long road ahead to rebuild or renew trust …
At Loam Coffee, we’ve always supported trail building in small ways behind the scenes. Most of the time, that involved sending coffee to work parties for trail builders to enjoy. Other times we’d send bags of coffee to be raffled off for fundraisers for trail projects. We also support a small non-profit trail building organization monthly. But now that Loam Coffee and Trail Builder Magazine are figuratively under the same roof, we’re leaning into this more.
It’s been a week since I announced that I’m now at the helm of Loam Coffee. It’s been a touch over two weeks since that change took place. In the midst of it all, we had already planned a family trip to Santa Barbara, California. The timing actually couldn’t have been any better.
It was almost three years ago when I sold Loam Coffee. I started Loam in 2015 and ran it for five years. Feeling burned out and needing a change of pace, I broke the company into two pieces and sold each part. With great relief, I moved on and threw myself into other endeavors and startups. But I couldn’t shake Loam Coffee.
