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CRAFTED Bike & Gear Show: A Gathering of Bikes, Brands & Community
Send us Fan Mail Every bike has a story, and so do the people who build them. At the inaugural CRAFTED Bike & Gear Show at Cane Creek in Western North Carolina, I set out to hear those stories—and came away with far more conversations than I could fit into a typical episode. In this extended episode of Exploration Local, we meet the people behind the bikes, gear, and ideas shaping the cycling world. There’s a look at how open-source design could help make adaptive cycling more accessible,...
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123
Oct. 13, 2026
CRAFTED Bike & Gear Show: A Gathering of Bikes, Brands & Community
Send us Fan Mail Every bike has a story, and so do the people who build them. At the inaugural CRAFTED Bike & Gear Show at Cane Creek in Western North Carolina, I set out to hear those stories—and came away with far more conversations than I could fit into a typical episode. In this extended episode of Exploration Local, we meet the people behind the bikes, gear, and ideas shaping the cycling world. There’s a look at how open-source design could help make adaptive cycling more accessible,...
Oct. 2, 2026
The Roadless Rule Is Under Threat: What It Means for North Carolina with Carla Fox, The Conservation Alliance
Send us Fan Mail 58 million acres of national forest land have stayed largely free of new road building for more than two decades and that protection is now under real pressure. I sit down with Carla Fox, Membership Director at The Conservation Alliance, to break down what the Roadless Rule actually does, why it was created, and what the U.S. Forest Service is proposing through its draft environmental impact statement. We get specific about what “inventoried roadless areas” are, how they dif...
121
Sept. 30, 2026
More Than a Brewery: Trailside Brewing with David Schnitzer
Send us Fan Mail Trailside Brewing is one of those places that makes you rethink what a “local brewery” can be. In this episode, I sit down with David Schnitzer, CEO and Owner who built his career in summer camps and outdoor leadership, and you can hear that DNA in everything Trailside has become in Hendersonville, North Carolina. This isn’t just a stop for a pint. It’s a gathering point where people show up after a ride on the Ecusta Trail, linger for a meal, and leave with new friends. We ...
120
Sept. 15, 2026
FIND Outdoors: Creating Experiences That Connect Us to Nature with Carolyn Ashworth
Send us Fan Mail What happens when you connect people to nature? For Carolyn Ashworth, President & CEO of FIND Outdoors, that connection is at the heart of their work. FIND Outdoors grew out of the Cradle of Forestry in Western North Carolina and today works across North Carolina, Georgia and Kentucky, helping people experience public lands through campgrounds, visitor centers, recreation sites, guided experiences and education. Carolyn's connection to the Cradle is personal. She spent ti...
119
Aug. 31, 2026
700 Miles in 17 Days: Operation Carolina with Jonathan Milkovich
Send us Fan Mail 700 miles across North Carolina in 17 days sounds like an endurance headline. But after talking with Jonathan Milkovich, it’s the reason behind the run that sticks. Jonathan is a lifelong runner, Army airborne infantryman, and founder of Operation Warrior Fit—a nonprofit connecting veterans, first responders, active duty, and National Guard through fitness, competition, and community. He shares the personal path that brought him here: a knee injury, the isolation of the COVID...
118
Aug. 18, 2026
Scars On The Mountain: The Story Behind The Story with Christopher Pike & Michael Foley
Send us Fan Mail In this episode I sit down with Executive Producer Michael Foley and Director Christopher Pike to talk about Scars on the Mountain, their feature documentary now streaming on Angel Studios. Foley shares what it was like to mobilize with volunteer helicopters, deliver medicine, and witness a grassroots rescue effort that became Operation Helo. Chris walks through the hardest part of the work: earning trust in small mountain towns, holding space for grief, and refusing to make ...
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