Alison teamed up with KEEN a few years back, when she was looking for a more sustainable footwear company. KEEN is not only a company trying to incorporate greener practices into everything they do, but they also love to have fun and play! Alison loves that they have started to bring manufacturing back to the US, with Portland Made, and the new old-school style of footwear manufacturing that uses less toxic materials and less energy. KEEN provides free shoe coupons for the trivia contests at Alison’s Global Cooling Tour and KEEN Rippin Chix Camps.
Alison was looking for a high quality pack company based in the United States that was always looking to be a bit more sustainable. Osprey and Alison have worked together for years, from design work to greening the office. Osprey provides demo packs for the KEEN Rippin Chix steep skiing and biking camps. Osprey is based in Cortez, Colorado. They have many green programs, including paying their employees to ride their bikes to work!
Alison’s dream company in regards to environmental responsiblity and business ethics has always been Patagonia. Its position as a privately held company, manned by the infamous Yvon Chouinard, enables it to make decisions that are not solely based upon stockholders and profits. Yvon has been a mentor for Alison for years – he really means it when he says “don’t buy this jacket” and “there is no such thing as a sustainable business”. Patagonia has a lifelong guarantee, and wants you to buy used from their Ebay store or get your existing jacket repaired before buying new. Their other big enviro push is calculating each item’s water footprint, in addition to the Footprint Chronicles.
Alison found Elemental Herbs when she was on http://www.EWG.org – as she was looking for a less toxic sunscreen. She was amazed to find that the FDA considers all chemicals safe until proven guilty, and that sunscreens contain chemicals that can cause cancer and cause endocrine disruption. Elemental Herbs strives to blend a formula that protects your skin, looks good, and causes the least harm. Alison also loves their All Good Lips, and uses All Good Goop daily for her garden hands and feet.
Alison partnered with Specialized for her KEEN Rippin Chix Camps so that women could build their confidence and expand their toolboxes by riding bikes that were built for women, by women. View their special Women’s Page. Specialized also has a ton of green initiatives, which they really need to have on their webpage!
Clif Bar and Alison’s partnership goes way back to the very beginning of both companies. Alison was looking for a more sustainable bar company and found this tiny new company that was just getting started. Alison has always believed in partnering with like-minded companies that made impressive products.
Alison teamed up with Janae Pritchett from Colorado Backcountry teaching mountain biking in Crested Butte, Colorado. Colorado Backcountry provides custom hiking and biking tours, and Janae was one of the best athletes and instructors Alison had ever worked with.Alison and Janae team up to teach most all of the KEEN Rippin Chix Bike Camps, with a special use permit from the BLM and The National Forest Service, include Crested Butte Bike Week, formerly Fat Tire Bike Week.
Alison teamed up with Sarah Mah Rarick of Desert Rat Tours in 2012, in order to bring KEEN Rippin Chix to the trails of the Grand Valley/Grand Junction/Fruita Colorado area. Sarah and her company lead custom trips around the area, as well as providing the world’s best shuttle services to trails like the Ribbon. KEEN Rippin Chix Mountain Bike Camps have been a part of the Fruita Fat Tire Festival since 2011, and have held skills camps in the town park during the festival. Now Sarah and Alison can take those camps to the trails thanks to a special use permit from the BLM.