Mountrek’s Escape to New York Celebrates Adventure Anywhere

To the meek, the weekend consists of the 48-hour period known as Saturday and Sunday. To the adventurous, the weekend starts on Friday at 5:00 p.m. and doesn’t end until Monday at 6:00 a.m. or so. That’s 60+ hours for adventure; that’s a Mountrek kind of weekend. Making the most of the here and now is the inspiration behind Mountrek’s new adventure challenge.

Called the Mountrek Challenge, Escape to New York, the event takes place from July 13th – July 16th and pits three adventure athletes against each other and a scoresheet in a G.N.A.R.-style challenge that includes a long weekend, a heli-assist, and a ton of adventure on the lakes, trails, and crags in and around Mountrek’s backyard.

The teams will be hiking, scrambling, SUP-ing, rappelling, and camping their way through the Catskills and the ‘Gunks beginning on Friday night at North-South Lake and ending up at or near Breakneck Ridge on Monday morning and on a train back to Manhattan in time for work.

And, it’s all for a good cause as the winning team will have a $5,000 donation made in their name to the New York City chapter of Inner City Outings, a Sierra Club community outreach program that provides opportunities for urban youth and adults to explore, enjoy, and protect the natural world.

The teams include Team EMS, which consists of two buyers from EMS’ SoHo store and Team Grassroots Fitness. The team will have two photojournalists embedded with them–Allie Bombach and Mo Scarpelli–documenting the activities, the reactions, the scenery, and the inspirations. A mini-documentary of Escape to New York will be produced by Dan Austin to be used for brand and dealer marketing opportunities.

The event is the 2012 cornerstone and the beginning of a 3-year relaunch of the 10-year-old brand. Mountrek’s commitment is to make every step an adventure. This sentiment isn’t just words. Mountrek imagines, designs, and produces some of the hardest- working and best-looking outdoor shoes on the planet. Because when we live our lives inspired and focused on what matters, life becomes a lot more interesting and a lot more fulfilling.

“Mountrek knows that adventure is anywhere you want it to be. In New York it has to be. You don’t have to climb the Grand or float the Grand Canyon,” said Jamie Laycock, Mountrek’s vice president of marketing. “As a New York-based footwear brand, adventure can be as close as walking to the store or a weekend in the Catskills and Adirondacks. Escape to New York is a celebration of each of those adventure opportunities, and the beginning of the next phase for Mountrek.”

About Mountrek:
Celebrating their 10th anniversary, Mountrek is an outdoor performance footwear manufacturer that makes and markets shoes and boots for hiking, scrambling, paddling, and recovery. For more information: Mountrek.com.