Sen. Mark Udall to Tour Outdoor Retailer Summer Market, Boost OIAPAC
A guest of Outdoor Industry Association (OIA), U.S. Senator Mark Udall, D-CO, will make his first visit to Outdoor Retailer on Saturday, August 6.
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Media Contact:
I Ling M. Thompson
Outdoor Industry Association
303.327.3531
Sen. Mark Udall to Tour Outdoor Retailer Summer Market, Boost OIAPAC
Boulder, Colo., (August 4, 2011) A guest of Outdoor Industry Association (OIA), U.S. Senator Mark Udall, D-CO, will make his first visit to Outdoor Retailer on Saturday, August 6. Sen. Udall will anchor a fundraising breakfast for the Outdoor Industry Association Political Action Committee (OIAPAC). Following the breakfast, Sen. Udall will join OIA CEO & President Frank Hugelmeyer for a tour of the show floor on Saturday morning.
“Thanks to his deep roots in the outdoor industry, Sen. Udall is both a friend and champion in Washington, D.C.,” said Frank Hugelmeyer. “Sen. Udall understands the pivotal role the industry plays in our national economy and the need for federal investment in public lands, parks and forests.”
Elected in 2008 to the U.S. Senate, Sen. Udall serves on the Senate’s Energy and Natural Resources Committee, as chairman of the National Parks Subcommittee and co-chairman of the Senate Outdoor Recreation Caucus, positioning him well to help protect our public lands and encourage Americans to get active. He will keynote the invitation-only OIAPAC breakfast on Saturday morning, speaking on the value of the outdoor industry voice in Washington.
“Sen. Udall has taken the lead on protecting the places we love and our customers seek,” said Kim Coupounas, OIAPAC Chair and Co-Founder of GoLite. “OIAPAC is working to educate and engage more elected officials who support and champion the outdoor industry.”
Born in Tucson, Arizona, and spending his entire adult life in Colorado, Sen. Udall has a long-standing connection to outdoor recreation. After graduating from Williams College in 1972, he moved to Colorado’s Western Slope and went to work for Outward Bound. After 10 years leading courses in the field, he served as the organization’s executive director from 1985 to 1995.
An avid mountaineer, Mark has climbed many of the world’s highest peaks and most-challenging routes. He has summited Nepal’s Kangchenjunga and Annapurna, Peak Communism in Tajikistan, and the South Face of Argentina’s Aconcagua (via the Messner Route). Mark was a member of the first summit party to ascend Manda in southern India. He has attempted Everest, Nanga Parbat and Cho Oyu. In the United States, he has summited all of Colorado’s 14,000-foot peaks, and 91 of the state’s 100 highest, as well as Denali in Alaska (Cassin Ridge), Mount Rainier’s Liberty Ridge and Longs Peak’s Diamond (D-1) in Colorado’s Rocky Mountain National Park.
About Outdoor Industry Association
Based in Boulder, CO, Outdoor Industry Association® is the leading trade association for the outdoor industry and the title sponsor of Outdoor Retailer. OIA supports the growth and success of more than 4,000 manufacturers, distributors, suppliers, sales representatives and retailers of outdoor recreation apparel, footwear, equipment and services. For more information go to outdoorindustry.org or call 303.444.3353.
About OIAPAC
The Outdoor Industry Association Political Action Committee is the voluntary, non-partisan political action committee of OIA. The primary objective of OIAPAC is to support candidates for federal office whose policy views and voting records are aligned with the OIA Policy Agenda. For information on OIAPAC or the Udall event, contact Craig Mackey at 303.327.3522.
