Employee Spotlight- Mike McCartan

I was born and raised in the flat lands of the mid-west but was fortunate enough to have an outdoor focused and active family that always placed me in beautiful forests and open water. It was in college at Iowa State University that I discovered the West while on a trip to Escalante, Utah. I was immediately amazed, humbled, and hooked. Outdoor Education has been a mainstay for the majority of my education and career. In High-school I taught a sailing summer camp for middle schoolers and in college I worked as a facilitator for the Outdoor Rec Program. After college my friends and I moved to Colorado to play music and climb granite while I also worked to get developmentally disabled individuals into the community; this was the biggest change in my life up to that date as my eyes were opened to Rocky Mountain National Park, The Poudre Canyon and all of the rock, snow and ice of Colorado. After a couple years cutting my teeth there, I took a job as a Wilderness Therapy Guide in Utah which only helped me get out and up more; 8 days on and 6 days off, year round, with lots of good people, let me access the desert and the mountains in an extended way that I had not be able to utilize before. After a couple years there, and a month long pack-rafting/alpine-climbing trip to the Northwest Territories in Canada, I decided to focus on technical rock and mountain guiding. I got a job as a guide in the Pacific Northwest, progressed in the AMGA track and had a great time exploring the granite towers, glaciers and immense relief of Washington, British Columbia and Alaska while living out of various vehicles to be as mobile as possible. A couple years later I realized it was not going to sustain me in the long run so I joined my girlfriend on a USFS Wildland Fire Hand Crew and had a blast cutting, digging, hauling and joking. Once I realized that I didn’t want to break my back for a living, I took a job with Liberty Mountain selling the gear that I have been using for the past decade. It’s a good fit and I am glad to be in this spot! More adventures to come.

Name: Mike McCartan

Time working for Liberty Mountain: Since October 2018

Job title: Industrial and Government Sales

Role in the company: I work with customers who represent a large amount of our country’s energy, construction, military, and government industries while also collaborating with our group sales team. 

What do you like most about your job? I enjoy the autonomy and problem solving to create growth.

Active in the following sports/activities/hobbies: Climbing, skiing, running, reading, writing. 

Favorite activity: Climbing

Favorite outdoor areas: Indian Creek, UT

Piece of outdoor gear you most wish you had: Wish I hadn’t sold my pack-raft

Most interesting place ever lived: Utah

Top-five favorite movies: Ferris Buhler, Blues Brothers, Life Aquatic, Every Mel-Brooks, Every Tarantino 

Top-five favorite books: East of Eden, Still Life with Woodpecker, Vineland, Brief and Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao, Legends of the Fall. 

First memory spending time Outdoors: Forest walk with my Grandpa

Inspirational Hero: Jim Harrison

Dream vacation: Patagonia in general, then to Spain, France and Morocco. Duh. 

Favorite food to eat outside: Bacon

Cake or pie: Pie

Dogs or Cats: Dogs. I don’t get the point of cats. 

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Employee Spotlight - Eric Ward

I grew up in Indiana and as a kid, I spent as much time outside as possible. I grew up driving all over the U.S. chasing epic experiences to further my climbing, snowboarding, and rafting addictions. There are now less than 10 U.S. states I have not visited. I was lucky enough to take three 12 day backpacking trips to Philmont, and then I worked there in 2007 teaching rock climbing. I kept finding myself working retail with the occasional custom cabinet shop tossed in. I was working as an assistant store manager at Gander Mountain until they went bankrupt. I had always tossed the idea of moving to the mountains and I was in a position to seize that opportunity after a brief visit to Utah. I moved to Utah in search of better powder and higher climbs than Indiana could provide. I soon found my place at Liberty Mountain, and now I spend my days talking about gear and keeping a list of adventures for my time off.  

Name: Eric Ward

Time working for Liberty Mountain: One year

Job title: South East Sales Rep

Short description of what you do at Liberty Mountain: I maintain and provide services for the south east region. AR, TN, LA, MS, AL, GA, NC, SC, and FL.

What do you like most about your job? Learning and talking about gear

Active in the following sports/activities/hobbies: rock climbing, snowboarding, backpacking, and paddling. The rest of my free time is generally spent wrenching on, breaking, or camping in my 4RUNNER.  

Favorite outdoor areas: all of the above

Piece of outdoor gear you most wish you had: a trad rack

Most interesting place ever lived: I have only lived in Indiana and Utah and so far Utah is definitely the most interesting.

Top-five favorite movies: Office Space, Out Cold, The Fast and Furious (all of them), Boondock Saints, and ?

Top-five favorite books: I hate reading books sadly

Dream vacation: I want to do a tour of Europe that includes, Germany, Spain, Venice, Greece, and Rome.

Cake or pie: Pie

Dogs or Cats: Dog

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Employee Spotlight - Alex Talbot

I was lucky to grow up camping throughout Utah with my family and with the Boy Scouts. Our summer trips included camping in places like the Uintas, Nine Mile Canyon, Moab and the Wasatch mountains near my home. A self-proclaimed purist, I often opted to sleep alone in a tent while the rest of my family slept in a camper trailer. Books like My Side of the Mountain left me dreaming of running away and living alone in the mountains – an idea I still haven’t fully abandoned. As I got further in the Scouting organization, my love of the outdoors was further cemented and I began mountain biking near my house almost daily.

Fast forward several years, I applied to work at a local gear shop, and Liberty Mountain customer, as a summer job between semesters of school. I ended up working there for two years, managing the shop for some of that time. It was here that I developed my love of climbing. I started climbing in the gym, but was more drawn to climbing outdoors and mountaineering. A 2015 trip saw me to Mt Rainier, and I began looking at other big mountains to climb. My time at the shop introduced me to Liberty Mountain and I decided to move up the supply chain and get a part-time job there while I finished school. I have since become the Returns Supervisor and currently finagle full-time school and a full-time job.

My main interest now is climbing. Whether bouldering, traditional, ice, or most recently aid climbing, any vertical venture draws me in. If I’m not hanging from a rope, I’m likely mountain biking, ski touring, hiking, fly fishing, or backpacking. My dream adventure is to take a 4 month road trip from Utah to the Bugaboos, over Squamish and back through California and Nevada hitting every iconic climbing location along the way.

Interview Questions

Name: Alex Talbot

Time working for Liberty Mountain: 1.5 years

Job title: Returns Supervisor

Short description of what you do at Liberty Mountain: Oversee all returns and warranty matters and put out fires.

What do you like most about your job? The friendships and access to all the gear I could dream of!

Active in the following sports/activities/hobbies: Climbing, biking, skiing, hiking, backpacking

Favorite activity: Moderate, multi-pitch trad climbing

Favorite outdoor areas: San Rafael Swell, Little Cottonwood Canyon, Custer State Park SD, Point Reyes National Seashore

Piece of outdoor gear you most wish you had: Popup tent for my Honda Element

Most interesting place ever lived: UTAH!

Top-five favorite movies: Meru, Hot Rod, Nacho Libre, anything from Warren Miller

Top-five favorite books: My Side of the Mountain (Jean Craighead George), A Granite Guide (Nate Smith), The Push (Tommy Caldwell), Alone on the Wall (Alex Honnold), For One More Day (Mitch Albom)

First memory spending time outdoors: Looking for petroglyphs in Nine Mile Canyon

Inspirational Hero: Jimmy Chin and Tommy Caldwell

Dream vacation: Four month climbing road trip through Utah, Idaho, Montana, Alberta, British Columbia, Washington, Oregon, California, Nevada and back home.

Favorite food to eat outside: Anything that makes my friends jealous. Gourmet in the backcountry!

Cake or pie: Pumpkin pie

Dogs or Cats: Dogs every day.

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Employee Spotlight - Adam Kittell

I spent my early years growing up in Tennessee and then in Ohio for the greater portion of my life. My dad was the leader of my Cub Scout troop when I was little, and he taught me about camping and enjoying the outdoors. During my angsty teenage years my interests were elsewhere, but at the end of high school my friend introduced me to mountain biking!

I grew up taking art classes and loved to draw, so I went to ITT Tech for an AAS in Multimedia and then to The Ohio State University for my BFA in Art & Technology. At OSU I started climbing at the campus gym and took to it quickly. I found out about a group called The Mountaineers Club and signed up for a Spring Break trip to Moab, Utah with them. They taught me to lead climb on Wall St and I fell in love with bouldering at the Big Bend boulders. I spent the remainder of college going on climbing trips with them to the Red River Gorge and the New River Gorge, and made a few return trips to Moab.

After college I started doing some freelance design work but wasn't very into it and started reevaluating how I wanted to spend my time. I decided Ohio was too flat and boring and I needed to be out in nature more. I heard that Asheville, NC was a cool place for nature lovers, so on a whim I packed up all I could fit in my car and head there with no real plan. I got a seasonal job as an instructor for a Wilderness Therapy company called Trails Carolina and had some fun playing in the Blue Ridge Mountains for a few months. After the gig was up I determined that Asheville just wasn't the place for me long term and head back to Columbus to reevaluate. I spent the winter there working at Gander Mountain while I figured out my next move. My heart was in Utah so I lined up a job at another Wilderness Therapy place called Aspiro. This time the gig was permanent and based out of central Utah! During my off-time from guiding I did tons of climbing and biking, lived out of my car for a while, traveled a bunch, and made great friends.

When I got burnt out on guiding I wanted to stay in Salt Lake City, so I lined up a job in the warehouse at Backcountry.com with the intent of working my way up in a career in the outdoor industry. I worked there a couple of years and moved up the ranks some. I learned enough from my various roles there to land a job as a Buyer at Liberty Mountain. I have been enjoying everything there so far and look forward to the future!

During my time in SLC I met a wonderful woman that I am now engaged to, and we have a boxer/pit mix dog that is a lovable doofus. I am more of a weekend warrior these days and try to take every chance I get to head out on a short trip to one of the amazing destinations nearby. Between those trips I retreat into the local mountains for the amazing climbing and biking that the area has to offer.

Name: Adam Kittell

Time working for Liberty Mountain: Since July 2017

Job title: Buyer

Short description of what you do at Liberty Mountain: I buy products for- water sports, winter sports, electronics, biking, fitness, clothing accessories, and k9 to make sure our inventory is filled and relevant. 

What do you like most about your job? Playing with the gear!

Active in the following activities: climbing, mountain biking, slacklining, hiking, drawing, and making things

Favorite activity: bouldering

Favorite outdoor areas: Moab, UT and New River Gorge, WV

Piece of outdoor gear you most wish you had: a whitewater kayak

Most interesting place ever lived: Out of my SUV

Top-five favorite movies: I like too many movies to pick.

Top-five favorite books: Harry Potter series minus 2 of them, but which….

First memory spending time Outdoors: Playing in the woods behind my house in Tennessee with the neighbor kids.

Inspirational Hero: Kyle Maynard

Dream vacation: deep water soloing and relaxing in Mallorca, Spain

Favorite food to eat outside: Burritos

Cake or pie: Cake

Dogs or Cats: Cats as a species. But my stepdog is better.

Anything else that the world should know… I workout-danced on stage with Richard Simmons in one of his videos. 

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Employee Spotlight: Chelsey Whyte

Half of my life I grew up on the beach and the other half in the mountains. From California to Idaho, and now Utah, I have always loved to be outside. I graduated from the University of Idaho with a degree in Recreation, exploring new outdoor adventures along the way. My last year of college I worked at a ropes course and rental shop exposing myself to working and fixing gear. After college I headed to Alaska to work for a glacier guiding company where trips included ice climbing, trekking, exploring, and zip lining. Alaska got really cold so I moved to Utah for the great access, awesome mountains, and new adventures. I had been a Liberty Mountain customer working for previous employers, when I noticed that Liberty was hiring I jumped for the opportunity.

Name: Chelsey Whyte

Time working for Liberty Mountain: 9 months

Job title: Sales Representative

Short description of what you do at Liberty Mountain: Work with Brick and Mortar shops in Colorado and the Midwest. Process ASAP and preseason orders, represent our house and exclusive brands, chat directly with our customers, answer all the questions I can, and provide outstanding customer service.

What do you like most about your job? The people I work with both in and out of the office, constantly learning about new products, and being in the outdoor industry.

Active in the following sports/activities/hobbies: Hiking, camping, fishing, snowboarding, climbing, paddle boarding, wake boarding, dirt biking, and snorkeling when available.

Favorite activity: Snowboarding and snorkeling.

Favorite outdoor areas: Prince William Sound



Piece of outdoor gear you most wish you had: Inflatable SUP

Most interesting place ever lived: Glacier View, Alaska

Top-five favorite movies: Blue Crush, Point Break (old and new), The Grinch, Star Wars, and Grease

Top-five favorite books: Meditation on the Mat, The Alchemist, Let My People Go Surfing, The Iliad, and The Odyssey.

First memory spending time Outdoors: My first memory was swimming in the Pacific Ocean. I grew up in Orange County, CA so the beach was my playground. I would body board (boogie board) all day until the waves threw me around enough to call it quits. I never learned how to surf though; it’s on my list of to dos!

Inspirational Hero: My grandfather

Dream vacation: Being a beach bum in Costa Rica

Favorite food to eat outside: Coffee

Cake or pie: Cookies

Dogs or Cats: Dogs, especially the extra fluffy ones.

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Employee Spotlight: Michael Shaw

My dad was a school teacher before he retired, so when I was younger my family would spend summers taking road trips to different national parks.  By the time I was 16 I had traveled to 48 of the 50 states, and I had seen more than half of the U.S. national parks. The family trips that I took as a kid instilled in me a respect for the scenery across the country and a love for the outdoors. I enjoy a wide variety of outdoor activities, and I’ve always dreamed of working in the outdoor industry. When I got the chance to work for Liberty Mountain, I jumped at the opportunity.

Name: Michael Shaw

Time working for Liberty Mountain: 2 years

Job title: Buyer

Short description of what you do at Liberty Mountain:  I’m the buyer for books, knives, and non-climbing imports. The main responsibility of my job is to maintain proper inventory levels through forecasting, reorder points, and purchase orders.

What do you like most about your job?  Forecasting sales for the year based on relevant information is one of the better parts of my job.

Active in the following sports/activities/hobbies: Hiking, Canyoneering, Biking, Skiing, Snowshoeing, Climbing, Unicycling

Favorite activity: I really enjoy most outdoor activities, so asking me to choose one is like asking a parent which child is their favorite, but if I have to pick just one it is probably hiking. My family traveled to a lot of national parks when I was younger, so hiking has always been a big part of my life.

Favorite outdoor areas: Glacier National Park and Banff National Park are two of my favorite places to visit. It’s hard to beat glacial lakes with a backdrop of snow covered peaks.

Piece of outdoor gear you most wish you had: At this point I have most of the outdoor gear that I need, but I wouldn’t mind upgrading my mountain bike in the near future.

Most interesting place ever lived:  I’ve really only lived in Salt Lake City, Utah and South Bend, Indiana. I can tell you with certainty that Salt Lake City is more interesting than South Bend in almost every measure imaginable.

Top-five favorite movies: The Princess Bride, Shawshank Redemption, Guardians of the Galaxy, You’ve Got Mail, Lord of the Rings

Top-five favorite books: Ender’s Game, The Count of Monte Cristo, The Princess Bride, The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy, Harry Potter

First memory spending time Outdoors: Yellowstone is one of the first trips I remember.  My family went there just after the big fire, and I distinctly remember looking out and seeing the charred landscape. Every time I go back I’m reminded that even the most devastating events can create positive opportunities for growth.

Inspirational Hero: My Grandpa. He was a World War II veteran, and one of the most spectacular people I’ve ever met. He lost his eyesight in his 60’s, but he remained active into his 90’s.

Dream vacation: I would love to take a summertime trip to the Swiss Alps.

Favorite food to eat outside: I rarely go on outdoor adventures without having beef jerky in my pack. It’s my outdoor staple food.

Cake or pie:  Neither. I’m a cookie person.

Dogs or Cats:  Dogs

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Employee Spotlight - Abbie Brothers

I grew up on the East bench in Ogden, Utah, with miles of hiking trails literally right outside my front door. As young as 6-7 years old, I would walk across the street to the trailhead by myself and explore the hillside, camp out in a grove of trees for the day, or boulder my way up to some of the hidden caves. My family frequently hiked up to Waterfall Canyon on the weekends, and my parents even bravely tried to summit some of the taller peaks with us 4 young kids in tow. Our summer vacations were always spent either going down to southern Utah, or somewhere up in the Uintahs. Some of my best childhood memories are from camping in our pop-up trailer. 

When I moved to Salt Lake to attend the U, I was excited to explore a whole new set of hiking trails. Shortly after graduating from college, my husband and I decided to move to Seattle, and one of the things that drove our decision was the opportunity to explore an entirely different type of terrain. Hiking the rainforest and exploring the rocky beaches was definitely cool and new, but we quickly realized that nothing really compares to the Wasatch front. After 4 years (and twins!), we decided it was time to come back home. We now live at the base of Little Cottonwood Canyon, so I feel almost like I’ve come back to my roots of having access to hiking trails right outside my front door. I love that working at Liberty gives me the opportunity to combine my work and my personal passions in a way I’ve never really been able to before!    

Name: Abbie Brothers

Time working for Liberty Mountain: 8 months

Job title: Executive Assistant/Human Resources

Short description of what you do at Liberty Mountain: In short, help hire people, pay people, and help Gary!

What do you like most about your job? I love that both as HR and as Gary’s assistant I get the opportunity to interact with each department and employee in one way or another.

Active in the following sports/activities/hobbies: Hiking, running/trail-running, yoga, camping

Favorite activity: Hiking

Favorite outdoor areas: Little Cottonwood Canyon, and Lake Washington (Seattle)

Piece of outdoor gear you most wish you had: I’d love a SUP, but don’t think that I live near enough to a body of water to justify the purchase. If not that, one of those old school silver bullet campers!

Most interesting place ever lived: In college I lived in a very old, creepy, run-down, tiny house with a roommate. It had zero insulation, one tiny heater, and an empty room with just a stove and a fridge for a kitchen. But we loved it!

Top-five favorite movies: The Labyrinth, Love Actually, Titanic, Mean Girls, Old School

Top-five favorite books: Pride and Prejudice, Animal Dreams, The Great Gatsby, Harry Potter series, Bossypants

First memory spending time Outdoors: Not necessarily the first, but the most memorable is being maybe 10 or so and being swept down a river while swimming in Yellowstone. Obviously, I survived, but I now have a healthy fear of swimming across deep rivers. 

What or who inspires you: My parents successfully instilled their love of nature and being outside in their kids, which inspires me to try to do the same for my own children.

Dream vacation: I have never been to Europe, but really hope to go someday.

Favorite food to eat outside: Peanut butter and honey sandwiches

Cake or pie: Cookies

Dogs or Cats: Dogs (but I like cats, too…)

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Employee Spotlight - Jessica Powell

I grew up outdoors. My dad is a giant gear head, and I grew up following him around in the mountains on dirt bikes, four wheelers, and snowmobiles. After I moved to Utah for college, I realized there was an entirely different way to enjoy being outside that didn’t have anything to do with engines or gears, and I jumped right in. Since that point, the outdoors has kind of swallowed most aspects of my life; my work, my free time...and most of my paycheck. While I was in school studying recreational therapy, I worked at a local gear shop selling backpacking and climbing gear. I fell in love with the outdoor industry in that shop, and am so grateful to be able to continue being a part of it here at Liberty Mountain.

Name: Jessica Powell

Number of years working for Liberty Mountain: 1 year

Job title: Sales Rep

Short description of what you do at Liberty Mountain: I work with the brick and mortar shops in Colorado and the Midwest.

What do you like most about your job? I love getting out and visiting the shops-especially when we have time to get out and climb!

Active in the following sports/activities/hobbies: Climbing of all types, Canyoneering, Backpacking, Biking, Splitboarding, Trail Running, playing the guitar, reading

Favorite activity: Climbing!

Favorite outdoor areas: Red Rocks National Conservation, The Uinta National Forest, The Wasatch, St George, Utah

Piece of outdoor gear you most wish you had: SUP or Kayak-I don’t know how to do any water things.

Most interesting place ever lived: Tavua, Fiji

Top-five favorite movies: Tommy Boy, Home, Pirates of the Caribbean, The Sixth Sense, Baby Momma

Top-five favorite books: This question is too hard. The 5 most recent were A Dog’s Purpose, The Wilderness Essays, The Light Between 2 Oceans, Staying Alive in Avalanche Terrain, and Alone on the Wall.

First memory spending time Outdoors: I come from a family of 5 girls, so my dad gave up on having a boy to take on “man adventures” and started hauling me around instead. My first real “outdoor” memory is of a hunting trip we did. He made me pick up deer poop and pinch it between my fingers to see if it was fresh. It was an interesting daddy-daughter bonding experience for a 6 year old.

Inspirational Hero: Steph Davis. She’s so hardcore.

Dream vacation: A climbing trip to Thailand.

Favorite food to eat outside: Those peach cup things. But with fruit juice not syrup.

Cake or pie: Popsicles.

Dogs or Cats: Dogs. Specifically my dog, Ande.

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Employee Spotlight - Matthew Bowe

"I’ve always been the stereotypical nerd. My dad has worked as a network systems engineer for HP my entire life. He’d always bring home broken computers and hardware for my brothers and me to fix.  I built be first PC from discarded components when I was 6. My mom is a classically trained concert pianist and passed her musical ability on to her children. I attended college on a full scholarship for instrumental music. In recent years, I’ve begun semi-professionally competing in cosplay contests at comic conventions. My costumes have been highlighted several times in local news publications.

I’ve never been a person capable of doing only one thing at a time. I frequently have more than one employer in order to round out my life. I came to Liberty Mountain after a year of working at my full-time job where I monitor and support media streams to and from a myriad of customers and companies. I nearly never actually see the computers I’m logged into or even meet face to face with the customers I’m supporting. Liberty Mountain affords me the opportunity to get back into working with physical hardware and friendly faces."

Name: Matthew Bowe

Time working for Liberty Mountain: 5 months

Job title: Part-time IT Help Desk / SysAid

What you do at Liberty Mountain: I fix all the things. I set up workstations, install network hardware, fix software installations, and educate users.

What do you like about your job? I love being hands-on with the things I fix.

Active in the following activities: I teach violin and viola. I perform chamber music with my family. I maintain my hobbled-together networks of self-built servers and IoT devices, I fly fish, and I cosplay.

Favorite activity: Eating Red Wagon corndogs and Dole Whips in Disneyland.

Favorite outdoor areas:  Quiet, shallow streams full of hungry brook trout… or Disneyland.

Most interesting place ever lived: Cologne, Germany

Top-five favorite movies: Galaxy Quest, Pete’s Dragon (1977), Wall- E, Sneakers, Guardians of the Galaxy

Top-five favorite books: Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy (series); Ready, Player One; Seveneves, The Martian, Dragonsong

First memory spending time outdoors: I remember spontaneous day picnics in the canyon on hot summer days.

Inspirational Hero: Adam Savage

Dream vacation: Adventures by Disney: Germany- Heidelberg, Alsfeld, Waldeck, Rothenburg, Munich

Favorite food: Tortellini Alfredo

Cake or pie: Pie

Dogs or Cats: Cats

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