Outdoor Retailer - July 2017 - 66

Peter Metcalf

THE VOICE
As the founder and former CEO
of Black Diamond, Peter Metcalf
has always been both one of the
most savvy businesspeople in
the outdoor industry and one of
the most vocal. The path he sees
for the industry is clear: It must
defend the places it holds dear.
Written By Brad Wetzler

o understand what makes Peter
Metcalf tick, to understand just
why he cares so deeply about wild
places and the people who recreate
in them, you must travel back in time and across
the country to 1960s New York City, where he
grew up. You must picture him wandering the
empty lots and abandoned Air Force base near
his family's modest Queens bungalow. Look,
there he is, an average-looking kid in glasses,
wiry thin then as he is today. He leans over and
picks up rocks and chunks of concrete to see
what's moving underneath. He peers into holes
to see what might inhabit them. He looks up at
an insect flying in front of his nose and grabs
and studies it. He can't get enough of nature,
and he sees wildness everywhere.
"I loved to catch praying mantises, frogs, and
fireflies," says the founder of Black Diamond
Equipment. "I loved to chase snakes and watch
raccoons skulk around. It turned me on. Oh,
and picking wildflowers and bringing them to
my mom. I loved being a hero to my mom. New

York City was my first experience outside.
And those experiences showed me there's
richness in nature everywhere. There's adventure everywhere."
He adds: "Who were my inspiration? You
really want to know? The Little Rascals."
The Little Rascals as American adventure
icons?
Why not?
"I loved the way they found adventure wherever they went," Metcalf says. "That's how I
wanted to live my life."
Inspiration also came from his parents. "I
saw them as adventurers, too." he says. "My
mother was Jewish, and they fled Europe during a time of hatred. They didn't see themselves as adventurers. But they were. They remained resilient and positive about life."
Fueled by many sources, Metcalf remains
as inspired by wild places and adventuring as
ever. Which is why he finds himself playing
a major leadership role in the fight for public lands and for the continued growth of the
outdoor industry.
"In the face of the current political climate of
extremism, I want to make sure others get the
chance to live adventurously, as I have," he says.
Adventure. That word is sacred to Metcalf.
It's loaded. It's a word he has dedicated his life
to. First, as a Little Rascals wanna-be. Then
as a Boy Scout going on backpacking trips to
the Catskills. Later, as a teenager hitchhiking across America to Wyoming to climb the
Grand Teton. His is an American story, an
American adventure.
"I still love to climb and ski," he says. "But
my passion now is America-it's saving our
public lands."
Metcalf just might be the right person at the
right time, a business leader with the knowledge, resources, and guts to man the helm of
the effort to keep adventure in America sacred.

Not only does Metcalf have passion and
intelligence when it comes to these issues.
He has the language and the clout. And
in these difficult times, for many people
in the outdoor industry, these facts are
beyond comforting.
66 OUTDOOR RETAILER

/ 35th Anniversary 2017

photograph by ANDREW KORNYLAK

Outdoor Retailer - July 2017

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