Organizers of the inaugural Outside Festival took a risk in putting on the three-day event last week at Civic Center, betting that industry insiders and ticket-buyers would support it. Their expectations were exceeded and their vision was validated, they said.
About 18,000 people attended, according to Robin Thurston, chief executive of Outside Interactive Inc., and nearly 20% of the ticket buyers were from out of state. Civic Center Park was filled with booths, climbing walls and a music stage. The Denver Art Museum was host to a day of panel discussions for industry insiders and two days of films and ideas discussions for the public. A greenspace between Civic Center and the capitol was given over to outdoor companies displaying products that will be in stores next year, along with a space for e-bike manufacturers.
PHOTOS: The Inaugural Outside Festival in Downtown Denver
“We were cautiously optimistic going into the weekend, not having done something like this in the past,” Thurston said. “I went to bed Saturday night and was a little like, ‘Was that a dream today?’ Whether it was the engagement for the climbing competition, or looking at the kids engagement at the dog park, the rock climbing wall with Adaptive Adventures — I was just totally blown away.”
Organizers hope to build the festival — which was designed to help fill the void left by the Outdoor Retailer show, which moved to Utah in 2022 — into a major national event that would draw upward of 50,000 people. Their goal is to create an outdoors equivalent of South by Southwest, the massive annual event in Austin, Texas, that caters to the music, film and media industries.
“When you’ve never done something before, and you just have a vision and a dream, there’s no guarantee it’s going to work in reality,” said Conor Hall, director of the Colorado Outdoor Recreation Industry Office. “I think we were confident and hopeful, because we thought there was a real need, and a desire in the outdoor industry and people who love the outdoors.
“At the end of the day, this was the proving ground (for) whether the concept is going to work or not. The response has been overwhelmingly yes,” he added.
Thurston said it is “highly likely” that the festival will be expanded to five days next year, three days for the consumer event and two days for the industry summit.
“If you want to hit a home run, you have to take a swing,” Thurston said. “We’re going to continue, as an organization, swinging for the fences, doing things maybe that people think we can’t do.”
“I think there is a certain amount of validation in that it was amazing to see so many people spending their weekend outdoors,” Thurston said, “exposing people to the outdoors and product companies and partners that share the same mission with us, which is (asserting that) we’re spending way too much time indoors. That was a huge part of the validation. We can attract people and get them outdoors and off their phones.”
The concept is rooted in a mission, shared by OREC and Outside, to build the outdoor community, get young people to put down their phones and get outdoors, increase diversity and advocate for outdoors interests in the political realm. Panels at The Summit for industry insiders included both Colorado senators and Rep. Diana DeGette.
Outside is a Boulder-based digital media company that includes Outside, Ski, Backpacker, Climbing, Trail Runner, Triathlete, VeloNews and Warren Miller Entertainment. Partners in putting on the festival included the OREC, the city of Denver and Visit Denver.
