At the Maine Outdoor Brands (MOB) annual meeting, the organization presented its annual Trailblazer Awards. The ceremony honored the winners of the Outdoor Innovation, Outdoor Industry Leader of the Year, and Outdoor Brand Collaboration awards.
The MOB Outdoor Innovation Award recognizes a brand or organization for an innovative product or service that was successfully brought to market in the last year. It was awarded to Opolis for its StokedPlastic collection.
For the StokedPlastic collection, Opolis founder James Merrill worked with the manufacturing and research labs at the University of Southern Maine to develop a patent-pending blend of recycled Polyethylene Terephthalate (rPET)Â made from ocean and landfill plastic water bottles. The combination of durability and surface refinement Opolis is achieving with rPET was previously only achieved with virgin plastics. Eventually this technology will be used to make other durable goods.
MOB Outdoor Industry Leader of the Year Award recognizes an individual who has had an outsized impact on the business or organization and whose actions have strengthened Maine’s outdoor recreation industry. It was awarded to Brenna Herridge, director of sales at Sugarloaf.
Since Herridge took on her position, the mountain resort has welcomed many exciting events, including the return of NEMBAFest, August 5-7, and the Enduro World Series, August 20-21, 2022 (and 2023). The Enduro World Series is the highest level of enduro racing in the world and one of the hardest titles to win in the sport of mountain biking. Herridge and her team have also been instrumental in expanding the bike trail system at the resort.
The MOB Outdoor Brand Collaboration Award recognizes brands and/or organizations that have, working together, developed an outstanding product or service in the past year. The winner here is Teens to Trails and the Department of Education WAVES (Wilderness and Virtual Engagement for Students) program.
Teens to Trails partnered with the Maine Department of Education on an initiative called WAVES: Wilderness and Virtual Engagement for Students. The program’s mission was to start outdoor clubs at middle and high schools so students could get outside, take off masks, make new friends, explore new places and feel their world expanding during a very isolating time.
Teenagers are losing their connection with nature at an accelerated pace, yet outdoor clubs create inclusive, non-performance based outdoor experiences that break down social barriers and build lifelong habits of wellness. WAVES funding allowed schools to start outdoor programs and Teens to Trails provided training, gear, and pre-planned outings.
Through the WAVES + Teens to Trails partnership, 83 schools across every county in Maine have programs that offer equitable access to the outdoors for their students. The partnership more than doubled the number of outing clubs in Maine schools in a single year.
