SPEC PR

is all about getting outdoors, and we are especially proud to be delivering strategically targeted communications in our partnership with the Arthritis Foundation and its longstanding California Coast Classic Bike Tour! If you haven’t checked them out, please follow them and find a way to get involved. Ride, sponsor, or support a fundraising rider. We’re happy to tell you about all the ways to get involved. Send us a DM, and we’ll get you sorted!

May is and . We can’t think of a better time to help spread the word about the nation’s #1 cause of disability and the organization and events supporting the people who are most affected — nearly 60 million (that’s 1 in 4) adults and children in the U.S. Find resources and support at arthritis.org.

This year the California Coast Classic Bike Tour will be rolling down the cost from SF to LA September 21 - 28. Come ride with us!



Partner image credit: Arthritis Foundation

. Receptions, reunions, introductions, and … the food. Ultimately, it’s all about personal connections and building real relationships with awesome people. Thanks to everyone who made it to the reception this year, and everyone else we bumped into a long the way. Now let’s all go back outside!

Check it! Great story from Heather Lea on GearJunkie recapping her experience riding a Yamaha Power Assist Bicycles 525-miles down the California Coast during the California Coast Classic Bike Tour

500 Miles Down the California Coast on a Yamaha Cross Core RC E-Bike GearJunkie contributor Heather Lea rode a Yamaha Cross Core RC E-bike 500 beautiful miles in the California Coast Classic.

We’re on the board! 2023 starts tomorrow!

In honor of Labor Day, we’re submitting this as our “best places to work” entry. Everyone enjoy some time off outside this weekend!

SPEC = Strategic, Pragmatic, Effective Communications. No bull.

Summertime. Go outside and do something fun.

Wait, we missed the first day of summer? Must have been working.

Excited to have another PR pro and content creator who loves the outdoors, hard work, and team effort. Ryan Spinks Let's go!!!

From All Kids Bike to the latest Yamaha pedal-assist products, SPEC PR says they SPECialize in telling stories about outdoor recreation. Ryan Spinks, the latest addition to the team, was born and raised in the Rocky Mountains of Colorado, which has presented many opportunities to work with the top brands in the hospitality and outdoor industries. Read the full scoop: https://www.dealernews.com/Home/post/shifting-gears-spinks-joins-spec/2023-06-02

Line em up.

Not just a desk job.

Flag Day is reminding us of our trips to the Yamaha Whitetail Diaries camp and so many friends who we’ve hunted with there over the years (just a few tagged here, and apologies to the many we’ve missed). Seasons come and go, but and his crew always have a flag flying high in the Texas breeze at camp.

Here’s a little blurb from Britannica: “Flag Day, also called National Flag Day, in the United States, a day honouring the national flag, observed on June 14. The holiday commemorates the date in 1777 when the United States approved the design for its first national flag.”

Let’s call it a “ ”.

That look when it’s all working.

Great story! William Roberson - Forbes Contributor California Coast Classic Bike Tour

From Zero To 500-Plus Mile Charity Rides: Ebikes Enabled One Rider’s New Journey In Life Pete Staylor was not a hard-core cyclist - he loved hoops and had game. But arthritis wore out his knees prematurely and he took up bicycling until even that was too painful. Then, he discovered ebikes - and a way back to enjoying an epic annual charity ride.

Favorite quotes :)

"Part of our group included some Yamaha PR folks and a trip leader. None of them were in the full-cab UTVs, and they all looked miserable."

"Watching these guys shivering and spitting dirt from their teeth was a solid selling point for investing in the full-cab kit."

"Overall, the Wolverine RMAX 1000 series proved to be excellent machines. They are more than capable of not only keeping drivers and passengers warm and comfortable but also safe and exhilarated."

2023 Yamaha Wolverine RMAX2 1000 LE Review: Prolong Playtime With Full-Cab Enclosure Yamaha's Limited Edition 2023 Wolverine RMAX2 1000 is a highly versatile rig for fast trail riding and rock climbing.

The conversion of two things we love here (ebikes and California Coast Classic Bike Tour) in the latest story on Forbes.com by our pal William Roberson - Forbes Contributor. Check out the full story, and then go register for the Ride of a Lifetime and join us on the California Coast this fall!
https://www.forbes.com/sites/billroberson/2023/03/07/from-zero-to-500-plus-mile-charity-rides-ebikes-enabled-one-riders-new-journey-in-life/?sh=7e1f6f214b70

From Zero To 500-Plus Mile Charity Rides: Ebikes Enabled One Rider’s New Journey In Life Pete Staylor was not a hard-core cyclist - he loved hoops and had game. But arthritis wore out his knees prematurely and he took up bicycling until even that was too painful. Then, he discovered ebikes - and a way back to enjoying an epic annual charity ride.

Ride SB100 was one for the books this year with over 1,300 riders and 5 unique routes ranging from 34 to 100 miles. The team provided media relations, sponsor support, social media management, and photo/video services.

We helped give back to Santa Barbara cyclists with donations to .s and . We welcomed and .Juarez, and introduced a 100 km gravel route with our partners .

Throw in and some amazing Santa Barbara weather and that's a wrap! If you missed this year's event and are ready to join us in 2023, keep an eye out for pre-registration to open soon!

Huge shout out to our resident cycling expert, . She fully poured her heart, soul, and legs into the last few weeks of nonstop writing, riding, shooting, and doing “all the things” that come with this massive client activation. We’re thankful to be working with the for the cause, the people, the experience. Julie’s expertise, wisdom, and hustle did exactly what we strive to do here — inspire people to get outside through great storytelling.

Congrats to all of the riders at the 2022 for raising more than $1million for the again this year!

If you ride, you gotta check out this event. 2023 registration is open. Time to start training for next year!!!

Not your average agency. "Joining me for the journey was Casey, a highly experienced off-roader and member of Yamaha's PR team. Casey would serve as my guide for the full two days, teaching me how the various operations of the RMAX 1000 worked and providing helpful tips for navigating the wilderness trails."

Our man can plan and lead a ride like no one else in the PR business!

Not your average agency. "Joining me for the journey was Casey, a highly experienced off-roader and member of Yamaha's PR team. Casey would serve as my guide for the full two days, teaching me how the various operations of the RMAX 1000 worked and providing helpful tips for navigating the wilderness trails."

Our man can plan and lead a ride like no one else in the PR business!

See the full review of this amazing experience at https://www.motortrend.com/features/2022-yamaha-rmax-1000-side-by-side-rocky-mountains/

Understanding connections is an important part of the work we do at SPEC. For outdoor recreationists in California, making connections on the ground is often challenged by the elements but for these folks the commitment to connect is stronger than fire and flood. Their story inspires us!

https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2022-08-14/new-hiking-trail-northern-sierra-help-dying-towns

'We have to remake ourselves': Can a new trail help revive this crest of the Sierra? The "Lost Sierra Route" aims to link up mountain towns across 600 miles and draw recreationists to a region hit by fires and hard economic times.

We’re proud to support the Yamaha Outdoor Access Initiative on their continued efforts to create opportunities that inspire people to get outside! This quarter is funding the development of a public lands database, a workshop on sustainable trail building and maintenance for land managers, trail rehabilitation projects, and several programs around the country! (Another program SPEC proudly supports!)

Here's Episode 2 of our epic 3-day, 2-night, fully unsupported RMAX camping adventure with Yamaha and Dirt Trax TV. Check it out!

https://youtu.be/-3BZ45Dm2u0

Yamaha RMAX 1000 Arizona Ghost Town Adventure Ride - PART 2 Luke's Arizona Ghost Town Offroad Adventure aboard RMAX 1000 side-x-sides continues with the crew from Yamaha along with special guests, AMA and Supercross c...

Pushing the media and Yamaha brand ambassadors to the limit on a 3-day, 2-night, unsupported camping adventure in the middle of the Arizona desert was an experience unlike any other! Dirt Trax TV was on hand to tell the story, and it's one of their "can't miss" stories of the summer. We're excited to share Episode 1 here. Catch the full videos on their channels!

https://youtu.be/XbU1FUsf17s

Yamaha RMAX 1000 Arizona Ghost Town Adventure Ride - PART 1 In part one of our Arizona Ghost Town Offroad Adventure, Luke sets out with the crew from Yamaha along with special guests, AMA and Supercross champion Ryan ...

The rare occasion when the camera was turned around and pointed at us! We've been a remote work team from day 1, so while we're used to hustling on the road and grinding from our respective offices, it's always fun to get the group together.

Thanks to pal, for snapping a few shots of the team in Arizona last month!

Each quarter, we gather with the Yamaha Outdoor Access Initiative grant review committee to review applications and make decisions on which projects will be funded. This week saw the most recent round of projects come through that aim to fund things like educational programs for kids to get outside more, trail maintenance projects, and efforts to maintain and increase access to public lands for recreation.

This has been one of the programs that makes it easy to get up in the morning and do the work we love to do. Back in 2008, the SPEC team helped create and launch The Yamaha Outdoor Access Initiative (OAI) – a program that today has injected more than $5 million dollars into 400 projects across the country working to protect, enhance or expand access to public land for outdoor recreation. It is work we are incredibly proud of because it speaks to our passion for helping to connect everyone to the outdoors in a meaningful way.

We invite you to learn more about the Yamaha OAI program – and if you have a project that could use some support, by all means reach out and apply for a grant. In the meantime, here is the latest example of the great work being executed through the Yamaha OAI with SPEC’s support.

to some from a recent media ride. We caught some nice , along with our friends and partners and doing work! Thanks as always for the good times and great !