Skip Yowell - The Hippie Guide to Climbing the Corporate Ladder & Other Mountains: How JanSport Makes It Happen

Praise for The Hippie Guide to Climbing the
Corporate Ladder & Other Mountains

I wish this enlightening book had been available 30 years ago. The inspiration I have derived from it now would have been welcomed then. Like a new band without a label (either style or record company), with originality and dedication it shows how they forged their own way and set the high marks for others to strive for. This how it was done book should be read by all aspiring musicians, for the principles of success are universal and are defined within.

John McEuen, Founding member of Nitty Gritty Dirt Band (also celebrating our 40th year!) and father of 6 kids who could not wear out their JanSport packs

Skips account of the founding of JanSport is full of honesty, humor, and enough anecdotes to stir a memory in almost anyone who has spent time outside. His tale takes you from a small room above a transmission shop to a global enterprise and packs enough adventures to keep the fire stoked and the beer on ice for hours.

Larry Burke, Editor-in-Chief, Outside Magazine

This is by far the most entertaining business book Ive ever encountered! During the entire read, I felt as if I were sitting at a camp on a faraway mountain swapping stories with Skip. He has filled his book with real world wisdom on how to build a business grounded in authenticity and meaningfulness.

Doug Hall, CEO Eureka! Ranch, Author of the Jump Start Your Business Brain, Truthteller Judge on ABC TVs American Inventor

This amazing book chronicles the life of Skip Yowell, a man who climbed the corporate ladder not in a suit and tie, but in hiking boots and with a backpack. He did so in style, and had tons of fun doing it. He stayed true to himself, maintained friendships, traveled the world and most importantly, preserved his passion for his job.

We can all learn something from Skip, who started building backpacks from scratch and created a company that is now a giant in the industry. His honesty and passion for life are his priority, which all of his friends and business associates can attest to. The world would be a better place with more people like Skip Yowell. I am proud to have him as my friend and encourage you to get to know his story! Youll be inspired.

Ed Viesturs, First American to climb all fourteen 8,000 meter peaks, Author of No Shortcuts to the Top

Copyright 2006 by Skip Yowell

All rights reserved. No portion of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any meanselectronic, mechanical, photocopy, recording, scanning, or otherexcept for brief quotations in critical reviews or articles, without the prior written permission of the publisher.

Published in Nashville, Tennessee, by NAKED INKTM, a division of the General Trade Book Group of Thomas Nelson Publishers, Inc. Please visit us at www.nakedink.net.

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication data on file with the Library of Congress.

ISBN 10: 1-59555-852-7
ISBN 13: 978-1-59555-852-7

Printed in the United States of America
06 07 08 09 10 5 4 3 2 1

THIS BOOK IS DEDICATED TO:

Winnie Kingsbury

Quinn Yowell

Drew Kingsbury

CONTENTS

FOREWORD
BY PETER JENKINS

I t was 1984 but it looked like it could have been 1684.

If another yak caravan came through the village of Xegar, our view of the worlds tallest mountains would be cut off by clouds of dust. Skip Yowell and I were on one of our many adventures. This time we were winding our way through Tibet on our way to Mt. Everest.

In front of us, a small boy was standing on a wall made of stone and mud flying a hand-built kite. I heard the jingle of bells a familiar sound in these mountain valleys and narrow rock-cluttered passes. The yaks were lumbering along at typical yak-speed, flicking their tails as they moved towards us.

The nomad leading the caravan had most likely been up in the mountain meadows all summer, away from his home village. A long turquoise earring dangled in bold contrast against his dark, weathered skin. He walked slowly with his hands clasped behind his back. His hands were blackened from the yak dung he used as fuel for the fires that heated both his body and his yak-butter tea. Although this journey may have already taken the yak herder a month, time did not seem to matter here in these mountains like it does everywhere else I have ever been.

The reason Skip and I were here was that JanSport was sponsoring an elite team of US mountain climbers on the China-Everest 84 expedition, led by famed mountaineer, Lou Whitaker. Lous twin brother, Jim, was the first American to summit Mt. Everest back in 1963. Like most of the other climbers before him, he ascended from the Nepal side. But this team, mostly from around Seattle, wanted to be the first Americans to climb Mt. Everest from the Tibet side. The first attempt came in 1982, but when team member Marty Hoey died on the mountain, the climb was called off. Now they were back.

Skip and I were members of the support team; I was the writer and Skip was the product supplier and friendly encourager to all. There was also a doctor and a videographer among us. We would spend a few days in each of the small villages along the way to base camp, in order to let our bodies and minds grow accustomed to the lack of oxygen in the ever-increasing altitudes of Tibet.

With each new adventure, Skip comes away with important lessons that can be applied to both life and business. In many ways, his experiences in the mountains and in nature have served as a kind of church for Skip, imparting wisdom to him and honing his legendary instincts. He has learned vividly that in order to achieve ones goals in the wilderness or on the mountain, one must be as perfectly prepared as possible and take the journey one step at a time. On these adventures and in business, Skip has learned to trust his instincts and to listen to the soft whispers that come from within. Sometimes listening closely to your inner self can save your life when high on a mountain determining a new route around the wreckage of a recent killer-avalanche, or your career when making business decisions.

However, personal growth doesnt have to always take place in exotic locales or during tough situations. People like Skip find adventure wherever they are. There is never a reason in life to be bored, no matter the circumstances.

Skip learned this important lesson early in life in the little town of Grainfield, Kansas (Population 291). The small community is surrounded by wheat fields as far as the eye can see. Even before Skip could walk, his mother would often have to go looking for him as he would crawl out of the house and head wherever his adventuresome heart called him to go. More often than not, he would be getting ready to crawl across the railroad tracks, or perhaps already had, on his way to the giant silver grain elevators. Maybe growing up in such a flat place and being attracted to those mountain-sized grain elevators is what planted the seed in Skip to be drawn to the tallest places on earth. Clearly, even as a toddler, he was never bored.

At the moment, Skip and I were fighting boredom in Tibet and were out for a walk in the tiny village. Being strangers in a strange land did not keep us inside. There were things to learn and adventures to be had. Although we didnt know one word of the local language, we were on a mission to find one of Skips most favorite things in the worldbeer. He was certain that even here, in one of the most spiritual places on earth, there must be beer somewhere.