Hunkpapa Lakota skier, runner, and filmmaker joins the Hive
Honey Stinger is excited to announce its partnership with passionate skier, runner, filmmaker, and outdoor advocate, Connor Ryan.
Named as one of the most influential people in the outdoor industry by Outside Business Journal, Ryan is on a mission to raise cultural awareness and create an equitable future for Indigenous people and skiers. He is a proud Hunkpapa Lakota and lives in Boulder, Colorado (Arapaho, Cheyenne, and Ute ancestral lands) where he is a professional skier and endurance runner. Ryan finds solace and connects with the land during his time outside.
Ryan works with Natives Outdoors to combine his outdoor advocacy and his Lakota culture. Through this work, Ryan seeks to inspire others to deepen their connections with the places they live and become better stewards of the planet, their communities, and themselves. Ryan will bring this perspective to Honey Stinger's Athlete Advisory Committee—a group developed to address social change, diversity, and inclusion, where he will be a member in 2023.
“Connor Ryan’s commitment to inclusivity and passion for the outdoors is something we should all strive for,” said Rich Thompson, CEO of Honey Stinger. “Honey Stinger prides itself on bringing diverse voices and perspectives into the Hive, and we are thrilled to be working with Connor in the upcoming years.”
Earlier this year Ryan’s 42-minute documentary, Spirit of the Peaks, premiered and won the 5Point Film Festival award for Best Cinematography. Spirit of the Peaks follows Ryan’s journey to understand the history of the Ute people who once inhabited the Colorado mountains he now calls home. Proceeds from the film benefit the Ute Mountain Ute Tribe with a focus on starting a scholarship for Indigenous skiers and snowboarders.
“Honey Stinger is a perfect fit for me, it's the fuel for powder days that I’ve taken up onto the mountain with me for years. Having snacks that are organic and delicious makes all the beautiful places I stop to take in the view even sweeter,” said Ryan. “Honey Stinger’s commitment to making adventure and the proper nutrition for adventure accessible to everyone is aligned with my personal goals for the future of skiing and the outdoors.”
As a proud member of the Hive and a Honey Stinger partner through 2024, Ryan will Prepare, Perform, and Recover with the brand's full line of energy chews, waffles, bars, gels, and hydration. Shop them all here.
To learn more about Ryan, and for a complete list of Honey Stinger's Hive athletes, visit www.honeystinger.com/athletes.
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About Connor Ryan
Connor Ryan is a Lakota Professional Skier, Activist and Storyteller. Born and raised in Colorado, caught between the worlds of past and present, colonized, and Indigenous. He has devoted his life and platform to rediscovering how traditional Indigenous culture and ecological knowledge can shape our relationship to the lands we relate to through skiing, life, and adventure. Connor has shared his stories and experiences in person and through media (films, words and photos) with universities and businesses in order to seek collective paths to a better future for all our relations. Follow Connor on Instagram at @sacredstoke and you can watch his film, Spirit of the Peaks here.
