My Idaho business relies on public lands, which are now in danger | Opinion

I started Wild Rye in 2016 with a simple idea: to design technical outdoor apparel that actually fit women — both their bodies and their lifestyles. But our brand was born out of something bigger than gear. It was born out of a deep love for the mountains, trails, rivers and wide-open spaces that define our home here in Idaho. 

From the jagged Sawtooths to the wild backcountry of the Frank Church, public lands are where we ride, hike, ski, camp and connect. They are the backbone of our business, the soul of our brand and the gathering place for our community of women who want to feel strong, free and welcome in the outdoors. 

So when we hear that these lands are once again on the chopping block — threatened by short-sighted oil and gas leasing, political horse-trading or budget reconciliation schemes — we can’t stay quiet. 

Sens. Mike Crapo and Jim Risch, we’re asking you: protect public lands — here in Idaho and across the country — from being sacrificed for industry profits or short-term political wins. 

The threat is real — and it’s national, and it’s irreversible. 

Right now, public lands across the West are threatened to be auctioned off for oil and gas leasing, often without local input or community benefit. These leases will prioritize fossil fuel profits over everything else — our watersheds, wildlife, clean air, rural economies (particularly important to Idahoans) and our ability to get outside and play wild. 

Idaho may not be the biggest oil-producing state, but our neighbors in Utah, Colorado, New Mexico and Wyoming know this story too well. Federal lands that support multibillion-dollar outdoor recreation economies are being drilled, fragmented and fenced off. And when that happens, the ripple effects hit all of us — because these places don’t just belong to the people who live next to them. They belong to all of us. 

Public lands are economic powerhouses. 

Outdoor recreation contributes $1.2 trillion annually to the U.S. economy and supports over 5 million American jobs. In Idaho alone, it’s a $2.4 billion industry employing more than 25,000 people. From ski towns to trail towns, gateway communities rely on healthy public lands to keep their economies alive. 

These aren’t abstract numbers — they’re our neighbors, our customers and our collaborators. They’re the people who run bike shops, guide backcountry tours, work in ski patrol and raise families in the mountain towns they love. They’re small business owners and first-generation entrepreneurs, committed to keeping jobs in Idaho, carving out a life rooted in outdoor access. When public lands are leased for oil and gas extraction — or worse, sold off entirely — we don’t just lose wild places. We lose the very fabric of rural economies across the country. 

Our access shouldn’t be up for sale. 

At Wild Rye, we’ve built our brand to welcome more women into the outdoors — especially those who’ve been historically excluded. But we can’t do that if access to the outdoors is taken away or put behind a chain-link fence. 

Public lands aren’t just a backdrop — they’re a launchpad for confidence, connection and joy. We’ve seen firsthand how powerful it is when a woman rides her first mountain bike trail, summits her first peak, or zips up a ski bib that actually fits her body and her lifestyle. These moments matter and they fuel our business growth and job creation. And they only happen when the places we love to recreate are open, protected, and wild. 

This is bigger than politics. 

Public lands unite people across the political spectrum. Hunters, anglers, ranchers, skiers, dirtbag climbers and weekend warriors all agree: These lands are worth fighting for. In Idaho, where more than 60% of the state is public land, that unity is something rare and precious. We’re asking for leadership on behalf of the people of Idaho and our Idaho economy. 

We’re asking Crapo and Risch to: 

• Keep public lands off the table in reconciliation and budget deals.
• Oppose new oil and gas leasing in recreation hotspots and culturally significant landscapes.
• Support rural communities whose long-term livelihoods depend on healthy, accessible public lands.

Because once these places are gone, we don’t get them back. 

We’re fighting for the future of outside. 

Wild Rye may be a small company with a big heart, but we represent a growing movement of women and outdoor lovers who are ready to speak up. We are tired of watching elected officials treat our shared lands like bargaining chips. We are here to protect what makes Idaho — and America — wild, beautiful and free. 

Let’s make sure future generations can bike, hike, ski, and roam in the same places we’ve fallen in love with. Let’s make sure our lands remain public — not parceled out, leased or lost. Because, for all the ways we play wild, we need wild places. 

This story was originally published June 17, 2025 at 4:00 AM.