Outdoor Industry Association has named Utah Governor Gary Herbert, Mike Ratchford of W.L Gore Associates, and Sutton Bacon of Nantahala Outdoor Center as winners of its 2014 OIA Advocacy Leadership Award, which recognizes individuals who have significantly contributed to the advancement of the outdoor industry's stature in public policy.

 


After a rocky start over his stance on public land issues, Herbert (shown at right) won the industry’s praises in January 2013 when he unveiled Utah’s Outdoor Recreation Vision  in a joint press conference with OIA during the Outdoor Retailer Winter Market. The document emphasizes the value of outdoor recreation to the economy and quality of life in Utah and outlines guiding principles and a series of significant policy recommendations to enhance outdoor recreation and related industries for the people of Utah and visitors. Among them was the hiring of a Director of Outdoor Recreation to coordinate the many recommendations in the Vision report.

 

 

OIA said the document created a nationwide standard that it will encourage other states to follow.

 

In October, Herbert emerged as one of the first first governors to strike a deal with Secretary of the Interior Sally Jewell to reopen national parks closed as a result of  the government shutdown, which had been strongly supported by the states Republican Senator Michael Lee.

 

Bacon, meanwhile, has been among the industry executives in Washington DC where he has testified before Congress on the economic importance of outdoor recreation to the rural communities surrounding the Great Smokies National Park.

 

 

Ratchford has served as a governmental relations associate at W.L. Gore, where he has been the company’s principal contact with federal, state and local governments as well as trade associations. He is former Secretary of State for the State of Delaware and served as chief of staff to former Delaware Governor and U.S. Representative Michael N. Castle, a Republican.

 

OIA will present the awards Tuesday, Jan. 21, 2014 at a special dinner at the Salt Lake Marriott Downtown at City Creek on the eve of the Outdoor Retailer Winter Marketplace. Tickets for the event, which kicks off at 6 pm with a cocktail reception, are $55 in advance, $65 at the door and $400 per table of eight.