New partnership with X Games snowboarding and skateboarding legend White will help grow action sports participation and increase access at We Are Camp’s family of action sports properties in Oregon
(MT. HOOD, ORE. – Dec. 6, 2023) – Shaun White, a three-time Olympic gold medalist in snowboarding who also holds the record for most X Games gold medals, has partnered with Josh Harris and David Blitzer to make a strategic investment in We Are Camp, parent company of Windells and High Cascade.
Headquartered in Mt. Hood, Ore., We Are Camp consists of a family of action sports camps for youth and adults. It draws campers from around the globe and spans snowboarding, skiing, skateboarding, and mountain biking. We Are Camp holds special meaning to White, who attended the camp with his family nearly every summer and credits its coaching, facilities, and staff for supporting his development. To celebrate this partnership, he will return to Mt. Hood to attend the High Cascade Snowboard Camp on June 16, 2024.
“As a kid, I was so thrilled to spend every summer going up to Windells and High Cascade Snowboard Camp,” White, who won 13 Winter X Games gold medals in snowboarding and two X Games gold medals in skateboarding, said. “Those were some of my fondest memories. I would snowboard the best park and halfpipe in the morning and then the afternoons would be filled with skateboarding, trampolines, and mountain biking, it was epic! I learned so much from the coaches there, but also had access to tips from professional riders who were also there training. I’ve continued to train at High Cascade in my professional years and now I’m honored to officially partner with We Are Camp along with Josh and David. I’m excited to step in and help elevate a place that’s so special to me, so come June, you’ll know where to find me!”
Founded in 1989, We Are Camp has grown to include weeklong, overnight youth and adult camps by leveraging its incredible action sports staff and brand partners to create elevated experiences for attendees. We Are Camp’s 28-acre site is home to Wy’East Mountain Academy, the nonprofit action sports academic boarding school it founded in 2009 and is the primary base location of its four boutique camp brands, Milepost35 (mountain biking), Seek Skate (skateboarding), High Cascade Snowboard Camp, and Windells (skiing). The campus features nearly 90,000 square-feet of indoor and outdoor concrete skate parks, a private mountain bike terrain park, access to 3,000 acres of mountain bike trails, an indoor fitness and trampoline center, dry slope features, airbags for each sport, and the wildly popular, full-size sand dodgeball arena. While skateboarders and mountain bikers enjoy the splendors of campus each morning, skiers, and snowboarders head to nearby Timberline Lodge, high atop Mt. Hood, which features North America’s longest ski season with lift-served slopes through the month of August. On this natural snowfield, campers - beginner through advanced - ride with their coaches and brush shoulders with Olympic skiers and snowboarders who come from around the world to train.
Harris, Blitzer and White will work closely with We Are Camp CEO Kevin English, who will retain his ownership and continue to lead the organization. Together, the group aims to solidify We Are Camp as the premier cultural destination for skiers, snowboarders, skateboarders, and mountain bikers while increasing accessibility and growing participation for youth each year.
“We are thrilled to partner with Shaun White, one of the greatest action sports athletes of all-time, on this incredible opportunity to invest in We Are Camp,” Harris and Blitzer said. “Shaun shares in our mission of leveraging the positive platform of sports to inspire and uplift youth, which makes him the perfect partner. As an Olympic gold medalist and decorated athlete who attended the camp as a youth, he knows what it takes to succeed at the highest levels of action sports. We’re excited to work with Shaun, Kevin and the entire We Are Camp team to help elevate our action sports offerings, create unparalleled experiences, and reach new audiences.”
Today’s We Are Camp announcement made by Harris and Blitzer follows their January 2023 strategic investment in Ripken Baseball® and Cooperstown All Star Village, bringing together two of the industry’s leading youth baseball brands. The merger increased the strength and reach of the organizations to include five baseball facilities across the United States, including four complexes that operate as The Ripken Experience . As part of the merger, Harris and Blitzer launched a partnership with Cal Ripken, Jr. and Bill Ripken to support and accelerate Ripken Baseball’s vision of bringing Big League Experiences to young athletes.
As founders of Harris Blitzer Sports & Entertainment, a sports and entertainment platform that includes the Philadelphia 76ers, New Jersey Devils, Prudential Center, and an affiliation with the Washington Commanders, Harris and Blitzer have worked to create sports and educational opportunities for youth in the communities they serve. Now, leveraging institutional knowledge in sports, entertainment, and innovation, Harris and Blitzer will work closely with leaders across We Are Camp, Ripken Baseball and Cooperstown All Star Village to further invest in systems, technology, and facilities to allow each property to continue to flourish.
“This is a tremendous moment for We Are Camp as Shaun, Josh, and David are not only the best in their respective fields, but they whole-heartedly believe in our mission of life improvement through people, place, and passion,” English said. “They really seem to be in ‘give-back mode,’ wanting to do things that matter to society, an ethos upon which our camps were founded. Together we will not just grow the business but grow action sports participation for all.”