MTNTOUGH Podcast w/ Dustin Diefenderfer

Dave Brinker, host of the Altitude Show, avid hunter and musician sits down with Dustin to dive into his struggle with depression. After a successful career as CMO of SITKA Gear, Dave took a leap of faith to pursue his passion for entrepreneurship. This life transition led to an intense battle with identity. and Dave came out the other side stronger than ever, and now has a lot of wisdom to share with others facing similar battles. If you or someone close to you is struggling with depression or suicidal thoughts, this is an episode you don't want to miss.

Rich Spalla, SIG SAUER Product Manager and Academy Instructor, sits down with Dustin to share his crazy life story from being in a heavy metal band, to creating the UFC theme song, then joining the Army later in life. Listen as Rich openly discusses the difficulties of transitioning out of the military and the importance of surrounding yourself with close friends and family you can count on. 

Cody Rich is a hunter, entrepreneur, and spinal injury survivor. After being told he would never walk again by several doctors following a life altering spinal injury, Cody said no, and set out to prove them wrong. Cody tells his story of perseverance and describes how he took his life into his own hands.

Eric McCormack is a retired police officer and trainer with a client list of heavy hitters such as Rihana Cary, Mark Scott, Lori Winberg and Cam Hanes. We invited Eric and some of the MTNOPS crew up for a day to hang, do a workout and have some great conversations. In this podcast, we sat down with Eric specifically to talk about nutrition, but the conversation also naturally started with his time as a police officer. 

Marine Raider. Veteran. Recipient of the Navy Cross, Navy and Marine Corps Commendation Medal for Valor, and a Purple Heart. President and Founder of Talons Reach Foundation. Nick Jones served honorably in the United States Marine Corps for 12 years, including three combat deployments and five deployments total. Following injuries sustained in 2020, Nick underwent six major surgeries in the span of a year and a half. After medically retiring from the Marine Corp, Nick continues his commitment to Special Operations Forces through Talons Reach, giving these warriors an opportunity to find sanctuary, mindfulness, and access to the tools and resources necessary to accelerate their path to recovery. Don't miss Nick's inspiring story.

Brian Barney is an Eastmans Bowhunting Journal staff writer, host of the Eastmans Elevated Podcast, business owner and a lifelong adventure bowhunter. We invited Brian over to the Lab for a workout, and to sit down for a conversation. In this podcast, we dive into Brian's business in construction, some incredible hunting stories, the mental toughness that was required to push through, and the importance of exercise. Enjoy!

In designing the "The GoWild Challenge," we invited Brayden of GoWild and Paul from The O2 Podcast to the LAB to test it for themselves, and also get a taste of some other MTNTOUGH programming. In between workouts, we sat down with the guys and dove into both Paul and Brayden's fitness journeys, creating good habits and the GoWild community itself.

Packing out an elk with a paddle board... Moose pack-out immediately after 880 lunges.... 16 mile day in snow ending with a bull down... All things that happened during this year's 2022 hunting season. Sit down with the crew and listen to these wild stories.

The saying "necessity is the mother of invention" comes to mind when hearing the story of how Kurt Racicot created his first hunting pack. Unsatisfied with the available options and determined to press further into the Alaskan wilderness in pursuit of sheep and goats, Racicot hatched an idea that changed hunting gear: a lightweight pack that could carry enough gear into the mountains for an extended hunt, function well on the hunt, and be capable of efficiently hauling the gear — and an animal — back out in one trip.Racicot designed and built the first pack himself, invested in a production run of 60 packs, and launched Stone Glacier soon after in 2012. Ten years later, Stone Glacier's Founder and Lead Designer finds himself at the helm of a company with nearly 30 employees and an ever-expanding line of products all built around the same ethos of pushing the limits of what is possible for mountain hunting gear.Kurt sat down with MTNTOUGH to talk about Stone Glacier's history and evolution, his evolution as a hunter, his fitness regimen, backcountry nutrition, and the importance of self-reliance and mental toughness on the solo wilderness hunts that continue to call him back to the mountains.

From his days working as a kid on a rural Ontario dairy farm to over two decades of elite service in the Canadian and U.S. Militaries, Phil Kornachuk understands what it means to rely on your inner grit to get through life’s most challenging times.After serving in the Canadian Military, Phil gained dual citizenship status in the United States and started a career in the U.S. Army that would take him around the world. From peacekeeping operations in eastern Europe to active combat in multiple hotspots, Phil risked his life to serve others as a Special Operations soldier in the Rangers, Green Berets and other units. After retiring with honors from the U.S. Military, Phil began the next chapter of his career by starting StoneWater Training to help others to forge purpose-driven, principle-based elite performance in multiple arenas.Phil’s approach to mental toughness meshes perfectly with MTNTOUGH’s. He is also a certified trainer specializing in functional fitness, executive health programs, tactical group fitness and the overlap between physical well-being, outdoors and leadership. He is an ideal partner for our groundbreaking new program — MTNTOUGH MINDSET: a 10-day Mental Toughness Program — launching in MTNTOUGH+ on November 10th.  While Phil understands we are all on our own journey and face our own challenges, he is a believer in doubling down on actively choosing what mindset you will face every day of your life with: “No shortcuts. Do the right thing and don’t quit.”It’s a super inspiring story, and Phil generously shared over an hour of his time to talk with MTNTOUGH about his journey and our new partnership.