S&YE234 - Crosstrekinn & Sofly

[00:00:10] Hello, this is Kori and you can find me on Instagram at Crosstruckn. That's two N's. You're listening to episode 234 of the Subie & YOU!. Hello and welcome to another episode of the Subie & You podcast. So Kori, she fits the phrase or the saying, if you know, you know. Because there are so many people out there in the community who know who Kori is.

[00:00:36] Not only does she own a Subaru, which is why she's on this podcast in the first place, but she's also a product developer of a very useful product that many people have come to know and love and find to be very useful. So we will get into her conversation here in a little bit and also what this is, what it is that she's talking about, SoFly.

[00:01:02] So again, if you know, you know. If not, you're in for a treat because what she has developed is such a very, very cool product and it is very, very useful for those who are outdoors and especially if you're doing some car camping. If you're listening to this on Monday, August 3rd, 2026, this is the day that I go back to work.

[00:01:25] So I've been out of a job for nine and a half months and that's a really long time and it sounds kind of scary, but I've actually been very, very blessed over the past nine and a half months. And it's been an incredible journey and I've started doing things that I thought that I would never do. Of course, I've been doing the podcast for a long time, which is a form of content.

[00:01:51] But in my ventures to try to make some additional money on top of the money that I was getting from unemployment, I started doing the Amazon Influencer program and I'm no longer actively creating content for that anymore. But thankfully, I'm still getting some kind of residuals from that that, you know, people are still buying stuff every month. So that's been helpful a little bit. And then I started getting into UGC, which is user generated content.

[00:02:21] And that has actually been really, really nice. That's something that I would have never, ever thought that I would be doing. I know a lot of people are already following me on my dedicated UGC page, but if you're not, it's rafts.ugc on Instagram. So that's where you can see all of the content that I've been posting. Not everything that I've been doing because as UGC creator, you work for brands and agencies.

[00:02:45] You put together a video for them to use as either an organic or a paid advertisement. And then they put it on their social media channel for it to run again as an organic or paid ad. And we don't always see those ads. So I don't have a lot of the work on my Instagram page that I've done, but I do have some stuff in my portfolio, which is linked in my bio.

[00:03:12] But that's just a different avenue that I started getting into and that I took while I was laid off. And it's been really, really nice. So since I'm going to be going back to work today, next Monday on the Sueby Scoop, I can talk about my first day back to work. But what I'm going to be doing is I'm going to be doing site planning for Perry Homes. So I'm basically going to be laying out the site plan for each of the new homes that they start up. And so I'm going to be drafting all day, which is what I really enjoy.

[00:03:41] Like that's what I had been wanting to do for a long time. And I got pulled away from that at my last job. And then I got laid off. So I'm getting back into what I really wanted to be doing in the first place. And it's also going to be fully remote, which is really, really great. As many of you know, I've been in a long distance relationship for a long time.

[00:04:02] And I want the ability to go up and visit Kelly and stay up there for as long as I want to and not have to worry about going into an office and eventually move up there. That is the plan. So having the flexibility of a remote job is really good. And it seems like the people there at Perry Homes communicate very well because the whole team is remote. So I'm really hoping this is going to work out well. It seems like it is.

[00:04:30] The people I've talked to so far are pretty cool. So I think it's going to be a chill spot. Now we can get into some other stuff like talking about SubaruGear.com where you can go and browse and find so many different branded Subaru products from hats to t-shirts to hoodies, backpacks, can coolers. I did a video for that recently. And also stuff for your kids, stuff for your home. They have so many different things.

[00:04:58] They have Subaru Motorsports USA branded stuff as well, Gymkhana, Bucky. So all sorts of stuff. Go to SubaruGear.com. Use the code SUBANU2026 at checkout to get 20% off either a single item or your entire cart, which is really nice. Also, if you fill up your cart and your total is over $50 after the 20% discount, you'll also get free shipping, which is very, very helpful. So go check it out.

[00:05:25] Use the code and save some money and rep your favorite car brand. Thank you so much, Subaru Gear, for sponsoring the SUBANU podcast and bringing this offer to the listeners. Also, go check out the Dirt SUBANU2026 podcast with my buddy Ben. He's got a lot of really great episodes out there, and he's had some of the same guests I've had and some guests that I haven't. But he's got a really great show over there. You can also check out the WAVE podcast.

[00:05:53] That's Patrick and Dave, and they are both Subaru technicians, so they get pretty technical in their episodes. And they're just fun guys. So go check that podcast out as well. And one last thing before we get into this conversation, one of the brands that I have partnered with before and that I have a few products on my car and I absolutely love and absolutely love supporting is Melee Design Firm. They have also given a discount code.

[00:06:22] So if you want to go check out MeleDesignFirm.com, they have a lot of options pretty much site-wide that you can use the code SUBANU on to get 10% off your purchase. So they're a really, really great company. Mitch is such a great guy, and he's been very supportive of the podcast, and he wanted to bring this little offer to the listeners of the SUBANU podcast. So go check out MeleeDesignFirm.com.

[00:06:48] Use the code SUBANU at checkout to get 10% off pretty much everything site-wide, especially look for the stuff that's Subaru. That's what we're here for. So thank you so much, Melee, for sponsoring the podcast. But now we will go ahead and get into this conversation with Kori to hear about her Subaru, her Subaru journey, and SoFly. So let's do this.

[00:07:18] Hey, what's going on, Kori? Hey, I am enjoying some sweet Michigan summer. That's what's going on. Very nice. Feels good. Where are you at in Michigan? Michigan. I'm in the southeast Michigan area, Metro Detroit. Okay. So, yeah. Gotcha. I'm down below the thumb. You know, like everyone holds their hand out, and they're like, I live here. That's where I live.

[00:07:47] So I've been to Detroit, and I've been to Ann Arbor, and I think that's it. But Ann Arbor is pretty cool. Yeah, there's, it's got some stuff going for it. It has warm, freshwater lakes. It has really beautiful falls. The winters, sometimes you want to die. But, you know, we get through it, and hopefully it's all worth it. Yeah. Yeah. No, there's some nice spots up there. Yeah. I'm going to be checking out the UP some more this summer.

[00:08:16] I'm pretty excited about that. But we'll get into that. Yeah. I remember, so Patrick from Orbis Overlanding, I think when I had him on, he said something about the UP. And I was like, I'm from Houston. I'm like, what the heck is the UP? I have no idea what the UP is. I know. I realize no one knows what that means if you don't live in Michigan. I know. And I was like, oh, I had to get him to explain it to me. Oh, we don't love the lingo. Yeah. It's the Upper Peninsula. But I didn't know that. So anytime somebody says the UP, now I know. Yeah. I feel educated.

[00:08:46] I mean, it is like its own little state. Yeah. Yeah. All right. So I have a very important question to ask you, and you know what it is, but whether you prefer waffles or pancakes. So I love breakfast food. Sometimes I have it for dinner because I don't really eat breakfast on my weekdays. So it was a fun question to think about the answer, but it's hands down going to be waffles for me.

[00:09:15] I love those little syrup cups. I got to let you go. All right. This podcast, this episode is over. End of episode. I can't hear you anymore. Oh, my God. All right. I know. I was like, oh, he's not going to like my answer because it's not. Oh, yeah. That's okay. I'll let you give it away. I'll leave the crap out of some pancakes, though. Yeah. They're both good. They're both good.

[00:09:43] So, I mean, I know I had talked to you a few months ago about getting you on to talk about SoFly. SoFly. SoFly.

[00:10:27] What's the story of it was. I had. I had kind of accepted that it was a fun thing to do for a couple of years while I wasn't really working a full-time regular job. And I got laid off from where I was working out in Oregon. And I was on this path of just enjoying life, adventuring, and came up with this cool idea,

[00:10:56] invention, and said, sure, let's do this for a while and see how it goes. And I was really, I'm not a business savvy person. So I, that end of things is a foreign concept to me. Yeah. I try my hardest. Well, you know, you said that you came up with this invention. So I guess kind of start there too. Like, how did it come about? And like, where did you get the idea?

[00:11:24] And then how did it just kind of start forming into an actual product? Mm hmm. Yeah. So I was camping in my cross track on a trip to West Virginia in the summer of 2024. And it was a super sticky, muggy, hot summer weekend, but it was also raining. It was so frustrating.

[00:11:53] And when you're car camping, that's like the worst case scenario because it's so hard to air your car out when it's so wet and so hot and sticky. And you're just, you know, it's still nine o'clock at night and like 87 degrees and so much humidity. It sucks. And so I had brought some tent-like materials, some ripstop and some clamps with me.

[00:12:18] Um, because I knew that there was rain in the forecast and I just decided, you know, maybe I could try to rig up some type of covering tarp situation just to get me through the weekend. Right. I didn't, I hadn't bought any type of attachment. Like, you know, there's a lot of tents that attach out of your hatches. There's a lot of side tents and stuff. And I hadn't really invested anything like that because it never really called to me.

[00:12:47] Um, and, uh, and so I was just at camp and messing around with some ideas of how can I roll my window down, but still let the air flow and not to let the inside of my car get wet. Yeah. Um, you know, all these things. And so I used the door as the, as the fixed fixing point and I anchored the material out

[00:13:15] from the door frame and staked it into the ground and said, like a little door rain fly. Huh. But it was going down to the ground. So you were attached to the ground at the time. Exactly. Yep. And so I stared at it for a while and really thought about it and said like the shape of this really makes a lot of sense. How could I make it smaller, more compact, something you don't need to anchor to the ground

[00:13:44] and you can just put it on wherever you are. Yep. And that's basically what I came up with was a little door rain fly. Yeah. And, uh, it seems to have worked out for some people too. Cause I know some, I've seen, I've seen it around on, I've seen it like on Instagram, but I've seen it in person too, which is really cool. Yeah. Yeah. It's, it makes me so happy, um, to have some like the soup, like something that I love about

[00:14:13] Subaru is like, I definitely do not feel like this could have happened in any other like car platform. Like this is such a Subaru thing. So, yeah. And speaking of Subaru, like, is this your first Subaru? It's not. Okay. It's actually my second. Okay. We'll get into that a little bit later, but. Segway. Yeah. Yeah. Were you doing car camping before this trip? Like, is that something that you had been doing for a while? Okay. Yeah.

[00:14:43] Gotcha. Yes. It's been, it's been something I've been doing for a while. Well, the rain was a conundrum I've had more than once. And I was like looking at options that were already out there. I didn't like them. I didn't think that they were well-designed, well-made, not worth my money. I can make something better. And so I did. Yeah. And so it has been so much fun seeing it like out in action and getting great traction

[00:15:09] and, um, having some of the best, like making great memories with, friends that were first customers and are now like camping buddies. Yeah. Yeah. You know, we hang out and I love that. Um, so my secret plan of inserting myself into the Subaru camping community has worked. Yeah. I have a product for you. Hey, let's be friends. Yeah.

[00:15:37] I'm here's something that I made for you. Please be my friend. Hey, but it's a very useful thing. Yeah, it is. And I, so I made a prototype after that camp trip in West Virginia in 2024. And, uh, and then I took it, took that prototype on a three week trip to the UP. The Upper Peninsula. Upper Peninsula for those non-Michiganders.

[00:16:06] Um, I took that prototype through the UP of Michigan, through Canada, down through New England, and then back to Michigan. Um, so I did this giant ass circle and got to use that prototype pretty much every night. And it was such a game changer because I slept in my car every night of that trip. And what was the weather like? Was it cold? It, so it was in September. So I needed that rain fly. Gotcha. I, I needed it. It was September.

[00:16:36] It was early September, early, like late summer, early fall. The further north you get that summer season can be shorter. So, yeah, I definitely dealt with some of that weather when I was in the UP and in, and in Canada. And so I, it, it was just so nice to not have to worry about it. It didn't matter where I parked. I could be at like a trailhead parking lot or I could be down some, you know, unnamed two

[00:17:05] track road, you know, that takes you to like the coolest campsite at the back of this, like creepy woods, you know, now, now was, was the design to have it on both windows so that you get that cross flow or just one window? Yeah. So, um, definitely the cross flow helps a lot because you can set up a fan and one to suck in the cold air and then it'll blow it out the other.

[00:17:35] So it just kind of creates this like pass through wind that sucks in the cooler night air. Um, yeah. And I really love the design of it too, because it gives privacy. Like you don't have to worry about some lucky loos, but it gives you a little bit of a window so you can see like proximity of your car. So you can see if someone's standing there, but they can't see you and they can't see in. Yeah. So, so for people listening that, cause I've seen it in person, I know some people listening

[00:18:04] have seen it in person and so they, they know what it looks like, but if nobody has seen it before, can you describe like how far down it goes and like what it looks like? And I'm going to, I'll put it, you know, when I post on Instagram, we'll post pictures of it and everything. Absolutely. That'd be awesome. Yeah. Yeah. So, um, the shape of it is basically like a little triangle vent that comes out from

[00:18:30] the window and angles out about six inches or so and comes to the bottom lip of your, uh, window. Okay. Window seal. And so you can roll your window down almost completely and, and, and have no weather, no bugs, no wind, no sun. And it just, it really gives this like, um, additional feel of just comfort, which I feel

[00:18:59] like is so important when you're car camping because yes, you're camping, but you're car camping. So you want some of those luxuries of just being comfortable and temperature is such a huge part of that. Oh yeah. You don't, you don't want it to get all stuffy in your car either. That's the worst. I've been, I cannot sleep when I'm hot. Right. Like, yes. Why do you end in a sleeping bag? Yeah. And then inside your car and it gets all, you know, windows get all frosty. It's a nightmare. Yeah. Yeah. It's not good.

[00:19:28] You get the, yeah. So the air ventilation I have come to learn has been super important in your car camping. And so that's why I developed this product and I just really had no intention of doing anything with it. And people just started expressing strong interest in buying us at the end. And I was like, crap, I think like there's actually a market here.

[00:19:51] And I, you know, coming to learn that like car camping has gotten to be such an interesting segue, not segue, but like introduction for people to get into camping and outdoorsy stuff. Yeah. Because COVID forced them in a way to get out of their house. They're like, let's go camping, but I'm not comfortable in a tent yet. So I'm going to go in my car. Yeah.

[00:20:19] And so it's got, there's this like huge and, you know, the van people and the overlanding folks has become such a, like a huge industry. And, and I love that people are finding new ways of getting outside that they can connect with and find community, but also get outside, you know? Yeah. That's awesome. So were you, I know that you posted like your, one of your, I scrolled back on your

[00:20:46] Instagram page and you had a post very, very early on, I guess it was your first post. And it said, Hey, I developed this product. So you said that people were interested in it and like wanted it. How are you, how are people finding out about it when you first started doing it? Was it just meeting up with people at camping events? And they're like, Oh, cool. What is that? It was less than that, more social media.

[00:21:11] So a lot of Facebook, a lot of Instagram, um, making the right kind of connections. I got really fortunate to connect with Patrick McKinney that way with that or this or overlanding connected with him through Facebook. And, um, and, and through that, through Patrick, I've been able to make more connections. And so I think it's just been a triple trickle effect from, from social media, um, of that

[00:21:37] word getting out and the car community folks really love Instagram. And so it really, that community really does well in that social media platform. And so just making connections there, getting to some Subi Fest events last year, making, and that is, I think making myself known in those like public settings and showing people

[00:22:03] the product, showing them my car and like, they realize, Oh, she's a real person. She actually does this and she made this product. Like, so it's been verified by a person who does exactly what I do. Yeah. Um, yeah. Cause people use it and they love it. And it makes me so happy. Yeah. And for people to be able to meet you and see it in person and have you there to talk about it, it's not like just something that you see on a website and you're not really

[00:22:30] sure you don't get that full explanation. And then you being there and being the one that developed it and not somebody that's just like representing this product or something. It's even, even more beneficial for people looking, looking into it. Yeah. Yeah. And it's, it's been such a cool venture and, you know, so, you know, to, to kind of bring

[00:22:54] you guys up to speed, um, you know, you, you asked, you know, how's it, how, how had it been going when I was selling? And, you know, um, I ended up to date selling about 160 units. Okay. That's a pretty decent amount. It's a pretty decent amount for really not trying. I mean, I, I was putting work into social media, but it was like, you know, it was not a full-time job for me. Um, and I was able to drum up that much business.

[00:23:24] Um, so thank you. It's, I really, I, it's so gratifying to know that my product is out there. It's being used, it's being tested and getting feedback. And I was able to take some feedback, improve the products some more. Um, so I had a really fun time developing it really awesome time. You know, I'm not much of a, be at a, an event all day kind of person.

[00:23:53] And so for me to do events, it takes a lot of work. Yeah. That's tough. Extremely gratifying though. Like I, like it's, you get that like high of like, you just met so many awesome people got so much great feedback about your product. It just, it's like jam, it's like jam packed of information. Um, but, um, I got to meet some really awesome people and some customers in person.

[00:24:19] And like, that just feels amazing. I, I love meeting people this way. Um, there's some of the coolest, sweetest, kindest, compassionate people I've ever met. And I'm so grateful for them. And, and so, you know, I, when I came to decide that I needed to get a full-time job, like I needed regular income. I needed to be able to live on my own. So I was living with my mom for a while.

[00:24:48] I was like, I need, I need to get back on my own two feet. Yeah. Like I'm done space too. This has been fun. Yeah, exactly. Need my own space again. This has been really fun. I love you so much. I don't want my own place again. And so, um, so I got the full-time job and I really thought like, I kind of accepted that this might be the end of SoFi. You know, I have to just put my, my big girl pants on. And then go to work every day.

[00:25:18] Um, and as I have been, um, getting used to my, my new workplace and seeing the capabilities, uh, that my, that the company has, um, the, the job that I got was with a local company called Dockside Canvas company. And so it was started by a fellow who, and this is one of the reasons I, I kind of love

[00:25:48] it is because it was started by one guy in 1979. Oh, nice. That was a while back. Out of a pickup truck. I know. Right. So it's been around for a while. Started by a guy back in 1979 out of the back of his pickup truck, I think. And now it's this, it's this multi-tiered, it's had multiple ventures. It's, but it's always been boat canvas. It's had, had these side projects and side avenues, but it's always been boat canvas.

[00:26:17] Um, and they have this really cool cutting CNC cutting machine. And I was like, Oh man, I would have loved to have been able to cut rain flies on this thing because, because, uh, yeah, it's, I manufactured all of those myself. So like, I, I made all of those rain flies, um, personally. And so did you, this machine just was around and cut fabric so fast.

[00:26:46] I was like, God, this would have been so nice. Yeah. So the ones that you did make, I mean, like you've got, you have them on cross tracks, you have them on foresters and some other vehicles. Like, did you have to get the dimensions from those people and then make it? Or how did you go about doing that? Cause they're not going to be the same. I know. And that's kind of where I pigeonholed myself. Like I really need a universal design. And I know that. So that's part of the future for SoFi.

[00:27:11] But, um, where I saw, uh, where I saw SoFi when it started was a very nice form fitting product. I wanted it to look good. And so I wanted it to fit the doors really well. And that means a custom fit. So I was able to connect with, uh, the dealership in Ann Arbor and made some friends again through Facebook groups. Thank you, social media for doing something awesome.

[00:27:37] Um, so I was able to make connections at the Ann Arbor dealership and, and say, I'm, I'm developing this product for, for, for Subarus. And I basically just need to draw a template of the door frame. Right. So like literally I'm wandering around the parking lot with like poster board and clamps and

[00:28:00] Sharpies and taking physical templates of different generation foresters and cross tracks and outbacks and, um, and then developing models for each generation of those. Um, and so I, I was doing that and I was fit tracking prototypes and things like that. They were so supportive. They were so nice. Great. I would walk in and they would be like, Hey, it's the rain fly girl. How's it going?

[00:28:29] What do you need? You know, just so nice and supportive. Yeah. So the, the folks down at the Ann Arbor Subaru dealership are fantastic. Tyler and Darren, you guys are great. Um, yeah. Yeah. Drop, drop a word for those sweethearts. Um, so, uh, so yeah, so I started working for Dockside Canvas company about three months

[00:28:56] ago and, uh, wasn't, wasn't really sure what the future of SoFly, if there was going to be a future for SoFly. Um, and, and something that I had done last year that I really wasn't sure what would pan out was I started the patent process. So I decided that this could have some strong potential and I should lock my design down,

[00:29:25] do the right things if I can. And, um, and so that kind of started basically a 12 month or yeah, a 12 month clock. And so I had 12 months basically from the start of that application process for the patent to actually officially file my patent. Is that like the timeframe for them to do it? Or is like, is that what you gave yourself?

[00:29:53] That's for, so that's the type frame that they give you. Gotcha. To get your crap together. Okay. You don't get your crap together in that 12 months. Everything that you do is public knowledge. Oh, okay. Yeah. Yep. And so when that number, when that date started to near and I was starting to brainstorm, how, how could SoFly continue? Like what were the blockers for SoFly?

[00:30:23] And realizing that my current employer actually has everything I need in order to keep SoFly going. They have a talented sewing team. He had, the company has a CNC cutting machine and my boss, he's not the owner. Um, the owner's name is John, but my boss, his name is Drew.

[00:30:47] So he's been patterning boat canvas for 20 years and he is the perfect person to brainstorm with on what a universal model would look like. And so I'm guessing you have talked to them about what you're doing and what you want to do. And, and yes, it's so I, I am. How is it that you ended up in a place like that that has everything you need for your personal business? I don't know. I don't know. I don't know.

[00:31:16] Sometimes the universe works in weird ways like that. You know, some, sometimes we listen to the, to all the cues and we just go for it. But so it's not official. I'm writing the business plan, but, um, basically where it is, you know, there's nothing's been accepted yet. Nothing's been accepted. Um, I haven't even really shared this with the executives at Dockside yet, but, uh, they're going to hear about it really soon.

[00:31:44] So, you know, um, don't share it with them. Yeah. Yeah. So, but, you know, I'm not really too worried about letting the cat out of the bag in terms of like, I'm, this is what I'm trying to manifest. Yeah. Um, and, uh, and I think it would, it's too seamless of a transition for me to not try something like this with them. Yeah. And, um, you know, it's, we both have a love for the outdoor industry.

[00:32:14] You know, that is some, you know, the boating community and, you know, car camping outdoors, the off-roading community. Like it, they go hand in hand. And so I think it's a really cool thing to bring to the table for Dockside. Um, and, and so, you know, that's my hope. I'm manifesting that. But the other really cool news is that I did finish filing the patent this week. That's awesome. Perfect timing for this episode. I know. I know.

[00:32:43] It was like, oh my God, Raph, I can't believe you just sent me this message. This is the best way to do this. Yeah. Perfect timing. I know. Yeah. Perfect. I know. Like where's the confetti bomb? Um, yeah, so I, I, I have a patent and I got to sign my name on the inventor line. And so cool. I, I was that, what was that feeling like?

[00:33:10] Like some serious, like adult choices made bright. You're just like, yes, I did it. This thing I did, I did that. It's cool. Yeah. Um, it's just really satisfying to see something that you put so much work into.

[00:33:32] The, so like, I guess like, um, formalized isn't the right word, but polished, I guess. Like just, you know, it, it's such, it's such a moldable thing when it's just you. And then when you put it in this black and white document that the government is going to look at and put a patent on, it's just become so, so much bigger than you at that point.

[00:34:02] Yeah. You know, and then the potential feels like there's so much potential, you know? So even if things don't work out the way I would like them for two with Dockside, I still think that there's potential because, you know, if there is somebody out there who wants to throw oodles of money at me to buy the design off of me, I would also be open to that.

[00:34:26] So as we, as we've been, as I've been listening to you, I was wondering where did the name SoFly even come from? Hmm. So I was, I'm such a nineties kid, right? I know that's totally, it totally dates me. Um, but. Oh, you're so old. I know. Right. Yeah. Grandpa, whatever.

[00:34:54] Uh, but I think it's one of those terms as a nineties kid, like that's so rad. That's so fly, you know? And, and I realized that it was a cheeky, cute, like trademark name. And I really liked it. It was catchy. It was original. I was able to drop a logo for it really well. And it was, it just like came together and I was like, yep, this is what it is.

[00:35:23] It's a rain fly. But it's so fly. Yeah. It's that rains fly is so fly. Yeah. Yeah. So there's not a whole lot of story about behind that other than it was just a, uh, something that I had, it had like came to me when I was just thinking about it. I was like, that's so rad. And I was like, yeah, it's so fly. It's so fly. Um, it worked out. It did work out.

[00:35:53] So, um, so there's future for so fly still. And yeah, I would really still love to have my hands on this. Like, I still think that, you know, I have other ideas too, and this could just be the start of all of it. Yeah. So that's good. Congrats. Yeah. It's just a, yeah. Thank you. You're welcome. Yeah. So that's really cool. What you've got going on with so fly and the patent and everything.

[00:36:22] And, you know, hopefully you can get something worked out with the place that you work at. Cause it sounds like they have everything that you would need, but you know, again, whether that partnership works out or not, it's good that you still have a vision for moving the business forward. And that's, and then getting, cause I'm getting the patent that really kind of like solidifies it. Like, Hey, I'm doing this. I'm going to make it work. However it needs to work. I'm serious. Yeah. Exactly. Yeah.

[00:36:51] Like this is my baby. And, and yeah, I want to, I want to nurture it. I want to take care of it. And I want, I want, I do want the product to get out there. Like I do know that the, there is a market need for it. And so, um, I am excited about the future of it. Well, good. Something like this should exist. Yeah. Back that it doesn't, I'm filling that need. So do you have like, I mean, you, you kind of talked about you want it to move forward.

[00:37:18] You want to see it out there in the market and everything, but do you have like a big vision for, or like, like a, just a big dream of like, this is where I would like to see so fly. This is where, I mean, have you thought about like any major retailers? Like, Oh, I would love to partner with. If I could see them, if I could see these, uh, you know, in REI and in camping stores.

[00:37:44] And if I could see these, you know, I want, I want these to be universal fit. I want people to be able to say, I am going to a concert festival for the weekend and it's supposed to be so hot and I want to be able to have my windows down, but I don't want a bunch of creeps walking around my car. And, you know, they, they just want to get something for the weekend to help them feel safer and more comfortable in their car while they're sleeping.

[00:38:12] And like, this is just, it's such an approachable product for people. Um, and it's a necessary product too. It's not like a, Oh, that would be cool to have. It actually solves an issue and it solves a problem. And the, the, that was, I mean, we didn't really mention this. I mean, you kind of hinted at it, but you can't see through the material. So it gives you that privacy, which is great too. Yeah. Like, so I've also pitched this to people who travel with their pets because, you know,

[00:38:40] when you never want to leave your dog in a freaking hot car with the windows up and, you know, and you'd also don't want to leave your, your windows down because you have your dog in the car. So it was just this conundrum. So I've also traveled with the dog. I've gone on road trips with my sweet old Clementine, 14 years old, still counting. Um, but you know, so it solves a lot of problems for people who, you know, their car is their life.

[00:39:07] They're getting around and adventuring and, you know, bringing their animals with them and it, they need to be able to have fresh air. That's extremely important. You know, a hot car basically turns into an oven really, really fast. Yeah. If you don't have a window down with good ventilation, uh, it, things get really, really ugly, really quick. And so it is a huge, um, necessity. It is not like, you know, it would be nice to have, I agree with you.

[00:39:34] I think it's one of those products that how is this not out there? How does this not exist? And I'm really excited to, you know, offer an option out there that is, uh, what I think a better execution of the idea of what's been, what's already out there. Yeah. Well, it does exist. It is out there. It's just not as out there yet. How about that? Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. All right. So, so you mentioned this earlier cause I asked the question, but so we can, we can

[00:40:03] get into your Subaru now, but so you have a Crosstrek, but you said this is not your first Subaru. So what was your first Subaru? My first Subaru was a 2011 Impreza hatchback. Okay. Uh, manual. Oh, manual transmission. There you go. Um, yeah. If, if, if the ass hat who owned it before me knew how to drive it manual. Yeah.

[00:40:32] That's, that could be problematic. It was unfortunate. The car was the lemon because the transmission engine had been toasted by whoever owned it before me. And you know, the issues just kept captivating. And so I only had that car for maybe two years, three years, something like that. How many miles did it have on it when you bought it? Ah, man. I don't even know if I'm going to remember maybe 90. Like it should not have been toast at that point. Okay. It was.

[00:41:02] Yeah. Cause I have 148,000 miles on my Crosstrek and I still have the original clutch. Yeah. So there's no way. Yeah. So whoever owned it before me did not know how to drive a manual, which pisses me off. Yeah. And I don't like, I don't baby my clutch either. I don't, I mean, I'm not like hard on it all the time, but I'm not like taking it easy all the time. You know, it's, uh, but I don't, I mean, I'm impressed with it. There's a manual car or not.

[00:41:32] Yeah. Yeah. They're so fun. I really, they are fun. I did. I did love that car. I just wish that it had been taken better care of, but so that my first car, yep. Was a, the Impreza hatchback 2011. And I basically put that to bed when the engine ate it. Um, one of my cylinders basically. Yeah. Um, yeah. It was dead.

[00:41:57] I was like, okay, I guess this is where I just need to get a new car. Um, and so I was really dead set on a cross track. I remember when they came out, so it was 20, let's see what year was that? It was 2019 when that car died. Um, and I think I bought that car. Yeah. So I only had the Impreza for about three years.

[00:42:21] And so, um, I was really dead set on getting a cross track when, um, when that Impreza died. And so I remember being at the, uh, Subaru dealership, um, in Salem, Oregon, capital Subaru, and, um, looking at what they had available. They didn't have a whole lot of options when it came to car cross tracks. They had a lot of Imprezas that were white and that Tremere that just doesn't really look that great.

[00:42:51] Yeah. Almost looked a little bit like a Ford Focus. And I was like, that's not the trim. It's not the year and generation. That's not what I'm, I'm not interested in the dark, cheery red color. I don't want a white, like I want an out. I either want an Outback or I want a cross track. That's what I'm looking for. And I was really holding out. And, um, and so I basically said, if you don't have what I need, I'm just going to go to a different dealership.

[00:43:18] But so as I'm leading, he's like, whoa, I, I can show you something. And I'm like, okay. Okay. So before you get into that, were you looking at the first gen cross track or were you just, were you open to first or second gen? And were you looking for used or new or just like you said, whatever they had. I was looking for used. Okay. Yeah. So I was looking for used. I'm not someone who needs a new anything. So, um, I, I knew I was going to be getting used car.

[00:43:48] Um, my pocketbook would only allow for that anyways. And so, um, I, I knew I was going in there looking for either a used Outback or a used cross truck. Didn't really care what gen, um, as long as it was in the last like five to 10 years, you know? Yeah. And so, yeah, I was ready to walk out when he didn't really have anything that I was interested in.

[00:44:16] And he was clearly holding onto this cross track for somebody else. Like I knew I was ruining someone's day when I bought that cross track. Yeah. Well, um, he, he, he, he brought it up. He did. Yep. Um, he did. And so I fell in love. I fell in love with that cross track and I still love it so much to this day. Um, it's such a different car from when I bought it and I just, it's never left me stranded.

[00:44:45] It's, it's been such a great adventure, buddy. I love it. And how many miles did it have on it when you bought it? Do you remember? So what, yeah, I'm trying to remember. I think it was, I think it was 65,000, 65 or 85,000, somewhere in that range. Um, when I bought it to 2016. Okay. So it is a gen one. Yep.

[00:45:11] And, um, and so, um, yep, I bought it back in 2019, I believe. Yep. That sounds great. And, um, and so I finally finished paying it off recently and have gone all out with the mods and it's been so fun making it my own. I freaking love it.

[00:45:36] Now, when you bought it, were you, did you already have plans of like, okay, when I, I want to cross track because I want to be able to do this? Like, did you already have that in mind of, cause obviously you've taken it off. You've taken it camping and stuff, but it was, so was it just like, oh, I want another Subaru and I want to cross track. Like, yes, I just really love the look of the body shape of the cross track. Me too.

[00:46:04] I like that they kind of had the kind of like a mean station wagon look to them, you know, like a mini tank almost, you know? Oh yeah. Um, and so, um, I just really love the look of them really rugged station wagon look. And so, um, I really didn't have any intentions. Like I, I, I do like to camp. I am outdoorsy. So like, it just made sense. And I also just love all wheel drive vehicles.

[00:46:29] Like I love knowing that it doesn't really matter most for the most part, what kind of train I'm in. I'm always going to have traction, you know? And that makes me feel so safe. Oh yeah. Yeah. I, it makes me feel safe here in Houston with all the rain that we get. Yeah. I've driven, like, I loved this car. I had when I was, um, in my late twenties, early thirties, I had a 1991 Toyota Corolla

[00:46:58] wagon that was manual. And I loved that thing. Nice. It was, it was, it's one of those cars that probably would last over 300,000 miles if some jerk didn't T-bone me. Oh yeah. Hey, if some jerk didn't T-bone you, you wouldn't be here. I wouldn't have gotten my Subaru. It's true. Right. Yeah. And full circle. So, but, um, but that's where I fell in love with, with, uh, with station wagons. It was because of that car.

[00:47:27] Um, but I fell in love with all what all wheel drive also after that car, because that car was only two front wheel drive. Yeah. And so the front wheel drive cars, they just spin around so much when you're driving in rain and Oregon is, as you know, just, it rains a lot. It's buckets of buckets of rain. Yeah. And so, um, having that all wheel drive is just such a breath of fresh air, not having

[00:47:56] to worry very much at all about, can I get my ass to work today? Um, and you can, driving a Subaru, if it's like snowing or something, you can't use the excuse. I can't make it to work. I know. Yeah. I've actually had people try to cancel interviews on me because of snowstorms. So I'm like, no, no, no, no. I have a Subaru. It's fine. I'll be there. Yeah. I'll get there. Don't worry about it. Yeah. Don't worry about it. I'll be there.

[00:48:27] Um, but no, I didn't have this vision for this, for the Crosstruck when, when I bought it. Um, I do remember, um, not long after I bought it, the, the idea of doing more to it because it was such a cool platform to do it with. Like I've seen some people do really cool things with their, their Crosstrucks and, um, I was like, maybe someday, maybe someday I'll do those things.

[00:48:57] So were you following people on Instagram already and seeing what they were doing? And that's where you had it? No. Oh, okay. Hadn't. Wow. This was all just kind of, yeah. So this was all organic. You know, this was just like, I think I really like driving down these, uh, messed up roads and finding really cool campgrounds. Yeah. Uh, uh, look, there's this creepy turnoff.

[00:49:26] Let's go check it out. What's over there. Who goes down those roads? I do apparently. Yeah. Um, and sometimes you end up with this amazing secluded oasis of a campground and there's no one around, but even the trees and birds and it's so peaceful. Um, and I didn't realize what I was doing was called overlanding. I didn't know that that was a thing.

[00:49:54] I, I only learned about that after I moved to Michigan. Yeah. So like, where did the journey go from connecting with people? Because if you, if you weren't following people online and seeing what they were doing and you just kind of had the thought yourself of like, Hey, this car can go more places. I know that, but not seeing what you can do with them. Where did that start coming into play? Yeah.

[00:50:21] So that's actually where SoFly started too. It all, like my love for going to these remote places grew with SoFly's growth. And so I, when I started to market SoFly, I started connecting with all of these overlanding and off-roading Subarus and realizing like, Oh, these are my people.

[00:50:50] This is what I want to do. So yeah. And were you connecting with those people on Facebook and Instagram? Yeah. Okay. Yep. And so I connected with Derek, unpavedPNW on Instagram. Um, he was one of my first customers and he's been such an avid supporter and so helpful

[00:51:14] in just wanting to get my product out there and giving me great reviews and, um, it just being such a, such a support system. Yeah. Um, and seeing what he's done to us Forrester is just like inspiring and, and like what he does with it. And, and so, yeah, so they both, they kind of grew together. My love for this kind of stuff and rain, the rain flight business, they cohesively like

[00:51:42] became this massive like obsession in my life. Yeah. And so we're like all these places that you were getting out to, is this all just mostly solo camping or primarily solo camping? Yeah. So a lot of the time I do go out by myself. It's, uh, I do love to camp with people and sometimes that works out and sometimes it's just me out in the woods by myself and that's also lovely.

[00:52:07] Um, so I, I have gotten to camp with some cool people, really have made some solid friends. I went on a really great camp trip with, uh, Ron Snyder. Yeah. Um, met him. Uh, yeah, he's great. I love Ron. So I went on a camp trip with Ron and then I went on a camp trip with, uh, Nina, another green, another green outback and Tobin. Love it. So I went on a fantastic camp weekend with those two.

[00:52:37] Well, three, if we're going to count Tobin, cause we should not forget that cute, cute little wolf or dog. Um, but so, uh, I've gotten to make these really awesome connections and make friends with people that are supporting my product. And then I'm learning about overlanding and how to off-road with Subarus and what you should do to your car to keep it safe and, and, you know, off-road worthy and like all

[00:53:04] the gadgets and how you do your setups and like, and everyone's different. And I think that's why I kind of love this is that your car becomes such an expression of who you are in, in, in like, in such a fun way. Like you almost feel like a kid again. Like, it's like you're decorating your desk at school, but it's your car, you know? And, and you feel very proud of it.

[00:53:32] And so, um, I think too, like with our cars, it's like, cause for me, for example, I'm not like a super outgoing person. Like I don't wear, you know, like crazy clothes. I've never had like, you know, I've never dyed my hair a different color or anything like that. Cause I've always been one of those people where it's like, I don't want to do these crazy things. Cause I don't, I'm worried about what people are going to think of me or, or I'm just too shy to do that, you know, and just really, really express myself.

[00:54:01] But having a car that I can express myself with, where I have tons of decals on it and I have, you know, wheels and tires and all these other things that I put on there. And I'm like, I love the way my car looks and I like it when people look at my car. And so I think there's probably other double take and they're like, yeah. And I'm sure there's other people like that too, where they may, as a person, they may be

[00:54:29] really shy and don't really want a lot of attention, but then they do all these things to their car that brings attention to their car. And that makes them feel good because it's a way to, it's a way to express themselves without them personally doing it with their own, like, you know, being in their own body. You know, I totally agree with that.

[00:54:51] It's like, you know, it's, it's a way to be, be, be a part of this like social club, but not in a way that is forced or awkward because we're all kind of awkward. That's why we are Subaru people. Yeah, that's, uh, that's definitely for sure. And that's, and that's okay. That's what makes it being, you know, being part of this community. Yeah, it's fun. I love it. It's a lot of fun. We're quirky.

[00:55:20] It's true of misfits. Yes. We're quirky misfits. And that's that, those are my people. And so, um, and so I, I, I just really am super stoked that, you know, that there's this like following for, for the Subaru off-road community. Like everyone just want to lift each other up. And I really love that. Yeah. And it's, I know that the amount of support within the community is just like, it's so amazing.

[00:55:50] Whether you're just somebody out there wanting to have fun with your car. And build it out. Or you have a product or a podcast or whatever it may be, you know, people want to support you. People get excited for you. And it's just a fun way to, it's, you know, yeah. And, and I think about this with every episode. I think like, I think with most people, if that I've had on the, on the podcast, like if

[00:56:18] you, if you would not have bought this car, there are so many people that you would not have met. And that's kind of crazy to think about. I thought it was just a car that got you here. Right. Yeah. I know. Cause with so many people, it's like, they already knew they wanted to do something with their car, you know, but with a lot of people, like for me, like for you, like you buy this car, you didn't really have any intentions of doing with it.

[00:56:46] I didn't know that there was a community out there and, you know, you find and meet all these people. And then you're like, where was I before all this, you know, and where would I be if I hadn't bought this car? What would I be doing? Exactly. Yeah. I totally agree. And I do think too, that this couldn't have happened like it with any, any other manufacturer other than Subaru because of just, you know, they foster that loving community and support

[00:57:15] and, you know, support for animals and the outdoors. And it's just all in the same vein of just everything that I'm about. And, and so it's, it's just fantastic to be a part of this finally. Yeah. And you said your Corolla was a hatch. Yeah, it was. Cause imagine you were started camping in the back of your Corolla and had the idea for

[00:57:40] SoFly, you wouldn't have the support and everything like you do with Subaru. I know. So, mm-hmm. What the heck is that? I definitely slept in the back of that car. Yeah. Subaru. Those weirdos. Yeah. I, I did secretly, not secretly. I still really wanted a Subaru when I had that Corolla. Like I've always wanted a Subaru. I'm one of those people that I'm like, oh, look at that Subaru. So yeah. Where did that interest come from for you for Subaru?

[00:58:10] When did that start? So I learned, yeah. So I learned how to drive manual in a Subaru. Oh, yeah. Yep. I dated a guy and he had a Outback. It was a Subaru Outback manual. And I can't remember what year that would have been. Gosh. It might've been late 90s, early 2000s. Okay. As old I am. Yeah. And so, I'm now so old.

[00:58:40] And so I fell in love with driving that car around. It was so much fun. It's so zippy. And it was just like, you know, this like sport wagon. And I was like, okay, I like Subarus. Subarus. Yeah. Well, there you go. So then from then on, you're like, I want a Subaru. Yep. Yeah. I was just like, it's going to happen eventually. Yeah. And it did. And it did.

[00:59:07] And it, and like, I just had no idea what else was going to come with it. You know, like I just thought it was going to be a car in my driveway. Not also a small business. Not also friends. Not also all of these really cool support networking opportunities. And just, it's really, really fun. Like tomorrow night, I might go hang out on Belle Isle with a bunch of other Subaru owners and grill and have a bonfire. Like. As you should. It's just really, really cool. As I probably should. Yes.

[00:59:37] Uh, so with cross-trek in, is that the name of your Subaru or did you just come up with that for the name of the account? Yeah. So that's actually the name of my Subaru. The cross-trek in. Okay. Yep. Yep. I, I decided that's just what she is. Uh, I call her she, but I think she's also androgynous. Boy, girl, whatever. I don't really care. Yeah. Um, but, uh, yep.

[01:00:07] Cross-trek in with two N's. Um, I like the cheeky wordplay stuff. Yeah. So when I was like, oh, trek in. Trek in with two N's because I sleep in it. That's cute. I like it. There you go. Yeah. Yeah. And I worked out. There'll probably be, there, there would, there might be some adjusting of, uh, profiles

[01:00:34] so that I can ensure that SoFly continues with SoFly. So there might be some separation at some point. Yeah. I'm not great at this part of the business. I just want to make product and develop product. And yeah, that's, that's what I want to do. Um, I mean, I think it would be important to create a dedicated Instagram account for SoFly. I mean, of course it is associated with your car, but with your car account, you could have a link, you know, and stuff to SoFly. Exactly. Say like.

[01:01:04] Totally. Totally. It's not that hard. And I just, I'm one of, this is me realizing it's not that hard, but I still don't want to do it. Yeah. I get it. I get it. Because it's like another profile I have to maintain. I, it's, yeah, it's one of those things where I'm like, I think I want to pay someone to do that. Yeah. Getting back to your cross trick, you have, you have it outfitted for camping. Obviously that's how SoFly came about.

[01:01:31] But like, you also have a pretty cool camping setup. And so like, I got to see that at Overland Expo East. And of course you have, so, I mean, I'll let you explain it, but you have like a platform and some drawers and stuff, but then your ceiling was really cool too. So take, take us through the whole, take us through the whole interior because it's very unique and different. Yeah. I'll, I'll give you a tour. All right. Yeah.

[01:01:59] Cause, um, so yeah, I'll, you can give me a tour and then like, I'll on Instagram, you can send me some photos so that if people are listening to it, they can go to Instagram and see some photos of the interior. Totally. Absolutely. Absolutely. Yeah. So, um, I have removed through seats. The rear seats are totally gone. And in place of that is a bedding platform. So rear seats are gone.

[01:02:26] Um, and there's a wooden platform, um, with storage where the seats are. And then where the trunk is, is a pullout kitchen drawer that comes out of the hatch. Uh, and in that I have a electric cooktop and all of my cooking supplies. Um, and then I also have a, uh, car fridge, um, as well.

[01:02:51] I think it's like a 20 liter car fridge with my power station. Um, is it like a fridge freezer combination or just refrigerate? I could do, I, it's just a fridge. Okay. Just a fridge. Gotcha. So no, no freezer or combo. So if I get ice cream, I have to eat all of it. That's the rule. And, and so, um, it's so easy to cook on the road. I love it.

[01:03:19] So like I'm on road trips and I'm like, all right, I want some lunch. I'll pull over to a rest stop and I'll make, make lunch. I'll make grilled cheese in the parking lot. And the reason this is so awesome for me specifically is because I have celiac disease and I cannot eat wheat. And so, okay. Yeah. I can't eat. And you know, we've talked about this, you know, you have a lot of dietary research with being vegan.

[01:03:43] You, your view of how you interact with food is so much different than a lot of other people's. And so. Cause mine is a choice and yours is like a more of a health issue thing. Very much a health thing. Yeah. It's an autoimmune disease. Yeah. And, uh, and so, um, but you know, regardless of that, like it, you can't just walk into a fast food restaurant and expect to be able to find some food.

[01:04:13] It's just not an option for us. And so being able to just pull over at a rest stop and make a grilled cheese with my own gluten-free bread on my own pots and pans is such a, uh, it takes so much concern away from traveling because otherwise traveling is really hard for me. Um, to make sure I can, I have food and snacks and that, like, I'm not going to, you know, have a trip ruined because I had, you know, gotten gluten. Yeah. That's what we say.

[01:04:42] And that's, I mean, but it's, it's nice when you have control over your food. Cause then you know exactly what you're getting. Cause I mean, that's, that's the risk you take with, I mean, with restaurants are usually a little bit better, but whenever you go to fast food, uh, like, cause we've, we've, yeah, we've gone to Taco Bell before and like, Hey, can we get this whatever with no cheese and we get it and it's got tons of cheese. It's like, how did you get that wrong? I mean, yeah, I don't get it. There's no hope. Yeah. It's not even worth it. Yeah.

[01:05:12] I go to the kiosk now so that I can put in exactly what I want and don't have to worry about somebody like not listening to me and like, how did you not put no cheese when you heard me say no cheese? Oh my God. Come on. Yeah. Yes, exactly. So you get it. You get the struggle of, you know, the dietary restrictions. And so it's, so road trips are just so much fun and easy out of my car because I can sleep anywhere. I can cook anywhere.

[01:05:40] Um, and there's so few limitations, um, with how that, that vehicle is set up. I really love it. Yeah. So, uh, talk about your ceiling. Oh yeah. So I love that we have to talk about it. Everyone loves my ceiling. So the headliner in my car, I have, uh, I, I have kind of reupholstered it.

[01:06:05] Um, I glued and stapled and pinned up a really pretty piece of fabric, um, and some fairy lights and it's like a little hippie done in there. Yeah. Yeah. Um, it's fantastic. I call it the quarry cave. Um, and, uh, and so everyone loves it because it's just so crafty and unique and everyone is

[01:06:33] always so curious about my, what's happening on the inside of my car. They're like, what's going on? There's no seats and you're cooking out of the back of it. And, oh my God, look at the, look at the inside roof of her car. Oh my God. The headliner is like, of this like hippie tapestry, uh, and, uh, pinned up. And it's, um, um, it was one of those things where I was like, if I'm going to be basically using my car almost like a bedroom, I want it to like have some of that uniqueness of, you

[01:07:02] know, it being my space. yeah and so that was the way i could do that so how how often are you getting out in your car to go camping yeah so in the summer i'm usually out twice a month at least okay um i usually yeah so i usually try to hit you know the weekends pretty hard in the summertime because you know michigan summers are valuable and you know you really gotta soak up those yeah those precious ones while

[01:07:31] they last and so um i usually you know i before when i wasn't working i was going on road trips all the time you know two weeks here a week here three weeks there and so now now that i'm working i kind of have to really dial in my weekends a little bit more but i i am taking a week off next month um to go check out the porcupine mountains very nice very excited yeah yes

[01:08:02] apparently they're the only mountains in michigan so i must see these mountains yeah so your cross trek has kind of been around different places because you've moved around a bit so like where all have you been with your cross trek either just exploring or having to go because you had to move yeah yeah so i bought my cross trek in oregon when i was still living in

[01:08:30] oregon and uh and when i was in oregon i rode trip to california i rode trip to washington and idaho um and and then when i left oregon i uh drove from oregon to michigan and i moved back to michigan which is where my family is from and so i did that cross-country trip which was awesome stopped at

[01:08:55] yellowstone on the way um that was incredible uh saw some really cool spots all the way in between there crater was the craters of the moon i think was uh one of the other parks i checked out yeah that's that's a long drive a very long drive that is literally cross-country it is yep yep i've done that

[01:09:19] drive twice once when i moved to oregon and then the other when i drove back from oregon and all by yourself huh uh yep so that well with my dog clementine okay yeah well i mean not with another person no no human wow no other human was involved yeah um and so you know now that i'm in

[01:09:44] michigan i've also again driven all over the country on this side so i've driven down to florida i've driven up to canada i've driven out to the new england um i've i so my cross trek has seen all three major bodies of water that's that's awesome it's pretty freaking cool like i didn't have any idea what i was going to do with this cross trek when i bought it and i don't think that i would have

[01:10:13] believed myself if i said that this is what i've done with it so far yeah um and so i yeah it's seen the atlantic the gulf and the pacific and um and it's gotten me all there with no no issues i've never had to worry about my cross trek that's good that's the best part i know yeah she's an

[01:10:36] extremely reliable car and how many miles very fortunate 192 oh that's cool almost at the 200 i know i'm getting there almost 200k yeah i think i'll have to have a party yeah i'm excited because i'm not too far away from 150 and yeah you've been putting some miles on yours yeah it's awesome so with your camping setup is there anything that you would like really really like to have that would

[01:11:06] make your camping setup just like even better than it is like if you had like if money was no object and you're like if i could get something if i could get this one thing what would it be oh i would love one of those hammock uh freestanding awnings oh yeah things are so nice because i'm i'm a

[01:11:28] short person and so deploying the awning i have is such a pain in the ass and it's very difficult by myself which is most of the time and so i just don't use it when i'm by myself and i feel like i would use an awning so much more if i could easily deploy it the the freestanding awnings are

[01:11:52] like that would be slick i would really love one of those is it the kind that like just it has like a scissor support frame and it just comes out yeah okay i think so you don't roll anything out it just comes out yeah okay yeah that makes sense so the only time you put it out is when you have somebody with you to help you with it um i have struggled by myself sometimes when i know it's gonna rain

[01:12:20] or i would really like to have it or if i know that my car is not going to be going anywhere for a couple of days okay i'll put some time into managing it yeah um but uh otherwise a lot of my gear is like pretty dialed in that's good the awning is like the one thing yeah yeah uh let's see as far as like mods you haven't done a ton to it other than like doing the interior stuff that's

[01:12:48] probably your biggest changes right so what have you done to the exterior yeah yeah so it's got full skid plates obviously uh that's not obvious i couldn't see him that's true fine point fine point thank you you're welcome uh just so you know if you're off-roading your subaru you should have skid

[01:13:11] skid plates yes um yep so i got skid plates on everything on the undercarriage and then um and then i also have upgraded the shocks to bilstein b6s with overload springs in the rear yeah that's important for what you're doing yes it is absolutely especially with that wooden platform that adds a lot to weight uh to that back end so those overload springs were a great suggestion on patrick mckinney's

[01:13:41] um uh when i was uh this was one of the reasons i loved connecting with patrick mckinney because he's so knowledgeable about how to off-road a cross truck and i was like just tell me what to buy yeah yeah and and and it was and i i was so thankful for the guidance from him and like learning you know what really needs to be done so that you can do this properly and safely and so i mean i'm

[01:14:09] still gonna make mistakes every once in a while but so the mods are gonna be yeah the shocks um the uh i've got a rear tire full-size spare swing out i've got a tuli pulse cargo box i've got um oh what else uh rally tech rock sliders i've got a uh rally innovations bumper bar with some

[01:14:39] nova site um x pods um so yeah there's i've done quite a bit of stuff to it and it's all detailed out and yeah and you have those like uh are those plastic some cladding yeah so i actually put my own cladding on it yeah so i think it's funny because people i actually really i was inspired

[01:15:02] by the um i think the third gen uh cross truck wilderness you know there's a lot of cladding on it um but i actually really liked some of it most of it really and so i was like getting clad envy nice and so i just looked up some things that i could maybe do on my own and and that's actually

[01:15:28] what i have on the side of my car is i think intended for a pickup truck okay um but it fits really well on my car and i love that like rugged tank look it gave it um with the rock sliders and so and it you know it helps keep you know some you know people bashing their doors in the into the mine in a parking lot and you know stuff like that so it kind of helps keep the body in

[01:15:53] better condition yeah definitely um so it's her purpose and it looks cool any uh other mods like on your wish list for your car i would so love to chop off my front bumper and and like armor it out i love i love the chop bumper look it not just the look but also like why of having something like

[01:16:19] that you can just get such a better approach angle i realized oh yeah i did by putting the rally innovations light bar on there that i actually made it worse um yeah you know i'm not really doing any serious off-roading um if i was i would definitely be doing something different but uh i was really going for um you know continuing that like little mini tank look and so the rally

[01:16:49] innovations light bars kind of like was a little you know kind of finished it off a little bit for me and i was like maybe i'll chop off my bumper at some point maybe 200k that's what i'll do yeah there you go that's a good plan any uh like wheels and tires on the wish list yeah if i could get i would love to have some bigger tires and bigger wheels but i also don't

[01:17:15] know if i necessarily want to trade that off for you know having to replace like control arms and links and stuff like that more often yeah i don't know there's a there's always a trade-off like i actually really like the look of the stock wheels well that's the cross trucks it's one of the it's one of things that actually drew me to it i was like those are the stock wheels i really like those

[01:17:38] like they just look cool and and so you know i the tires i have on there right now are the um uh hmm man do you have are they all terrain tires or are they just yeah they are all terrain okay yeah they're all terrain i think yokohama's at4s okay i believe yeah i believe that's what i've got

[01:18:04] on there um my my feeling about it is like i don't want to spend thousands of dollars on wheels if i'm just gonna go fuck them up on the trail yeah you know like yeah that's a good point you know i think that where my car's at right now is probably where where it's going to be for a while unless i you know get a crazy itch to chop up my bumper and you know see if i can do something crazy with that

[01:18:33] yeah i just realized the last mod that i forgot what's that this guy the two-inch lift dog oh god god cory and the two-inch lift i tried you know the two-inch lift no i can't remember who which two-inch lift was that with that was the rally tech yep that was another rally tech oh okay nice uh lift kit

[01:18:57] yep two-inch rally tech lift kit very good yeah well you're all set up then dude i'm ready do you have any like crazy or funny stories from getting out by yourself or getting out on trails with somebody oh boy i'm so glad that you i'm so glad you asked this question because i have a story

[01:19:17] okay let's hear it all right so i'm by myself with my dog clementine and i'm camping solo car camping solo in the middle of the stadium forge wilderness in oregon and uh i am enjoying a quiet afternoon of wandering around the woods looking for cool mushrooms and um i get back to camp and realize

[01:19:47] i have locked my keys in my car oh well that's great oh man um and so i barely have cell phone reception i don't have like that you had your phone with you at least i did have my phone with me at least i was like okay so my options are i break a window pay a lot of money for somebody to come out and save me

[01:20:14] or i attempt to get into my vehicle another way and i i decided that breaking a window wasn't an option because it was early in the weekend this happened like day one i had two nights of camping oh dear and you know yeah exactly it's oregon it's probably gonna rain i have my dog with me i don't want a bunch of broken glass everywhere yeah i also don't i don't want to be a damsel in distress and

[01:20:43] call someone to come save me also pay them a lot of money probably so i choose option three and said let's break into my car then yeah they're not breaking a window but not breaking a window right so um um i uh grab my hiking pole i am standing on a bundle of firewood because i'm short i'm only five

[01:21:08] foot four um and so i hammer my tent pole into the door frame with a rock and use that as a lever so i can pry the door frame open just enough to slide a stick in and unlock the door and that worked i guess huh and it worked oh my gosh wow i i definitely messed up my door but it's fixed

[01:21:35] you didn't notice it did you no no uh yep so i i definitely fixed that for you know a lot cheaper than what a new window would be um i learned my lesson on it's very important to have a spare key or just take your keys or just take your keys yeah exactly so um yep uh that that was the special

[01:22:01] camping weekend um i definitely got myself out of a pickle yeah it's a good thing that worked out hours of screaming hours of screaming in the woods by myself by my car yeah jeez wow yeah that could have that could have been a different story i know i know right yeah i mean i have a lot of stories about camping in the woods by myself but that one that one takes the cake i think yeah

[01:22:30] yeah uh well with all the drive i mean you've gone a lot of places is there anywhere that you haven't gone that you really want to go to oh yeah so i really want to go to utah and nevada i would love to see that part of the country i haven't um gotten to explore like much desert

[01:22:52] much of that like arches um national park area and i would really love to see that part of the country it just looks incredible it just looks like it's another planet yeah everybody wants to go to utah mm-hmm yeah i am one of those people yeah i've been but i haven't been to like we flew

[01:23:14] into salt lake city and we drove down to some little city south of um salt lake city i don't remember where it was you've kind of summed this up just throughout the whole episode but like you know how would you say that owning a subaru has changed your life if there's anything else that you haven't mentioned about that gosh i mean how has subaru not changed my life yeah like that's the question

[01:23:41] exactly like how is it not like yeah i mean it's it's done a lot for you it has and i am so thankful for it i for subaru i mean i even tried getting a job at subaru when i was looking there's actually a research facility here um in this part of michigan and i applied and you know didn't didn't get the job unfortunately um you know and i was a little bit hurt about that because i was you know you just

[01:24:11] want to be you know with your subaru people and that felt like a really cool uh stepping stone but in a way like i think that it wasn't supposed to work out because of i think this opportunity was so fly a dockside yeah it's it's you know you have to kind of take things as they come and as they work out for you in life and uh because you never know where it's going to take you and what's going to

[01:24:37] happen you don't yeah sometimes you just have to ride the wave and you know accept that like you know you can you have you have control over your life but there's also like you know the world is going to keep going and hopefully you can hop on the right ways at the right time yeah so do you think that you'll always own a subaru yeah i think so it's gonna be i think there's gonna be an interesting

[01:25:06] evolution though i think at some point with electric vehicles like as long as there's a good hybrid electric option i'm always gonna want a subaru yeah and so i i yeah now that they have a hybrid cross track out that's pretty enticing yeah but i don't know like i think my next subaru might be a

[01:25:29] forester like with how much outdoorsy stuff i like to do i think just more space would be nice for my gear yeah just a little bit more space yeah like i love the cross track and i wouldn't change it for for anything um but now that i know what i want to do with my vehicle i can see myself utilizing a forester quite a bit yeah yeah it makes sense so we'll get into this last segment to get to know you

[01:25:59] a little bit better but who is cory as in describe yourself this is always that awkward part where i'm like who am i who am i uh let's see who am i uh i think i'm snarky i think that uh i can be

[01:26:18] blunt um sometimes i am ditzy sometimes i uh can be awkward and but i'm crafty and creative i can be nerdy um but most of all i just want to enjoy life and not taking myself too seriously yeah that's good enjoying it is what it should be all about as much as you can

[01:26:48] even even if you have limitations it's still i think try to do the best that you can yeah so why is that we're here if we aren't here to enjoy it yep exactly uh what is a favorite memory from your childhood oh yeah so definitely summers at grandpa's cottage in peaceful michigan

[01:27:11] that sounds nice so yeah he had a house on the canals of lake huron and so it was aunts and uncles and cousins every weekend of the summer doing barbecues and riding our bikes and going out on the pontoon boat tubing and fishing and just a very fun childhood of like being outside being close with my family

[01:27:37] and yeah that's the best really lovely yeah yeah my uh my mom's side of the family was a really big family and we would have family reunions and that was always a lot of fun a lot of people getting together yep just a lot of great memories made yeah so we know where you work but what do you do there

[01:28:02] yeah okay so the fancy fancy job title the official job title is marine canvas fabricator and what does that mean yeah so i basically make boat canvas covers okay hey um yeah yeah and so uh and so that ranges from patterning and measuring and getting a customer's

[01:28:30] boat ready for a cover to cutting it on the cnc cutting machine to making it and then also installing so i do everything from start to finish that's good though because then you get a lot of skills that way rather than like here you're gonna do this one job and that's all you're gonna do uh-huh totally exactly i love the uh the diversity with what i do in my days and every day

[01:28:57] is different and so i really really love that i love being able to get off site i go to marinas almost every day and get on boats and that sounds awful it's terrible i i've had this this is a something i've never experienced in life but i i've had this like almost like perpetual sway vertigo we're almost being on the boat still on a boat yeah yeah usually because you're just constantly

[01:29:23] rocking back and forth and so i'll be like at my sink doing dishes after dinner and just like my body is almost wanting to like that's interesting it's so bizarre i'm not complaining but it is very bizarre um and so and it's a really cool um place to be because um i also do repairs i do fix old boat covers too like ones that like have been around for a really long time and maybe the manufacturer

[01:29:53] doesn't make them anymore sometimes we'll replicate it to make a new one for the customer sometimes we'll just repair it and that's cool to me because i started my sewing career out at an outdoor gear repair shop in portland oregon oh interesting um yep mountain sold out in portland oregon and um and so it it's really

[01:30:18] cool to be back in in that like uh repairing and recreating um industry as well um and so i really love it it's a lot of fun and i am still learning which is what i want to do yeah that's always important too uh so we know that like you want where you want so fly to be and that you want to get that going

[01:30:45] and everything but do you have like a dream job other than that like you know like a professional job i guess or anything or is so fly it give me money to just go be outdoorsy and test product that would be amazing yeah that's a good dream job if i could be if i could be an outdoor gear product tester and make enough money off of that i would love that yeah no that would be great you're already getting outdoors

[01:31:15] it's true it's like if i could be testing your products at the same time and get paid for it that would be sweet there we go uh what is something that makes you want to get out of bed every day sunshine coffee those are good yeah those are the first two yeah sunshine and coffee what makes you want to stay in bed alarms

[01:31:45] alarms yeah yeah those things it doesn't yeah those things they don't work for me they never have never will i've accepted i'm not a morning person but yeah yeah it's nice when you don't have to set one what is something that really scares you

[01:32:07] it's not being out in the woods by myself at night it's not let's see what scares me i'm honestly i don't there's not a lot that does scare me i don't know relationships yeah let's go with that okay so besides all things subaru and being a small business owner what is something that really

[01:32:31] excites you getting outside and seeing new things yeah adventuring going new places i just feel like i you know your world just opens up more every time you travel yeah travel is it's really nice it's it's really cool to just see different parts of the country and see like how what the housing is like

[01:32:57] what the landscape is like what the people are like it's it's always a new and fun experience i agree yeah and you just get to meet so many different people and try different foods sometimes yeah yeah yeah but you get a really different appreciation for for all of the facets that this country has to offer and uh it's been really really fun driving my

[01:33:25] cross track around everywhere yeah and it's it's been around it's been around and she's gonna keep going around yeah i'm hoping to get to that 300k yeah that would be super cool uh what would be what would be your best bit of advice to give to somebody about anything

[01:33:48] money doesn't buy happiness adventures do yeah adventures however uh it's good to have money to be able to go on those adventures that's true i think money for gas money for food it's true i know

[01:34:10] yeah well i think that i think that this can be a really overwhelming hobby because it can probably feel like you have to buy all of these things in order for it to be approachable and enjoyable but that's really not true you actually don't the idea is to have is the idea is just to have what you need and really nothing more everything yeah anything else that's just an excess is something else you

[01:34:39] have to worry about if it breaks yeah you know um and so yeah and so start with only what you need and then go from there you know you don't you don't need you know um a set of shiny four wheels that you're just gonna go mess up on an off-road trip you know yeah but you probably do need a power

[01:35:05] station that's going to keep your electric cooktop going you know so it's there's there's the right right places to spend your money um but i think being wise in that and also not being afraid to try making it yourself yeah oh yeah yeah that's always did you make your um platform and everything that's in your car yes i did i so that's a neat timing of how this all kind of came together and where it all

[01:35:34] began i made i built that bedding platform with my friend mateo out in oregon and we went and bought all of the supplies for it on a monday and that wednesday i was laid off for my job oh no wow and i was like well i guess i'm doing this i already spent the money

[01:36:01] um and so i was like i guess this is my plan now i'm going to be camping out of my food room yeah it's uh it's worked out it has and i i love it so freaking much it's so much fun and i love that there's such a cool community of people doing exactly this and we all get to be friends oh yeah but that's a good point about you know just using your money to buy the things that you just

[01:36:29] that you need to start off with and uh yeah yeah so i agree it's like you know that consumer culture is so easy to get immersed in and it's just not necessary yeah it is uh yeah well thank you so much for taking the time to record yeah i appreciate it thank you so much raf i really appreciate chatting it's been like it's just cool to see you again and i'm super stoked for your job you have to let

[01:36:55] me know how it goes yeah yeah because we got connected before we went out to overland expo east and then we got to meet at overland expo east so it's been over a year happens yeah i know yeah with both of us so much has happened i know i know life goes on um yeah it's been super fun chatting with you i'm gonna start getting ready for bed all right yeah we'll have a good evening

[01:37:18] and uh yeah we'll put this out on monday i'm excited thanks dude yeah you're welcome thank you cory for taking the time to record with me and talk about your subaru journey and especially so fly go check out Crosstrek Crosstrek with two n's as she mentioned in the very beginning so uh yeah thanks for tuning in i hope you enjoyed this episode and i hope you all have a wonderful

[01:37:44] week we'll see you next monday for the subie scoop uh if you are somebody that's going out car camping keep an eye out for what she's doing with so fly because she's bringing it back and i know she's really excited about this journey she just got the patent so that is that is like so so cool that she is doing that with this product so uh yeah follow along see where it's at and again uh thanks for tuning in

[01:38:11] hope you all have a wonderful week much subie love rap the subie new podcast is hosted by rafael in a closet in houston produced by rafael in a room next to the closet in houston and edited by rafael on a computer in the room next to the closet in houston with music by luke ruiz in another room in houston you can find the subie new podcast wherever you listen to podcasts including apple podcast spotify

[01:38:36] and many more to support the podcast please head over to patreon.com slash subie and you podcast once you join you will have access to the discord channel and discord chats with other patrons if you'd like to get in contact with the show you can find them on instagram at subie and you podcast online at subie new podcast.com or by email subie and you podcast at gmail.com that's all for this week