We just wrapped up another fantastic Overland Expo PNW with 16,000 plus attendees, exhibitors, instructors, and staff. We couldn’t have asked for better weather in beautiful Redmond, Oregon, and everywhere you looked there was innovative gear, awesome rigs, and inspiring conversations.
No matter if an attendee was looking to check out the latest and greatest gear or up their overland education, there was something for everyone amongst the 376 exhibitors and 329 session hours. Plus, the Overland Expo Training Team, sponsored by ComeUp and BFGoodrich, spent the weekend teaching driving techniques to hundreds of eager enthusiasts with classroom-style learning and in-vehicle driving on a custom-built course.
On Friday night, the first Women Who Wander Fireside Chat was a huge success with 70+ attendees, including Patty Upton, Connie Redman, Azure Oneil, Cara McClellan, and other legends amongst the overlanding community. At the same time, on the other side of the event, the Toyota Fireside Chat was a huge success. Here, attendees got an insider look at the Toyota truck and SUV lineup while enjoying s’mores around the campfire, which is always a bonus.
Friday also gave attendees the chance to check out the Overland Expo Film Festival. This event features inspiring films from all across the overland community. The feature film for this event took viewers along as the Backcountry Discovery Route team explored the newly announced Northern California Backcountry Discovery Route.
On Saturday night, the Overland Expo Foundation charity raffle was full of excited attendees who took home hundreds of prizes donated by our amazing exhibitors. Plus, the raffle raised over $16,000 for the Overland Expo Foundation. Over the course of the year, those funds will be used on a variety of projects that protect trail access, introduce new groups to overlanding, and work to clean up heavily impacted areas.
Across the event, the Honda party was a huge hit with food, tunes, and as always, plenty of fun.
Of course, we can’t forget our Happy Hours sponsored by Bushwhakka, Maxxis, and REDARC. On Thursday, Friday, and Saturday nights, everyone gathered at the Oasis Bar and Food Court, sponsored by Toyo Tires. It’s a great time to catch up with friends, enjoy a good drink, and plan for the other evening activities.
Sunday saw a new addition to the Overland Expo schedule. The Pacific Rover Club competed in the “Vehicular Games,” a trials-style competition that challenged both driver and vehicle. Attendees loved watching the tense action as each Rover navigated their way through the course.
Overland Expo is always a busy weekend and buzzing with activity, but at its core, it’s really about the people and relationships within the overlanding community. From brand new exhibitors to those who have never missed an event, and from the curious first-time day pass attendee to the dedicated camper who traveled thousands of miles to be a part of the event, the quality conversations and friendships found at Overland Expo are innumerable. While there’s no way to truly capture this in a short post, some of our friends offered their point of view on what makes Overland Expo special.
We’ve been attending all of the Overland Expo’s since 2015 and it’s the foundation to our business. This is the overland show for us period, there’s nothing else like it and that’s why we keep coming back.
– Brian Fulton, CEO of Goose Gear
I’m new to overlanding so between the classroom training and driving course, I’m getting a lot of really good information and starting from a place of facts instead of just guessing.”
– Jarret Day Pass & Training Attendee
There’s something special about getting to speak with the vendors in person that you don’t get from the web. And we’re from eight hours away, but we’ve already made friends with the campers around us. It’s been great weekend and we still have a day left!
-Edwin Charlebois, Weekend Pass with Camping Attendee
We like to get here on Thursday morning when camping opens to see all the cool rigs pull up! We never get tired of that. We keep coming back because you get to see lots of innovative products at the expo and hangout with people with great stories in the campgrounds.
The Robert Family, Weekend Pass with Camping Attendees
And if you couldn’t make it out and want a quick glance at what Overland Expo PNW is all about, check out our recap video now!
