ABOUT

Wild and Wonderful, at home in Appalachia

What is iPlayOutside?

We are an online magazine (e-zine) that provides content about outdoor events. Our focus is on people powered sports, in other words, no motors, though we do not entirely exclude motorized sports. If you like to play outside we want to hear about it.

Our Mission
We strive to build the Appalachian tourism market and help sustain the rural areas we play in.

Our Goals
From professional athletes to weekend warriors, we focus on positive energy, outdoor fun, and community.

Our intent is to create an online, active community to help areas in and around Appalachia gain local and national attention on the World Wide Web. We are interested in working with larger cities and markets in order to accomplish this.

Our site targets customers who are interested in tourism, outdoor sports, and outdoor activities. By increasing the number of participants who pay to race, tour, and play in Appalachian's natural resources, the number of participatory events will increase and the areas where these events take place become more valuable. These outdoor active events generate money for the communities they serve, attention to their campaigns, and bring more health awareness to our rural area.

The iPlayOutside Team

We're proud to be based out of West Virginia, the only state located entirely in Appalachia. It's all wild and wonderful here. Meet the crew . . .

Julie Black President/Co-Owner Better known as Julz to the outside world, I was basically iPlayOutside's first full-time employee. I love meeting people at races and outdoor events. You'll find me camping with my husband and son most weekends.
Jason Black Vice President/Co-Owner Playing outside is what I like to do. From paddling down rivers to camping on mountains, east coast to west coast, it's my idea of L-I-V-I-N. See ya out there!
Don Parks Founder/Co-Owner/DBA An IT professional by day I spend my free time playing and working outside. Living in the WV countryside with my wife Heather, son Travis, and two dogs is my own piece of "Almost Heaven". But when there's problems with the web site, who do you call? See Don's photos for more.

Loyal Supporters

We can't list everyone, but thanks to all of you, you know who you are . . . here's some of our great supporting cast and infamous fans.

The Amazing Heather Parks, Saucony racing mommy

Generation NeXt Travis Parks, ready to ride, 2009

Generation NeXt Kirk Black, Paddling White Day Creek, May 2009 at 6 years old

Photographer and rider J.R. Petsko, 2009 Chief Logan Wilderness Challenge
-- [See J.R.'s web site]

Originally from Sweden, photographer Maria af Rolen, enjoys the U.S. coast
-- [See Maria's web site]

The Unstoppable Lew McGrath, Highlands Sky 40 Mile Trail Run - 2006 Trail Runner Trophy Series, Lew finished 4th overall (Time: 7 hours, 21 minutes)

Our History

iPlayOutside.com birthed its humble beginnings as WVOutside.com in 1998. The founder, Don Parks, was a local runner and biker who found it difficult to find race results and photos anywhere. He decided to use his web savvy to create an online e-zine to post results, photos, and short stories from local running and biking races. Hence, WVOutside was born.

Back in those days the web was a new and magical thing. Don began to post local races into an online schedule and people took notice. WVOutside became a stomping ground for local racers to find events to participate in, and a place to find event coverage. His dream began to become a reality when he hired a small staff of field journalists.

With the increase in web software and improvements in digital camera technology, WVOutside grew at a rapid pace. The staff began to cover events in other states. The name was changed to iPlayOutside, the site evolved, and so did its followers.

Today, iPlayOutside is still a state-of-the-art site catering to the interests of today's outdoor participatory sports enthusiasts in an on-line magazine (e-zine) format.

WVOutside/iPlayOutside Archives ... The Early Years

100-Mile C&O Canal Fun Run Crew

We'd like to give a shout-out to the "old school" extended family. This section is dedicated to them, the original iPlayOutsiders.

Annual 100-Mile Fun Run

1999- 3rd WVOutside 100-Mile C&O Canal Fun Run, Shepherdstown, WV - Gene and Lisa Vance, Brad Coffman, Don Parks, Glenn Parks, Chas Mick, Karen Jones

1997- 1st 100-Mile C&O Canal Fun Run, Shepherdstown, WV - Eric Deboni, Brad Coffman, Don Parks, Glenn Parks, Chas Mick

Annual Winter Hike

2003- Winter Hike on the Appalachian Trail Photo Essay - Chas Mick, Emory Rogers, Don Parks, Eric Wick, Greg McCulley

Winter Hike, Spruce Knob, WV

2000- December A Worm in Burkittsville? Burkittsvile, MD - Greg McCulley, Marty Lamp, Dennis Vass,

1999- December 26-29 Annual Winter Hike, Spruce Knob NRA, WV - Brad Yurish, Greg McCulley, Marty Lamp, Dennis Vass, Don Parks, Emory Rogers, Mike Hansrote

1997- December 1st Winter Hike: I Dream of A White Devil, Monongahela National Forest's Cranberry Wilderness, WV - Brad Yurish, Greg McCulley, Marty Lamp, Dennis Vass, Don Parks, Emory Rogers

Other Adventures

2000- June 10-11 Team iPlayOutside.com's 24 Hour Adventure, Snowshoe Mountain, WV - Marty Lamp, Lew McGrath, Chas Mick, Brad Coffman

Marty Lamp, Team iPlayOutside 24 Hours of Snowshoe-2000

2000- October 5 The Real Beast of the East, Summersville, WV - Julie Black, Jason Black, Bill Bertsch, Joe Bertsch, and the The New Jersey National Guard Raft Crew

2000- December Keeping Up With Tradition, Albright, WV - Jason Black, Pete Daily

2000- February 16 Confessions of a Kayaker, Albright, WV - Jason and Julie Black, Jeff Busch, Jeff Simcoe, and others

1999- October My First Climb at Coopers Rock, Morgantown, WV - Julie Black, Marty Lamp, Greg McCulley, Megan 'Mack', Lisa 'Legs'

Wall of Fame

The King Dave McKain, Valley Falls Challenge - 2001 WVMBA Point Series

The Master Tommy Molecule, 2001 King of the Hill - Lew McGrath Benefit Race

Old Faithful WVOutside Van, Lew McGrath stands in front, YMCA Pacesetter 5K, 1999

And who could forget Flat Stanley, iPlayOutside Corespondent