At Timber Ninja Outdoors, our story isn’t about playing it safe. It’s about taking risks when others wouldn’t. It’s about building gear not for the masses, but for the hardcore mobile hunters who go where wheels can’t.
From a Garage in the Appalachians
I started Timber Ninja Outdoors not in a boardroom, but in a garage nestled deep in the Appalachian Mountains. As a serious mobile hunter, I couldn’t find gear that matched the way I hunted—gear that was silent, featherlight, and capable of withstanding the backcountry. So I built it myself with the help of my original partners, Jordan and Tyler.
That early vision gave birth to the world’s first carbon fiber climbing stick: the C1. A product that many said couldn’t be built affordably or at scale. But we did it—because innovation isn’t a buzzword here, it’s how I’m wired.
Breaking Through and Winning Big
Our breakthrough came when the C1 began turning heads. During this time, we brought in Beau Martonik of the East Meets West Hunt podcast as a business partner to handle the marketing efforts. I enjoyed creating high-quality, badass products, but I wasn't the best at marketing them myself. Beau is a seasoned mobile hunter with experience in marketing and product testing for companies such as SITKA Gear and Spartan Forge. Then came the Ultimate and Nano saddles—both of which won Outdoor Life’s Best Saddles of 2024. These weren’t flukes. They were the result of relentless design, obsessive testing, and a refusal to compromise.
The recognition felt good—but more importantly, it proved that small shops with big ideas could lead an industry.
Hurricane Helene and a Total Loss
Just as momentum was building, 2024 brought Hurricane Helene. The storm devastated our facility. We lost everything—inventory, equipment, even our confidence for a moment.
I thought about shutting down. I really did.
Manufacturing Challenges, Ego, and Hard Truths
Even before the storm, we were fighting an uphill battle. Manufacturing in the U.S.—our ideal—meant constant shortages, high costs, and painfully slow lead times. We were handcuffed when it came to using cutting-edge materials—many of which simply aren’t made here.
Margins were razor thin. Innovation was being strangled by logistics.
And if I’m being honest—we got too wrapped up in our own egos about doing everything 100% American made. But the reality is, we couldn’t deliver the products we wanted to. We couldn’t get access to the materials we needed to push innovation. The costs were outrageous. Even with those prices, we couldn’t make enough margin to keep the lights on.
A New Partner, A Clearer Vision
In 2025, a new business partner came onboard. Not just with resources, but with belief. They understood that staying true to our mission meant making hard choices—like manufacturing some components overseas.
Not to cut corners.
Not to chase margins.
But to finally create gear that meets our goals: the most innovative, safe, lightweight mobile hunting equipment possible—without pricing it out of reach for the average hunter.
Having some of our products made overseas does not reduce the quality of our premium mobile hunting products. In fact, in many cases, we’ve found the quality has improved. The U.S. simply doesn’t have the capability to push the limits of textiles and advanced materials the way we need—and we don’t see that changing any time soon. That said, we won't stop looking. The saddles undergo final assembly in Pennsylvania and have been tested to ASTM F3544-21 and ASTM F2337-22 standards at a third-party testing facility in Georgia to ensure their safety.
We don’t want to produce gear that looks like everyone else’s, and we’re going to be fully transparent about how we’re doing that.
What We Stand For
I still design every product with our Appalachian roots in mind. I’m not letting go of what got us here. I’m just removing the obstacles that were holding us back.
We’re Appalachian born. We’re mobile by design. We’re relentlessly innovative.
And we’re just getting started.
- Jason Redd, Founder of Timber Ninja Outdoors