Ryan Gellert

USA

I’ve been with BD since 1998 when I started packing boxes in the warehouse as a way to get my foot in the door. Since then, I’ve moved on to a handful of roles in the Supply Chain department, left for three years to study law at the University of Utah, and returned in my current role as Managing Director of BD Asia.

I moved to China following law school to get BD Asia up-and-running. Although in hindsight I was clueless about what would be required, I had previously made a handful of climbing and business trips to Asia and had spent a summer studying Chinese law in Shanghai. I’ve been in China full-time since October 2005 and spend my limited free time climbing around SE Asia and traveling throughout the Eastern Hemisphere.

The best parts of the job are the satisfaction that comes from building something from the ground up, the challenges of mating up two very distinct business cultures, and the opportunity to work with our highly motivated and capable local team to ensure that EVERYTHING we do meets or exceeds BD’s global standards. The toughest parts of the job are being far from family and friends and the round-the-clock schedule. Closing time in China is a few short hours from the start of the work day in SLC. All in all, I wouldn’t trade the experience for anything…

Birthday? 03/01/1972

Year you first started at Black Diamond? 1998

Memory/story of your first week at Black Diamond? I remember thinking that I’d stumbled into that ESPN commercial where everyone walks around the office in their sports uniforms. You’ve got to understand that back in those days the HR-mandated summertime dress code was lycra tights, tank tops and Scarpa Minimas. Wintertime was T-2s and one piece pastel ski suits. With the exception of the marketing department, that’s changed a bit…

What does working at Black Diamond mean to you? One word – fame. And power. And wealth. And fame.

If you weren't working for Black Diamond, what would you be doing? I’d wake early, put on a freshly starched shirt, grab my brief case and head down to the desk in my unfinished basement and spend the day pretending that I work for BD.

Worst job you've ever had? During university I spent a summer working as a janitor in an office complex in North Carolina. I can still recall the smell (think spoiled milk with a vegemite twist and a hint of wet dog fur) of scraping the crust off the inside of the lunch room microwave. I just dry heaved thinking about it…

Do you have any pets? During the summer, I keep a swarm of pet mosquitoes in my office here in Zhuhai. Not sure where they spend the winter.

Favorite sports/activities? Climbing, shooting photos, traveling, and drinking red wine. Preferably all four at the same time.

Favorite climbing/skiing area and why? I enjoy Little Cottonwood as much as anywhere. Feels like home…

Best climbing experience? A trip I made with my girlfriend and a few co-workers from BD Asia out to the Altai Mountains in NW China’s Xinjiang Province back in October 2007 was one of the best. Unfortunately, we didn’t get much climbing in but the area was spectacular. Huge logistical challenge to get there and to gain access but once we got in we had this massive valley of granite, pine trees, and pristine rivers nearly to ourselves. I’d like to get out there again while it’s still relatively unspoiled.

What's your dream trip? Where? With who? I keep a running list of places that I’d like to get to. Mongolia is definitely near the top as are Mali, Patagonia, and the Aral Sea in Kazakhstan. Although there is climbing in each place, I’d be just as happy to wander around and shoot photos with my girlfriend.

Guilty pleasure? Holly’s chocolate chip cookies. 

BD gear you use every time you go climbing? Chaos harness – I never climb in anything else.

What/who inspires you? BD Asia’s Minister of Culture/driver ‘Juice.’ He has a permanent smile on his face.

What's in your iPod? 823 albums/7 tv shows/77 podcasts. Just added 7 Seconds’ Walk Together Rock Together yesterday.

Strangest place you've ever woken up? Jet-lagged in JT and Brittany’s basement with a huge stuffed pink rabbit staring at me from the foot of the bed. Top that…

Strangest person you've ever woken up with? I remember a BD business trip to Seattle where we piled a half dozen people in a room at the Super 8. Any of the five would qualify…

Three things you'd never travel without? My iPod, a good book, and my Andy Merriman-cancelling headphones.

Superstitions? I never eat chicken feet while still attached to a live chicken.  

What's your dream job? Working as a travel writer would be a nice gig. Half-time wandering around the globe observing people and the other half working from home.

If you could steal one thing and not get caught, what would it be? I’d like a pair of Terra Cotta warriors for my home.

If you could have dinner with three people (dead or alive) who would they be? My sister (who passed away in 1994) would top the list. Martin Luther King and Malcolm X would be tied for a very distant second.

Do you have any tattoos or piercings? No; my brother has enough ink for the two of us.