Sarah Gartzman is a pastry chef and Salida restaurateur. Situated just below her knuckles the letters S-A-N-D-W-I-C-H  are tattooed across her fingers. Her passion for her craft demands this bold statement, because Sarah makes the best damn sandwiches on this third rock from the sun. Everything Sarah touches is delicious: confectionary treats, fresh bread, cheese, arugula, caramelized onions, salsa verde, hollandaise sauce, thinly sliced ribeye…oh my!!!! In 2012 Sarah, and her husband Rob opened Sweeties Sandwich & Baked Excellence in downtown Salida. Sweetie’s has been a town favorite ever since. I had my first Don Draper (a loaded pastrami sandwich) from Sweetie’s in 2014, and I hold every sandwich I eat across this country to that Sweeties standard. They all fail.

We sat down on the roof top bar of Sarah and Rob’s flagship eatery. The Biker and The Baker where they serve wine, deserts and brunch. With S Mountain as our back drop, and the Salida breeze as our ambient music, Sarah and I dish on food, mountain town life, wall paper, working hard, chasing dreams you didn’t know you had, and Elvis’s favorite type of greens. I tell her how Bavarian cream chocolate pie paired with microbrewed stout beer changed my life and formed my palette. Sarah shares an amazing dining experience she had in Mexico city. If you love food and mountain town life, this is the show for you.

Do you wanna bake like Sarah at home? Well, you better up your spoon microphone dance routine (check out Sarah’s Instagram) and order a “Hey Sweetie!” baking kit and Get Jiggy With IT? Or shall I say get, “Sweetie With IT!”

This is a fun one folks!

Full Delicious Zen Ahead…

Steph Perko is the nicest, most genuine person on the planet. I feel blessed to call her a friend. Steph is a co-owner at Salida, Colorado's very own Oveja Negra, the greatest bikepacking/outdoor brand in the galaxy. She is also an intrepid motorbike adventurer, ice fisher, dog mom, gardener and the most industrious mechanic/shade tree engineer I’ve ever met. Every bag she sews at Oveja Negra is packed with sunshine, rainbows, and some good old Pueblo, Colorado wisdom.

Steph and I hit the ground running in this part two of The Tinstreamer Series, “Anatomy of A Mountain Town.” We talk about our motorbike bond, and how speedboat may be the most perfect word since cellar door. We chat briefly about kangaroos, octopi and ghosts, and Steph recounts a hectic VW engine rebuild, followed by a Colorado road trip, that reminds me of a very special episode of “Happy Days.” This show has it all. We close out with Steph recounting life lessons with a John Deere master key and finishes the show with the buckle click of an Oveja Negra Portero bikepack. Music to my ears!

Zen and the Tao of Perko… Enjoy!

Next week’s guest is Salida, Colorado Pastry Chef & Restauranteur - Sarah Gartzman

These are the folks that make Salida ebb and flow. Mike Harvey is a white water kayaker, river surfer, white water park designer and the co-founder of Badfish SUP and River Surfboards in Salida. In the 90s, the Arkansas River was already known for its world class white water - up river and down river from Salida, but as the Arkansas flowed through downtown Salida it was featureless and riddled with chunks of concrete, rebar, and utility poles. Drawn by the white water in the area, Mike moved to Salida in the mid 90s, and he had a vision to clean up and shape Salida’s downtown river corridor. In 1999, he and Fred Lowry, the owner of a local excavating company, started construction on a feature in the river for kayakers to play on. That sent ripples that changed Salida forever. Fast forward to today and the Arkansas River through downtown Salida is a gathering place for locals and tourists. Kid’s yip and holler as they float feet first down river, next to rafts, kayaks and stand up paddle boards. The river has become the gathering place - for everyone - that Mike had always dreamed of.

In 2007 Mike and longtime friend Zack Hughes started designing a board specifically designed to surf standing waves in mountain rivers. Badfish SUP and River Surfboards was born and a new way to experience water in the mountains was created.

Mike’s love for all things water really shines in the episode. He wanted to live in the mountains and chase his passion, so he built a world and created a business to not only sustain his family but enrich his community.

Full Zen Ahead

Brandon and Allison sit down in a grove of aspens outside of Salida, Colorado to reveal the guests and episodes for this Tinstreamer Podcast series, "Anatomy of A Mountain Town," - six episodes with a few of the folks that have shaped Salida into the best - adventure, beach, mountian bike, bikepacking, paddle, sandwich, spirits, delectable, place-to-live and visit - mountain town in the universe. The first four guests are revealed in this short episode:

Mike Harvey - Badfish Paddleboards and River Surfboards

Steph Perko - Oveja Negra Bikepacking 

Sarah Gartzman - Biker and The Baker & Sweetie's Sandwich Shop

P.T. Wood - Former Salida Mayor and current alchemist at Wood's High Mountain Distillery 

Brad Leland is a powerhouse of an actor. His most famous role was Buddy Garrity from the television series, “Friday Night Lights.” He played the same role as John Aubrey in the movie, “Friday Night Lights.” Brad was in Snyder, Texas (my hometown) to moderate, “An Evening With Barry Corbin.” I sat down with Brad on my high school stage, and we talked about his early days performing in theater productions at Texas Tech University in Lubbock, his childhood pet monkey, and his two most recent feature movies - “LaRoy” and “Accidental Texan”. I highly recommend both flicks.

Brad has more than 300 movie/TV show appearances, and he always commands the scene. His performance as Chief Royce Abbott, opposite Elizabeth Olsen, in HBO’s “Love & Death,” showcases Leland as an immersive actor who relies on exceptional listening skills to evoke action and reaction in every scene.

One of my favorite moments on stage with Brad was when we briefly discussed my former drama teacher. Jerry Worsham was a legend in Texas UIL One-Act Play competition, with 13 victories to his credit. Worsham was one of those special teachers that saw the best in his students and encouraged them to chase their dreams.

I really enjoyed this episode with Brad. He is gregarious, engaging, and very thoughtful about his craft. 

Full Zen Ahead

Barry Corbin is a legend on the big and small screen. He’s also the nicest human you’ll ever meet. If you’ve seen a movie, streamed a show, or watched a good old fashion network television series, in the last 48 years, you’ve seen Barry’s work. He is ubiquitous in the world of entertainment. Heck, he’s even been the voice of Harley Davidson. Barry’s first string of movies were Urban Cowboy, Stir Crazy and Any Which Way You Can. If you’re a movie buff, and you’re keeping score, that’s John Travolta, Richard Pryor, Gene Wilder, Sidney Poitier, and Clint Eastwood as the talent that Barry worked with at the beginning of his film career. If Barry Corbin had a pop culture game like the “Six Degrees of Kevin Bacon,” it would be the, “Three Degrees of Barry Corbin.” It doesn’t take long to list an actor connected to Barry. Better Call Saul, Modern Family, One Tree Hill, Tulsa King, Yellowstone, No Country For Old Men, Dallas, War Games, and Hart to Hart, are just a few of the shows and movies Barry has appeared in.

Barry performed  his one man show, “An Evening With Barry Corbin,” at my hometown, Snyder, Texas on Saturday, July 13th. My good friend and fellow Tiger from Snyder High School (class of 1989)  Melissa Hodges Rico had organized the event. Once she discovered, I’d been talking about Barry on The Tinstreamer Podcast since March, she reached out and said (on the subject of having Barry on my podcast), “I think I can make it happen.” So on the eve of Barry’s show, in the place I grew up, at my high school, and in the very auditorium where I realized that writing was my destiny, I had an hour-long conversation with one of my heroes. I hope you enjoy this chat as much as I did.

This was a convergence of where I came from, and where I am now. I’m blessed by a supportive wife and friends from my youth that continue to believe in me. Justin Rex drove in from Lubbock to photograph the episode. I’m incredibly fortunate to have new friends and colleagues like Justin in my current creative universe that keep me inspired and motivated to chase down my most ambitious and fulfilling endeavors. Thank you to Barry and Jo Corbin for saying yes. I am forever grateful. Full Zen is Now!

Upcoming Barry Corbin 2024 Events:

Go To BarryCorbin.com for details

Waxahachie, TX - August 10

Kanab, UT - August 22

Marble Falls, TX - August 31

Mingus, TX - September 7

Fort Worth, TX -  September 21

Livingston, TN - October 3

Fort Worth, TX - October 18-19

Eureka, KS - November 2

Branson, MO - November 8

Arlington, TX Veterans Day Parade - November 11

Marble Falls, TX - December 14

Part 2 with Madison Walker 

We pick up with Producer Madi where we left off last week. In this episode, Madi and I have an impromptu staff meeting, and we discuss how to capture the show with moving images. That’s right, soon you’ll be able to watch The Tinstreamer Podcast on YouTube. It’s a deep dive into the world of cameras and editing software.

Madi talks about her transition into freelancing. We recount Madi, Justin Rex and Dylan Davidson's March 2020 bikepacking trip to Big Bend Ranch State Park after that year’s Texas Tech Adventure Media class was canceled due to covid. We talk about Emma Montgomery’s epic and inspiring PCT trek, and Madi reveals which episode of the podcast she finds most entertaining.

Madison Walker Martin is a filmmaker and a seasoned adventurer. She spent three years as a producer for the Texas Parks and Wildlife PBS Show where she showcased the grand landscapes and folks adventuring in the great state parks of Texas. She is a natural born leader and gifted storyteller. Earlier this year, Madi left the PBS show to focus on freelancing. Her vision and creative ethos will produce magic in the world of film and documentaries. I can’t wait to see what she shares with viewing audiences. She is a good friend, and I our beloved Producer Madi on The Tinstreamer Podcast.

Madi and I chatted for over two hours, so you get a two-part episode. In this first show, we take a deep dive into Rick Springfield’s song Jessie’s Girl. (I celebrate all of Rick’s catalog.) That conversation leads me to recount my history racing shifter karts on the Texas State Circuit. Madi tells us about a very special segment she did for the Texas Parks and Wildlife PBS show on the Texas Gulf Coast. We tease our next big project coming this fall with Jerod Foster, Simon Parmley, Michael Ortiz, Justin Rex, and a Texas Tech University student film crew.

I share my thoughts on Quentin Tarantino being  overrated, and Madi tells how her dad used Pulp Fiction to impart a very important life lesson. We close out this first part with a quick rundown of Tanner Fowler’s love of Disney Music on the 2019 Adventure Media trip to Big Bend Ranch State Park. We love you and that quarter Tanner.

In episode 11, I'm on assignment with photographer Justin Rex. We are near the border town of Del Rio, Texas in the Lower Pecos Canyonlands, one of the most significant archeological regions of Texas. Hidden in the desert caves and rock outcroppings are hundreds of ancient rock art panels with elaborate pictographs that tell stories experts are still trying to unravel. The site Justin and I venture to was donated to Texas Tech University in the 1980s and is one of the most important rock art sites in North America - if not the world. The canyon that protects this site is encased behind a locked gate and is only accessible by traversing a meandering and undulating hard scrabble road across private land. There is no easement, so permission must be obtained from the landowner to access Texas Tech’s property and the rock art panel.

This episode is broken into two parts. Justin and I chat in our Comstock Motel room the night before we journey to the site and talk about our expectations. We pick up the second half of the show the next evening, after our excursion into the backcountry of the Chihuahuan Desert, and talk about the canyon and the magnificent mural inside its walls. This is an experience where I my eyes were opened to a magical world in a place, I thought I knew. This is a more subdued episode, but we do find the time to talk a bit about Barry Corbin, and we review the only restaurant in Comstock, Texas - J&P Bar and Grill. It's the burger I've ever eaten. I don't make claims like that lightly. 

Full Zen Ahead

Allison Workman is a health coach, yoga teacher, personal trainer, and Tinstreamer’s newly appointed Chief Fitness Officer. She is also Mrs. Tinstreamer. If you’ve adventured with me, you’ve most likely experienced some of Allison’s yoga and functional movement. I’ve led numerous haphazard yoga flows on the Texas Tech Adventure Media bikepacking trips, and come sunrise at camp, you’ll find me stretching and moving before a long day on the bike. For those of you that have experienced Allison’s energy firsthand, then you know how dynamic she is. There is nothing like an Allison yoga class. It is fun (never too serious), funky, and flows like a rainbow powered unicorn galloping over the sun. Every movement Allison orchestrates – either in a personnel training session or yoga flow – tells a story with a beginning, middle, and end. You will be challenged and rejuvenated.

Allison is on the schedule for in person classes at The Rooted Soul in Hico, Texas for the month of June and will return this fall starting in September. 

This summer (2024) you can find Allison subbing various classes at Yoga Olas in Salida, Colorado - July and August. 

You can also join Allison for Zoom Yoga on Wednesdays at 6:00 pm central time. Message @bd_weaver or @allisonworkman_movehappy on Instagram and we'll email you a link. You can also message us at Tin Streamer on Facebook. 

We recorded this episode in Aries or beloved Airstream. (I videoed the first 30 minutes of the podcast and we’ll release that next week.) We talk about the origins of Tinstreamer, my love – hate – and then love again of Airstream, and how a compact blood hound changed our lives forever. I ask Allison what guests, she’d like to see on the podcast, and I talk about future themes for upcoming series.

We recorded episode 10 on the day of our 12-year anniversary. We recount our wedding day and talk about all the recreational vehicles we’ve inhabited: vans, motorhomes, and trailers… oh my! It’s also the 10-year anniversary of when we hit the road in the spring of 2014 and lived in our Airstream for nearly three years.  This was a fun episode, and I feel blessed that I can sit down with my partner for an engaging and entertaining podcast. I love Allison and know the rest of you will too after this episode. Thanks for listening!

Full Zen Ahead!