We had the good fortune of connecting with Jennifer Vierling and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Jennifer, we’d love to hear more about how you thought about starting your own business?
Like other entrepreneurs, we were trying to solve a problem. In our case, it was trying to figure out nutrition for endurance athletes. Endurance athletes suffer from unique challenges that surface when you exercise longer than 1 hour:

1. Stomach and GI issues (the harder and longer you go, the more susceptible you are to stomach issues). We wanted to feel great at the end of a hard effort.
2. The complexity of sports nutrition. Trying to keep track of gels, chews, and electrolyte pills during a race and ensuring your nutrition is on track is hard. We wanted to make it simple to get nutrition right.

3. Sports nutrition that tasted sickly sweet. We wanted a taste that’s mild enough you can keep drinking all day

Although Tailwind Nutrition wasn’t originally supposed to be a company, it turned out a lot of folks were experiencing the same problems. The turning point came when we shared it with a woman we met at Leadville who had dropped out of 7 100-mile races because of stomach problems. A few months later, she emailed to say she’d felt great and finished the Shenandoah 100 and had broken down in tears as she crossed the finish line. We looked at each other after reading that email and realized we could help people in a meaningful way, and Tailwind was born.

What should our readers know about your business?
What sets Tailwind Nutrition apart from other companies? We are a small family-owned business that has dedicated itself to helping athletes realize their goals with simple and proven nutrition coupled with education, encouragement, and unexpectedly delightful customer service.

The idea of a support crew permeates our company. Since day 1, we have written our customer’s name on every bag we ship from Durango and included a personal note. We send notes of luck and help our customers with fueling and recovery strategies for training or an event. We have a strong desire to connect with our customers and to let them know that We Care.

We celebrate the “Heck Yeah” moment. That moment when you surprise yourself by doing something you never before thought possible! It’s the greatest feeling in the world and the one that drives our company’s success. If we can help our customers achieve their personal goals and reach that “Heck Yeah” moment, everything follows.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
I’m an outdoors nut so most of the places where I’d take my best friend would revolve around that: hiking the Colorado Trail and foraging for mushrooms, taking a float down the Animas River in a duckie or heading up to Lake Nighthorse to go SUP’ing. If backpacking is on the table, then the Emerald and Ruby Lake area is absolutely gorgeous. And of course you can’t forget the world class mountainbiking here. The Engineer/Cascade Creek ride during the spring (wildflowers) or fall (aspens) is one of my favorites.

Local beers are in abundance with SKA Brewing and Steamworks, whom we collaborated with on Faceplant Beer (yes, a beer that contains electrolytes!), and Carvers (great for grabbing a bite to eat too). My husband and I love to cook, so most of our meals would probably be at our house with meat from Sunnyside on the BBQ and veggies from our CSA up the road. Grassburger, James Ranch, and Zia Taqueria are great for quick bites when coming off the trail or river.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
Sundays and Mondays are my favorite days of the week. Why? Because we hear from our customers who have used Tailwind Nutrition over the weekend, and write to tell us about their extraordinary accomplishments. There is nothing more fulfilling than knowing you have impacted someone’s life in a positive way! The background stories that we hear leading up to an achievement are just incredibly powerful for me: running a 5K for the first time, overcoming addiction, and riding their heart out to raise funds so others can have access to resources, using Tailwind to get through chemo. Each and every story inspires me.

It goes without saying that my family and community have been right alongside me as I’ve embarked upon this journey and I wouldn’t be here without them!

Website: tailwindnutrition.com

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/tailwindnutrition/

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/tailwind-nutrition

Twitter: https://twitter.com/gotailwind

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/tailwindnutrition/

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/user/tailwindnutrition

Nominate Someone: ShoutoutColorado is built on recommendations and shoutouts from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you or someone you know deserves recognition please let us know here.