Firefox Presents: Feeling alive with the ‘Stoke King’
August 26, 2022
If you could use a little hyping up to go outside, look no further than Wade Holland’s social media feeds. A former competitive skier from Montana, Holland encourages people to find their “stoke” – whether that’s by going on a mountain bike ride, rollerblading, or just feeling the sun on your skin.
“It can be finding a little park right behind your house and singing and dancing in it,” Holland said. “You don’t have to hike Everest. You can do whatever elevates your stoke!”
Now based in Los Angeles, the 34-year-old content creator calls himself a “stoke king.” His vibe is that of a very enthusiastic personal trainer, except you’ll see his outfit from a mile away, the gym is nature, and he’s training you to amp your zest for life all the way up to 11.
Holland is his own personal success story. Years of injuries made him rethink his goal of becoming a professional skier. While filming a backcountry skiing video with a crew at 21, he flew about 60 feet and landed on his hip on a rock, shattering his femur. He had to be rescued through a helicopter and taken into surgery, during which he had a titanium rod placed in his leg.
“I almost didn’t make it back from that,” Holland said.
While the injury didn’t stop him from being active outdoors, he had to scale back.
“It made me realize that maybe what I’m better at is getting other people excited about what I love so much,” he said. “That led me to a path of creating content that helps people get to a destination and feel good about themselves doing it.”
Holland’s mission became convincing people that anyone can go outside and enjoy nature, wherever they are and whatever their ability. No sleek cycling suit, surfboard or ski poles needed.
After years of consistently producing content, his ability to get people just as excited as he is has paid off. Wade’s motivational adventure posts have drawn 38,500 followers on TikTok and 213,000 on Instagram, where he met his partner Abby Wren, who’s a makeup content creator.
Holland had been booked to host an event in Victoria, Canada. Always on the lookout for opportunities to collaborate, he searched #contentcreators and found Wren, a fellow Montana native. He asked her if she wanted to meet up. She agreed and asked to meet in Vancouver.
But the ferry wasn’t running that day, and sea planes were fully booked. Holland, not wanting to miss the chance to meet Wren, persuaded a helicopter company to help.
“I said, ‘Hey, this is kind of wild, but I’m trying to meet this woman who could be my future wife.’ I showed them a picture of Abby and told them that if they let me get on this helicopter, I’ll make them a 30-second video,” Wade recalled. “They said, ‘Wow, we’ve never been pitched that idea, this seems so outlandish. But this is going to be a hell of a story. Get on.’”
Holland and Wren have been together ever since, and they plan on getting married next year. His life changed because of his excitement to meet a woman he’s never met, and he got others to feel as thrilled as he was.
“Each day I’m reminded how much life is a gift,” Holland said. “That it’s my responsibility to squeeze the most out of every day I have on this planet, bring my passion and enthusiasm to connect with my community online, and inspire them to get outside and stay stoked.”
Firefox is exploring all the ways the internet makes our planet an awesome place. Almost everything we do today ties back to the online world in some way — so, join us in highlighting the funny, weird, inspiring and courageous stories that remind us why we love the world wide web.
