Hello, I'm Livio.
I have spent most of my life in the Bronx at this point. City living has a way of caging you in. It gives you “everything you need” so you don’t have to leave. So that you don’t leave. But that wasn’t always the case. My early youth was spent outdoors picking mangoes and oranges on our way to go swim in the river or the beach. So when I immigrated to NYC it was my impression that in the states life was lived in small apartments.
I started hiking 2 years ago when a friend showed up to my small apartment and told me about it. I was immediately roped in and began to gather gear. Mostly used gear off a selling app. It was summer gear I used in the middle of February. I nearly froze that night. But I couldn’t get enough. I felt like a child again. Every plant was interesting (still are). Every rock was cool. Oh snap why is that tree shaped like that!? It made me more confident too. My first night alone in the woods was a fun one. I yelled at grass brushing up against my tarp to get away!
I was making my own gear at this point. The price of gear I wanted was shocking. I’m a designer so I said - I can get exactly what I want. The outdoors also gave me a way to put my skill towards something I found meaningful.
Getting outdoors to me means a lot. It's more than gear I get to design, the great adventures, the confidence boost, the exercise. I came to this country undocumented. And was told from a young age that if you die without seeing the world you die blind. I defied the odds and made it to this great land, so I promised myself I’ll give myself the rest of the world. But it’s also beyond that. I think everyone that gets outdoors gains love for our planet. Hopefully, one protects what they love. And our existence in it, needs all the help it can get.
I was making my own gear at this point. The price of gear I wanted was shocking. I’m a designer so I said - I can get exactly what I want. The outdoors also gave me a way to put my skill towards something I found meaningful.
Getting outdoors to me means a lot. It's more than gear I get to design, the great adventures, the confidence boost, the exercise. I came to this country undocumented. And was told from a young age that if you die without seeing the world you die blind. I defied the odds and made it to this great land, so I promised myself I’ll give myself the rest of the world. But it’s also beyond that. I think everyone that gets outdoors gains love for our planet. Hopefully, one protects what they love. And our existence in it, needs all the help it can get.
That’s why I hike, that's why I started allmansright.
-Livio
