The Flywheel
Why the Best Investment I’ve Ever Made Has Nothing to Do With Returns
I’ve spent nearly a decade writing checks to outdoor brands.
Evaluating unit economics. Debating CAC. Arguing about wholesale vs. DTC.
And I love that work.
But at some point I started to notice something missing.
The outdoor industry is extraordinary at selling the feeling of nature — the freedom, the healing, the perspective shift that happens when you’re standing in a river at dawn.
What it’s less good at is making sure everyone gets access to that feeling.
Especially the people who need it most.
That tension is what led me to Fishing the Good Fight.
FTGF is a nonprofit with a specific and urgent focus: men’s mental health.
Using fly-fishing as a therapeutic tool, they bring veterans, first responders, and other men carrying invisible weight to the water — creating space for something that doesn’t come easily to a lot of men.
Stillness. Openness. Connection.
I serve on their board. I guide trips. I show up.
Not because it’s good for my portfolio.
Because of moments like these.
A combat veteran lands his first fish. He looks up. Something shifts in his face that no pitch deck has ever moved in me.
A first responder who hasn’t slept a full night in years sits in a river at dawn and tells us it’s the first time his mind has been quiet in as long as he can remember.
And then there’s the one I think about most.
A man who told us he almost didn’t come to the retreat.
When we asked him why he’d nearly stayed home, he told us quietly that he hadn’t been sure it would matter. That he hadn’t intended to still be alive by the end of the weekend. Let that sink in.
He came anyway.
And he’s still here.
That’s not a metric. That’s not a KPI.
That’s a life.
Here’s what I didn’t expect when I got involved with FTGF:
The work made me a sharper investor.
When you sit with men processing that kind of weight, you develop a different relationship with what the outdoor industry is actually selling.
Not gear. Not performance. Not aesthetic.
Healing. Belonging. Presence.
The brands in my portfolio that understand this — that they’re not in the equipment business but in the human experience business — are the ones that build real loyalty. The ones that earn word of mouth that no marketing budget can replicate. The ones that last.
Purpose and profit aren’t opposites.
They’re a flywheel.
The mission sharpens the lens. The lens improves the investments. The investments, done right, support brands that actually give something back. And around it goes.
If you work in the outdoor space — investor, operator, or otherwise — I’d challenge you to find your FTGF.
Not for the optics.
For what it does to the way you see.
What does purpose look like in your work — is it integrated, or still living in a separate bucket?
If this piece resonated with you, I’m glad.
And if Fishing the Good Fight moves you the way it moves me — please consider supporting the work directly. Every dollar helps put a man who needs it on the water.
👉 Donate to Fishing the Good Fight — www.fishingthegoodfight.org/donate
I'm Andrew Luter, founder of Rio Chato Investments. We back early-stage outdoor recreation and lifestyle brands — the kind of companies building gear and experiences for people who'd rather be outside. I'm based in Steamboat Springs, Colorado, which is basically a full-time reminder of why this space matters.
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