WinterStrong 8: Thin Air, Deep Water, and a Table Full of Friends
Written by Patrick Montgomery
February 12, 2026
There are events you attend because they are good for business.
And then there are events you attend because they are good for the soul.
WinterStrong 8, put on by Sorinex Outdoors, is the second kind.
If you have never been, picture this: leaders and doers from the strength world, the outdoor world, the tactical world, the hunting world, and the survival world all landing in the same place, for the same purpose. The goal is not to “network.” The goal is to get better, together, through hands on challenges, shared experiences, and the kind of conversations you only have when people are tired, cold, and smiling anyway.
That is Thin Air. Deep Water. And it is a perfect match for what we are building at Valor Provisions.
(Photo Credit: Copeland Creative)
Thin Air. Deep Water. ™
-Sorenex Outdoors
Why WinterStrong matters
WinterStrong is built to blend fitness and the outdoors into one high performance, purpose driven environment. It is intentionally designed to build connection, encourage collaboration, and inspire growth.
That mission matters right now.
Because most people are starving for real community. Not “likes.” Not comments. Not group chats.
Real handshakes. Real conversations. Real learning. Real respect.
You put good people in the same place, give them a challenge, and feed them well, and something happens. The walls come down. The egos disappear. The best ideas get shared. Friendships start fast and last all year.
Bert Sorin has been saying it for years in different ways, but it comes down to this: growth lives where most people will not go. That is the “Thin Air” mindset.
WinterStrong is a reminder that the work is the point.
(Photo Credit: Copeland Creative)
Thursday night: feeding the first wave
WinterStrong kicks off with dinner at the Sorinex Farm on Thursday night. And we were proud that Valor Provisions got to help provide the first meal of the event.
Here is what I want you to know: it is one thing to bring food.
It is another thing to bring a chef who treats every plate like it matters.
Chef Jason Ellsworth, chef owner of Ellsworth Cooks, did not just cook. He served every guest. He took photos. He made sure people were taken care of. And he did it with the kind of pride you only see in craftsmen who love what they do.
That night, Jason made Ancestral Meat Loaf served on a perfectly baked sweet potato. Simple on paper. Unreal in execution. It was a hit, and I am not exaggerating when I tell you the room was buzzing about it.
That meal set the tone: we are here to work hard, yes. But we are also here to break bread, laugh, and remember that the best things in life are still the basics done at a high level.
WinterStrong says food is part of the program. They are not kidding. Sorinex Outdoors builds meals into the experience because fueling people well is part of doing the event the right way.
(Photo Credit: Copeland Creative)
Friday lunch: Wagyu makes friends fast
The next day, the Valor Provisions crew loaded up the grill and got after it.
We served our world-famous Wagyu hot dogs and our Wagyu bacon cheeseburger brats, grilled up by yours truly. And let me tell you, we were popular around lunchtime.
There is a funny truth we have learned in this business:
You always have a friend when you have wagyu on your table.
It is not just because it tastes good. It is because food is an invitation. It is a reason to stop. A reason to talk. A reason to share a story. A reason to introduce yourself to the guy you have seen all morning but have not met yet.
That is what we are chasing with Valor Provisions.
Not just “selling protein.”
Putting something on the table that brings people together.
(Photo Credit: Copeland Creative)
The WinterStrong thread: resilience, skill, and shared standards
One thing I appreciate about WinterStrong is the standard. People come ready to contribute. They come ready to learn. They come humble enough to listen and confident enough to do the work.
WinterStrong has grown into a premier annual event for a reason, with presentations, clinics, camaraderie, and physical challenges that push you just enough to remind you what you are made of.
That environment attracts the kind of people and brands we want to build with long term.
Like minded businesses do not connect because it is trendy. They connect because it is necessary.
If you are building something real, you need to be around other builders.
You need partners who understand craftsmanship.
You need friends who tell you the truth.
You need people who will pick up a bag, stack wood, run the event, clean up, and then sit down and talk about how to do it better next year.
That is WinterStrong.
(Photo Credit: Copeland Creative)
Why great food belongs in serious places
Some people act like food is secondary at events like this. Like it is just calories.
We see it differently.
Food is morale.
Food is recovery.
Food is hospitality.
Food is leadership.
When you feed people well, you are telling them: you matter, and this effort is worth doing right.
That is why we love showing up to places like WinterStrong. Because the people there understand that details matter. They understand that quality matters. They understand that the table is not separate from the mission. The table is part of the mission.
And at Valor Provisions, our mission is straightforward: support American producers, protect the American food supply, and build a community of people who care about what they put on their table.
WinterStrong feels like that mission in real life.
Thank you, Bert, and thank you Sorinex
From the whole Valor Provisions crew, thank you to Bert Sorin and the entire Sorinex team for putting on an event that is more than an event.
Thank you for building a place where high achievers can come together without the noise.
Thank you for setting the standard.
Thank you for inviting us to be part of WinterStrong 8.
We are grateful, and we are already looking forward to next year.
Until then, keep chasing thin air, and do not be afraid of deep water.
— Pat Montgomery
(Photo Credit: Copeland Creative)
The Author: Pat Montgomery
Founder of Valor Provisions and a former U.S. Army Ranger with the 1st Battalion, 75th Ranger Regiment. After serving his country, Patrick traded the battlefield for the pasture—combining his passion for service, hard work, and high-quality food into a mission-driven Wagyu beef operation in Missouri. Today, he leads KC Cattle Company with a focus on excellence, ethical ranching, and honoring the legacy of his fallen brother-in-law, Staff Sgt. Jeremy Katzenberger. When he's not on the ranch, Patrick speaks on veteran entrepreneurship, the importance of preserving American Farming, and building businesses that make a real impact.
