COLTON HAAKER
VOL. 53 ISSUE 50 DECEMBER 20, 2016 P125
go to train in different type of
terrain. A change of scenery is
always nice."
If Haaker's interests and com-
mitments stopped there, it would
be impressive enough. But rac-
ing is only the beginning of his
current pursuits.
In part of building his own
brand, Haaker began creating
short video clips a few years
ago, ranging from funny bits with
his friends to incredible stunts
like his renowned 360. The
videos became an instant hit on
social media, but Haaker soon
realized he was limited in the
quality and the distribution.
"I was definitely into the social
media thing but at the same time
I just realized that, at the end
of the day, Instagram and stuff
is just very saturated. Espe-
cially with the new algorithm that
Facebook runs it as. With their
new algorithm, I'll look at things
and it will be like five days later.
It's really hard to pinpoint the
viewership and in what way it's
being shown or who even sees
it. I feel like the social platform is
really dictating where and what
is being seen now. It's been
frustrating because I think a lot
of athletes want to push their
name and they are struggling
to get the same viewership that
they once had."
Haaker's solution? Create his
own media company. Partnering
with his friend Jimmy Bowron,
Haaker created Plaeco, a media
Outdoor extreme enduros such as
Erzberg contrasted with Haaker's
indoor success—something he
plans to remedy in 2017.
