Ryan Waterfield

About

A highly experienced editor, writer, and leader, Ryan co-founded BigLife Magazine in 2015 and has led the growth from a local magazine printing 10,000 magazines in the Sun Valley, Idaho area to a magazine about the Mountain West with a circulation (currently) of 35,000 and a distribution strategy that includes over 450 newsstands, over 700 4- and 5-star hotels across the country, airport club lounges for Delta, United, and American airlines in many cities, and a subscriber base that covers all 50 states. BigLife has won national and regional awards for editorial and design excellence and has been embraced by the mountain communities it covers and by a geographically diverse readership that loves mountain life. Although she started a magazine dedicated to mountain life, Ryan didn't grow up in the mountains. As a Kentucky native, Ryan was bound by blood and birth to worship three things: Kentucky basketball, thoroughbred horses, and, you guessed it, bourbon. She blames her love of tall tales on her family, most of whom have an incurable penchant for exaggeration. Ryan moved to Sun Valley, Idaho, in 1996 to teach and that is when she began her love affair with singletrack, camping in remote places, cold alpine lakes, and secret powder stashes. Specialities: Creative vision and implementation, management and leadership, curating cohesive and engaging publications, creating multi-media platforms to support and strengthen print publication, business strategy, client relationships, motivating and coaching my team to drive results, collaboration, marketing, and promotions.