A bit more about Jen, the self-proclaimed “rowdy mom of three:” Jen Taylor is an undeniably self-motivated entrepreneurial adventurer who eschews convention in an ongoing quest for inspiration and creativity.

Originally from Indiana, she attended the University of Denver, Colorado, graduating with a bachelor’s degree in environmental science. While in college, Jen continued to run an auto detailing business (which she founded while in high school and before she could even drive), and then moved it to Telluride, Col. while she competed in the NORBA mountain bike race circuit.

Though she had never so much as looked at a sewing machine growing up, upon moving to her current home of Grand Junction, Colo. Jen found herself running a small apparel company’s production facility a year after joining it as an apprentice. It didn’t take long before Jen, along with her sisters, acquired the company and relaunched it under the brand name of Mountain Sprouts. That company became one of the first to focus entirely on outdoor apparel for children, with the underlying goal of getting more kids outside.

In 2006, Mountain Khakis acquired Mountain Sprouts, eventually shutting down the kids division when the financial markets collapsed, leading Jen to move into marketing and public relations for the company. She departed Mountain Khakis as brand manager and creative director for the company in late 2018.

As related in the My Travel Tales with Jen Taylor podcast, Jen is passionate about European motorcycles and admits to an intense love affair with both her Moto Guzzi Stornello (pictured above) and her 1969 Triumph Trophy. What you may not know is that Jen was a quarterback in the Professional Women’s Football League, and in her younger days competed in Junior Olympics in basketball and was a state-ranked soccer player – kinda explains all the concussions she mentions in the podcast when talking about her need to journal. In addition to loving European motorcycles, she’s an aficionado of vintage trucks and enjoys spending quality time exploring back roads and off-road in her 1979 Toyota FJ40.

From listening to our episode with Jen Taylor, you hear why Grand Junction is the only place in the world she would want to live because of the sense of community and access to public lands she enjoys. And what a part of the community Jen has become. She is affiliated with more than 30 non-profit organizations. Jen is the co-founder of the Colorado Adrenaline Trail (CAT Trail) campaign, the founder and past organizer of the MOG Outdoor Fest (Manufacturers of Outdoor Gear) in Grand Junction. She was on the board of directors for Colorado Discover Ability/CDA, was president and board member of the Grand Valley Public Radio Company and was an officer and board member of the Colorado Plateau Mountain Bike Trail Association/COPMOBA (Note: In 2009, Jen was on the board when the COPMOBA organization was inducted into the Mountain Bike Hall of Fame.) Jen has also served as a Boy Scouts of America Committee Chair and was the visionary, organizer and fundraiser of the “Lunch Loop Bike Park” in Grand Junction.

Besides traveling to Indonesia, we’d tell you what Jen has in mind for her next 10 years, but why spoil what she talks about in her My Travel Tales with Jen Taylor podcast. Suffice it to say, her inspiration for a future project came from discovering the best fish taco while traveling in Baja California.

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