Madison Boats: Water, Wellness, and Community Building

# Tyler Leeper - Madison Boats - Final

[00:00:04] **Howard:** [00:00:00] Hello, everyone, and welcome back for another episode of the Outdoor Adventure Series. Today's episode is sponsored by Destination Madison, host of the 2026 Outdoor Writers Association of America s annual conference. During today's episode, we hope to share with you why Madison, Wisconsin, and the surrounding communities in Dane County are the perfect destination for family vacations, couples getaways, outdoor adventures, meetings, conferences, and conventions.

Our guest today is Tyler Leaper. He is the owner of Madison Boats. Tyler, it's a pleasure to have you on the podcast. Welcome. 

[00:00:47] **Tyler:** Oh, thank you so much for having me. We're excited to, uh, to host the conference here in, uh, coming up here in August. 

[00:00:54] **Howard:** Fantastic. Now, I have this vision for my podcast, 'cause it [00:01:00] is called the Outdoor Adventure Series, just to actually put the outdoors in outdoor adventure.

But you have truly, lived up to the outdoors today. You have a beautiful setting behind you. 

[00:01:14] **Tyler:** Oh, thank you. Yeah, I'm, uh, over at our Wingra location. It is in the middle of the city, surrounded by the arboretum. It's all paddle craft, and, uh, it's a beautiful day, so couldn't find a better, uh, office than out here on the, on the docks.

[00:01:30] **Howard:** All right. And I can imagine, uh, being a part of Madison Boats and having this business for many years, uh, being on the water is pretty special for you. 

[00:01:41] **Tyler:** It is. grew up, uh, Grandpa had a sailboat. We'd jump off and hold onto the line and let him drag us around. We had a catamaran that, uh, my cousins would flip, and we'd dive off the top pontoon.

family vacations were always loading up canoes and, driving in the middle of [00:02:00] the winter down south to go find some open water. So water's definitely been the, uh, a big focus and always a draw and, uh, and a grounding place for me. 

[00:02:10] **Howard:** Excellent. Now, are you a, a native of the Madison area or Wisconsin in general, or had you- Yeah

grown up elsewhere? 

[00:02:20] **Tyler:** Yeah, a native of Wisconsin. Grew up outside of, uh, Madison. Moved to Madison in fourth grade, and then we started, uh, a lot of international travel. moved around quite a bit and ended up going out to undergrad on the West Coast, uh, Lewis & Clark in Portland, Oregon, which was fantastic.

But as I was exploring my, uh, life options in political science, I wasn't quite ready to fetch coffee for the next couple of years, knock on doors, or go to law school. So I, uh, begged the current owner of my summertime job to open up another location with me- And he, uh, he turned and he had bought [00:03:00] the, the business years bef- prior for his kids to work.

They were all getting a little older, and, uh, he said, "Go talk to your parents and, uh, why don't you buy this one?" I said, "I don't need to talk to my parents." I had $1,200 in my account and was feeling really rich. "I'll buy it." And so that was kind of the story. I bought it at,the ripe age of 20, and, uh, it's kinda...

I keep- Keep thinking it was my, uh, my place to hang out until I figured out what I wanted to do in life. And, uh, every time I questioned what I wanted to do in life, there was no better place than hanging out here on the lake. And then all the different things that we get to do in the outdoor industry, the, the lives we get to change, the, the stories we get to hear.

And as I keep having my five, 10-year questions of what I wanna do, it kept coming back to, "No, I can do more at the boathouse than I could somewhere else." So it's been great. 

[00:03:58] **Howard:** This is great. I, I used to work [00:04:00] with a, uh, gentleman when I was in the IT field. I, I'm a recovering IT business consultant, and I don't think I was ever truly happy doing the IT work.

And, and there's just something about, every five years having to change a job, and, and I, I don't get that. I, I'm a, I like consistency. But as, as a coach now in my profession, in addition to podcasting, I really believe doing something we love is more important than, uh, the dollars we make. I mean, dollars are good, being comfortable- Yeah

taking care of yourself, your family is important. But having, doing work we love is so very important. And as you just described, being around the water, making a difference for people that come your way, I mean, it, it, it, you kind of have to pinch yourself, I would imagine. 

[00:04:56] **Tyler:** Yeah. often. Often. 

[00:04:59] **Howard:** [00:05:00] Okay.

So tell us about Madison Boats. You bought the business. How has it evolved in the years when you started? And, and I'm, I also have some questions about the water and the lakes- Yeah ... around you and in your locations. But how has Madison Boats evolved over the years in supporting the, experiences, uh, for the c- for the community?

[00:05:24] **Tyler:** Yeah. I think, all of it goes kind of hand-in-hand. You mentioned the dollars. So I ended up buying it in, uh, 2005. We, we, um, worked or s- I started as an owner, and my goal at the time was, to make 30, $40,000 and be able to, to live pretty comfortably. So there was a definitely a driving force of like, can I make this just hobby kind of b- business work for myself?

Then as I grew, I started taking business [00:06:00] classes, realized that just the- The simple logic of business makes a lot of sense in my head, so I started applying it to the boathouse and really saw a lot of potential growth. But I got distracted along the way, uh, especially in the business field. Ended up taking over a, um, a, um, medical startup company.

Ran that for a number of years, and then realized that I didn't wanna be solving, uh, pressure ulcers and falls, uh, but wanted- ... to be spending time out, more time out on the water. And I was doing both at the same time, but was finding that we had more and more opportunities to connect with our community.

We had, uh, developed an incredible program with all the Boys & Girls Clubs around the area, getting kids out onto the water. We were having a lot of success in our partnerships. and so that was ... I stepped away from the, [00:07:00] the medical company, opened up our second location at Brittingham Boats, and really started to realize what we do here at Madison Boats, which is community building.

We're selling time with each other. We're selling time with the outdoors. 

[00:07:15] **Howard:** Mm-hmm. 

[00:07:15] **Tyler:** It's, it's not about the activity. we would love everybody to know how paddle strokes, but if someone comes back, the handle of the paddle is in the water, and they're holding onto the blade- With a big smile on their face, we say that's success, 'cause A, they came back, and B, they were happy.

So it, there's more efficient ways, but that was kind of the aha moment where I'm not in the outdoor industry, I'm in the community building space. I'm in the- Yeah ... the activity space, and that was really a neat, neat kind of transition for Madison Boats, and how we've found success in a major way, uh, is really focusing on those [00:08:00] community, th- those activities that bring people together instead of the skill aspect that is so often focus.

[00:08:08] **Howard:** Okay. I love that and, and as you were just sharing, you're not in the, the outdoor boating industry per se, you're in the community building, and I've heard other similar sayings, uh, and I'm not even gonna try to rem- I can remember one of them- Yeah ... but I'm not even gonna go there. But I, as you have been building these, helping to build and nurture the communities through these experiences, what have been the range of, uh, the types of water activities and the types of craft that you're, introducing the community- 

[00:08:47] **Tyler:** Yeah

[00:08:48] **Howard:** to get out on the water with? 

[00:08:50] **Tyler:** Yeah. I think the, uh, so our craft, we have about 500 paddle craft. everything from giant duck [00:09:00] and swan paddle boats, uh, we have probably about 120 paddleboards, uh, a lot of kayaks, sit-on-top kayaks. Giant, uh, eight-person, 10-person paddleboards are always popular. and then we have a fleet of, um, large pontoon boats that we do a lot of excursions programs off of, as well as self-driven and captained rentals.

so we keep adding different paddle craft. we'll try some of the new novelty ones. I remember getting the pedal assist kayaks when they first came out. Mm-hmm. They were wonderful, and they still are, uh, but a complication for our, and a learning curve when we want to remove as many barriers as possible for either the first time paddler or whoever's coming down.

So we keep looking at our, our equipment, making sure that it's top of the [00:10:00] line, but also very simple and it's not something that anyone needs a lot of education on how to operate it. So that's been one area of like, how do we remove barriers so that everybody can get out and start doing the activity as quickly as possible?

[00:10:17] **Howard:** Mm-hmm. 

[00:10:19] **Tyler:** The other side that you mentioned was the activities, and oh man, this year I think we have 152 public facing events, uh, not including our private groups and, and organizations in about 120 days. So that's everything from our health and wellness series of sup yoga, sup Pilates, um, mindfulness.

Tonight we have a 60-person sound bath in the middle of the lake. So we- 

[00:10:52] **Howard:** Oh, wow ... 

[00:10:52] **Tyler:** have, um, we have a really wonderful woman who, uh, will take out our band boat. So we have band boats [00:11:00] and burger boats, and so she'll take out one of our floating platforms, set up a full sound bath, and then we do anchor lines so that people can clip in and just float and enjoy meditation, a sound bath.

So that's the wellness side. Then we'll have our education side with the Learn To programs where we teach people how to paddle and how to pontoon. And then we really have a, a lot of fun with what we kinda call our signature events. That's our full moon paddles where we put a band in the middle of the lake.

We have three or four fire pits where everybody's roasting marshmallows, and it's just really cool to see 500 boats,all sitting out listening to a band in, in the middle of the night. We have our Burgers on the Bay every Friday where you paddle out, and we have a bunch of people flipping hamburgers and veggie burgers, and another boat with live music so you can have your burger and your music right out on the water.

And so we keep trying to get as creative as possible to make sure we don't get [00:12:00] bored as well as our customers. But all of them, when we put the emphasis on- skill, we end up falling short. When we put it on community, we end up seeing just tremendous, uh, success and following. So it's been a, a blast, like, playing through all these different activities.

And the last thing, Howard, I'll, I'll mention just on this, the great thing of being in Wisconsin is we're seasonal, so we got an on and an off. 

[00:12:31] **Howard:** Right. 

[00:12:32] **Tyler:** That has a hell of a lot of challenges. Excuse me, but it's, it's rough. The good thing is at the end of the year when the boats get put away and packed up, we get to look at it and say, "Hey, did that actually work?

Was that any good?" 

[00:12:45] **Howard:** Mm-hmm. 

[00:12:45] **Tyler:** Like, yeah, we may have even made money, but was it worth the energy? Was it, was it successful? So we spend a lot of time with what we call our R&D in the off-season, and evaluating our [00:13:00] programs, coming up with new ideas. Most of it, it feels like treading water 'cause doesn't even, uh, come to light, but I guess that's R&D.

And, uh, but it's, it's a nice way where we get to, uh, turn off and we get to say, "That wasn't good," or, "That was good. Let's add." 

[00:13:18] **Howard:** Well, y- it's nice to have this wild, crazy idea and, oh, I thought it would work. Even if it doesn't, at least you tried. A couple years ago, our annual conference was down in, uh, Gulf Shores, uh, Alabama.

And so I had, uh, produced a podcast series very similar to what I'm doing with Destination Madison. one of the, uh, guests on the podcast was with Gulf Shores and Orange Beach Tourism. They had an event, and I, I missed it because of the timing, though I... Though me on a kayak and my size, it's, I'm, and my age, I'm a- I'm at [00:14:00] the age right now where I have to think, "Is that a good idea?"

Okay? But having said that, they had these, uh, I don't know, it was once a month, they had a, uh, painting e- painting on the water type of excursion. So they'd, they'd take the kayaks out, and the, the kayakers would do watercolors from the boat. So they'd be, you know- Wow ... painting of the, the scenery. so much like you take your kayakers out in, in the lakes in Wisconsin, and just, you do watercolors.

So Tyler, there's an idea for you, 

[00:14:33] **Tyler:** I'm writing it. I just wrote it down. I got the pen. I knew I had a pen out here for a reason. 

[00:14:38] **Howard:** You gotta have a pen and a paper for a reason. So I'm... Couple questions as you've been sharing this information. One, uh, is the people that are in the team, that are supporting these experiences, I imagine they're seasonal employees.

Maybe you have some full-timers. But what's that [00:15:00] makeup who's helping to make, Madison Boats the success each year? 

[00:15:04] **Tyler:** it's certainly not me out here doing everything. I, I oftentimes just make the mess, and, uh, unfortunately have to ask others to help me clean it up. but I have an incredible management team that are, work on this kinda year round.

we have a location manager for each spot, and then, um, our camp director who oversees our outdoor education and kids camps. And then we have, uh, let's see. Last I checked, we have about 130 staff on this year. it's, it's incredible. When I first started, we had, I think I was the sixth employee. now we have 130, and we could absolutely do this job with probably half, maybe even less, uh, if we went to more full-time, um, staff.

But one of the things that I, I've... [00:16:00] has been a huge challenge, but it also has some wonderful benefits, is we continue to hire quite young. Yeah. We have a number of 14, 15-year-olds. We have, uh, quite a few 16 to 18s. 18 to, to 25 is our kinda max bucket. And then we have a lot of, um, oh- either retired or, or almost retired staff that come down and do a shift or two.

So our average employee or, or crew member will probably do three shifts a week. 

[00:16:35] **Howard:** Mm-hmm. 

[00:16:35] **Tyler:** they'll also go on vacation and be gone for two or three weeks. So we have some staff that might only work eight days in a whole summer. Okay ... we try to avoid that at all cost, but they bring such passion, such energy, um, they care about it, which, can't be replaced.

And oftentimes that young, uh, first-time job is so meaningful, [00:17:00] and we put a lot of responsibility on them. We have a lot, lot of high expectations, and they step up and meet it over and over again. I always, uh, share, the, you don't get fired for making mistakes, you only get fired if you don't wanna be here.

Right. So if you'd prefer to be on your phone or talking to your friends, go, that's okay. But if you wanna be down here, we'll, we'll figure everything else out. and then we expect them to figure it out, and they do. They do a fantastic job. 

[00:17:27] **Howard:** Okay. And the- Yeah ... I imagine there's a lot of trai- training that goes into these types of positions- Yeah

the mentoring. and- 

[00:17:37] **Tyler:** Yep ... 

[00:17:38] **Howard:** is there also any type of, uh, watercraft certification that's required? 

[00:17:45] **Tyler:** Yeah, so we have everybody do, their boater safety license, then we go through a pretty extensive training. Every year they have to do, um, all the staff training. Then we do by-location, biweekly in-services.

We have shadow [00:18:00] shifts that they have to keep doing. They have assistance boat training. So there's a, uh, oh, probably a 140-point checklist that they have to get through by the 4th of July. Okay. So a lot of them are, uh, working on that pretty hard right now. 

[00:18:16] **Howard:** I, I can imagine. There's people like me that wait till the last minute to do things, so, But you gotta get it done.

[00:18:22] **Tyler:** Yeah. And it's, and, and it needs to be done every single year because I, I feel like it's Groundhog's Day. We've done it before, for myself. it's the same general thing, but e- each time it's a teeny bit different, so we gotta go back through and remind ourselves on all of those different components of the job.

[00:18:41] **Howard:** Okay. As a, a multicultural, diverse community that is Madison, Dane County, uh, w- how are you also incorporating, either through staff or folks to come out on the [00:19:00] water, folks that are h- perhaps have some type of disability, and- Yeah ... to, to make that type of experience available, or to provide a, a job for,someone who, they're very capable, but there's a disability associated with it?

[00:19:15] **Tyler:** Yeah. Yeah. I really look at us as facilitators. we facilitate people going out on the water. We facilitate someone connecting with a friend that they haven't seen for a while. We're not always the ones. So if someone is interested in getting out on the water, we're gonna make it happen.

So we have a lot of different methods to make it extremely accessible for anyone. we will bring boats to different parts of the, of the lake to make it really easy for them to access the water. We will, um, even send staff sometimes with them to paddle out. Mm-hmm. So we'll oftentimes put someone in, like, a tandem kayak, and then, uh, we'll go paddle with them.

We'll do what we need [00:20:00] to to get them out on the water. If they have an interest, we will make it happen. And really, the best thing that we've found is to make sure that other organizations that are really active in, in the different spaces, whether it's DEI, whether it's accessibility, know that we're a resource for them, and that we will listen, that we will, uh, both meet what their expectations are and try to find a way to go above them so that it is easy for that organization, that group, to get out, uh, whatever it looks like.

We'll partner, we partner with a number of different hiring, um, programs to help give people opportunities and spaces that they might not otherwise be exposed to. And same with the paddling. We have a lot of different programs, whether it be with schools, uh, youth groups. We have a Lake Explorer Camp with the Bayview Community Center, and, um, Boys & [00:21:00] Girls Club.

A lot of different places where we will either be the actual educators, or we will help facilitate their group getting out, depending on what they want. So part of it is, is not always, like, telling them how to do it, but just being available and listening, and then making sure when they do it, they're celebrated, and they're seen, and that they wanna come back again.

[00:21:27] **Howard:** I love it. I love it I am curious now, and I... By the way, as you and I are chatting, uh, you had a kayaker come across the screen. I thought that was just absolutely wonderful. these bodies of water, and, I mean, and the, the, from the time you started in the business working for the- Yeah ... the original owner, taking over the business, how have you seen the commitment to the, the water itself and nurturing not only the, the quality of the water, but also the, the near [00:22:00] shore?

You've got the... You've got, uh, nesting birds. You've got waterfowl. You have fish. How are, how are those types of, uh, activities or, or necessity to keep the, to keep your business vibrant, okay- Yep ... you need, you need, you need good quality nature, uh, to sur- be surrounded by. So- Yeah ... how are you seeing those changes over the years?

[00:22:23] **Tyler:** So I, I gotta say right now as I'm sitting out here, I heard a sound that I haven't heard for the longest time, a giant bullfrog. 

[00:22:36] **Howard:** Mm. 

[00:22:37] **Tyler:** Yeah, I remember as a kid somewhat seeing them when I was here on the lakes more often when I was going to other places, but not in the city. right now my sister told me she saw one yesterday, and I could hear it.

It's a big bullfrog just sitting right here. Mm. It's incredible. We have, um, a nice... Madison is really [00:23:00] sneaky- Mm ... in, in its urban adventure. Like, we don't have the giant peaks or the fast water, so it's not the place where you're like, "Oh, I'm going there for, for, outdoor adventure." But it's really sneaky how it'll just everywhere you go it's there, this urban outdoors.

It's just so intermixed. and I think that the, the dedication to our urban outdoors has continued to get better and better, and we're seeing those results time and time again. Growing up, the lakes were dirty. I'm not saying they're very clean right now. 

[00:23:39] **Howard:** Mm-hmm. 

[00:23:40] **Tyler:** But I can remember a time where everybody just accepted that that's how they were.

[00:23:47] **Howard:** Mm. 

[00:23:47] **Tyler:** And that's how they were gonna be, and that was it. You, you just, that's how you, they were. I have to give a big shout-out to the Clean Lakes Alliance. They [00:24:00] started up, um... Oh, let's see. I was, uh, on the, the founding community board with them. But they've really put the lakes at the center of our community, and lake health at the forefront.

Yeah. They have an advocacy so that all of our policymakers know what's going on. They have a State of the Lakes report that gets really deep into the science. And then they throw big parties. They have a Frozen Assets party in the middle of the, the lake with kites and education and bands and DJs. And it's always trying to make sure that the residents also are tied to the lakes in a meaningful way, and understand that they're also responsible for the health of the lake.

So they set up an alert system where you're notified if, if it's about to rain to get your leaves out of the, the street, because that just acts like tea and puts phosphorus right into the lake, which creates algae explosions. Mm-hmm. 

[00:24:55] **Howard:** Yeah. So 

[00:24:55] **Tyler:** I would say that our community in the last 10 years, [00:25:00] 15 years h- has become extremely aware of the lake health and lake quality, and that's really exciting, 'cause with that awareness comes real change.

And I mentioned the bullfrog. I got one other really fun story. we had a- Okay ... watch party for the World Cup. we... A friend brought in a big video wall. It was a beautiful night, and we had our, um, our cranes, our resident crane family. They always come through each evening. But there's about 500 people in the park.

They landed on one side of the park. They didn't care. They had their two, uh, their two chicks. They walked right through 500 people, walked past the boathouse and down the path. Everybody w- just was amazed. And that ability to connect with the animals, with the lake, while watching the World Cup and the rest of the world was, like, such a neat moment.

So as I mentioned, Madison [00:26:00] has so many great places to go paddle, to go explore, trails to go bike ride. I mean, there's so much here, and that just kind of is everywhere throughout our, our kind of lifestyle and, what we're seeing. And in terms of the quality and the health of the lakes, I'm seeing that really being a focal point, um, for the entire community.

Yeah. Not just the lake users, not just for the avid paddler. It's, it's a- A point of pride. It's a point of identification for Madisonians, so- 

[00:26:36] **Howard:** Mm-hmm ... 

[00:26:37] **Tyler:** yeah, the lakes are a lot about us, so they reflect on us, so we want them to be better. We wanna be better always. 

[00:26:44] **Howard:** Okay. Very good. I would love if we could do a, a quick tour of the website, just to kind of show, uh, our visitors, uh, listening to the episode, say, on YouTube to, to kind of, explore a little bit, if you could- Yes

take us on a tour. Okay. 

[00:27:00] and then when we get, come back, I wanna talk a little bit more about the conference and how Madison Boats is gonna be participating in some of our conference activity. So let's, uh, get to the website. I am going to, uh, share my screen, if I can get it up there. There it is.

Technology has been- an interesting factor today. all right. So, Mm-hmm ... have the website and take us on a little tour. And I, I will, you, uh, you direct and I will navigate. 

[00:27:32] **Tyler:** Well, it, we wanted to make a web design. Y- you said you were in the IT space prior. I have a lot of fun with solving problems.

That's why I'm still attracted to this job. There's always a problem, and trying to figure out a good website is, is hard. How do you create easy navigation? How do you create, how do you make it simple? Mm-hmm. So we're still striving for that, so if you got any advice, Howard, I, I would be [00:28:00] grateful. 

[00:28:00] **Howard:** Dude, I'm, like, right there with you.

I, I, I, I know I can see a straight line, but I can't draw one, so- Yeah ... I, I'm with, I'm gonna be sitting with you- ... hoping for the best. But, hey, look, I love your logo. I just, it just dawned on me the paddle includes the skyline, so that was- Yeah ... pretty cool. Thank you. So, okay. All right. 

[00:28:20] **Tyler:** Thank you.

We're getting there. 

[00:28:22] **Howard:** Yeah. 

[00:28:22] **Tyler:** so I think the easiest thing is primarily we're a boat rental company. We do so many programs, so many events. We have a huge kids ca- camp. The people who are visiting Madison, people who are visiting Madison Boats are typically looking to rent a boat. So right there in the front, if we wanna click on rent your boat- 

[00:28:42] **Howard:** Okay

[00:28:42] **Tyler:** orange button there. That opens up, and now we have a couple different options. You can either go explore us by our locations, which is that top row, or if there's a particular watercraft, we wanna make sure that you know there's pontoon boats as well as paddle [00:29:00] craft. so we can go in either direction there.

[00:29:02] **Howard:** Okay. Okay. And your, your three locations, so it's Wingra, uh, Brittingham, and, uh, Marshall. 

[00:29:11] **Tyler:** Yes. 

[00:29:12] **Howard:** Okay. 

[00:29:13] **Tyler:** So Wingra is, I mean, I can hear the announcer calling for the Badgers when the, when the Badgers are playing football. Okay. We're right in the near west side, but that's where I'm at right now. We're surrounded by the arboretum.

Mm-hmm. It's a small lake. No, uh, wake ever allowed, no gas motors on weekends. And it is, uh, I mean, this is about as, as remote as you can get for a, a city center, and it's a, it's a really magical place. It's spring-fed. there's a couple wonderful tributaries that you can paddle up to and actually see the water bubbling out of the ground.

[00:29:49] **Howard:** Mm-hmm. 

[00:29:50] **Tyler:** Our Brittingham boats is such a fun scene. It is exciting. It's right on Monona Bay. You paddle underneath a couple of railroad tracks, and then [00:30:00] you're in front of the Monona Terrace. And this is really how the city was designed to be seen- Mm-hmm ... was with the w- with the Monona Terrace looking right at the Capitol.

It's such a fun spot. Turn to the right coming out of the railroad tracks and you can paddle up Wingra Creek and be completely immersed again in nature. So you got the city, you got, you got, uh, nature no matter which location you pick. Our far, uh, west side location, Marshall Boats, is, uh, where we have the pontoon boats.

And we do a lot of different things with the pontoons as well as paddle craft, and that place is really special 'cause you can, with the prevailing winds, even though- Mm-hmm ... it's on the biggest of our lakes, it is one of the calmest places. Mm. So when teeny little Lake Wingra is too rough to paddleboard, we're paddleboarding along the, uh, the west side of Lake Mendota, and it's really calm.

So just a [00:31:00] fantastic, uh, escape. This one also, you can, in about 15, 20 minutes you can be in Pheasant Branch Conservancy- Okay ... which is another tributary and a, and a big source of water with the springs coming out of there. and I, I'm actually excited 'cause we have a, a fun program that we'll be doing during your conference- 

[00:31:23] **Howard:** Okay

[00:31:23] **Tyler:** out at Marshall So I, I'm gonna just go ahead and skip ahead to that, 'cause this is kind of a fun thing. We're gonna pontoon boat over, and we're gonna have someone share a little bit about the history of the lake- Okay ... some of the different incredible things that are going over with, um, with the, the Native American dugout canoes that were found, over 3,500 years old.

[00:31:48] **Howard:** Okay. 

[00:31:48] **Tyler:** We're, we're gonna get over to Marshall, we're gonna hop in some kayaks, and we're gonna paddle up into Pheasant Branch Conservancy. We'll paddle back, hop back onto those comfortable pontoon [00:32:00] boats, and go back downtown to our, uh, our auxiliary location at, um, the Edgewater Hotel right downtown. 

[00:32:09] **Howard:** I 

[00:32:09] **Tyler:** love it.

So we're at a pontoon, paddle, pontoon. Get to experience all of it in a nice, uh, half-day trip. 

[00:32:16] **Howard:** Okay. Very nice. Very nice. Now, will these, this trip, it sounds like it'll probably be pro- before the c- one of our pre-conference excursions, or will it- I believe 

[00:32:27] **Tyler:** it is. 

[00:32:27] **Howard:** Okay. All right. Excellent. Pontoon is, like, my style.

And again, my biggest fear, I have to share this with you, is I've been kayaking before. I, I was on a double kayak up in Alaska. I, I did it. I'm very happy.I survived. I was literally in Tennessee, uh, uh, at, at one of our, uh, what we call FieldFest i- up in Tennessee, and I was on shore in a kayak, and the, the, the host o- o- of the, uh, ex- [00:33:00] experience pushed me out onto the water, and I literally just tipped over.

So the, the, this pon- the picture of the pontoon boat right now, that's my- 

[00:33:10] **Tyler:** That's, that's the, that's the spot for you ... 

[00:33:12] **Howard:** that's my spot, or an incredibly wide pontoon that's not gonna tip, okay? 

[00:33:17] **Tyler:** we have, um, five different sizes of kayaks. Okay. And we- Or 

[00:33:23] **Howard:** kayak. 

[00:33:24] **Tyler:** Yeah, we make sure that if you've had that experience before, we wanna help you get, try it again.

It, it still doesn't have to be your jam at all. Like, we're not gonna, we're not gonna convince you- Okay ... to do something that you don't wanna do. But, uh, yeah, we... I, I'll take you out, Howard. We'll, we'll, uh, we'll go for a little paddle- ... and then we'll go sit in the pontoon boat and, and, uh, have one of the captains drive us around with a couple of beverages and some, some snacks.

[00:33:50] **Howard:** There you go. Okay. I love that. I love that. I love that. By the way, This is such a cool little [00:34:00] map.

All right, folks. one of the dangers of put- trying to put the outdoors in the outdoor adventure series is sometimes technology, sometimes the weather doesn't cooperate, but Tyler and I are making it happen. Now, we were just, finishing off a, a, kind of a, uh, a, a breakdown of some of the activities, uh, at the, at the various locations.

And as I- Yeah ... if I think I'm correct here, Tyler, you just invited me to go out on a very comfortable pontoon excursion, so I'm there with you for- Oh, we're doing 

[00:34:31] **Tyler:** it ... 

[00:34:32] **Howard:** we're doing it. All right, love it. be- before we head back to, uh, just you and I having a conversation, what, where else on the website would be, uh, helpful, uh, for our- You know-

listeners, the viewers to see? If 

[00:34:46] **Tyler:** you, yeah, if you close out this X- 

[00:34:49] **Howard:** Okay ... 

[00:34:49] **Tyler:** the, or go back to the home. 

[00:34:52] **Howard:** Yep. 

[00:34:52] **Tyler:** If you scroll down- 

[00:34:54] **Howard:** Okay ... 

[00:34:56] **Tyler:** this easily shows our locations. Right And then [00:35:00] if you keep going down, you can see some of our other services. Okay. So we do have a lot of memberships, marinas, um, camps, group rentals.

Okay. But the fun one is our events. Okay. I, I had alluded this to it a little bit earlier, but we just have a lot of fun with them. Yeah. And we just have so many different ones, from, uh, ice cream boat floats where people paddle out and make their sundaes out in the middle of the lake, full moons- Yeah

the sound bath. 

[00:35:34] **Howard:** Mm-hmm. 

[00:35:34] **Tyler:** And there's just so many different kind of ways to, to help people get out and explore. And during COVID, we were one of the only things that was able to be open- Mm-hmm ... and it was a lot of fun. No, it wasn't. It was, it was so challenging, so stressful. but we 

[00:35:56] **Howard:** did it. But you made it happen.

You 

[00:35:58] **Tyler:** made it happen. We made it happen. We ma- we [00:36:00] got people out, and it was a really powerful time where just getting out was such an amazing thing. 

[00:36:07] **Howard:** Mm-hmm. 

[00:36:08] **Tyler:** Madison's a fun city, and especially during the summer, there is no end to the activities, the, the different things that you can and should do- Right

while you're in the city. So if you guys are coming in, if anybody listening to this is coming in, book another day. Like, just extend it. It's gonna be worth it, if you can. I 

[00:36:28] **Howard:** love it. 

[00:36:28] **Tyler:** Love it ... so one of the things we kept hearing was- I, I want to be down at the lake. Right. I wanna be on the water.

but I just forgot, or I just didn't do that. So in a way, a lot of these activities are reasons to return. Mm-hmm. Whether they actually come and do it, we, like... There's only so many times that I can tell you how we're do- "Hey, you should come paddle. You should come paddle. You should come paddle." It kind of gets boring, but if you hear about, "Oh, hey, Burgers on the Bay with Whiskey [00:37:00] Farm."

"What's Whiskey Farm? Oh, I follow that band," or something like that, you may not come to the event, but hopefully we're back in the forefront of your head and maybe when you're, coming home from work looking- Mm-hmm ... for what you're gonna do that evening- Mm-hmm ... a quick hour paddle gets put into your agenda.

so we found a lot of- 

[00:37:19] **Howard:** I think 

[00:37:19] **Tyler:** that's wonderful. Yeah. So we're f- we're quickly becoming a... We were before COVID. In 2019 we were an events company almost more than a paddle craft. We're again moving back into that direction with just a lot of different, fun things going on. 

[00:37:36] **Howard:** I love it. Well, y- you're an events company or an experiences, community company that just happens to- Yeah

deliver on the water. And what, what I love about Madison, and I've, I had been to Madison twice, I literally did never, did not know that it was surrounded by three lakes and then the capital is on the isthmus, so shame on me. When I [00:38:00] lived in Chicago at the time, before I moved to Chicago, I didn't know there was a river going through it.

But what I love about Madison and, like, like Chicago, like in Milwaukee, is there, there are four seasons. We can do, uh, a- and a- activities, experience winter activities, but we live for the spring and the summer- Yeah ... and the early fall. And- 

[00:38:25] **Tyler:** Yeah, we do ... 

[00:38:26] **Howard:** and, and I can see in Madison water i, is just an important part of the overall experience that people, uh, can take advantage of.

And it, this is why w- when I always look for my next place to live, I think Madison might very well be on that list, so thank you for that. I'm 

[00:38:43] **Tyler:** glad to hear that. I'm glad to hear that. 

[00:38:45] **Howard:** All right. and now we've got a lot of the events. Now you're gonna help- Yeah ... plan, uh, your, you have some events being planned for the- Yeah

Outdoor Writers Association, OWA. let's talk a little bit about that. Yeah. So I'm gonna stop [00:39:00] sharing. now you and I are back, so y- our listeners are, especially folks watching the video, will notice that we are no longer exper- we're, we're, we're basically have some beautiful backgrounds, not the, not the real deal.

But, uh, but looking good. so tell us a little bit about the activities that are being planned for, and also your participation, uh, in our annual conference coming up in August. 

[00:39:26] **Tyler:** Yeah.we're so excited to, to have you guys coming to Madison, spending some time here. so one of the things that we wanted to do with you, and I already talked about it, was our, um, Lake Mendota experience, a new, new program that we have where we're doing, we pick people up from the Edgewater, which is right downtown, take them over, have a paddle excursion and an experience, um, and then bring you back.

And so it's a, a really nice way to truly experience the, [00:40:00] the full gamut of kind of what you get to do here in Madison of relaxation, exploration, nature, urban. It's, it's it all. so that'll be our, our main activity that we have, but also I wanted to make sure as I was working with Destination Madison, they, they have so many things to fit in.

So I kept asking, "All right, well, where else can I h- how else can we do this? What more can we do?" They, they have a wonderful agenda, packed full. but if you have any time, and I've put in a, a couple of days before and afterwards, a 20% discount, so you can come down and paddle or go on any of our events happening throughout that time.

Whenever you want, take a break, get out on the water for, for an hour, uh, we're there for you. So it's just welcome OWAA, and that'll get you 20% off on any paddle craft rentals. Howard, or if [00:41:00] anybody else is listening, shoot us an email about a pontoon, we'll find a discount for you for that too. 

[00:41:06] **Howard:** I love it.

I, when I was back in, uh, i- in Chicago early in the morning out on, uh, Monroe Harbor, the water was just, like, smooth as glass. And I imagine first thing in the morning, sun's just coming up, that water has to be like glass out there, and that's a great time to get out. 

[00:41:28] **Tyler:** Yeah. Wing, at our Wingra location Tuesday mornings, we open at 6:00 AM and have a full health and wellness with Marigold Ki- Kitchen, which if you're up around the square, they have their main store there, and it is a must-go.

Marigold Kitchen's fantastic. and they have a food truck that they bring down to us at Wingra on Tuesdays, and then at Brittingham on the weekends, we open at 6:00 AM, and they're there as well. So you can have your breakfast, grab a, an incredible breakfast burrito or [00:42:00] one of the other items, go sit in a kayak and enjoy that magic moment.

Those, those are the magic moments. They're so special. 

[00:42:08] **Howard:** I love it. A- and I really believe, our members as they come to the conference and make preparations, 'cause, some come with, uh, their spouses, their fa- family, and I, I ha- I can only imagine how much fun they're gonna have and the experiences that are gonna be available to them.

So, it's very exciting. As we look back,on the, on the, the type of work that you have been doing, and you've been at this for, for quite a while, ... and, you've got friends and family that are probably a part of this business too. Yeah. But what has been your, what I would call your aha moment?

Like, you gotta pinch yourself and kinda alluded to that earlier. Like, "Wow, I get to do this." 

[00:42:55] **Tyler:** I, I think you just said it. I get to do [00:43:00] this. I mean, it, it's... I, I think there's- I think the aha moment was I can do thi- I can do this. in the early career exploration, it was self- self-induced pressure to go find one of the more traditional paths.

[00:43:20] **Howard:** Mm-hmm. 

[00:43:21] **Tyler:** then it was, "Well, this isn't really a, a, a job, so what, what's the job that I'm gonna do when I grow up?" And then especially as I, um, got an MBA in entrepreneurship, I found a lot of pressure to go and follow the traditional entrepreneurial route. how do you hit the home run? How do you raise a couple million dollars?

what ... All of the, the, the typical path of the entrepreneur, whether you make it or not. And, and the lifestyle business was not really, highlighted at that time in, in the programming and especially in the, the entrepreneurial [00:44:00] circles that I was exploring. And I, I think the aha moment was, "No, no, I, I, I can live this lifestyle."

[00:44:08] **Howard:** Mm-hmm. 

[00:44:08] **Tyler:** And I, I can do that. Now I like a problem. I always like adding. I, I'm never gonna let a mousetrap just be a mousetrap. I- it has to be a little bit better, so we keep throwing spaghetti at the wall. And I, I gotta say my hard part that I've been struggling with for the last couple of years, especially with a young family- 

[00:44:29] **Howard:** Mm-hmm

[00:44:29] **Tyler:** um, is how not to let the growth, the expansion, the, the demands, um, overwhelm me- 

[00:44:39] **Howard:** Mm-hmm ... 

[00:44:39] **Tyler:** and get in the way of the enjoyment of those, of what we do. I mean- Right ... I didn't, I didn't choose to get into the boat rental business for the money. Like it, it's because I like the water, I like the people. So how do I make sure that, um, that I don't let the, the whirlwind of work and demands [00:45:00] overshadow those, those positive moments?

So I have a, a note in my car right now that's really helpful. not just done but fun. 

[00:45:07] **Howard:** Mm-hmm. 

[00:45:07] **Tyler:** So like yeah, I, I can fix that, that pontoon boat, let's, let... I'll always get a call, something's broken. So if I fix it, like rather than just walking away, grab the three staff that were helping with me and let's go test it and just go out and take- Mm-hmm

the pontoon boat out for two minutes and jump off. Doesn't have to be longer than five minutes, but add that little piece of fun of why we're there, connect with some people in the moments of the, the busyness. and that's been a... I think that's always a challenge for any small business owner, especially if it's seasonal- Mm-hmm

especially if it's in, in the high demand world of a, of, that we live in. How do we not, How can we scale without burnout? 

[00:45:53] **Howard:** Sure, sure. 

[00:45:53] **Tyler:** and I don't have the answer fully, but, uh, well, somewhere in there, 

[00:45:57] **Howard:** Somewhere in there. one thing that, [00:46:00] that it dawns on me as you have been sharing this, you picked up on this desire to have a life, uh, worth living and loving doing work that was, that was...

felt good for you, that tugged on your heartstrings as opposed to- Right ... like, "Oh, my God, I got a, I got a J-O-B I have to go to." It sounds like you discovered that earlier when you were going through your entrepreneurship program and having the experience on the water. Many people started to discover that during COVID.

I mean, that's literally how this Outdoor Adventure series got started, because I had moved from Chicago to Nevada and- Yes ... wanting to get outside, see the stars, go car camping. And so many folks decided, "I can't do this 9:00 to 5:00 J-O-B anymore," and they discovered there's other ways to make a living but [00:47:00] also have fun doing it, and sounds like you discovered that earlier on.

The, I think the challenge as, as an entrepreneur, as a business owner, is how do you bring others up through the, running this business so that you can then trust that they're going to do the work while you kind of c- take a step back and, and maybe observe, be the, the conductor of the business as opposed to- Yeah

having to work in it every day? 

[00:47:33] **Tyler:** I, I think you're right. But that comes with its own huge challenge, because no one wanted to get into this, this type of work to be an administrator or sit in an ivory office. We, we got in it 'cause we like the, the paddling or the, or the people or the, the, the hands-on or the, the direct interaction.

And so I almost kind of put it back and say the hardest part is how [00:48:00] do I s- stay engaged in the, the day-to-day actions? If I'm pushing in and out a kayak, I'm having fun. Okay. I'm, I'm interacting with that customer. I'm having a ... I'm getting that, that personal reward back to me. Okay. Sitting at the office selling a corporate group a big huge package that is gonna help keep the lights on, that I have to do that, and it's really important for me to do it, but it's, it's actually sitting with that same corporate group and, and setting up their, I don't know, their

the burger bar, and just talking with the organizer while I'm, like, putting the coleslaw in the bu- bowl. I don't know. it, it's those moments that are so hard to say are valuable- 

[00:48:44] **Howard:** Mm-hmm ... 

[00:48:45] **Tyler:** because you, you keep putting the pressure on yourself to do those high level tasks or to sit back, and you need to as the

but I keep ... I, I find my, my push/pull being the, like, I always feel like I should be doing the high level stuff, but I find the [00:49:00] reward when I actually get to experience the, the hands-on service. 

[00:49:06] **Howard:** Well, that ... I mean, and that, that's totally fair. I mean, I love, like, with this podcasting, having conversations like we're having today.

Knowing that I have to now piece together three different portions- ... of a podcast this weekend because I've committed to getting this published on Tuesday- That's- ... that's, that's the one, "Oh, man, that's gonna take a day to do." But I would rather have these kind of conversations, so that's ... We have to choose- Yeah

I guess, what makes us the most happiest. Yeah. 

[00:49:36] **Tyler:** Yeah. 

[00:49:37] **Howard:** I love 

[00:49:37] **Tyler:** it. That's right. 

[00:49:39] **Howard:** I love it. 

[00:49:39] **Tyler:** That's right. 

[00:49:40] **Howard:** So Tyler, if our listeners would like to learn more about Madison Boats, we've, we've just visited the website, madisonboats.com. and we can visit the site, they can check out the locations and the, and the experiences that are available at those locations.

Where else is a good place to get to know [00:50:00] Madison Boats? 

[00:50:01] **Tyler:** we're trying to be better on Facebook and Instagram. and, and I'm really pleased this year for maybe one of the first time, our younger staff have actually kind of latched on to, uh, to making some of the videos and doing some of the posts, because the rest of the management team, it's not our strong suit, and we just, that's not who we are.

So finally, for the first time, there's some really fun videos coming out, some good, uh, good pictures coming through. So definitely check us out on Facebook, Instagram. But just trust me when I say add a additional day on your stay, come visit us one place or next. Just go for a walk. Your, your background picture is a perfect example, John Nolen Drive.

It, I mean, I would love for you to come and visit Madison Boats, but wherever you are in Madison, you'll be getting to experience some of the powerful, um, aspects of just our lakes and how [00:51:00] great it is to be here. 

[00:51:01] **Howard:** Excellent. Well, I am looking forward to m- meeting you in person and experiencing- Yeah ... Madison Boats and Madison hospitality.

So, very much- Looking forward to it ... looking forward. All right. Listen, Tyler, thank you for, uh, joining me on the podcast today, and, uh, really helping to put the outdoors in the Outdoor Adventure Series. And, uh, technology is what it is, but it's gonna be a great episode. And a lot of, you've shared a lot of great information, uh, not only about, uh, Madison Boats and your philosophy and how this, you're not a boat company, uh, you're an experience company, building community- Yes

and just, helping to get the community out on this very precious resource, which is these wonderful lakes, uh, that surround Madison. So thank you again. 

[00:51:48] **Tyler:** Thank you. Thank you. 

[00:51:49] **Howard:** Oh, excellent. Listen, stay on the line. We're gonna do a quick close, and then you and I can have a final chat. Okay? 

[00:51:55] **Tyler:** Great. 

[00:51:56] **Howard:** All right, folks, we have just been chatting with Tyler Leeper.

He [00:52:00] is the president and owner of Madison Boats. Madison Boats will be joining us, uh, at the OWAA's annual conference this August, and we're very excited, uh, for the experiences that are being planned, uh, for our members. And I'm excited to perhaps get back out on the water beyond the... I, pontoon's more my style but, hey, if, if Tyler's there, I may have to try to get back out onto a, uh, a kayak.

We really do hope you enjoyed, uh, today's episode. And, and make sure you go out, too. If you're gonna be in the Midwest, check out Madison. What a wonderful,city, uh, where its, its location is perfect. Ma- Milwaukee is a twen- is a four-season destination, but because of these water activities, the spring, summer, early fall, you have great opportunities to get out and experience Madison, uh, from the water.

Now, do go out and visit, uh, Madison Boats website at madisonboats.com. [00:53:00] We'll provide a back link to it, as well as to their social sites. As for us, you can find this episode on our website outdooradventureseries.com. We're also on Facebook and on LinkedIn on our Outdoor Adventure Series pages. The video of this episode, uh, will be up on our YouTube channel, Outdoor Adventure Series.

And of course, you can listen to this podcast wherever you get your podcasts from. And before we leave today, we wanna thank, uh, Destination Madison for sponsoring, uh, this episode of the Outdoor Adventure Series. Thanks to their support, we can introduce you to guests like Tyler. And to begin planning your Madison getaway, visit Destination Madison at visitmadison.com.

Until next time, wherever you are, whatever you're doing, go out there and have a fantastic day, and we look forward to having you join us on a future episode of the Outdoor Adventure Series [00:54:00] Podcast. Take care now.