FACES IN THE FIELD
FACES IN THE FIELD:
Ryan Reed of High Striker Farms B Y M R . R O O T S P H O T O G R A P H Y B Y M AT T H E W B O U R G E O I S
Having the pleasure of getting to know Ryan Reed from High Striker Farms, a few words come to mind that I could use to describe him to you—a few words that still mean something in this cannabis community, to those of us who really do still say what’s what about a few things, us old-school growers. It doesn’t matter if the investor who bought that shiny new grow space or downtown storefront says so or not. The people who came up growing dank, who worked lines and represented this community from the underground, are ultimately who shaped this whole landscape. Sweat equity is a term that applies very well to this community. To prove this point: Many hire a sophomore to save some money, then realize in a few months that they need a doctorate-level consultant to progress a mess. It’s hard to add that back into your overhead costs when you are pinching pennies after the buildout, while you are waiting to recoup. Anyway, the words I would use to describe High Striker Farms are: hard-working, knowledgeable, genuine, caring, personable, fun to talk with, and REAL. Yup, real. As in, “doesn’t put up a bunch of fake shit on
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Instagram to try to woo you.” You see, from my perspective, interviewing someone for a podcast gives some poignant snapshots into how a person conducts themselves—their presentation, their poise, and their professionalism. Furthermore, editing their conversation, going over it several times, allows for an even more refined insight into said person’s character, especially when you consider how they conducted themselves time-wise, over the phone, both pre- and post-interview.