So, what actually is Texas Winter Jam?
At its simplest, Texas Winter Jam is a statewide parkour gathering. It started in San Antonio in 2009 to bring people together, showcase the places we train, and welcome practitioners from outside Texas.
Over the years, it grew and moved between cities like Austin, Dallas, and Houston, giving different communities a chance to host and connect.
But one thing has always stayed the same:
The community builds it.
People have volunteered their time, brought their skills, helped with logistics, organized activities, created media, found sponsors, supported athletes, provided medical assistance, and filled whatever needs they saw.
That's actually what Winter Jam is about.
It's not just an event that someone organizes and everyone else shows up to.
It's something we create together.
That's what we're trying to lean into this year.
Instead of a small group figuring everything out behind the scenes and everyone else simply participating at the event, we want to open up the organization of Winter Jam itself.
We're going to identify what needs to happen to make Winter Jam successful, create opportunities for people to take ownership, and let everyone choose where they want to contribute.
Whatever your skills are, there's probably a place for you.
And you don't have to be an experienced event organizer. Part of this is creating opportunities for people to learn how to organize, lead, collaborate, and build something together.
So this year, don't want to think of Texas Winter Jam as an event you're invited to attend.
Think of it as something you're invited to help create.
Because Winter Jam belongs to the Texas parkour community.