Country music is the lifeblood of Whiskey Riff, and we pride ourselves on standing firmly in the corner of the independent artists, and those few in the mainstream still doing it the right way. Whether it’s Waylon, Willie and legends of the past, or superstars in the making like Zach Bryan, our finger is always on the pulse of true country music. From Texas to Tennessee, Appalachia to Bakersfield, Whiskey Riff is THE unapologetic voice of the country music fan.

A RIFF on what makes the great outdoors…great.

“Country” is more than just a steel guitar. It’s a lifestyle. A mindset. A cold beer, hot grill and the great outdoors. A lifestyle so perfectly captured by the country greats of yesterday, but still alive and well today in artists who truly get it.

Whiskey Riff is that lifestyle.

The best playlists in country music…period.

On ‘Whiskey Riff Raff,’ Steve Gazibara and Wes Langeler give an unfiltered and unapologetic take on country music, life, and all the craziness that comes with it. Laugh with us. Rant with us. Drink with us.

It still never ceases to amaze me how bears can climb up just about anything.

I’ve seen several videos of them scaling their way up trees and rock walls like it’s nobody’s business, and it’s pretty wild to think about considering these creatures weigh a good bit.

However, I’ll admit that this is the first time I’ve ever seen a bear scale a BARBED WIRE FENCE before.

Not to mention, it happened at Tyndall Air Force Base in Panama City, Florida.

In the crazy footage, you see the black bear scale the fence with ease, and pauses at the top as it tries to make its way over the sharp barbs at the top of the fence.

It even looks back at the car driving by, and doesn’t think anything of it, and proceeds to continue climbing over the fence until it hops down and takes off in the other direction.

All I have to say is that the bear must’ve seen some incredible prey, because it really went out of its way to climb over the fence.

So if you’re ever being chased by a bear, remember one thing…

It’s not worth trying to climb a tree, jump in the lake, or ever… hop a barbed wire fence, because that won’t slow the bear down one bit.

Free solo rock climbing is some of the scariest stuff on the planet. No ropes, no harness, no equipment… just you and the rock face. Well-known free solo climber Alex Honnold scaled Yosemite’s El Capitan in the 2018 documentary Free Solo and it’s so intense it’s almost hard to watch.

One slip and you fall to your death…

Enter Mr. black bear here.

Black bears are far more intelligent than we would like to believe most times. Even when they get themselves into large predicaments its always due to them being curious and incredible intelligent.

These bears here though are extra special. They are endangered Mexican Black Bears. They are the only sub-species of Black Bear that is endangered in North America.

However, for a species highly at risk, these are some very risky individuals.

If my population was on the brink of extinction I wouldn’t be climbing no rock wall especially when its not something I do regularly.

Black Bears in general are a very agile species, and excellent climbers, but they are known to climb trees in particular to gain access to different foods and for protection.

But there’s a massive difference between a tree and a rock face. Bears typically use their claws to climb trees safely… not as effective on a rock wall.

A woman was out kayaking in Mexico when she came across a mother bear with two cubs climbing a giant rock face.

These bears are scaling the wall with no safety nets at all making their way up like a professional adrenaline junky. Is this why they’re endangered?

The mother goes along with ease while the cub struggles a bit with its size constraints. They eventually make their way over flat faces to a ridge line and up to safety.