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Columbia CEO Dares Flat‑Earthers: Reach the ‘Edge’ — Win Everything the Company Owns

03:15 AM, 12/06/2025
Columbia CEO Dares Flat‑Earthers: Reach the ‘Edge’ — Win Everything the Company Owns

Columbia CEO Tim Boyle issued a humorous challenge: anyone who can physically reach and photograph the literal "edge of the Earth" will win everything Columbia owns. The offer explicitly rejects symbolic entries.

The piece notes that Flat‑Earth beliefs persist—about 10% of Americans reported believing the Earth is flat in a 2021 UNH survey—and links that persistence to online misinformation. NASA has posted a video summarizing the scientific evidence that Earth is round.

Columbia CEO Tim Boyle Issues a Tongue‑In‑Cheek Challenge

In a playful marketing stunt, Columbia Sportswear CEO Tim Boyle poked fun at modern flat‑Earth believers by issuing a straightforward challenge: anyone who can physically reach the literal "edge of the Earth" and photograph it will receive "everything owned by Columbia." The company made clear that symbolic or metaphorical attempts will not qualify.

"The Edge of the Earth" is a visible, physical end to the planet Earth. We're talking infinite sheer drop, abyssal void, clouds cascading into infinity. What is not 'The Edge of the Earth': A clifftop in Seattle. A cul‑de‑sac in Kansas. Or your buddy Dave legally changing his name to 'The Edge.'"

In the video, Boyle strolls through Columbia offices and jokingly offers items from computers to coffee machines as prizes for anyone who can reach the fabled rim. The stunt is meant to lampoon the idea that the planet is a flat surface with literal edges, while also generating buzz for the brand.

Why This Matters

Although the stunt is humorous, belief in Flat‑Earth ideas is more common than many assume. A 2021 survey from the University of New Hampshire found roughly 10% of Americans said they believe the Earth is flat, and about 12% doubted that NASA landed men on the Moon. The Flat Earth International Conference took place in Dallas in 2019, underscoring that the community has recurring public events.

Experts attribute the modern persistence of Flat‑Earth claims largely to the spread of online misinformation and algorithmic amplification—ironically, the same platforms (like YouTube) that host Columbia's video also spread conspiratorial content. NASA has published an explanatory video titled "How Do We Know the Earth Isn't Flat? We Asked a NASA Expert," which outlines multiple lines of evidence including solar motion, navigation, and photographic records from lunar missions.

For those encountering Flat‑Earth skepticism in person, a simple, immediate observation can help: the curvature of the horizon is often visible from a commercial airplane at cruising altitude. Still, the internet makes it easy to find content that reinforces any belief, no matter how implausible.

This story originally appeared on GearJunkie.

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