Open Road

In a very important episode of Drinks with Friends, DTRs are had and Treaties are signed. Pivotal would be a word that some may use to describe this conversation between the three of us. Sure, we start by discussing Marshall's bizarre affinity for scary movies, but we end somewhere entirely different. In this conversation, symbolic blood and tears are spilled on signed Treaties with no expiration date.

Don't call it a comeback. Well I don't know maybe you should. Whatever you want to call it, we are back. And back with a vengeance. It's been a year since we've headed out on the Open Road together. I'm sure you didn't mind the break. Most importantly, I trust that y'all have been living the Open Road Lifestyle. Forgive me for the tragic delay in shaking the Open Road tree. Sometimes hobbies have to take a back seat. I'm not quite sure y...

John Marsh is the Co-Founder of Marsh Collective, serial entrepreneur, and consultant helping steward over $1bn in redemptive real estate in small towns around America. His story will blow you away. He has comeback from deep pain and hopelessness to redeem communities and marriages. Reigning from Opelika, Alabama, his way of communicating is unmatched and his storytelling unparalleled. You won't want to miss this one, y'all. So, pull up a chair and join us at the...

My friend, Matt Morris, joins us on Open Road for a wide ranging and fun conversation. Matt is an investor, advisor, Board Member and was the CEO of a publicly traded company. Aside from his business successes, he is fiercely involved in the Houston community and an awesome husband to Melissa and dad to four boys. Join Matt and I at the table as we discuss his time at the helm of Stewart Title, how his achievements and failures have shaped him, and what he is learning now ...

Matt and Marshall are back. In our fourth DWF, the three of us discuss recent changes in our life, along with our timely topic: fatherhood. Over a couple of glasses of whiskey, we discuss how the beginnings of our fatherhood journeys have shaped us and inspired fresh perspectives on the world and our place in it. Join us at the table as we share the stories and lessons learned through the wild adventure of fatherhood that have brought us to a heightened commitment to livin...

Welcome back to Open Road! After a longer than expected hiatus, we're back with my buddy, Mark Appel. Mark was the first overall draft pick in the 2013 MLB Draft picked by the Houston Astros. After leaving Stanford to join his hometown team, Mark battled injuries during his first few years in the minors. After taking a break from the game, he's on the path back to the big leagues. Mark and I talk about what he's learned as a ball player who has had to battle his fair ...

In our first episode back from a Summer break, we're back with something unique. A friend of the show and a prior guest, Dave Eubank, joins me for an impromptu conversation in the middle of his preparations to leave for Afghanistan on a rescue mission. This episode doesn't have a Dinner Party Story and it skips the pleasantries of a biography. The intent of this episode was to allow you to learn how Dave is running towards the fire and to discover how to be in his corner. Be sur...

As the glow of the fireworks from this past July 4th weekend unfortunately fades, launch yourself into this week with my conversation with Judson Kauffman, co-founder of Desert Door Distillery, CEO and Co-Founder of Terradepth and former Navy SEAL. Full of passion, experiences and stories, Judson shares with us his experience as a SEAL in Operation Iraqi Freedom and how that shaped him into a pioneering entrepreneur. As a co-founder to a Sotol Distillery, which is now one of the...

Scott is the CEO and Co-Founder of Verdant Frontiers, an Austin based investment firm with a mission to deliver life changing jobs in Africa and compelling returns for its investors. Scott has been an entrepreneur for as long as he can remember. After a successful career starting and selling a number of different ventures, Scott considered retirement. However, a trip to Africa stopped him in his tracks. After this trip, he found a resolve to invest in Africa and its people....

Anthony Flynn has seen a lot. Being raised by a 17 year old single mother in Memphis, Anthony was raised in an environment marked by struggle, racism and little hope. Despite these circumstances, he eventually became an entrepreneur, author, leadership coach, consultant and now, the CEO of WorkFaith Connection, a Houston based ministry which has a mission to build faith and career skills for the marketplace. Anthony and I discuss his childhood and how the racism that he ex...

It's good to be back. After a nice little breather, we kick off Season Two with a bang with the third episode of Drinks with Friends. Matt and Marshall crack open a bottle of Pinot with me as we discuss the margin of life and our timely topic: Friendship. We discuss how friends have changed us and how we have changed as friends. Tune in as we dig into how the Open Road Lifestyle, living with courage and purpose, is simply impossible without good friends. Pull up a c...

Wesley Hunt is a former Apache Helicopter Pilot and Candidate for the United States Congress. After a close loss in 2020, Wesley is already gearing up for a future run. Growing up in a family with a long history of Military Service, Wesley knew that West Point was his destiny. After graduating, he served for 8 years as a Helicopter Pilot and Diplomatic Liaison. Following his honorable discharge, Wesley moved back home to Houston and decided that his next move in his arc of ...

Shannon Sedgwick Davis is the CEO of Bridgeway Foundation, a philanthropic organization dedicated to ending and preventing mass atrocities around the world. More recently, Shannon and the Bridgeway Foundation have been credited for their pivotal role in mobilizing awareness, civilian protection, and recovery efforts against the Lord’s Resistance Army and its leader, Joseph Kony, the first-ever indictee of the International Criminal Court. Shannon saw the evil of Joseph Kony and decided...

Todd Pierce is a cowboy. A real cowboy. Growing up as a wild man, Todd found his calling in bareback Bronco riding. After being a professional cowboy, Todd launched Riding High Ministries. Todd & Riding High Ministries host Born Wild events at Prisons, Native American Reservations, retreat centers and church events, wherein Todd demonstrates the gospel of Christ by breaking a wild horse. The first time I met Todd, I was struck by his uncanny ability to speak wit...

In our 2nd episode of Drinks with Friends on Open Road, Marshall and Matt join me to discuss Gamestop and the Bachelor. We also dig into the challenges that 2020 brought us and how they shaped who we are. Pour yourself a drink and join us at the table for a chat on the margin of life and the sharing of some Dinner Party Stories that deal with challenges. Stay tuned for a surprise guest at the end of the Episode. 0:00 -- Catch Up, Gamestop, Bachelor 19:00 -- 2020 Challenges ...

Brett Rodgers is a a bit of a University of Texas icon. Now, coming from an Aggie, that isn't saying a whole lot, but Brett has impacted that school more than most. Brett is the Vice President of Young Life International University Initiatives, and before that, was the Director of UT Young Life. Prior to building UT Young Life into the machine that it is today, Brett worked for Young Life in San Antonio, which is where our friendship began. In our chat, Brett and I t...

Oscar Renteria is the CEO of Renteria Vineyard Management, one of Napa's leading vineyard companies, and is the Founder and CEO of Tres Perlas, a winery that produces a portfolio of luxury wines. Alongside his family, Oscar grew up working the vineyards of Napa Valley. Oscar's father, Salvador, immigrated from Mexico and began his life in America as a Napa Valley vineyard farmer. Salvador went on to become, not only, a successful entrepreneur in launching Renteria Vineyard...

Dave Eubank is the Founder and Leader of Free Burma Rangers (FBR), a humanitarian service movement for oppressed ethnic minorities of all races and religions in the Burma, Iraq, Kurdistan, Syria and Sudan war zones. Dave is a former U.S. Army Special Forces and Ranger officer. Dave and his family have quite literally run towards the bullets in the name of protecting and saving those who have fallen under the weight of oppressive tyranny across the world. Plain and simple, Dave is...

In the inaugural episode of Open Road's new series, Drinks with Friends, three best friends pour a few cocktails, discuss the margin of life, and share Dinner Party Stories. In every other episode of Open Road, we hear about the hallmark moments that play on the highlight reels of our guest's lives. But, it's important to see the value in the margin of life also, and to remember that these smaller moments are the building blocks of the hallmark moments and of a life that lives b...

Will Hurd serves in the House of Representatives as the Congressman for the 23rd District of Texas. Will was, literally, a secret agent for the CIA in the Middle East for nearly a decade before coming back home to San Antonio to run for Congress. Our talk ranges from hearing about his time in the CIA to the social and racial unrest and division that our country is facing to what is our nation's biggest problem. The good thing is, we talk about how to resolve all of these tow...