The Wild Chaos Podcast

• #84 - The Untold Story of How One Garage Brand Erased Millions in Veteran Debt w/Bear Handlon

  Could you imagine your medical debt being erased? Swiped clean?Start with grit and end with gratitude. That’s the pulse of this conversation with Bear Handlon—Yale linebacker turned Navy SEAL officer turned founder of Born Primitive—who built a $100M brand from a garage while shouldering rucks, rewiring his life around service, and refusing to cut corners when it mattered most.We dig into the selection moments that strip away ego—why BUD/S graduates tend to be the ones who want the job, not the title—and map those lessons onto entrepreneurship without the Instagram gloss. Bear shares how he and his then‑wife sold at CrossFit events for years, doubled revenue eight straight times, and still chose product integrity over speed: delaying launches, iterating through double‑digit prototypes, and renting a Black Hawk to fast‑rope in full kit to test a boot’s abrasion and outsole noise. You’ll hear how the footwear bet changed the ceiling, why Born Primitive moved credibly into outdoor and tactical with real subject matter experts, and how the brand kept its spine when culture wars tried to bend it.Then we go to the point: using a company as a force multiplier for good. Last year, Bear routed four days of sales to wipe roughly $11 million in veteran medical debt—5,800 people who got certified letters before Christmas. The calls back were raw: single parents with garnished wages, a Marine reconsidering suicide who checked into rehab after his bill vanished. This year, alongside Black Rifle Coffee, the mission is bigger: Operation Debt of Gratitude aims to reach $25 million and bring the VA and other brands into a durable solution. It’s not a promo. It’s direct relief, dollar for dollar, with stories that make the stakes real.Along the way, Bear opens up about fatherhood, faith, and finding joy in the simple—letters to his daughter, popcorn on the couch, and choosing presence over noise. If you care about building something that lasts, gear that’s earned not hyped, and helping veterans in a way that actually changes lives, this one hits. Subscribe, share with a friend who needs the push, and if you’re moved, support Operation Debt of Gratitude at Born Primitive and Black Rifle Coffee between Nov 7–11. Your share might be the reason someone sleeps easier tonight.Visit Born Primitive and subscribe to their newsletter to follow along on their campaign to support!Send us a textSupport the showFollow Wild Chaos on Social Media: Apple iTunes: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-wild-chaos-podcast/id1732761860Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/5KFGZ6uABb1sQlfkE2TIoc?si=8ff748aa4fc64331 ⁠⁠⁠Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/wildchaospodcastBam's Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bambam0069Youtube: https://youtube.com/@wildchaospodTikTok: ⁠⁠⁠https://www.tiktok.com/@thewildchaospodcastMeta (Facebook): ⁠⁠⁠https://www.facebook.com/TheWildChaosPodcast

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• #83 - Stolen Youth: Cons, Cults, and Kidnapping w/Jacine Jadresko

  A van door slides open at midnight and two strangers say she isn’t going home. That moment—engineered by her parents—sent Jacine into a notorious WWASP “behavioral program” in Mexico where abuse and brainwashing replaced help. We go where most stories don’t. Jacine Jadresko breaks down how she hacked punitive level systems as a teen, the toll it took, and why high-functioning addiction hid in plain sight for years. She shares two fentanyl overdoses, the mindset shift that ended heroin, and the unglamorous habits that keep her steady. Then we step into the Amazon: earning hunters’ respect, learning to mix plant poisons, blow-darting a monkey on the first try, and tasting the difference between survival and spectacle. This is a story of pure survival, never heard before. Buckle up for this one, you will have your jaw open the entire time.To learn more and follow Jacine on her world travels and adventure, give her a follow: https://www.instagram.com/jacineunseen/If you’re drawn to stories of survival that become maps, this one’s for you: how to build a simple business that buys your time, how to trust your instincts without worshiping fear, and how to choose a life wide enough to hold the past without letting it steer. If it moved you, share it with a friend, subscribe for more conversations that don’t flinch, and leave a review with the moment you can’t stop thinking about.Send us a textSupport the showFollow Wild Chaos on Social Media: Apple iTunes: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-wild-chaos-podcast/id1732761860Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/5KFGZ6uABb1sQlfkE2TIoc?si=8ff748aa4fc64331 ⁠⁠⁠Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/wildchaospodcastBam's Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bambam0069Youtube: https://youtube.com/@wildchaospodTikTok: ⁠⁠⁠https://www.tiktok.com/@thewildchaospodcastMeta (Facebook): ⁠⁠⁠https://www.facebook.com/TheWildChaosPodcast

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• #82 - The Ocean Doesn't Negotiate: Inside the Toughest Training Pipeline on Earth w/Chris Rullie

  The ocean doesn’t negotiate, and neither does life when your plan breaks. We sit down with Chris, who trained for the SEAL pipeline, finished Hell Week, survived pool comp, and then watched a herniated back end the path at third phase. What follows isn’t a sad ending; it’s a hard pivot. He walks us through the mental frameworks that kept him from quitting—monking out, removing distractions, breaking big tasks into fives, and resetting after every small win—and how those same tools helped him rebuild a new mission.We unpack BUD/S beyond the myth: why boot camp deconditions you, how prep school rebuilds you, why the thermal core pill matters, and what calm-under-stress really looks like when an instructor is tearing your rig apart underwater. The hardest hit wasn’t logs or the cold; it was seeing a best friend ring the bell in the dark. From there, we follow his transition to college and a technical role in global infrastructure, and the long, honest work of finding purpose without a trident.That search forged Project Linear, a veteran-owned performance brand designed with military, law enforcement, first responders, and elite CrossFit athletes. Chris breaks down the details: low-to-no compression mesh liners that don’t choke your stride, two-inch hems that glide instead of band, anti-odor and antimicrobial fibers derived from volcanic ash, chafe-free seams for body armor, and ethical, certified manufacturing. No hype, no shortcuts—just gear that holds up under plates, breaching, rucks, and long trail runs. Instead of pouring cash into ads, he outfits 220-mile mountain events for veteran suicide awareness and supports the Navy SEAL Foundation, keeping the focus on community and the quiet professional.If you’re rebuilding after a setback, training for something hard, or just tired of apparel that fails under real use, this conversation hits home. Subscribe, share with a friend who needs a reset, and leave a review with the biggest lesson you’re taking into your next training block.PROJECT LINEARhttps://www.youtube.com/@PROJECTLINEARhttps://www.tiktok.com/@projectlinearhttps://www.instagram.com/projectlinear/#https://www.facebook.com/people/Project-Linear/61579134841503/Send us a textSupport the showFollow Wild Chaos on Social Media: Apple iTunes: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-wild-chaos-podcast/id1732761860Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/5KFGZ6uABb1sQlfkE2TIoc?si=8ff748aa4fc64331 ⁠⁠⁠Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/wildchaospodcastBam's Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bambam0069Youtube: https://youtube.com/@wildchaospodTikTok: ⁠⁠⁠https://www.tiktok.com/@thewildchaospodcastMeta (Facebook): ⁠⁠⁠https://www.facebook.com/TheWildChaosPodcast

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• #81 Charged by a Bear - Predator Control vs. Conservation: The Truth You’re Not Supposed to Say w/Jenn Rivet

  A sow at six feet. Cubs overhead. A guide holding a hard line. The moment cracks open fast—and it never lets up from there. We break down what a charging bear is really saying: the pinned ears, the jaw clacks, the bluff rushes that test your calm and your conviction. Because out here, panic kills—and composure keeps you alive.Then we dig into the work no one films. Thousands of pounds of bait dragged through thick Alberta timber. Barrels and beavers hauled deep to pattern sex and size. The long, quiet sits where ethics are measured not by what you take, but by what you let walk.Predator management gets stripped of the politics and the pretty words. Bears and wolves multiply faster than moose and deer; spring calves and fawns don’t stand a chance without balance. “Let nature take its course” sounds noble—until the helicopters come, until the snares replace hunters, until the meat goes to waste. This is conservation rooted in data, discipline, and respect.We revisit the spear hunt that broke the internet—and what it taught us about storytelling, perception, and earning trust in the middle, not the extremes.And beneath all of it runs faith, family, and legacy. A 36-year marriage built on Jesus Christ. Kids raised to ask hard questions. Grandkids learning to shoot a .410 and skin what they take. A health scare labeled “a miracle” by pathology—and a peace before surgery that can only be called divine.The conversation ends where it began: stewardship. Manage predators. Use the meat. Tell the story well. And always keep a warm place at the table for those who need it most.If this hits home, share it with a friend, follow the show, and leave your take on ethical predator management—we’ll read the best on air.To learn more about The Rivets and their outfit, visit: https://therivetco.com/ and follow their journey on Instagram here: https://www.instagram.com/jennrivet_/?hl=en  and  https://www.instagram.com/johnnyrivet/?hl=enSend us a textSupport the showFollow Wild Chaos on Social Media: Apple iTunes: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-wild-chaos-podcast/id1732761860Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/5KFGZ6uABb1sQlfkE2TIoc?si=8ff748aa4fc64331 ⁠⁠⁠Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/wildchaospodcastBam's Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bambam0069Youtube: https://youtube.com/@wildchaospodTikTok: ⁠⁠⁠https://www.tiktok.com/@thewildchaospodcastMeta (Facebook): ⁠⁠⁠https://www.facebook.com/TheWildChaosPodcast

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• #80 - The Wildest War-to-Startup Story You’ll Ever Hear w/Marcus "Doc" Haralson

  A ridgeline in Okinawa turns into a “Christmas tree” of chem lights. A young Navy corpsman—adopted by Marines, hardened by the desert, and allergic to excuses—learns how fast jokes turn off when core temperatures spike and a friend’s life hangs on a bag of ice and an IV drip. From Third LAR in 29 Palms to the first firefight of the Iraq invasion in an LAV, he paints the chaos with unflinching detail: a gunny with a cigar and a 240, green streaks of artillery across the sky, and a bullet that somehow slipped skin while punching through a flak and blouse. The losses that hurt most weren’t always in combat; sometimes they were self-inflicted or silent, and those are the ones that linger.Then the story veers into Kabul, where contractor life felt like a satire—training in a ghost-town range, piss-test acrobatics, Gurkhas who needed nine people to open a gate, dysentery from bad chow, and MRAP joyrides to flea markets. Out of the absurd came “Aegis Underground,” a meme insurgency that roasted incompetent leadership and accidentally built camaraderie. When a beltway boss tried to bark orders, the phone clicked and a new chapter began: college, guiding on the coast, a nonprofit that used trips as a pretext for the real medicine—men talking without posturing.What follows is the blueprint he wishes more vets heard sooner. Identity doesn’t end with a DD‑214. Purpose can be rebuilt in small, disciplined moves: fasting, breath work, running, labs, and a circle of friends who answer late-night calls. He’s honest about the grind of entrepreneurship and the fear that comes with walking from guaranteed pay. He’s also proof that you can trade adrenaline for ownership. His newest leap is Dillo, a high-output, wireless, Bluetooth‑dimmable adventure light built for nights on rafts, golf carts, and UTVs—a simple idea executed well by someone who learned to trust his hands and his gut.If you want war stories with humor, contractor chaos with receipts, and a clear-eyed map from service to a self-directed life, this one hits. Tap play, share it with a friend who needs to hear it, and leave a review so more people find the show.To check out Doc's crazy adventures, follow his journey at @Ilive2fish on InstagramSend us a textSupport the showFollow Wild Chaos on Social Media: Apple iTunes: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-wild-chaos-podcast/id1732761860Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/5KFGZ6uABb1sQlfkE2TIoc?si=8ff748aa4fc64331 ⁠⁠⁠Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/wildchaospodcastBam's Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bambam0069Youtube: https://youtube.com/@wildchaospodTikTok: ⁠⁠⁠https://www.tiktok.com/@thewildchaospodcastMeta (Facebook): ⁠⁠⁠https://www.facebook.com/TheWildChaosPodcast

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