Frog Creek Partners

🐸 Happy National Frog Jumping Day! 🐸

Yes, apparently this is a real thing in America, celebrated each year on May 13th and inspired largely by Mark Twain’s famous 1865 short story “The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County.” The story became one of Twain’s first big hits and helped launch the American frog-jumping craze that still lives on today in places like Calaveras County, California.

At Frog Creek Partners, frogs have always meant something special to me. One reason our logo has two frogs is simple: you need at least two frogs to be partners.

The other reason? Frogs only move one direction — forward. They leap ahead. They innovate. They adapt. That’s exactly how we’ve approached the Gutter Bin® over the last 10 years: constant leapfrogging from one design improvement to the next, making the product better each time.

And of course, we can’t talk frogs without mentioning another great Mark Twain quote:

“If it’s your job to eat a frog, do it first thing in the morning. And if it’s your job to eat two frogs, eat the biggest one first.”

In other words: tackle the hard stuff head-on and keep moving forward. Sage wisdom from a man who clearly spent some time thinking about frogs. 😄

So here’s to frogs, forward momentum, and leapfrogging toward better ideas and cleaner water.

💧 Same storm. Same neighborhood. Two very different stories. 💧

The difference is upstream: Gutter Bin® systems doing their quiet, unglamorous job, day after day.

A note for anyone watching closely: Water is flowing out of the clean outfall while the single Gutter Bin in frame looks calm. That's because multiple storm drains feed that outfall, and every one of them has a Gutter Bin upstream catching pollution before it gets there. The polluted outfall? One drain, no Gutter Bin. That drain just topped our candidate list for some Gutter Bin love. ❤️

Our team is in Vail this week servicing the existing Gutter Bin fleet as part of the Town of Vail's Restore the Gore campaign, a long-running, community-powered effort to protect and restore Gore Creek through stormwater improvements, riparian restoration, watershed education, and partnerships across the valley.

Vail is doing the hard work. Frog Creek is proud to be on the ground supporting it.

🐸Catching pollution before it hits Sloan Lake💧

If you've spent any time at Denver's Sloan Lake, you know it's worth protecting. 177 acres of park and lake right in town. A great spot for birds, paddleboarding, picnics, and arguably the best fireworks view in town.

Here's the dilemma: every time it rains, the pollution from streets drains right into the lake. Trash, cigarette butts, sediment, oil, tire tread particles and more take a quick trip through the storm drains and ends up in the water.

That's where Gutter Bins come in. Frog Creek was proud to spend a few hours with the Denver Parks and Recreation team installing Gutter Bins in storm drains around the lake. They fit into the existing storm drains to catch pollutants before they reach the lake, helping to keep Sloan Lake as a great place for Denver to recreate for years to come.

Small hardware, big downstream impact. We're so grateful to work with a city that takes water quality seriously. Thank you Denver Parks and Recreation for the hard work you do!

🎧 A good listen for your week, brought to you by Brian... and other Brian 🐸

Brian Smith recently invited Frog Creek's own Brian Deurloo on the Daily Influence podcast for a wide-ranging conversation. The kind that goes past the usual founder-story beats and into the harder questions. What does responsible innovation actually look like? Why does action matter more than the idea itself? What does it take to build something that has to work in the real world?

Thanks to Brian (the host) for having Brian (Frog Creek's founder) on the show.

The Daily Influence is definitely worth a follow if you're not already listening.

▶️ Episode 712: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oJetn2f9jvs

Daily Influence 1 like. "712. From Idea to Impact: Building Solutions That Actually Matter"

🐸At zoos, Priority #1 is always animal and visitor welfare. Priority #2? Well, sometimes it's managing all the #2. 🐘🦏🦒💩

With hundreds of animals doing their business daily, zoos face stormwater challenges most facilities never see. That's why we create custom filtration solutions designed for each zoo's specific infrastructure needs. Cheyenne Mountain Zoo is unique, and we're proud to help them manage the less glamorous, more "organic" side of stormwater.

Unique stormwater challenges? We've got custom solutions. Reach out at 307-797-7720.

🐸Want to know what Frog Creek Partner is all about? 🎙️

Brian joined the Ripple Effect podcast to talk through the Frog Creek Partners' story from developing the Gutter Bin to working with conservation districts and municipalities. Check it out if you want to know more about what we do and why.

229: Frog Creek Partners - Gutter Bin Update Ripple Effect: A Podcast Putting Water In Context · Episode

🐸 Did you know? Cheyenne Mountain Zoo is home to one of the most successful giraffe conservation programs in the country! 🦒✨

Our field crew had a "day at the zoo" this week and learned about the impactful work happening at the International Center for the Care & Conservation of Giraffe. While we were there improving their stormwater filtration systems, we kept thinking: if we can make stormwater management one less concern for this talented and caring team, we've done our job. Thank you, CMZoo, for all you do!

International Center for the Care and Conservation of Giraffe At the International Center for the Care and Conservation of Giraffe at Cheyenne Mountain Zoo, we are driven by the relentless pursuit of improving the lives of giraffe worldwide. We refuse to accept the status quo, challenging ourselves to envision a future where all giraffe are living their best l...

🐸The Colorado State University Hydraulics Lab: Exceptional researchers doing exceptional work! 🙌

We're so thankful to be partnering with the Colorado State University Hydraulics Lab for Gutter Bin testing and innovation. Their expertise in hydraulic testing, scientific precision, creative problem-solving, and innovative approaches have been such a valuable asset for this project. We're fortunate to work with a team this talented. Thank you for bringing excellence and innovation to everything you do, AND getting your minds in to the gutter with us!