Before Dad Day, Adam Kunes and Ben Petchel ran Have Fun Do Good, an adventure travel company that mixed volunteering with adventure.

Now that they're dads, they look back at what that job taught them about fatherhood. This episode covers four things: being always on, learning by getting thrown in, setting the tone when plans fall apart, and how you change lives for better or worse, whether that's a trip guest or your own kid. They also catch up on Hill Yeah (a day of walking up and down a hill in Black Mountain, NC), selling hats at Second Sunday in Charleston, and what Adam has been using lately.

Guys Being Dads is for dads who want honest talk about work, family and trying to be better at both. If you've been listening, a review helps a lot.

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Dad Gear: Coulée SWIRL Mini coffee maker, $99.99: www.couleecoffee.com/products/swirl-mini

Is AI making dads more productive or just more stressed? On episode 20 of Guys Being Dads, Adam Kunes (founder of Dad Day, dad of three) and Ben Petchel (first-time dad of a five-month-old) talk honestly about how AI is changing work and parenting.

Guys Being Dads is a podcast for new dads and dads of young kids. This one is also our first episode on video.

We get into why the ideas never stop once you have an AI assistant, and why "done" has to be something you decide for yourself now. We also talk about when you should Google a baby rash versus call your mom, and how to set screen time and AI boundaries before your kids are old enough to need them. Plus Ben's first flight with a baby, robotaxis, the October 60 mile challenge, and the first details on Hill Yeah, our end-of-year Dad Day hike outside Asheville.

In this episode

• 0:00 Episode 20 and why we're finally doing video
• 2:23 320+ Dad Day newsletters and the reader emails that keep us going
• 4:50 The October 60 mile challenge in the Dad Day Slack and Strava
• 6:14 Ben's first flight with a baby (and a rookie boarding mistake)
• 10:14 AI as dads: more productive or just more stressed?
• 17:00 The new luxury is putting the phone down
• 18:18 Kids model our behavior, so who do they ask for help?
• 22:40 Defining "done" when the work never ends
• 25:00 Phones, screen time and AI with young kids
• 29:15 Announcing Hill Yeah, a sunrise to sunset dad hike
• 31:12 Gear: the Colugo Compact+ travel stroller and Tracksmith running shoes

Gear from this episode

• Colugo Compact+ travel stroller ($199)
• Tracksmith Eliot Ryder max-cushion running shoe ($220)

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We're back. After a September sabbatical, a house full of sick kids, and one very aggressive hand washer, Adam and Ben are recording again with 91 days left in 2026.

This one is about owning Q4 instead of letting it own you. Between holidays, kids' sports, a 5-month-old, an 8-month-old, and winter creeping in, the calendar is already full. So how do you get to December 26th feeling like you actually did something for yourself? We talk non-negotiables, breaking out of Groundhog Day, planning ahead for the bad-weather months, and mentally prepping for the holiday stuff you already know is gonna suck.

Plus: the Dad Day October 60-mile challenge, a pull-up bar that lives in Adam's office, a Goggins detour, gear we're wearing on repeat, and Adam dropping some hoodie history on Ben in real time.

What's in this episode:

00:00 Back in the studio, sick kids, and why dads don't get sick days

02:08 Dad Day updates: Austin moves to spring, more gear videos, the October challenge

04:20 60 miles in a month (and a dumb idea to do it in one day)

05:47 The Bullbar freestanding pull-up bar and Goggins' torn-up hands

07:24 Baby check-ins at 5 months and 8 months

09:48 Today's sponsor: Dude Wipes

12:07 Owning Q4 with 91 days left

16:45 Non-negotiables, Groundhog Day, and planning for winter with a baby

21:04 Prepping for the holiday stuff you know will suck

23:09 One for you, one for your people, one you're building

23:37 Gear: Mugsy Bayside pants, the 4Runner hunt, Luca loafers, the Filson briefcase

28:47 When was the hoodie invented? (Adam knew. Ben did not.)

Thanks to Dude Wipes for sponsoring this episode. Stock up during Amazon Prime Days, October 6-7.

Get Dude Wipes

Join the October 60-mile challenge. Run, ruck, walk, push a stroller. It all counts. Search "Dad Day Run Club" under Clubs on Strava (free version works).

[Strava link]

Stuff we mentioned:

• Bullbar pull-up bar: bullbarfit.com
• Mugsy Bayside pants
• Luca Terra Penny Loafer at Huckberry
• Filson Dryden Briefcase

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Tell us what you're setting out to do before 2027 hits. Reply to the newsletter or find us in the Slack.