David Ott

Dave’s appreciation for the natural world has been developing since he was a young child playing in the fields and woods of his family’s small 100 acre farm in north-central Ohio. Camping and hunting skills developed into an abiding love and respect for nature. After a brief sojourn to art school and years as a professional musician, his interest returned to the cathedrals of nature and he began studying at Tom Brown jr’s Tracker School in New Jersey where he would eventually spend 18 months living in a primitive shelter as a Caretaker for the school and being part of their pilot instructor training program. This unique opportunity to practice the skills of survival and embody the philosophy of living with the earth would remain a touchstone for the rest of his life.

He continued studying at the school after his Caretakership concluded while also working in construction management in New York state. His mentor in this field became the business manager for Tom Brown jr. and in late 2006 Dave assumed responsibility for the audio recording and archiving of Tracker School classes. In 2009 he founded Tracker Audio LLC and partnered with Tom Brown jr. to develop Tracker School’s live online classes as well as remote live broadcasts of onsite classes. He continued working closely with Tom as his in-house producer for the next 15 years, spending roughly half of his time in New Jersey, until Tom’s passing in 2024.

Dave continues to produce online classes regarding primitive skills, nature connection and earth philosophy for the Tracker School as well as organizations like 4 Elements Earth Education with Rick Berry, Living Connection 1st with Jon Young and his own Sit Spot Media project. He teaches seminars on best production practices for informative & impactful online gatherings, drum crafting & drumming, archery, lacto-fermentation and sourdough bread baking. His 18 yr. old daughter would also mention his penchant for awful dad jokes and his 17 yr. old son his fondness for debriefing the dumbest things for far too long.