Networking, Learning and Blue Marbles at the Adventure Travel Summit

After a 10 hour drive from Boston, Andrew and I finally arrived at the Fairmont Richelieu in Charlevoix Quebec, Canada. Crowded around the bar unwinding from a long day of traveling were many fellow adventure travel folk reconnecting over tall Canadian beer

On day one we joined other adventure delegates for a hike up to 6000 meters to the summit of Mont-du-Lac-des-Cygnes yesterday. The trail was long but easy which eased my one armed status. At our lake break we learned about a cool company based out of New Zealand called ZORB. They essentially send people downhills in big plastic globes. We hung out at the gorgeously clear summit with Timo Shaw of Country Walkers, Kathy Dragon of Dragon Path and Peter Grubb of ROW adventures. The views of the Saint Lawrence River and the surrounding mountains were spectacular.

Later that night at dinner we were immersed in photos, history and culture of the Charlevoix region. We heard from Daniel Gauthier, co-founder of Cirque du Soleil and the president and CEO of Group Le Massif.  He shared his vision for the region, a large scale recreational project called the Massif de Charlevoix, involving ski resorts, a destination train, signature lodging, spas and much more. The project slated for completion by 2013, spans over a territory of 120 sq KM, where creativity and freedom prevail in a concept that is furthest from artificial.

Days 2-4 have been filled with visionary speakers and engaging learning sessions. Most intriguing included Astrophysicist Hubert Reeves who gave us (some very scary) insights into how humans might remain here on a radically changing earth in livable, sustainable conditions. His message. Don't be optimistic or pessimistic--Be determined to make a difference. Jeff Dossett, CEO of Adventurelink.com shared his midlife epiphany in which he began climbing mountains leading to his being the 3rd Canadian in history to comlete the "Seven Summits".  Jeff Greenwald of EthicalTraveler.org discussed what we can do to promote goodwill and ease cross-cultural tensions.

My personal favorite speaker was Dr. Wallace Nichols from the California Academy of Sciences ( he also recognized my sling as he had similar shoulder surgery as I).   His life long love of turtles and the sea led him to passionately promote his r/evolution that is helping save the planet and is making a difference He promotes a simple concept treasure and fall in love with nature (again and again). His simple and powerful form of social media? He handed out a blue marble to all the attendees ( symbolizing our "big blue marble" earth) and asked us to share the marble in the next 24 hours.  It's a simple idea: commit a random act of ocean kindness by sharing a blue marble forward with someone doing good things for our blue planet and tell them to do the same.

Other highlights:
• A slide show and presentation about Chile by Jon Bowermaster, contributing editor for National Geographic Adventure
• Having dinner with my adventure travel buddies Dan Austin and Paul Lehman of Austin&Lehman Adventures. 
• A engaging talk about branding via compelling storytelling by Edward Wachtman and Sheree Johnson
• Meeting and learning from industry folk &  travel writers:
Judith Fein (she had me do a poem about a tour!) www.YourLifeisaTrip.com
Everett Potter who has written lots about Ciclismo over the years and has a great travel blog
Caren Osten Gerzberg she writes about travel, education, and women's issues for a variety of publications. Her articles also include features, profiles and essays, and she is the co-founder and editor of a blog, Drinking Diaries, about women and drinking.  (She and her three kids will hopefully be joining us on a tour)
Ellen Barone ( A travel writer, photographer, Ciclismo Classico Sicily alumni and facebook friend). She will hopefully join us in Lofoten Islands
Fran Farrell ( formal publisher of Men's Journal and National Geographic Traveler and all around super nice guy whose family joined us on the Greece Islands
Kathy Dragon. Ms Social Media. I covet her networking savvy, industry knowledge and new IPhone.

Some of the most interesting new adventure folk that I met included:
Don Mankin a travel writer who is writing a book about how travel is transformational
Craig Horrocks CEO of ZORB. You just gotta click on this to believe it.
George Asquith  President of The Great River Journey.  A delux river journey on the YUKON

LA Chancy of DNA Travel. Geneaology combined with travel

In addition to the people connections at every lunch, dinner and cocktail we were hosted the by following delightful destinations
Canada Keep Exploring
Chile Always Surprising
Innovation Norway
Brasil Sensational
Mexico Time to Go
The Alps
Ecuador: Life at it purist
The Yukon Larger than Life
and the host for next year's Summit (and where we will have a new 2011 cycling tour)
Scotland

In the hallways, at the round tables, over dinner and at the bar until the wee hours of the night I met many smart, well connected, interesting and visionary summit delegates. I thank you sharing, your entertaining conversations and your adventurous spirits

As usual I am pumped up and ready to use and share what I have learned with my team, guests and guides

Please share YOUR favorite moments and experiences at this event!

The Potential of Human Power

Although I am not a big gym enthusiast (usually a couple of months of weights in the dead of winter is enough for me) whenever I do go I watch all of the bouncing, pounding, speeding bodies on spin and step machines and fantasize--there should be a way to harness the energy of the hundreds of people that work out all day long. Frankly I always felt a bit guilty burning all that energy that goes no where. At least when I commute or take a spin through the countryside, my efforts are helping reduce carbon or at least fuel my spirit! All that human power seems so wasted on calorie burning and muscle building...

In the current issues of Bicycling Magazine and Momentum: The Magazine for Self-Propelled People, I was thrilled to read about the tapping of human energy..an idea, if it works and spreads has incredible potential. This idea is alive and spinning with several clever and visionary inventors who are developing and sharing ways that we can capture and use precious and potent pedal to convert otherwise wasted energy into productive renewable energy that, in the case of healthclubs, can ultimately can feeds back into the building’s electrical system. In the Bicycling article entitled High-Voltage workouts we learn about Hudson Harr's company that makes devices to produce pedal powered electricity out of a gym's existing equipment.

ReRev™, is retrofitting gym equipment to make alternative energy in a safe, fun, carbon-neutral and healthy manner. The kinetic motion of aerobic exercise is captured in an efficient and cost effective way to convert otherwise wasted energy into productive renewable energy that feeds back into the building’s electrical system

At a simpler, individual use level there are pedal machines that can be used to power simple machines like blenders, washing machines, saws, metal grinders and many household small machines

The Momentum article, Bike to the Future showcases Maya Pedal is a non-governmental organization located in San Andrés Itzapa, Chimaltenango, Guatemala. Maya Pedal was born in1997, working with a group of Canadians from the organization PEDAL. Following a vision for sustainable development in Guatemala, they became constituted under local control as Asociación Maya Pedal in 2001. They recycle used bicycles to build pedal-powered machines, bicimáquinas, which support and help facilitate the work of small-scale, self-sustainable projects. Through this work they hope to contribute to the conservation of the environment, the health or the Guatemalan people, and the productivity of the local economy.

Look for Ciclismo Classico to be supporting organizations like this one

In the book, The Human-Powered Home brings you the answers. It’s a compendium of information on pedal-powered, treadled, and hand-cranked devices for use in and around the home. It includes a brief history of such devices, from Archimedes’ screw to electricity-generating boots. It describes the physiology and physics behind human power and reveals how many watts one person can practically generate. It also includes plans for building your own devices, such as a pedal-powered blender and electricity generator. But most inspiring, it tells the stories of inventors from around the world and their ingenious contraption.

OK time to replace a few electricity sucking gadgets around our house!

Want to start your human powered machines collection

How about a Fender Blender?

http://rockthebike.com/node/1618

Great for events and schools...show those kids ( and teachers) how nutrition, health, saving energy and fun BLENDS together

A pedal desk?

http://mae.ucdavis.edu/~biosport/jkm/ped_desk.htm

A Most Perfect Day: Apple Picking and the Discovery Museum of Acton

The years are long but the days are short. Thoughts like this have inspired me to take my kids out of school and have a one-on-one special learning/fun day with them. Today was Luca's lucky day! On this first day of October, we drove out to Acton for a perfectly pair of outdoor- indoor activities: Apple Picking at Honey Pot Farm followed by an afternoon at the Discovery Museum in Acton. Both are about separated by 6 miles of gorgeous country road, which on a lovely fall day like today, was an added bonus to our outing

Our day started at Honey Pot Hill Farm, one of the most popular apple picking farms in the Boston are. Seems like we just missed Jennifer Gardner and her the two Afflect babes who were here on Tuesday cus the place was still abuzz. It is a farm like so many others. A few farm animals, a tractor, a maze and lots of expensive pumpkins. It was packed with school groups wanting to feed the goats who seemed to have OD'ed on .25 feed. We headed to the Macintosh and Cortland section of the orchard, munched on a couple apples and quickly filled our $22 bag before heading back to the farmstore. Sure it's pricey and pretty commercialized but in my view it is always nice to support whatever local food economies we can. I bought some local preserves, a delicious gallon of fresh, cold cider and a couple of their plain doughnuts, one of their specialties. After some begging Luca got a carmel apple then we were off to the Discovery Museum!

This tiny museum is one of my all time favorites in the Boston Area. It is basically two museums in one: One is an enormous playhouse for babes and toddlers cleverly built into the rooms of an old home and another more hands-on- science center for kids from 6-12. We spent three non-stop hours in the discovery center taking on every exhibit starting with the woodshop where I got into banging a few nails and trying to create a guinea pig house. Everything is hands-on it is easy to follow one's curiosity from station to station. My son's favorite room was the one were you could experiment with sounds and home-made musical instruments. Another was playing mini basket ball with a hair blower and ping pong balls. At other stations we dabbled with probability, fog, tornados, crystals, water currents, gears, texture, electronics, sound waves, optical illusions, magnets, the concept of one million and the always entertaining mirror room that gave us hilarious warped views of our bodies. We laughed until we cried there! If you live in the area and have not been here yet, you must go!

He and I had a truly wonderful today. Sorry about playing hooky but I promise we learned a lot and did some great bonding and healthy eating along the way. Can't let school get in the way of learning! On the way home we got ourselves some pumpkins and called it an amazing fall day! Thanks for the memories Luca