This week we are sitting down and chatting with Stan Gaskell (Cameraman Stan!!) about his experience adventuring and filming Russ Cook’s historic “Project Africa” run across the continent!! A few weeks ago Project Africa wrapped up in Tunisia, the northernmost point on the continent after nearly a year long journey. Stan was a linchpin of this project. From the logistic planning months before Russ set out to the final dip in the ocean, he was responsible for filmmaking, problem solving, and crewing. From “Harry Potter who hit rock bottom” to one of the biggest badasses in the history of badasses, Stan’s excursion across Africa is LEGENDARY! Stan, Nelly (their trusted ‘Ship of Theseus’esque van), Russ, and the rest of their amazing team consistently battled problems both small and seemingly insurmountable- including food poisoning, visa issues, border crossings, getting the van on a rickety wooden boat to cross the sea (you truly have to see this to believe it), getting stranded in the middle of the Sahara, and so many more. Project Africa was a Grand Adventure in every sense of the word and I am so honored to be able to sit down and hear all about it from Stan’s perspective. Hope you all enjoy!! MORE FROM STAN AND PROJECT AFRICA: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/cameramanstan_?igsh=MzRlODBiNWFlZA== Support their fundraising: https://givestar.io/gs/PROJECTAFRICA

The fact that I got the opportunity to sit down with three INCREDIBLE human beings a few weeks off of completing the 1,000 mile Iditarod is something I will never take for granted. These three guys are some of the most interesting people I’ve ever had the chance to meet Ryan Wanless has traversed from Anchorage to Nome THREE times at this point, one on foot and two on bike. He’s sweet, he’s funny, he’s incredible humble in spite of being one of the toughest people on the planet. Gavan Hennigan is the most interesting man in the world. I was lucky enough to interview him in 2020 for what I’ve always stated as my favorite episode of this pod (194- check it out). In my eyes you get to be the most interesting man in the world through a mix of life experiences, big challenges/adventures married with introspection. The wisdom he’s gained from life and adventure is completely captivating and his ability to communicate that is top notch. Asbjorn Bruun, the man, the myth, the legend. Gavan told me “this is the most interesting guy on the planet.” Game recognizing game. The first person to ever ski the Iditarod. A man who has previously spent years patrolling north eastern Greenland on dogsled, securing expeditions from polar bears. Known as The Terminator for relentlessly forging ahead through the Alaskan wilderness. And through the Iditarod, the biker, the skiier, and the runner found each other and made their way through the expansiveness of Alaska, down frozen rivers, across mountain ranges and open ice. They felt both insignificant in their size but significant in their humanity. I truly mean it when I say these three are amongst the people I look up to; my heroes!

MORE FROM JOSIAH: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/josiahfilm/

This is the story of Sunny Stroeer's Iditarod. What she experienced in the wilds of Alaska as she became the first woman ever to ski the 1,000 miles from Anchorage to Nome!!

Chelsea Jackson is an avid hiker and trail runner who works for the New Hampshire State Parks on the summit of Mt. Washington! Mt. Washington is notorious for having the "world's worst weather" and consistently has days where windspeed is over 100 mph. The summers can have major temperature swings when storms blow in (or as Chelsea calls the storms..."Impending Doom") and the winters can be absolutely brutal with extremely low temperatures on top of crazy powerful winds. Chelsea has a very unique experience of living and working on the summit through the busy summer season but also the isolated winter. In this episode we hear all about how she made a major life transition and took a major leap to pursue this job, what the day to day life of living in extreme weather is like, and how trail running led her to this adventure! I hope you enjoy!! MORE FROM CHELSEA: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/chelseap.jackson/

#374: Tyler Lyson -- Discovery, Adventure, Science and the Joys of Paleontology by Chris Ward

This week we are chatting with photographer and filmmaker Francesco Valentinuzzi!! Francesco is in the midst of a production called "Ephemeral", an adventure film about world renown Ice Climber Jeff Mercier. In this episode we chat all about the genesis of this idea, what he is envisioning for "Ephemeral", and what excites Francesco about filmmaking! We also dive into his passion as a photographer and the various ways he has pursued big adventures in his life! Hope you all enjoy!! MORE FROM FRANCESCO AND "EPHEMERAL": Website: https://www.francescovalentinuzzi.com/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/francesco_valentinuzzi/ Jeff Mercier's Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jeff_mercier_/

"We are meant to seek, engage, be filled up with wisdom from sources far more attuned to the truth than ourselves" - Paul Scheuring, The Far Shore Paul Scheuring is an author, a filmmaker, a show runner, and a screenwriter. More importantly, Paul is my friend, a mentor, a smart-guy-I-talk-to-in-order-to-make-sense-of-the-world, a fellow adventurer, a dude who likes to surf, a father, and someone who encourages folks to chase their dreams! In this episode we dive into a deep discussion about creativity and the process of how one expresses themselves. We base this chat around his novel "The Far Shore", a deeply meaningful novel Paul wrote a few years back. I've always been a fan of Paul as a person but now that I've read a couple things he has written I'm a HUGE fan of Paul as a writer!! I HIGHLY recommend this book!! "Some fundamental thing drives us, and we cannot catch a direct glimpse of it. But it must be an unease, for if it was anything otherwise, a calmness, a contentment, we would not search so furiously as a species for an answer to it." MORE FROM PAUL: Check out the Far Shore: https://www.amazon.com/Far-Shore-Paul-T-Scheuring/dp/0998450200

This week we are chatting with adventurer, gym teacher, and a man who chases audacious goals Jason Hardrath!! Jason recently led an expedition to attempt an Infinity Loop on South America's tallest volcano Ojos del Salado in Chile. Though him and his team were not able to complete the infinity loop (summiting twice and running completely around the base of it) every single one of them summited the 22,000 foot peak. In this episode we talk about what lessons we can learn through a failed attempt, how we learn more from the journey than the destination, and what he plans on doing differently next time! Jason also shares stories from his summer taking on the Rocky Mountain Grand Slam - summiting all the 14ers in Colorado, 13ers in Wyoming, and 12ers in Montana. Sounds incredible and came down to the wire!! Hope you enjoy this episode as much as I did!! I always learn a lot from Jason every time he is on the show!

This week we are chatting with adventurer Valerie Gagne about her very first solo expedition circumnavigating the Eye of Quebec!! A few weeks ago Val skied 180kms over 6 days around the frozen Eye in the middle of winter. She battled slushy ice, isolation and extremely cold weather before ultimately finishing the challenge! In this episode we talk about the reasons why Val wanted to take this on, the differences between a solo expedition and one with partners, and the obstacles she faced over these six days and how she overcame them. This is an awesome conversation!! I hope you enjoy! MORE FROM VAL: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/_therunningpanda/ Blog: https://valsaysitsnaptime.wordpress.com/2024/02/10/expedition-eye-of-quebec/

This week we are chatting with former football D-Lineman and current endurance athlete Derek Snakenburg!! Derek and I have a lot in common- both from Iowa, both ultra runners, both busy dads in our 30s and both of us played D-Line on the football team for Wartburg College (I only stayed one year..if I would have stayed longer Derek would have been my teammate!). So it was an absolute joy to be able to sit down and chat with him! In this episode he shares the journey that led him to the start line of the Mines of Spain 100 in Dubuque, Iowa for his very first 100 miler! We talk about the "perfect day", how we spend our energy, filling the sponge, and much more!! Hope you all enjoy! MORE FROM DEREK: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/dereksnakenberg/