The Reason
There were a lot of lessons learned on this trip. The major reason for taking on the #payitforwardtour, was to stop at different organizations around the country and raise money to help with their missions. I have done quite a few public speaking engagements since climbing El Capitan and I thought it would be a great idea to use that to give back to others.
The Big Idea
I received a Challenged Athletes Foundation grant in April 2019. I originally applied based on making an attempt at climbing Mt, Rainier. Unfortunately that has been a lot harder to organize and fund than I had hoped. It was apparent I was not going to be able to do an attempt this year so I had to figure out how I was going to use the grant I wanted to stay within the same realm of activity. I decided that maybe I could do a huge rock climbing trip while giving back to others. The pay it forward tour was born. My idea was to raise money and split the funds to help pay for my trip and if possible put some toward Mt. Rainier
The Planning
After this big epiphany I had to figure out what this was going to look like. I decided that I would just pick places I had never been. Then I would find organizations that would like to do an event. I immediately started Google searching and randomly emailing any organization I could find. Wanting to stick to certain types of organizations, I emailed adaptive sports non profits and Boys & GIrls Clubs. I also had a few friends make suggestions and help me contact companies like REI. From past experience I knew that I would get a lot of interest at first and then some would not work out for various reasons. So I emailed as many I could find. In the end I was able to secure 6 presentations. Once I knew I had events in place I had to figure out how I was going to live on the road for almost 2 months.
Lessons Learned 1 – Do Your Research
This is where I started making mistakes and learning lessons haha. I chose to go the southern route on Interstate 40 to get to California. I chose this route because there are a lot of interesting places I wanted to stop. It never crossed my mind how hot it would be on this route. I wanted to sleep in my van to save money, but after the first night that was not happening. So Motel 6 it was. If you have read my other posts you know I had a lot of generous family and friends who also made it much more bearable by giving me places to stay. Ok so I got through that mistake. Lesson learned, research weather and be better prepared for all different kinds.
Lesson 2 – Technology Will Fail You
Almost every one of my presentations so far has had some type of technology mishap. This trip was no different. In Rhode Island, I did a kick off presentation for the Paradox Sports Mile Fundraiser. When I tried to play my movie the sound wasn’t working. After what seemed like an eternity, we figured out it was just the sound on my computer that wasn’t turned up. Apparently there are two different sound volumes and we had checked the wrong one. In Montana, I tried to raise funds for the Boys & Girls Club of Glacier Country. . I had sent my presentation in advance so it could be tested on the venues technology. It was working fine until I needed it to haha. The big moment came where I play my movie and sure enough total static. So while the tech guys were troubleshooting I improvised and told stories. In the end my friend amanda saved the day by suggesting they play the shorter version from Youtube. For some reason that worked in Oregon, I tried to raise money for Oregon Adaptive Sports. It actually wasn’t me that had a problem finally haha. My presentation went off without a hitch. When it came time for Hans Florine, the sound didn’t work. This was very problematic as he had quite a few video clips. In the end it worked and he of course told some amazing stories. When I did my presentation in Telluride at the Gohawkeye Foundation., I played the completely wrong movie. Craig had made a movie of my ascent of Astroman also. It actually worked out better that way and I just played the shorter version after. The other events went fairly smoothly with just minor things that needed to be figured out. Lesson learned, you need to roll with it and improvise. Always have a back up plan.
Lesson 3 – If You advertise It They May Still Not Come
One of the other criteria for choosing where to speak was proximity to friends. I chose places where I could either stay with friends or that friends could reasonably travel to see me speak. This ended up being a really good idea. You see I am not a super famous athlete or personality. When people see that I am speaking somewhere they have no reference as to what they might get out of the experience. If someone saw Tommy Caldwell or Alex Honnold on a poster they would have a pretty good idea what the talk may be about. I am hoping this changes over time. Unfortunately this lack of fame or not being known did not help get people to my events. Luckily at every event, i at least had a few friends and friends of friends show up to fill some seats. A few strangers showed up too. When I got the idea I thought that the people who normally support these organizations would just naturally show up to support them. Even if they didn’t care who i was they would still show their support. That did not happen. It isn’t a big deal for me other than I didn’t have a lot of extra funds to pay for my trip. What really bothered me is that these organizations put a lot of time, effort, and money into making this all happen. I am not sure what I might do differently about this lesson but I am glad I didn’t ask them to pay me a certain amount up front. I do greatly appreciate all the support I did get though. I still met some really cool people and had a fun time at each place. Lesson learned, even if only one person listens you have changed one persons life for the better. Keep trying, keep talking and you will change many.
Would I Do It Again?
When I got home, exhausted and a bit defeated from the lack of support, I said I would never do this again. That is not totally true. I without a doubt want to keep trying to raise money for other people with my speaking . I just don’t think I am going to do anymore 2 month trips by myself. If I try to sleep in my van again, it will be set up much better. In the end this was a wonderful experience with lots of friendships made along the way. I wouldn’t trade it for anything and I am really glad I chose to do it.
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