Playing hard in the outdoors is my passion. I am a "Weekend Warrior" at heart!
Hometown: New Bedford, MA. Moved to Worcester cutting a 57 mile commute in half, saving countless hours for playtime.
University: Roger Williams University, Bristol, RI, Bachelor of Science, Marine Biology 1998
Work: Product Support Engineer at Waters Corporation in Milford, MA, 2001 to present
What is Venturing? “An undertaking that is dangerous, daring, or of uncertain outcome.”
Who to blame? Blame my parents for giving me the travel bug early in life always planning an exciting destination hitching up the camper and jumping into the conversion van. Off we would go time and time again....
Scouting: Troop 46 in New Bedford, MA was most the influential experience as a young adult. Having the opportunity to be part of something bigger and not really knowing it because your too young to realize that this decision is about to change you forever. Having adult leadership that was second to none and a group of friends growing up in scouting together left an impression on me that can never be replaced. Commitment to the program meant working together; trying to improve through rank, leadership and actively growing up with a group of peers with similar goals, striving to make each other better. The single greatest experience in Scouting is that those kids are some of the best people I know today.
In 1993, I attended a leadership trek at Philmont Scout Ranch in Cimarron, New Mexico as the Catholic Committee on Scouting representative was life changing. Philmont was a BSA High Adventure Base and was like no other camp I had ever dreamed, nestled in the southern reaches of the Rocky Mountains with peaks reaching 12,000' in elevation, the terrain was both demanding and breathtaking. Everything I had learned in Scouting was put to the test out there and a long story for another day :-)
Attained Rank of Eagle Scout 1994 was a proud moment and still one of my most coveted accomplishments. Most of us were all 17 years 364 days old which is tradition in Troop 46 and the good old fashioned way of waiting until the last minute. Think Tom Brady comeback in the 4th Quarter sort of way!
College! What a shocker. Leave home, meet new people. Your world just got bigger again.. New sports like Rugby to get all kinds of crazy, go nuts and so many other distractions that I cannot possibly begin to report all the juicy details.... What happened in college stays in college!
Venturing: I started venturing with my work buddy while working at Woods Hole Group Environmental Laboratory. Being from Maine and I being quite the 'maniac' we got along great, another Eagle Scout. He had a long list of hikes under his belt, more than I could count even with what I considered was an illustrious scouting background. Instead of hitting the bars, night clubs and cruising the strip on the weekends, I started hitting the mountains and going on some crazy marathon hikes, the kind with early morning starts, lasting well into the night.
I began sharing trail days with old friends, new friends, college buddies... and a lot of times by myself. What I learned after three years straight of peak bagging and many long weekends backpacking, there was a new experience to be lived rounding every twist and turn in the trail. On many occasions, I revisited my fond memories of Scouting and Philmont here in the Appalachian Mountains of New England.
Soon after peak bagging my way through the New Hampshire 48 and Maine 15, my pursuits on the high alpine summits of New England slowing down, I decided to jump right into whitewater kayaking, full speed ahead.
I signed my “younger” sister Elaine and I for a two-week whitewater introduction class with the AMC Boston Paddlers (Appalachian Mountain Club). She could not say no because it was her 22nd birthday present back in June 2002. We just happened to meet my now Brother-in-Law Jeff that first weekend on the river. We both fell in love with kayaking and she fell head over heels in love!
Racing: In January 2003, a new acquaintance of mine at Waters approached me in the gym and asked, "Dude! You like to run, paddle, bike, hike and ski!" Of course was my reply in which he insisted I join him and his brother on this crazy race in the White Mountains of New Hampshire which turned out to be the Tuckerman Inferno. The mileage immediately has you overwhelmed, never mind the specific difficulty and challenge within each leg of the event. 8.3 mile run, 6 mile downriver paddle, 18 mile bike, 3 mile hike and climb/ski.... down Left Gully on Tuckerman's Ravine. I reminded him that it is difficult just to hike up from the parking lot and ski Tuckerman's! Oh well... Why not give it a chance. A worthy challenge for a 27 year old, not really knowing or realize that this decision is about to change you forever....again.
We were inexperienced and did not have even close to the correct gear, never mind have any understanding of the proper training required to repeatedly push our bodies this kind of distance. Additionally the logistics and support required from both family and friends ranks high up in the importance to having a good race. The event alone is along story for another day. I was the last Tuckerman solo to finish the course that year three hours behind the winner, though technically I was not last. Two persons DNF; one due to a long, cold river swim that took him out and one too tired to continue on the final leg and climb Left Gully and ski down...The three of us finished, collapsed together and were little champions!
It was then I was hooked on multisport!
Favorite Places: It does not matter what the season there is always a place to play in New England. We truly have the best of all worlds, though in a smaller more quaint scale than the Sierras, Rockies, Alps but you can still leave behind the routines of everyday living and escape into the more remote, primitive landscapes of the Northeast. Just takes a little effort and know how to find the roads less traveled.
Good Wife Astrid: We married in our backyard in May 2011 and then again in Sweden for an epic celebration on July 7 2012. I now get to explore life with Astrid and enjoy taking time to see the world through her eyes. She has a wonderfully way of exposing the beauty of keeping it simple and sweet. She challenges me by making me better all the time! I could not ask for anything more from her or anything less. She is my shining star and brightest future. She actually wanted me to start blogging about venturing and racing in the outdoors but I told her I did not have time for such things. Blogging is almost as difficult as training and racing! lol
From Alpine to Cross Country Skiing, Mountain Biking and Road Cycling, Whitewater to Sea Kayaking including lots of race and event updates can be expected here in my blogs. I welcome recommendations to improve content. Thank you for visiting my blog and let me know what you like to see more of especially if it involves burning more calories!
Work hard, train hard, play harder!
Mark
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| Astrid on the summit of North Bubble in Acadia National Park |
