Inbox: Issue 96

Fanmail, Feedback, Ideas & Opinions

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In response to Editor’s Note #95: The Carbon Cancer

Put the Climate First
I have been reading Adventure Sports Journal for several years now and have been following the “A Ripple in the Force” and the subsequent Editor’s Note “The Carbon Cancer.” I could not agree with you more in regard to having to address President Trump’s dangerous political agenda, specifically as it deals with climate change.

I started a group in South Lake Tahoe called the Tahoe Climate Action Network (facebook.com/TahoeClimateChangeActionNetwork), ran for the local utility district board on a climate change platform (facebook.com/NickExlineTahoe), and recently a collaborative group has put together a program in which South Lake Tahoe will commit to receiving 100% of our electricity from renewable sources by 2030. Barring any unforeseen event we anticipate having an approval on this objective, in addition to other sustainability measures very soon.

We have put together this 100% renewable transition into a format that would be easily replicated by other communities and we are working with the Sierra Nevada Alliance (sierranevadaalliance.com) and Sierra Camp (sbcsierracamp.org) to transition this 100% renewable pledge to other communities in the Sierra.

The recreational community is the perfect partners to help in this effort.  When your readers state that they want positive action, this could be that positive action. The outdoor recreational lifestyle has guided my decisions throughout my life and is now how my kids and I spend our free time. With your help we can help make sure that our climate and environment can be enjoyed for generations to come.

I appreciate your help and support.

—Nick Exline, Zephyr Cove, NV

Trump is a Step Backward
You are right. Trump is an infuriating step backward – not just because of his outdated energy policy. We should do what we can to make sure his time in office is as short as possible.

—Kevin McLin, Online

Quit Whining
For what it is worth, in response to your Editor’s Note in the December 2016/January 2017 issue of Adventure Sports Journal, I believe “…it is better to keep outdoor adventure separate from politics” regardless of the publication. I regularly read Adventure Sports Journal, Competitor, Cycle California!, and Runner’s World magazines. I read them, and engage in outdoor recreational activities to commune with nature, as an escape from my political, religious, and business activities.

In any event, as one who suffered through eight years of disastrous leading from behind by the Obama Administration but didn’t protest except at the ballot box, the people have spoken and it is time for all to unite behind our elected president.

I don’t like aspects of President Trump the person and I don’t like some of his proposals, but he was the BEST option for me. I, as well as others including yourself and your staff, are certainly free to continue to express our opinions in a lawful manner. However, there is a time and place for everything, and mixing politics and outdoor recreation is a volatile mixture.

If you refuse to separate your predilection to comment on environmental and/or social issues, then I suggest that your publisher and you seriously consider renaming Adventure Sports Journal to more accurately reflect its content, etc.

Not that it matters, but I am a former elected official and I have completed 120 marathons, including 22 consecutive Boston Marathons, three half marathons, 25 consecutive Bay to Breakers 12K, two triathlons, and many shorter distance races.

Sincerely,

—Gregory Lane Hunter, St. Helena

P.S. This e-mail was watered down, i.e. significantly modified so as to not unnecessarily offend you in your current state.

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In response to Who Am I? contest

Doug Robinson
Doug Robinson has a recent and terrific book called The Alchemy of Action. It concerns, among other things, the biochemical cocktails we create in our systems by our adventurous lives. Well researched and written, anyone interested in what is unfolding inside of them will find this often witty read, mixing science with Doug’s personal search and quiet bravado, a fit. His shaman’s brain and laser focus, well earned from a lifetime of playing on his own personal edge, play well together. His insights on our biochemical psychedelia fits into his outlier perspectives, and will blow your mind! Recommended read for the intrepid.

—John Balawejder, Santa Cruz