Katie Spotz at it Again

The 2011 Race Across America - Blue Planet Network Teams

RAAM is a non-stop cross country bicycle race from Ocenside, CA to Anapolis, MD. It is about 30% longer than the Tour de France, and racers must complete the distance in roughly half the time. The route is 3000 miles, with 170,000 feet of climbing. It crosses 12 states, 88 counties and 350 communities.

Two teams in different categories are racing on behalf of Blue Planet Network and raising funds for water projects.

These athletes are showing how commitment, determination and stamina can conquer any challenge. They are using this feat to symbolize the effort needed by the global community to tackle the water crisis. With the attention they receive from this epic challenge, they hope to raise enough funds to provide dozens of communities around the world with long-term access to safe drinking water. Please learn more about both teams and support safe drinking water projects in their honor.

Make their miles meaningful! Just a penny a mile gives a person a life with clean water.

Ride for Your Lives - Katie & Sam   

Sam Williams and Katie Spotz are not professional athletes. You'd walk past them on the street without a second glance. However, this seemingly ordinary pair have achieved the extraordinary. Both completed record-breaking solo rows across the Atlantic Ocean, between them spending nearly five months alone in 20-foot boats, travelling 6,500 miles through treacherous conditions. Combined, they cycled more than 10,000 miles across North America, Europe, the Middle East and Africa, and swam the entire length of the 325-mile Allegheny River in Pennsylvania. Along the way, they have received worldwide acclaim.

They are out to break the two-person mixed team record for RAAM and bring clean water to children and families in Kenya.

Team H2Ope - Andre, Sara, Alex & Larry  

Team H20pe is a group of passionate cyclists connected by the threads of various races, bike shops and charity rides. Team Manager, Andre Husain, dreamed of competing in the Race Across America (RAAM), known as the "world's toughest bicycle race." Sharing his vision for the race and passion for addressing the world's water crisis, Andre sparked excitement. His dream came together with the guidance of experienced RAAM veteran, Kathleen Espino, as crew chief. Racers Alex Galindo, Larry Smith, and Sara Harper signed on with Andre as a four-person RAAM team. They are backed by a 12-person international crew.

Team Hope has partnered with Drink Local. Drink Tap. to create and fund their own water project for the St. Charles School in Uganda.

Questions About My 2817 Mile Challenge

I've been getting lots of questions about my 2817 mile challenge.

If you didn't read my original post describing what I'm up to and why, please read it here.
Basically I was inspired by a  young lady who ROWED across the Atlantic Ocean. Because of family and career responsibilities I can't row the Atlantic or any other ocean.  Katie Spotz rowed an amazing 2817 miles and did it to raise awareness and funds (over $80,000) for Blue Planet Run, an organization dedicated to bringing clean safe drinking water to those around the world who do not have it.
I'm going to stay at home here in Hawaii and go on 2817 miles of adventures (before April of 2011) to raise money for the same cause. My current goal is to raise $25,000.

What kind of Adventures count toward your total?
I'm not just going to count every mile I move over the coming year so I came up with a list of "adventure guidelines" :
Paddleboard, kayak or OC1 - 10 mile minimum to be counted
Swimming - 3 mile open ocean to count
Running or hiking - 8 miles to count
biking - 20 miles in a day to count
Sailing canoe or Sport catamaran - 20 miles to count.
Nothing in a car or plane counts. Physical endurance adventures only.All adventures will reflect my respect and love for these beautiful islands.I'll be taking lots of pictures and video.

Some Adventures will be near the minimum as I do have a family, job and a business to attend to. Some will be island to island paddles and some adventures all the way around Oahu. Scroll back on this blog to get some ideas of my past adventures

Why Blue Planet Run as a cause?
I did my homework. Blue Planet Run has an impeccable international reputation for using funds donated honestly and wisely. They have only a few managers and lots of workers in the field. The projects are openly explained and peer reviewed. They got their name from the way they started off raising money, with an around the world run. And now many hundreds of thousands have clean drinking water who otherwise wouldn't. I want to help, too and it feels great to be part of this team.

Are you doing this alone?
Sometimes yes and sometimes I'm going with friends. One of the runners who was lucky enough to be on the Around the World Relay who will be doing a run/paddle relay around the island with me. Other friends too will be joining me from time to time. If YOU want to join in the fun just email me at kozhawaii@gmail.com and we'll set something up.

Any other incentives for people to donate?
For every $150 someone donates I'll give an hour of my Fitness Training Services to that person or someone they choose to give it too. Get fit and spare a child from having to drink out of the sewage pond.

How do we track your progress?
By the end of this week I'll have totals on my website and blog and all of the longer adventures will be tracked  real time (updates about once an hour ) on the blog.You can also follow me on Twitter at kozhawaii

What's next?
In June I'm going to have another Race with the Sum. I'm going to start at Magic Island at exactly sunrise and bike to Eva, turn up the west side and ride to the end of the road, run the bike around the Ka'ena Point trail, bike across the North Shore, down the east side to the Makai Pier across from Sea Life Park where I'll have my paddleboard waiting to paddle back to Magic Island before the sun sets. Can I do it? It's a hundred mile bike and 25 mile paddle adventure and it will be exciting and close and I need you to do your part and donate at least $30 to Blue Planet Run. My blog will have updates every half hour on that one. Check back often. On both my blog and website you'll see a big blue square that says Team Blue - Blue Planet Run. Please donate.

I'm calling this the "2817 mile adventure for water". I'm not sure I like that. If anyone has any other suggestions, please let me know.

If you want to comment, make a suggestion or ask questions the best way is to click on the comments link at the end of this post. I do read and respond to all questions.

Jeff Kozlovich Interviews Katie Spotz about Her Solo Non Stop Row Across the Atlantic Ocean

I have been following Katie Spotz and her Row for Water campaign since early fall. Her story is inspiring and includes over $80,000 raised for Blue Planet Run to  provide safe drinking water to those who otherwise would go without it. I've now taken up the challenge and will go on 2817 miles of endurance adventures (the number of miles she rowed ) to raise money for the same cause. Katie set the bar high but her story is so inspiring I think I'll be able to do it.

-Jeff Kozlovich

You are the youngest to row the Atlantic solo nonstop. But that's only half the story. You had to do a huge amount of organization and planning, chasing down sponsors  to get your adventure funded and crafting a campaign to raise money for Blue Planet Run.

Can you explain how that part went?

Before I took my first strokes across the Atlantic, I spent about two years planning and preparing. I spent much more time sorting out the logistics, the gear, and the boat than the physical preparation. I trained about an hour a day, working to increase endurance with a mixture of high-intensity cardio workouts, weight lifting focused on strengthening the core and back and weekly long rows on the erg machine. An essential part of training included trial rows on Lake Erie. But endurance is much more of a mental challenge than physical. A year before the row, I worked with a Sports Psychologist who helped me break down the challenge into manageable steps or phases. I have also participated in extensive meditation retreats, the last one in which I meditated twelve hours a day for ten days straight without any sort of human interaction similar to the isolation at sea. 

 What crazy replies did you get when you started asking for sponsorship?

Creating the Row for Water campaign was an adventure in itself! Although my many sponsorship rejection letters were fairly polite, I did receive a few emails right before I left explaining that rowing the Atlantic is a death wish and that the chance of me getting eaten by a shark is very high. 

Which  was more difficult, the logistics or all that happened after leaving the dock in Dakar?                                                                                           

The challenges on land and at sea where different but overcoming it all made the experience that much more rewarding. There were moments at sea I didn't know where I'd find the strength to continue on and there were days in the preparations stages where I questioned whether the efforts were going to amount to anything. 

Can you share some of the joy, any moment when you felt liked you belonged out there alone in the Atlantic? 

For a large part of the journey I felt present;  there’s no need to think beyond the moment. The high moments were filled with abundant wildlife, endless sky, and the simplicity of life on a rowboat. As I was approaching the fourth-way mark of the journey, I wanted to do something special to celebrate. The decision was made for me when fins started to appear. Moments later my boat was surrounded by a pod of ten or fifteen dolphins. They swam so close to my boat, I could nearly touch them. I felt like they were giving me a show mid-Atlantic by doing flips and tricks for twenty minutes.

I'm trying to figure out how intense those 10 plus hours a day of rowing  were. How many strokes per minute and do you have any idea of your average heart rate during your rowing?

My main goal was to be able to wake up and do another 10-12 hours of rowing the next day. I really had to pace myself for the 10,000 daily oar strokes so I wasn't working at a racing pace. Not only would this burn me out in the first day, but it would leave me vulnerable to injury. 

 I have always been curious about how you adapted to a largely dehydrated food diet. Did you notice any difference in performance? Did it take time for your body to adapt?

What was your favorite dehydrated meal?

What is your normal on land diet like?

My diet as sea and land are very different. At times, I struggled to force food down and keep it there! During the first two weeks, I lost my appetite due to the extreme heat. There were certain foods that worked on land but at sea , I had different food cravings and preferences. The one dehydrated meal that I enjoyed the most was fettuccine alfredo from a company called Enertia Trail Foods. Although the dehydrated meals helped me get in my daily 4,000-5,000 calories and keep the weight of the boat down, now that I'm on land again, I'm not going anywhere near these meals!

The one thing I missed the most at sea was fresh fruits and vegetables. While I did bring a sprouting kit on board, the first thing I was looking for once I arrived was watermelon (and, yes, they had it waiting for me). My diet now is filled with lots of fresh fruits and veggies. For breakfast I usually have yogurt and fruit, lunch a hearty salad and/or soup, and dinner a lean meat with more greens. 

Most endurance athletes are a bit older, mostly because of the mental/emotional component. You are a young endurance athlete. How did you decide that ultra distance events were for you?

It started small with my first marathon at age 18. Before this challenge, I wasn't particularly athletic so it was a thrill to realize that these challenges are available to me and all walks of life. I realized that I was the person holding me back by doubts and fears, and that the real challenge is the mental component. With endurance, no matter how fit your body is, there comes a moment where you're faced with a wall. And it's the mind that allows you to overcome.

After the first marathon, I was curious (very, very curious) to see how far I could go. A few adventures later (running across two deserts, swimming a 325-mile river, rowing 3,000-miles across the Atlantic, and a 3,300 mile bicycle ride across America) and I'm still hungry for more!

You are now an internationally respected endurance athlete so I'd like to get your take on Penny Palfrey's 72 mile open ocean swim attempt.

Huge kudos to Penny! She seems to be well-prepared, trained, and supported. With any endurance challenge I think its important to have your head on straight, especially with facing unknown dangers and Penny looks like she's taking the right approach. I'll be watching and cheering on from Ohio!

I've been following your adventure for many months mostly feeling inspired but on occasion feeling down because I can't go on a similar adventure.  I have decided go on 2817 miles of endurance adventures in the coming year here in Hawaii to raise money for Blue Planet Run. Out of respect for all you have accomplished with your Row for Water, that is the number of miles you rowed across the Atlantic.  Right now I'm in the oh my god what did i get myself into phase. Any advice for me?

When I was a bit younger and looking at other people's adventurous lifestyles, I remember feeling a bit jealous too. But that mindset will may not get me to the adventures so I started to look at what was within my reach. Adventures are available to all, whether it means sneaking in a two hour row across a lake or 70-day row across an ocean. 

Some of the best moments in endurance are those oh my god, what did I get myself into phases. It means you are stepping outside your comfort zone and that's the best place to grow, learn, and experience. For two and a half years, I asked myself that same question while planning, preparing, and executing the row. You're certainly not alone and with a bit of belief in yourself and you capabilities, I have no doubt that you can cover your 2817 miles of endurance adventures. Just believe and enjoy because it might not be long before you're asking for more!

You achieved your dream and are on your way to achieving  much more. Any advice to those still just dreaming?

I was the worst on my college crew team and I firmly believe we are all capable of achieving much more than we may think. Often, the number one thing to hold ourselves back is just that, our self. 

What are you planning for your next adventure?

Before setting off on my next adventure, I would like to write a book about the trials and tribulations preparing for and taking on my solo row across the Atlantic. For my next adventure, I would like to cycle from South to North America, visiting safe drinking water projects along the way. My mission would be to learn and share with others where the donations have gone and the lives affected as a result of the row. 


Click here to donate to Blue Planet Run