Travel Pioneer Maria Leijerstam, Cycler of South Pole: Seminara/Cobb–bbc.com–6/2/15
Patricia Sexton’s Journey from Wall Street Banker to Anchorwoman in Mongolia
Patricia Sexton on Mongolian TV
UPDATE 11/28/13: LIVE from New Zealand, Patricia launches her book in Wellington
By Bridget Stangland/November 24, 2013
TWITTER: @PatriciaSexton
“I was hungry. Suddenly, I had to make it, and I wasn’t going to arrive wherever I was going by coasting. This dream I believed I had—and I still wasn’t sure what it was—would have to be real.” Patricia Sexton
Everyone has a dream. Whether large or small, these dreams are what can motivate people in their daily lives. However, some never take the leap of faith to follow them. Patricia Sexton is an individual who took her leap. She’s the author of the popular blog and book, LIVE from Mongolia. I was excited to have the opportunity to speak with Patricia recently while she was in America touring for her book before returning to her home in New Zealand. [Read more…]
Cindy Abbott On Climbing Mt. Everest And Competing in the Iditarod While Battling A Rare Disease
May 25, 2013
Cindy Abbott
Click to Listen!
Cindy Abbott, a courageous adventurer who conquered Mt. Everest, competed in the Iditarod to raise awareness for her rare, life-threatening disease, Vasculitis
PERSON OF THE DAY: Cindy Abbott’s Test of Courage Racing in the Iditarod
Cindy and her special lead dog, “Baby Drool”
UPDATE: 3/23/15: Cindy Abbot Makes It To Nome and finished Iditarod…Congrats, Cindy!!!
UPDATE: 3/6/15: Cindy’s Back Again Competing in the Iditarod!
By Stacey Gualandi/March 20,2013
On March 3rd, 54-year-old Cindy Abbott set out to be the first woman to complete the over 1,000-mile Iditarod after having already reached the summit of Mt. Everest, all while living with vasculitis, a rare incurable disease. I interviewed Cindy recently about her determination to take on this difficult challenge. Checking back with Cindy to find out how she did, I just learned that twenty miles after the start, she fractured her groin but managed to stay in the race for ten days.
“If it weren’t for me losing my ability to function at a level that I was thought was safe, I would have kept going…” Cindy Abbott
While this wife and mom didn’t make it to the finish, she did finish what she set out to do: raise awareness about her disorder, and show what you can accomplish when you set your mind to something… [Read more…]
Interview: Cindy Abbott On Conquering the Iditarod, Mt. Everest and a Rare Disease
Cindy Abbott climbing Mt. Everest at 20,100 feet/Photo: Scott Woolums
UPDATE 3/20/13–Check out Stacey’s new interview with Cindy on what happened in the race, her injuries and her incredible team of pups
UPDATE 3/14/13–We just received word that unfortunately, Cindy had to scratch from the race yesterday. It’s been reported that she was 346 miles from the Nome finish and strained a groin muscle. Congrats on getting that far, Cindy!
UPDATE 3/9/13–Cindy is still in the Iditarod with her 14 dogs. You can check the standings here. Go Cindy!
By Stacey Gualandi/March 3, 2013
As someone who has bungee jumped, climbed the Oakland Bridge, and stayed awake for 80 hours in a sleep deprivation study, I thought I was pretty adventurous. Wrong! At 54, Cindy Abbott is competing in the Iditarod (click here to watch the race when live), a treacherous, 1000- mile dog sled race through the Alaskan wilderness from Anchorage to Nome. When she finishes, she will be the first woman to run the Iditarod and summit Mt. Everest, all while living with a rare, incurable disease.
“Some people with this disease can’t even walk their dogs. The doctors would say you shouldn’t be able to do this, but I kept climbing bigger mountains and nothing would happen.” Cindy Abbott
In 2007, this wife and mother was diagnosed with Wegener’s Granulomatosis, (aka Vasculitis) a potentially life-threatening disorder where the immune system attacks the blood vessels. She knows running in this extreme sport could be costly in more ways than one, but she is determined to raise awareness of the National Organization of Rare Disorders.
I spoke to Cindy this week just days before she began this journey. She is in remission, but facing many obstacles, including a frustratingly persistent cold and cough. But as Cindy wrote in her book, Reaching Beyond the Clouds, “Life isn’t about waiting for the storm to pass; it’s about learning to dance in the rain.”… [Read more…]
Interview: Eco-Adventurer Roz Savage Lives To Row Another Day
Roz surveying iceberg in North Atlantic/Photo:Diane Spurrell, 5/12
By Stacey Gualandi/June 4, 2012
It should come as no surprise to you that The Women’s Eye is a tremendous supporter of Roz Savage’s ocean adventures and environmental-awareness endeavors. We have profiled her on the site and have had the honor of interviewing her on our radio show.
Roz on 1480KPHX radio with Stacey/2-12
So it was with great enthusiasm that we planned to catch up with Roz on Skype once this world-record holding rower announced her desire, determination and decision several weeks ago to row yet again. This time she would be going across the North Atlantic, accompanied by a first-time crewmate, and hoping to reach London in time for the 2012 Summer Olympics in August. [Read more…]
Brent Thomson Runs Mount Everest
By Pamela Burke
Twitter: @ThomsonBrent
She went, she ran, she conquered! Brent Thomson took on what is called the hardest and highest race in the world, the Mount Everest Marathon, and accomplished her incredible goal this month. At 60 years of age, she finished in 8 hours and 12 minutes. Just completing the 26.2 mile journey down the rugged terrain was a feat in itself.
“I’m extremely thrilled that I did it and in a time I am very proud of…we pushed our bodies to the extreme limits.” Brent Thomson
We profiled Brent on this website before she left for Nepal to begin her trek to 17,200 feet. She returned earlier this month and gave Stacey Gualandi the first exclusive interview on the Women’s Eye Radio Show about her amazing race… [Read more…]
Roz Savage On Her Record-Breaking Row Across Three Oceans
UPDATE 5/9/12: Roz is about to set out to row from Newfoundland to London with Andrew Morris, 2587 miles in 60 days, to land in time for the 2012 Olympics. We wish you well, Roz!
UPDATE 3/3/12: Roz has just announced she will be rowing the North Atlantic to land in time for the Olympics in London.
TWITTER: @rozsavage
Adventurer and environmentalist Roz Savage is the first woman to row across the “Big Three” oceans: the Atlantic, Pacific, and Indian. Even more impressive, she did it solo, in a 23-foot rowboat, without a support vessel.
“I have battled twenty-foot waves, sleep deprivation, self-doubt and depression, but I have never been happier.” Roz Savage
I interviewed Roz back in 2007 when she was launching her Pacific passage, and learned how she’d transformed herself from an ordinary office worker into a world-class ocean-rowing athlete. She’s accomplished quite a lot since then, having rowed more than 15,000 miles and spent nearly a year and a half of her life at sea.
Arriving Mauritrius after rowing Indian Ocean/Photo: Colin Leondardt-10/3/11
And she has the credentials to prove it. Roz now holds four world records for ocean rowing, and in 2010 was named Adventurer of the Year by the National Geographic Society. She was recently invited by the Queen’s royal command to a reception at Buckingham Palace.
I was thrilled to catch up with Roz recently at a coffee shop in San Francisco, just after she had set her new record by completing the last of her three ocean rows, the Indian Ocean crossing… [Read more…]
