Come 1 April 1, 2011, thousands of four-wheel-drive vehicles and adventure motorcyclists from all over the world will come together in Amado, Arizona. For three days they will camp out, participate in workshops, and swap stories at the largest overland event in North America. Welcome to Overland Expo.
Photo courtesy of Chris Marzonie and Overland ExpoThe creator of Overland Expo is Roseann Hanson. She drives a custom truck, loves adventure, and is truly passionate about global conservation. Despite her busy schedule (she’s about to leave on a conservation expedition in Kenya, Uganda, and Tanzania), Roseann found time to answer a few of our questions about overlanding, conservation, and wilderness medicine.
What were you doing before you started Overland Expo and how did it come about?
I’ve been a writer, naturalist guide, and conservation program director for twenty-five years. I grew up exploring the American Southwest with my family—we camped all over the place. And since college, my husband and I have always loved exploring the world on our own, either by bicycle or sea kayak or a small truck. I’ve logged several hundred thousand miles exploring Canada, the western US, northern Mexico, and much of East Africa. In 2007, my husband co-founded a beautiful magazine called Overland Journal, which is all about do-it-yourself adventure travel by vehicle or motorcycle. Its readers are not your typical “four-wheel-drive” types, and we soon realized there were no events in North America, or maybe the world where lots of like-minded people gathered . . . so I came up with the idea to host Overland Expo. It fits well with the newly founded non-profit business, ConserVentures, as well.
How does your work with ConserVentures tie in with Overland Expo?
Overland Expo is the main fundraising program of the organization ConserVentures, whose mission is conservation through exploration.
I’ve always felt that the more we learn about other places and other cultures, the more we understand the challenges of global conservation—and the more we can get done.
We chose the name “ConserVentures,†which is a combination of “conservation†and “venture†and “adventure.†We have seen first-hand that people can make an enormous difference for conservation through exploration and through supporting commercial projects based on conservation philosophy—whether a community-owned eco-tourism lodge or a women’s handicraft project.
An underlying tenet of ConserVentures is that conservation and people are not mutually exclusive, because we are all inextricably linked to the world around us and to each other—whether we are Maasai in Kenya or an accountant in Kentucky.
ConserVentures does not create new conservation projects—we support existing projects, particularly those that are under-funded or ignored by the large international non-profits. Our programs Resource for Rangers and Crafts for Conservation provide resources directly for communities struggling with conservation and their own livelihoods. Our travel opportunities (safaris and expeditions) support these programs.
Overland Expo supports this by encouraging people to explore the world and to get engaged in it as well, not to be just tourists.
Who participates?
We have a wide-ranging demographic, from mid-30s professionals to active retirees who don’t see themselves playing golf or doing a traditional RV lifestyle. We have families and we have singles. We have 4-wheeled vehicle enthusiasts and we have adventure motorcyclists. The common theme is a passion for exploring the world by your own means.
What’s your vehicle of choice?
I love my old 1984 Toyota Land Cruiser, which got a conservation makeover in 2009 because the original Land Cruiser engine, while tough as nails, got horrible mileage (12-14 mph city!) and had outdated emission controls. It got a brand new turbo diesel that is super clean on emissions, runs biodiesel, and gets 30 miles per gallon. Oh, and it has leopard spots on the side. My husband hates that, but it keeps him from borrowing my truck so much.
What role does wilderness medicine have?
When traveling in remote places or in the developing world, it’s imperative to have basic but solid knowledge to deal with the commonplace as well as major things that can happen: seemingly simple things like traveler’s diarrhea or an infected insect bite can actually become life-threatening quickly; a swerve on a motorcycle to miss a runaway goat can mean a crash and a broken leg; a tire blows and a vehicle rolls, and someone has a head injury. What do you do? You must be prepared; it can mean the difference between literally life and death, or a permanent disability.
Is wilderness medicine training important?
After many years guiding nature tours in Mexico’s Sierra Madre, the Sea of Cortez, and East Africa, I had too many close calls with accidents and illness not to develop a sound appreciation for solid wilderness medicine training. Too many people become used to having cell phones and 911 handy; and the advent of things like GPS spot-locating beacons also make people a little lazy about being prepared.
A company like Remote Medical International has a good sense of what you need to be prepared. It’s not a ton of training; it’s the right training. The WFA certification for me was vital to carrying out our conservation mission throughout the world, leading safaris and expeditions.
Why did you choose Remote Medical International?
Because of staff members like Kate Earl, whose own activities in her work reflect the values of ConserVentures — Kate spends a lot of time working disasters like Haiti, or working in the developing world. Everyone I met with Remote Medical inspires confidence and are interesting people, too, with passions for travel and giving back to the world.
The instructors impart knowledge without sounding like know-it-alls; they push you beyond your comfort zone without making you feel stupid if you freeze or totally forget everything you just spent two hours learning in a classroom.
I know a lot of planning goes into each expo, what can you tell me about the 2011 plans?
The event will grow yet again, with thousands of adventure travel enthusiasts from all over the world coming to take some of the 70+ classes and workshops; 100+ exhibitors of vehicles, camping equipment, motorcycles, and travel services; and to enjoy films and programs like the Adventure Travel Film Festival. People will camp on site, and there is a tremendous atmosphere of learning, inspiration, and excitement to get out and explore. We are making even more effort in 2011 to have programs for families—a group of five 9-year-old explorers called the Rover Divas will be holding workshops for kids, like compass skills, cobbler-making, and fort-building—and classes just for women, too. And we’ll be raising money for the Resources for Rangers program, supporting anti-poaching units in East Africa and northern Mexico’s jaguar reserves.
We’re really pleased to have Remote Medical back as our safety and security sponsor, providing our medical services and giving workshops and programs about wilderness first aid, first aid kits, and more.
You can learn more about Roseann Hanson, Overland Expo, and ConserVentures at http://www.overlandexpo.com and http://www.conserventures.org. Â
