Latest / WHAT I'VE LEARNT / Beyond Words - Russ & Pendar (Rickshaw Run Himalaya)

Transcript

Beyond Words - Russ & Pendar (Rickshaw Run Himalaya) · WHAT I'VE LEARNT

• 0:05
  SPEAKER_00: Well, we're thrilled to launch the Ritual Run Himalaya and World Literacy Foundation campaign.
• 0:11
  SPEAKER_00: An epic fundraising journey where daring adventurers will race across India to raise critical funds for children's literacy.
• 0:19
  SPEAKER_00: 2,800 kilometres, one tiny talk talk.
• 0:23
  SPEAKER_00: Through Himalayan mountain passes, desert storms and rugged valleys, our race team is braving it all, not just for the thrill, but for something far more powerful.
• 0:34
  SPEAKER_00: The true destination?
• 0:35
  SPEAKER_00: A world where every child can read.
• 0:37
  SPEAKER_00: While the race kicks off this August, fundraising starts now.
• 0:41
  SPEAKER_00: Well, I'm thrilled to have two of our adventurers, Russ and Pender, who are on a mission to raise$20,000 to support book access and literacy initiatives in India and other World Literacy Foundation projects.
• 0:55
  SPEAKER_00: Their bios tell a story of passion, commitment, dedication.
• 1:00
  SPEAKER_00: They are truly intrepid adventurers.
• 1:04
  SPEAKER_00: As they journey across India, they'll be sharing real-time glimpses of their adventure, and trust us, you'll want to follow every step.
• 1:11
  SPEAKER_00: Once the dust settles, we'll be sitting down with them for a special post-rest episode of the Beyond Words Podcast, where they'll reflect on the highs, challenges, and heart behind it all.
• 1:25
  SPEAKER_00: Well, I love this quote that features on your website.
• 1:28
  SPEAKER_00: Travel changes you.
• 1:30
  SPEAKER_00: As you move through this life and this world, you change things slightly.
• 1:35
  SPEAKER_00: You leave marks behind, however small.
• 1:38
  SPEAKER_00: And in return, life and travel leaves marks on you.
• 1:42
  SPEAKER_00: And that's from the wonderful Anthony Bourdain.
• 1:45
  SPEAKER_00: I love that.
• 1:47
  SPEAKER_00: So, how much does that reflect your mission, your passion?
• 1:53
  SPEAKER_01: Well, Russ, I'm gonna give that to you, as I think you put that quote.
• 1:56
  unknown: Right?
• 1:57
  SPEAKER_02: Well, listen, um, Anthony Bourdain is someone um sort of a patron saint of our Kublikai travel club.
• 2:03
  SPEAKER_02: When we travel, whether it's the rickshaw run Himalaya or we're traveling uh to another country, we're just exploring, we try and live sort of by that mantra and not just travel for travel sake, but actually get out there and and meet real people and share culture, share food, drink, and even getting lost.
• 2:22
  SPEAKER_02: Um, getting to know the real people, the real countries um where we're traveling, um, and trying to do good while we're doing it, leaving the world, the neighborhood we're in a better place than when we arrived.
• 2:33
  SPEAKER_02: And, you know, at the end of the day, hopefully when we're old and gray and and we've been on many adventures, hopefully we've left the world a better place.
• 2:42
  SPEAKER_00: I love that.
• 2:42
  SPEAKER_00: And and to be honest, it reflects and resonates very much with my own version of life.
• 2:47
  SPEAKER_00: And also, I think a lot of our listeners at the World Literacy Foundation, everybody's doing what they can to shine the light on this huge issue.
• 2:56
  SPEAKER_00: For for you, Penda, how how is this mission and how did you jump on board?
• 3:01
  SPEAKER_00: Because obviously, you know, it takes time, energy, focus, and a lot of passion to do what you guys are doing.
• 3:08
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, and at the end of the day, we are inherently adventurers.
• 3:12
  SPEAKER_01: I mean, the the only reason to do this is because you enjoy things that are out of the routine, not normal.
• 3:18
  SPEAKER_01: I've always been like that throughout my life.
• 3:20
  SPEAKER_01: If there's an alleyway that's off to the side that looks kind of interesting, like some people will avoid, and I'm the one that goes headfirst down into it.
• 3:28
  SPEAKER_01: Um, and I think to do something like this, you have to have that.
• 3:30
  SPEAKER_01: And me and Russ became friends over the over the last couple of years through a second friend of ours who was very close with me.
• 3:36
  SPEAKER_01: He did the last Rickshaw race with us.
• 3:38
  SPEAKER_01: And so we're all, all three of us are very much a similar style of person.
• 3:43
  SPEAKER_01: We're curious, I think more than anything, that's the thing.
• 3:45
  SPEAKER_01: We're curious about life, people, uh, cultures, foods.
• 3:50
  SPEAKER_01: I mean, there's just there's so much to explore and see in the world.
• 3:53
  SPEAKER_01: And I mean, sometimes it's like there's too much.
• 3:55
  SPEAKER_01: And so to be able to do something like this, um, you kind of have to be willing to have a little bit of a risk tolerance and throw yourself out there.
• 4:03
  SPEAKER_01: And I mean, at the end of the day, to be able to work with the World Literacy Foundation and do something good for the world, uh, to be able to help people that are less fortunate than you, or or just people that that, you know, need something.
• 4:16
  SPEAKER_01: At the end of the day, we're very fortunate people.
• 4:18
  SPEAKER_01: I mean, we're fortunate to be able to take risks like this.
• 4:21
  SPEAKER_01: And um more than anything, we're we're excited to be able to do this rickshaw race again.
• 4:26
  SPEAKER_01: I mean, it it really is like one of the few opportunities to like go go into adventure that you can you can have in this world anymore.
• 4:32
  SPEAKER_00: So yeah, and I love the um the notion of you have to sort of get a bit lost in the world in a way to find something.
• 4:39
  SPEAKER_00: I think that's a really interesting notion that you, you know, and and you have to be a bit fearless, you have to be a bit brave, and you have to be, I suppose, willing to let go and lose control.
• 4:50
  SPEAKER_00: How does that go down?
• 4:52
  SPEAKER_00: Because I don't know what you do in your actual real lives fully, and maybe I think that's an interesting thing too, because the the world um teaches, particularly men, but women as well, to live with a lot of control, a lot of structure, a lot of uh sort of caveats, I find that it's a very, you know, the way that that we're all raised is, you know, very linear.
• 5:15
  SPEAKER_00: And so this requires, I don't know how that resonates for your actual day-to-day life.
• 5:22
  SPEAKER_00: How does that compare?
• 5:24
  SPEAKER_00: Because you have to really let it all go and off you fly.
• 5:27
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah.
• 5:27
  SPEAKER_02: Well, listen, I work in American politics, so it's a bit of an adventure itself.
• 5:31
  SPEAKER_02: Um, so sometimes the crazy things that we do actually make my day-to-day job uh, you know, look normal.
• 5:38
  SPEAKER_02: But you know, it's true.
• 5:40
  SPEAKER_02: Like, you know, when you embrace adventure and you get out in the world and and it's not planned, any trip we do, we never have an agenda.
• 5:48
  SPEAKER_02: If something's in a travel book, chances are we're not gonna want to go see it.
• 5:52
  SPEAKER_02: We go out on our own, we sort of figure out day by day using paper maps and and different and talking to people and figuring out, you know, where we want to go.
• 6:02
  SPEAKER_02: And that's when the best things happen.
• 6:04
  SPEAKER_02: Some of our most amazing experiences traveling together um have been when we have no plan and we look to you know the left and we see, oh, there's an amazing bridge.
• 6:14
  SPEAKER_02: Let's go check out that bridge.
• 6:16
  SPEAKER_02: And next thing you know, we're running with the bulls in Puente Lorena in Spain.
• 6:20
  SPEAKER_02: Um we we just happened upon a thousand-year-old beer uh bull festival.
• 6:24
  SPEAKER_02: I mean, that's how uh adventure happens, that's how spontaneous life happens, and that's really truly what we try and embrace uh when we travel.
• 6:33
  SPEAKER_00: I think that's a really good point, though, because actually, well, interesting time to be in American politics.
• 6:39
  SPEAKER_00: Wow, I'm not even gonna ask you because we could go down that's a whole other podcast.
• 6:43
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, that's a podcast in itself, or three.
• 6:46
  SPEAKER_00: But because you know, from Australia, we're just like in awe of American politics right now, but we won't go there.
• 6:53
  SPEAKER_00: But interestingly, um it's it's it's an interesting notion to me that as children we're learnt to play and and explore and to be adventurous.
• 7:03
  SPEAKER_00: And as we get older, there's a huge pressure to restrain, refine, not be adventurous, not go down the alleyway, not and the fact so how hard has it been?
• 7:15
  SPEAKER_00: Do you think that's a nature or nurture thing that you guys have both embraced that that predisposition?
• 7:21
  SPEAKER_00: Because it's not not everyone gets pretty locked down, especially in this sort of stage of life.
• 7:26
  SPEAKER_00: They find it harder to be adventurous.
• 7:29
  SPEAKER_01: I think I honestly think it's a nurture thing.
• 7:31
  SPEAKER_01: Like my my dad was my dad was a mountain climber.
• 7:35
  SPEAKER_01: So my family's Persian.
• 7:37
  SPEAKER_01: Um, my dad came to the US when he was young because he always wanted to, he always wanted to see the US.
• 7:42
  SPEAKER_01: And so he he came here and went to school here, and he was a hippie and was like, I'm gonna go climb mountains.
• 7:47
  SPEAKER_01: And he can talk to he can talk to a brick wall and make friends.
• 7:52
  SPEAKER_01: So I think it kind of I saw it in him, and I think it was just always there, and like somehow it got passed out.
• 7:58
  SPEAKER_01: So maybe it is done.
• 7:59
  SPEAKER_01: Nature, I don't know.
• 8:00
  SPEAKER_01: But it it your environment sometimes uh you have to be able to uh have a supportive environment that allows you to take risks.
• 8:08
  SPEAKER_01: Um, I think sometimes if you don't have that, you you become a little bit more hesitant because there's bigger outcomes.
• 8:16
  SPEAKER_01: If you make a mistake, it has a bigger effect.
• 8:18
  SPEAKER_01: And I mean, we I I don't take that for granted.
• 8:21
  SPEAKER_01: Like being lucky in where we've grown up and the lives that we've been able to have, some of that was because of family, some of that's because of just where we are.
• 8:28
  SPEAKER_01: And um, there's a lot of people that don't have that.
• 8:30
  SPEAKER_01: And uh we like to be adventurous and we we like to do some of these kind of things, and there's a lot of people that can't, but I think you can find adventure in your everyday.
• 8:39
  SPEAKER_01: Uh, I'll sometimes take, and I found this tunnel vision happens like when I used to drive to work.
• 8:45
  SPEAKER_01: Uh you start taking the same path every day, you start forgetting what's around you, you don't pay attention to the same road signs, to things that are in front of you.
• 8:53
  SPEAKER_01: Sometimes stopping and taking an alternate route, like purposefully, is so good for you because it changes your perspective and allows you to see the world in a different way, see things that you didn't see.
• 9:02
  SPEAKER_01: I think sometimes we we try to do that.
• 9:04
  SPEAKER_01: It's go out, go out and see things that you don't that aren't familiar to you.
• 9:08
  SPEAKER_01: And that I think is important.
• 9:10
  SPEAKER_01: I think not enough of us do that.
• 9:11
  SPEAKER_01: But the ones that like really go for it, that go for that, I think just it allows you to build that.
• 9:16
  SPEAKER_01: It's like a it's like a tool.
• 9:17
  SPEAKER_01: It's a tool that you can that you can refine.
• 9:19
  SPEAKER_00: And it helps you because it also develops resilience when you get out of your comfort zone.
• 9:24
  SPEAKER_00: And I really think that is also a critical part of this.
• 9:28
  SPEAKER_00: It also, as you've mentioned, both of you, that it also cultivates empathy because when you're, which is very much what the literacy mission is and the what I call the literacy revolution is about, which I'm very involved with because I think when you push out, you see that there are others who are not, as you mentioned, in the same position or don't have the same opportunities.
• 9:49
  SPEAKER_00: But if you stay cloistered, you don't actually get that understanding.
• 9:53
  SPEAKER_00: It makes you very myopic and internalized.
• 9:56
  SPEAKER_00: So what you're saying is this is also psychologically very important to have a great empathy for others who, for example, as we know, which is hard to believe, don't have books or access to reading.
• 10:08
  SPEAKER_00: It's hard to even comprehend that in this time.
• 10:11
  SPEAKER_02: Absolutely.
• 10:11
  SPEAKER_02: I think that's why, you know, we're so honored to partner with the World Literacy Foundation.
• 10:16
  SPEAKER_02: You know, literacy and reading and education is something that's important to all of us.
• 10:21
  SPEAKER_02: And not everyone has those opportunities.
• 10:23
  SPEAKER_02: When you look at the stats, and 250 million children in our world, you know, don't have basic reading and math skills.
• 10:30
  SPEAKER_02: Six out of 10 kids, you know, um aren't reaching the minimum level of education they need uh to go on in life, you know, from rural villages to to cities, you know, big cities.
• 10:43
  SPEAKER_02: Like doing this gives us a purpose uh to our adventure.
• 10:47
  SPEAKER_02: And, you know, the work that we've done with the World Literacy Foundation and USA Reads, um, you know, last time we we worked on a program called Reading for Wellness, which uh seeks to put uh books in the in the hands of kids who are going through um a health crisis, who are in a hospital, um, or really, you know, facing facing challenges.
• 11:06
  SPEAKER_02: And, you know, it just doing something meaningful with our our travel, our adventure um really sort of um just ties the whole thing together and has always been a priority for us.
• 11:18
  SPEAKER_00: And why literacy?
• 11:19
  SPEAKER_00: There are, I mean, obviously there are so many competing causes, and I find this myself, so I'm sure you do, where you just go, oh, there's just so much, there's so much need.
• 11:29
  SPEAKER_00: And you just go, well, but literacy is well, certainly I'd be interested in your perspective about why literacy has touched your hearts.
• 11:38
  SPEAKER_01: I mean, look, it it at the end of the day, your ability to, so there's a couple of different reasons, but first and foremost, your ability to have access to the world.
• 11:47
  SPEAKER_01: Like my dad, my dad, when I was young, harked on me.
• 11:50
  SPEAKER_01: He was always like, and I mean, as a first generation immigrant to a new country, he was like, education, education, education.
• 11:55
  SPEAKER_01: Those three words, the number of times I heard that, and it was like pressed into my brain.
• 12:00
  SPEAKER_01: And it was like, more than anything, the key to open up the world is knowledge.
• 12:05
  SPEAKER_01: And we have so many different access tools now, but at the end of the day, there's so many places around the world where if you don't have the basic ability to read, that is the entry point to everything.
• 12:15
  SPEAKER_01: That's like the base, the base level.
• 12:17
  SPEAKER_01: And so it's almost like that needs to be at a hundred percent in the entire world because nobody can have access to use the tools and things that are available to them in the world these days if you can't read.
• 12:27
  SPEAKER_01: My my grandfather in Iran did not have the ability to read at like a first grade level.
• 12:33
  SPEAKER_01: And I remember my dad telling me stories.
• 12:34
  SPEAKER_01: He owned this little shop, and he was so he was held back by a lot of it.
• 12:39
  SPEAKER_01: I mean, bless his heart, the poor man like did the best he could, and it was some of it's the product of environment.
• 12:45
  SPEAKER_01: I remember looking at some statistics, um, and and it was about like reading levels from different demographics.
• 12:51
  SPEAKER_01: So it was like younger generation, like up to 18 to like 30 years old, and then like 65 plus.
• 12:57
  SPEAKER_01: And it was crazy how many countries, like younger generations, a lot of people are a lot of countries, countries have the ability um to give reading to a lot of their younger generations.
• 13:06
  SPEAKER_01: The older generations, 65 plus, so many have such a low percentage of reading.
• 13:12
  SPEAKER_01: And that in and of itself is uh it inhibits you from being able to do so much in this world.
• 13:18
  SPEAKER_01: And I think for the younger generation, getting that to a hundred percent is I think a goal of ours and the World Literacy Foundations.
• 13:25
  SPEAKER_01: And I think it means a lot because it's that in and of itself will allow you to be able to access all the things that are available in the world.
• 13:32
  SPEAKER_01: And then it's up to you.
• 13:33
  SPEAKER_01: It's up to you to like have the strength, and sometimes it's the environment that you're given.
• 13:37
  SPEAKER_01: But like we're getting to a point where you can do really anything.
• 13:40
  SPEAKER_01: And so being able to read allows you, it opens a door.
• 13:43
  SPEAKER_00: Absolutely.
• 13:44
  SPEAKER_00: And I think a lot of people when I talk to them about the World Literacy Foundation and this mission, I think many people that I speak to are like, what do you mean people don't have books?
• 13:52
  SPEAKER_00: What do you mean they can't read?
• 13:54
  SPEAKER_00: It's like it's so interesting how many people don't realize the prevalence of this issue.
• 13:59
  SPEAKER_00: So I think I think that's key.
• 14:01
  SPEAKER_02: I mean, a lot of people think that, you know, this isn't like this isn't a kid issue.
• 14:05
  SPEAKER_02: I mean, this is this is an access issue.
• 14:08
  SPEAKER_02: Kids just don't have access to the tool, the learning tools that they need uh to lay the foundation uh for good for good reading skills.
• 14:15
  SPEAKER_02: And you know, that's why, you know, all this work, and as Pendar said, like you lay the foundation at a young age, that's your launching pad for the rest of your life.
• 14:24
  SPEAKER_02: We wanna we wanna help do that.
• 14:25
  SPEAKER_02: We want to help uh help that cause.
• 14:28
  SPEAKER_02: Um and and um you know, hopefully, uh like I said before, when he you know are successful in this campaign.
• 14:36
  SPEAKER_02: Um, I would love it if it leads to a new program uh in in some city or country across the world.
• 14:42
  SPEAKER_02: And even if we can make one or two more kids read um and improve their life, like I'll know that we did something good.
• 14:48
  SPEAKER_00: Well, I think it's a great mission.
• 14:49
  SPEAKER_00: I'm interested.
• 14:50
  SPEAKER_00: I love the fact that you're doing this in the Himalayas in India and doing it.
• 14:55
  SPEAKER_00: I mean, like really quite a challenging climb.
• 15:00
  SPEAKER_00: I love that.
• 15:01
  SPEAKER_00: It's very like, so what brought you to this particular region and this particular tuk tuk, which looks very rudimentary, but I'm sure is well equipped.
• 15:13
  SPEAKER_00: But I'm just like, wow, yay!
• 15:16
  SPEAKER_01: If you say so.
• 15:18
  SPEAKER_00: I just I just like what I think of videos.
• 15:20
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah, not as well equipped as you might imagine.
• 15:22
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, I'm wondering, like, I've got a few sandwiches in the back.
• 15:25
  SPEAKER_02: I don't know how like it's we equip her, we equip her as good as we can, but she's by the end of the by work with an organization um that hosts the uh the rickshaw run called The Adventurous, and um they host several of these a year.
• 15:42
  SPEAKER_02: Uh, we did one back in 2023 where we uh drove an Arickshaw from the southern tip of India up to the Himalayas.
• 15:48
  SPEAKER_02: So this time around, we said, listen, let's begin where we ended last time, and we're gonna drive the Arickshaw over the Himalayas, um, theoretically, hopefully, um, and then you know, through the Great Tar Desert in northwest India, uh, before ending in Jaisalmer, Rajasthan.
• 16:03
  SPEAKER_02: Uh, all in all, roughly 2,800 kilometers.
• 16:07
  SPEAKER_02: Um, and I can guarantee you by the time we're done, that rickshaw is going to be held together by wire, duct tape, bungee cords.
• 16:14
  SPEAKER_02: Um, it's it's not made for this type of adventure, but that's the point.
• 16:17
  SPEAKER_02: The point is to break down, to force you to get to meet local folks, uh, to figure it out.
• 16:24
  SPEAKER_02: There's no support, there's no route.
• 16:26
  SPEAKER_02: You choose your route.
• 16:27
  SPEAKER_02: This is a rally, not a race.
• 16:29
  SPEAKER_02: The point is to finish and and you know be successful in figuring out every problem that happens, working with local people, and and just getting to know the real India.
• 16:40
  SPEAKER_02: It's gonna be amazing.
• 16:41
  SPEAKER_00: Well, I do love India.
• 16:42
  SPEAKER_00: I'm not gonna lie, but that is is probably a little out of my reach, but I'm really respectful of you two intrepid adventurers.
• 16:51
  SPEAKER_00: Um, but but just on that note, what um what support are you?
• 16:57
  SPEAKER_00: I mean, last time you did it, did you what were sort of the challenges and how you know when you did the first legs?
• 17:03
  SPEAKER_00: What were the challenges that you encountered and how how supportive were the locals?
• 17:08
  SPEAKER_00: And what what was that experience?
• 17:10
  SPEAKER_00: And then do you anticipate it being similar?
• 17:12
  SPEAKER_01: Like I think I'm gonna jump in here.
• 17:13
  SPEAKER_01: I think first things first, the people of India.
• 17:16
  SPEAKER_01: And I mean, there are different countries around the world that have a populace that travels.
• 17:21
  SPEAKER_01: Americans are known historically to not be the most outgoing travelers.
• 17:26
  SPEAKER_01: Um there is there is a view of India uh that like, oh, it's a little dirty.
• 17:32
  SPEAKER_01: Eat pray love, there's animals.
• 17:34
  SPEAKER_01: And the people of India are some of the nicest people in the world.
• 17:39
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, I mean, beautiful, fantastic, smart, outgoing, they're giving.
• 17:46
  SPEAKER_01: Uh man, I mean, Russell tells some stories.
• 17:48
  SPEAKER_01: The number of times you get we got pulled over, sometimes by police, to take selfies.
• 17:53
  SPEAKER_01: So the police would pull us over, they'd be like, come have a thumbs up.
• 17:57
  SPEAKER_01: We want to buy you a chai, let's have a drink.
• 17:59
  SPEAKER_01: And we were like, What?
• 18:00
  SPEAKER_01: They'd be like, Where are you from?
• 18:01
  SPEAKER_01: What are you doing?
• 18:02
  SPEAKER_01: And I mean, look, the rickshaw itself, because of I mean, it's a couple, it's a couple Americans or or people from somewhere else in the world that are driving this dolled up rickshaw on the highway in the middle of India, and they'll pull us over and we'll be like, Oh, what do we do?
• 18:14
  SPEAKER_01: No, we just want to buy you a chai.
• 18:16
  SPEAKER_01: What?
• 18:17
  SPEAKER_00: I love that.
• 18:18
  SPEAKER_00: That is a great little snapshot because I love that they're beautiful people, and it's it's really um, and also the history and the culture.
• 18:25
  SPEAKER_00: I mean, but the logistics of the rickshaw inverted commas, we sort of have to describe it for people because it's it's not like a pedaling rickshaw, it's like a well, you you describe it for me.
• 18:38
  SPEAKER_02: It's like we we we sort of like to call it like a a um a slightly overpowered lawnmower.
• 18:45
  SPEAKER_02: Um probably would be the closest equivalent for Americans.
• 18:48
  SPEAKER_02: Um, they don't go that fast.
• 18:50
  SPEAKER_02: Uh what they make up for in you know, sort of breaking down and lack of speed, um, they're very they're very maneuverable.
• 18:59
  SPEAKER_02: So like when you're when you're working in uh Indian traffic jams, and let me tell you, you've never been in a traffic jam until you've been one in India.
• 19:08
  SPEAKER_00: Um the cows on the road that you just have to do.
• 19:11
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah, I mean like it's possible, like it's it's it's like a sometimes it's like a video game.
• 19:16
  SPEAKER_02: Uh but these like little rickshaws, they can like buzz in and out and and sort of like they're they're equally amazing as they are infuriating.
• 19:25
  SPEAKER_02: Um but truly um traveling India in an auto rickshaw is something that one could experience it.
• 19:34
  SPEAKER_02: And some people, when you tell them what you're doing, they sort of give you this look like, what's wrong with you?
• 19:38
  SPEAKER_02: Most people though are so excited and just want to know more and then ask questions, and it it truly is something that that's life-changing.
• 19:44
  SPEAKER_02: I mean, you get to see the country of India like like many people don't have the opportunity to see it.
• 19:50
  SPEAKER_01: So rickshaw, a lot of people, when we say rickshaw, they're like, What is that?
• 19:53
  SPEAKER_01: You compare it to like it's similar to a tuk-tuk.
• 19:56
  SPEAKER_01: Thai tuk-tuks are a little bigger, they're faster.
• 19:59
  SPEAKER_01: These things are slow.
• 20:01
  SPEAKER_01: I mean, there's two different kinds, but in general, I think the max they go is like 50 kilometers an hour-ish.
• 20:07
  SPEAKER_01: Um, yeah.
• 20:08
  SPEAKER_01: They are used normally by the by the locals in most cities as their form of transportation taxi.
• 20:14
  SPEAKER_01: So many locals take it around, you jump in, you take it to the whatever down the street to get something.
• 20:20
  SPEAKER_01: They're fairly cheap.
• 20:22
  SPEAKER_01: Um, but they're everywhere.
• 20:23
  SPEAKER_01: They're prevalent in a lot of cities, they're all over the place.
• 20:26
  SPEAKER_01: It is it is a tough job um driving through these cities.
• 20:29
  SPEAKER_01: It's hot, it's dirty, there's smoke and dust, and they're meant to be driven in short distances in small cities, and they're not meant fully for this, and they're definitely not meant to drive over mountain ranges, through rivers, over rocky plains.
• 20:45
  SPEAKER_01: I I don't know, see that's the part that we're very excited to experience because it's going to be very interesting compared to last time.
• 20:52
  SPEAKER_01: Last time we were on highways, and surprisingly, India has pretty good highways.
• 20:56
  SPEAKER_01: They've they've they've spent a lot of money on their infrastructure and connecting cities.
• 21:00
  SPEAKER_01: But going through a mountain range, so we're going through the highest drivable mountain pass in the world.
• 21:05
  SPEAKER_01: I think it's about what 5500 meters.
• 21:09
  SPEAKER_01: I don't know, in meters, it's like 19,500 feet.
• 21:12
  SPEAKER_01: It's super, super high up.
• 21:13
  SPEAKER_01: And so we have to be worried about altitude sickness and I was just thinking that.
• 21:17
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, I was just about to ask you that.
• 21:19
  SPEAKER_00: Like, how do you navigate?
• 21:20
  SPEAKER_00: And also, like, I mean, doesn't sorry to ask this very it sounds a very precious question, but there's no air conditioning.
• 21:27
  SPEAKER_00: So first thing that comes to mind, I'm like, it's gonna be really hot.
• 21:30
  SPEAKER_00: Is that like it's literally like there's no, or is there?
• 21:34
  SPEAKER_02: I don't know if it's with this with this rickshaw run, we'll we'll literally, you know, when we're in the LA, uh, we'll be uh in some of the the um, you know, we'll have a cold climate, right?
• 21:46
  SPEAKER_02: So it's gonna get pretty cold at night.
• 21:47
  SPEAKER_02: Um and then after we cross the mountains, we're gonna enter a desert area.
• 21:52
  SPEAKER_02: Heat's always an issue.
• 21:53
  SPEAKER_02: There there is no air conditioning.
• 21:55
  SPEAKER_02: You do your best to stay to stay hydrated.
• 21:57
  SPEAKER_02: Um, that that's always key, is just to keep drinking fluids.
• 22:00
  SPEAKER_02: And you know, power yourself through the day with with roadside chai um and good meals along the way.
• 22:04
  SPEAKER_02: That helps.
• 22:05
  SPEAKER_02: But you know, that is that is one of the biggest the biggest challenges is the temperature.
• 22:10
  SPEAKER_02: But last time we we managed it okay.
• 22:12
  SPEAKER_02: I may have been dehydrated a couple days.
• 22:14
  SPEAKER_02: Um but you know we we we got through it and and we'll get through it this time as well.
• 22:19
  SPEAKER_00: Electrolytes.
• 22:20
  SPEAKER_00: Just take lots of electrolytes.
• 22:21
  SPEAKER_00: Absolutely.
• 22:23
  SPEAKER_01: In every one of them, we're not gonna make a plug for liquid IV, but we have several.
• 22:29
  SPEAKER_00: Hey, why not?
• 22:31
  SPEAKER_02: Although we've yeah, we probably self-financed them last year, I think.
• 22:34
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, I'm sure.
• 22:36
  SPEAKER_02: Liquid IV sent us some stuff.
• 22:38
  SPEAKER_00: Sponsorship.
• 22:40
  SPEAKER_00: Um so um, so with this intrepid uh vision, which sounds quite extraordinary, what sort of support are you getting from your families?
• 22:49
  SPEAKER_00: Um, I'm just thinking this through.
• 22:50
  SPEAKER_00: I don't know your status in that regard, but do your um partners or families feel, and even your parents or whoever feel a little apprehensive or supportive or both?
• 23:02
  SPEAKER_02: I would say we, you know, I have a great uh support network network around me.
• 23:06
  SPEAKER_02: My wife, Anita, is is fully supportive and sort of embraces the adventure that I go on.
• 23:11
  SPEAKER_02: And of course, all our family and friends are, you know, they're they're nervous, I would say, but they're also so excited for us because they know uh, you know, what an opportunity this is.
• 23:21
  SPEAKER_02: Number one, to see the world, and number two, the great work we're doing for global literacy.
• 23:26
  SPEAKER_02: But, you know, it's something that, you know, um, you know, my my parents, my dad was in the Navy and has traveled the world.
• 23:33
  SPEAKER_02: So he's sort of he's he really gets the um sort of desire to see see things different than when you where you grew up.
• 23:40
  SPEAKER_02: I grew up in a very small town in the middle of America, um, 12,000 people.
• 23:45
  SPEAKER_02: And for me, you know, sitting down and reading his piles of National Geographic and adventure books, um, I was a big reader when I was a kid, I still am, but having books open up my my eye towards travel and and the and the other parts of the world that I wasn't seeing as a kid, you know, really I think fostered that desire to travel and adventure in my adult life.
• 24:09
  SPEAKER_02: And, you know, so so they get it.
• 24:11
  SPEAKER_02: You know, anybody who knows me isn't surprised that I'm doing this.
• 24:14
  SPEAKER_02: Um and um, you know, they're they're supportive, if not a little cautious.
• 24:19
  SPEAKER_00: That I was just gonna say one thing that you mentioned there, which is really interesting, is you know, they talk about how books are like traveling the world and and how there's another sort of exemplification of the the power of books.
• 24:31
  SPEAKER_00: I'm also a readah, so I really understand that.
• 24:34
  SPEAKER_00: And I find it quite extraordinary.
• 24:36
  SPEAKER_00: There are a lot of people who can access books that don't necessarily understand the rich tapestry that they have at their disposal.
• 24:42
  SPEAKER_00: And I think that's also, but that's changing with book talk and like there's just this, you know, mad sort of book obsession that's taken over.
• 24:51
  SPEAKER_00: But I think that's a really good example.
• 24:52
  SPEAKER_00: Like, even as a kid, are you looking through and reading and and that inspiring you for your the way you live your life?
• 24:58
  SPEAKER_01: So for me, so for me, there's two things.
• 25:00
  SPEAKER_01: Anytime I get, I find that when I get like, oh, I feel something's off in my life, it's one of two things.
• 25:06
  SPEAKER_01: One, I haven't laughed enough.
• 25:07
  SPEAKER_01: So I should like go to a comedy show or watch some comedy or laugh with friends or something.
• 25:12
  SPEAKER_01: And the second one is I haven't read enough.
• 25:14
  SPEAKER_01: If I get off of my normal reading cycle, I feel something is off and it it can't be filled by anything else.
• 25:22
  SPEAKER_01: It engages your brain in a way, makes your creative juices flow.
• 25:28
  SPEAKER_01: You start to picture a world, uh, whatever it is that you're reading, whether it's fiction, nonfiction, it allows you to like create these images and things in your brain that I think we need as human beings, and I don't think we do it enough.
• 25:41
  SPEAKER_01: And there's people that are like, ah, I don't read.
• 25:44
  SPEAKER_01: And I'm like, why not?
• 25:45
  SPEAKER_00: I know, I I get you, yeah.
• 25:47
  SPEAKER_00: I'm like, what?
• 25:48
  SPEAKER_00: But but I don't want to be judgy.
• 25:50
  SPEAKER_00: I'm just saying I I'm like you.
• 25:52
  SPEAKER_00: I'm like, this is a window and a tool to help you evolve.
• 25:56
  SPEAKER_00: It's like it's an actual to me, it's fundamental.
• 25:59
  SPEAKER_00: So I hear you.
• 26:00
  SPEAKER_00: So coming back to the original question, your family in regards to supporting you.
• 26:06
  SPEAKER_01: And I mean, clearly, you know, you have a history of that in your family of being intrepid, but what's your I don't I don't have an amazing supportive wife like Russ does.
• 26:18
  SPEAKER_01: So if I flew off the mountain, nobody would blink twice.
• 26:21
  SPEAKER_01: They would they would say, Oh, well, there he went.
• 26:23
  SPEAKER_01: No.
• 26:24
  SPEAKER_00: Uh wait, wait, I just need to understand.
• 26:26
  SPEAKER_00: Are you saying you don't have a supportive wife?
• 26:28
  SPEAKER_00: Or you're saying you don't have a wife?
• 26:30
  SPEAKER_00: I'm not understanding.
• 26:32
  SPEAKER_01: I do.
• 26:32
  SPEAKER_01: We're nudge people on the internet.
• 26:34
  SPEAKER_01: I don't have a wife.
• 26:35
  SPEAKER_01: No, no, no.
• 26:36
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, and he was available.
• 26:38
  SPEAKER_00: No, no, but I'm just like trying to understand the way you put that.
• 26:41
  SPEAKER_00: I was like, now his parents are happy.
• 26:45
  SPEAKER_01: No, my my parents, my mom, uh, I'm a mama's boy.
• 26:48
  SPEAKER_01: My mom uh freaks out, and she knows that this is what I do.
• 26:53
  SPEAKER_01: Like, I travel a ton, I go places, and then when I don't when I'll message her at some point, or she's like, just please, when you land, call me, send me a text, do something.
• 27:02
  SPEAKER_01: And so uh the fact that we're not we're probably not gonna have service in most of the Himalayas.
• 27:07
  SPEAKER_01: My mom is probably going to lose her mind for a part of this, and um she just in general, she's a warrior, but I but our friends, family so so, so supportive.
• 27:19
  SPEAKER_01: In general, my parents have always known who I am as a person, and they're like, it's just Pandar being Pandar.
• 27:25
  SPEAKER_01: He's gonna go to the Himalayas this week in a couple months.
• 27:28
  SPEAKER_01: We're thinking about doing a motorcycle race through Southeast Asia uh in March of next year.
• 27:34
  SPEAKER_01: So it's just like that's just next on the list.
• 27:36
  SPEAKER_01: She's like, just call me, please let me know.
• 27:38
  SPEAKER_01: I saw you.
• 27:39
  SPEAKER_00: I'm just laughing because my son's, you know, wanting he wants to get a big motorhome and I mean he's only young, wants to travel and do the thing, you know.
• 27:48
  SPEAKER_00: And of course, as a mom, you're thinking, well, just want to check, like, get it checked, like make sure it works.
• 27:54
  SPEAKER_00: You know, that's a mom thing, right?
• 27:55
  SPEAKER_00: That's a normal thing.
• 27:56
  SPEAKER_00: It's nice to have somebody that cares and worries, but yeah, uh, it sounds like you're not gonna have service, so you're off the hook.
• 28:03
  SPEAKER_00: You won't be you won't be able to do that.
• 28:05
  SPEAKER_01: That's a good that's a good question, Russ.
• 28:06
  SPEAKER_01: Should we get like a sat phone or I don't know?
• 28:08
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah, I mean, we maybe we should look into that.
• 28:11
  SPEAKER_02: Um, I do think we will have some sort of tracker on our tuk tuk.
• 28:15
  SPEAKER_02: Um like sad.
• 28:17
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah, you know, I don't know how reliable it is or how often it will work, but at some point people will be able to go to our website, um, kubikai society.com and actually track where we are in regards to the to the race.
• 28:30
  SPEAKER_00: That's really good to know.
• 28:32
  SPEAKER_00: Um, and just on that note, just in terms of people who would like to contribute, donate, support you, what do they do just logistically?
• 28:40
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah, it's it's super easy, takes less than a minute.
• 28:44
  SPEAKER_02: Um, if you go to our website, kublicaya society.com, there's actually a whole page dedicated um to our fundraising effort.
• 28:52
  SPEAKER_02: And it's simple.
• 28:53
  SPEAKER_02: They can, you know, you just a simple online uh form you fill out.
• 28:57
  SPEAKER_02: And like I said, it's very easy.
• 28:59
  SPEAKER_02: If anybody wants to give, no matter how big, how small, everything goes towards getting books in kids' uh hands that need them.
• 29:05
  SPEAKER_02: So we would appreciate any support uh that anyone out there has to offer.
• 29:10
  SPEAKER_01: And also We promise we will not use this money on fancy emails.
• 29:15
  SPEAKER_01: It will all go to kids.
• 29:16
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, and I'm gonna all go to books.
• 29:19
  SPEAKER_00: It all goes to books.
• 29:20
  SPEAKER_00: Because we're gonna put the link, we'll put the link to um to donation and also on the World Literacy Foundation website.
• 29:28
  SPEAKER_00: Just um before we go, a quick question, which is logistically, do you take off how long is this gonna be?
• 29:34
  SPEAKER_00: And uh, you know, how do how do you manage work?
• 29:36
  SPEAKER_00: And you certainly won't be doing a little bit of the old um, you know, um, what are they called when you're you know you're on you're online out in the wheel?
• 29:44
  SPEAKER_02: Remote work.
• 29:44
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, remote work, yeah, which which is everywhere.
• 29:47
  SPEAKER_00: You will be doing remote working.
• 29:50
  SPEAKER_01: We're just working from the Himalayas.
• 29:52
  unknown: Yes.
• 29:53
  unknown: It's so funny.
• 29:54
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, so Hey, Russ, Russ has done Russ has done crazier.
• 29:58
  SPEAKER_01: Okay, well, we've traveled and he'll be taking phone calls.
• 30:01
  SPEAKER_01: He'll be like, just wait a second, we'll be in the middle of a dinner, and I'll walk outside, take a phone call, come back, and he's like, Nope, just had to check on things, everything's fine, still do, still working, it'll come back to dinner.
• 30:11
  SPEAKER_00: It's called the ultimate digital nomad, right?
• 30:14
  SPEAKER_00: That's the word I was thinking, the digital nomads, right?
• 30:17
  SPEAKER_00: You guys take it to a whole other level.
• 30:19
  SPEAKER_00: Um, so so how do you navigate?
• 30:22
  SPEAKER_00: I was thinking, how do you navigate work?
• 30:24
  SPEAKER_00: Uh or or you don't?
• 30:26
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah, it I mean it takes planning ahead.
• 30:29
  SPEAKER_02: Um, yeah, or yeah, you don't.
• 30:31
  SPEAKER_02: Um, no, but I mean trust funds.
• 30:33
  SPEAKER_02: You know, this isn't something you drop on someone and say, hey, I'm gonna wouldn't that be nice?
• 30:38
  SPEAKER_02: I mean, um, but no, it's my my my work is very understanding.
• 30:43
  SPEAKER_02: Um, you know, you plan ahead, you lay, you lay the foundation, you make sure you have things covered, and um that allows you to actually enjoy uh your your travel, your trips, um, knowing that things are taken care of sort of back home.
• 30:56
  SPEAKER_02: But you know, I'm sure that not all employers are probably as um, you know, uh forgiving and accommodating as my own.
• 31:03
  SPEAKER_02: So I I I feel yeah, very grateful for that.
• 31:05
  SPEAKER_01: For me, for me, it's two things.
• 31:07
  SPEAKER_01: Uh one, I work for a Spanish, a Spanish school, so Spanish university based out of Madrid.
• 31:12
  SPEAKER_01: Um and uh if you know well, the European market kind of falls asleep in all of August.
• 31:19
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
• 31:19
  SPEAKER_01: So taking time off, I don't have a ton of time off, but taking time off in August is easier, albeit I've saved a lot of my vacation time for this trip.
• 31:28
  SPEAKER_01: I mean, the the race itself, it will be about 11, 12 days.
• 31:32
  SPEAKER_01: There's a little bit of a pre-setup where we get there and get our rickshaw, set it up, test it, like do some test driving.
• 31:38
  SPEAKER_01: There's like a little pre-meet the other teams.
• 31:40
  SPEAKER_01: And to be honest, on the race, at least historically, we barely saw the other teams.
• 31:45
  SPEAKER_01: So you all kind of like scatter and you go and you take your own paths, and maybe you're kind of together at the beginning a little bit, and then you kind of like follow your own way.
• 31:54
  SPEAKER_01: And then um, so we kind of get there and do a little bit of that, and then at the end, so in in general, as a whole, this will probably take us a little over two weeks, and then maybe we'll stay in India a couple more days.
• 32:04
  SPEAKER_01: And so, yeah, we take a little bit of time off work for that, and so there's other events and things in our lives that maybe we weren't able to do this year, specifically because we've been planning for this this time and uh this time in India.
• 32:17
  SPEAKER_01: And but at the end of the day, this has been every conversation we have, we get excited.
• 32:21
  SPEAKER_01: Like every time I get to talk to Russ about like planning or say Pendar, don't forget to buy hand gloves because trust me, you're gonna want it.
• 32:29
  SPEAKER_01: Uh, those little things are always excited.
• 32:31
  SPEAKER_00: So well, I'm very excited to to touch base with you guys.
• 32:35
  SPEAKER_00: I think we're gonna have a touch base somewhere halfway and then maybe at the end, depending on your um service, you know, whether you have service.
• 32:42
  SPEAKER_00: Um, but I think it's really great.
• 32:44
  SPEAKER_00: It's intrepid, it's inspiring, and certainly so appreciative.
• 32:48
  SPEAKER_00: The World Literacy Foundation are so excited to partner with you and can't wait to see some of the videos will be quite amazing, assuming you get footage.
• 32:57
  SPEAKER_00: Um, and just stay safe, take care, and go on this incredible journey and enjoy.
• 33:04
  SPEAKER_01: It's at Kublai K-U-B-L-A-I dot K A I.
• 33:08
  SPEAKER_01: If you want to follow us on Instagram, um we're gonna be putting or putting up as much as we can consistently about the trip, what we're experiencing.
• 33:16
  SPEAKER_01: Hopefully, Russ doesn't get deli belly this time.
• 33:19
  SPEAKER_00: I was about to ask, yeah, I didn't want to touch that one, but I thought that might be on the slate.
• 33:23
  SPEAKER_02: I think I have antibodies now, it should be fine.
• 33:25
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah, yeah, we're good.
• 33:26
  SPEAKER_02: We're good, we're good.
• 33:29
  SPEAKER_00: Take lots of uh Acidophilus.
• 33:31
  SPEAKER_00: That's my recommendation.
• 33:33
  SPEAKER_00: Um, well, take care, enjoy, and thank you so much.
• 33:36
  SPEAKER_00: It's been a hoot.
• 33:37
  SPEAKER_00: We love chatting to you and can't wait to um to see all the footage.
• 33:42
  SPEAKER_00: Uh so for those listening, we look forward to seeing us raise lots of money towards this important cause.
• 33:52
  SPEAKER_00: Thanks, guys.
• 33:53
  SPEAKER_00: Bye.
• 34:01
  SPEAKER_00: Well, at the World Literacy Foundation, we believe in literacy is the foundation of lifelong learning and education.
• 34:07
  SPEAKER_00: People who cannot read or write experience difficulties with simple everyday tasks, such as reading the label of a medicine bottle, filling in a job application, or understanding a traffic sign.
• 34:17
  SPEAKER_00: When we help someone to acquire literacy skills, we're empowering them to access to better opportunities in life to break the poverty cycle.
• 34:26
  SPEAKER_00: It's a global organisation in Africa, Latin America, the United States, the United Kingdom, and in Australia.
• 34:33
  SPEAKER_00: The World Literacy Foundation is on a mission to ensure that every child, regardless of geographic location, has the opportunity to acquire literacy skills and books to reach their full potential.
• 34:43
  SPEAKER_00: We're striving to eradicate our literacy by 2040.
• 34:47
  SPEAKER_00: Reading and writing should just be a basic right, not a privilege.
• 34:52
  SPEAKER_00: So please, if you're interested, head to our website at the World Literacy Foundation to see what is happening globally, this extraordinary organisation, when we realise that there are 750 million people who cannot read and write.
• 35:06
  SPEAKER_00: So see if you can contribute and make a difference.