The WordPress Magazine

Nick Stratton of Grid Runner Adventures (gridrunneradventures.com) says on his website that the explorer bug “has been growing in me for many years and it has finally breached the surface”.  He managed to stay still long enough for me to talk to him online about his next adventure and how he is blogging about his preparation and the journey itself.

Hi Nick!  I like to start by asking people a bit about their part of the world.  What can you tell us about your neck of the woods?

Well originally I am from Washington State.  The Pacific Northwest is a great place to live.   It stays about sweatshirt weather year round.  Also you are always within a half hour from salt water and mountains at all times.

From seeing Grid Runner Adventures I didn’t think you’d be bothered about a bit of trecherous weather!  Tell us about your travelling plans.

Well my next adventure will be taking place in the spring of 2009 where I will be sailing a 17 ft canoe from Olympia Washington to Skagway Alaska.  I will be sailing in the day and camping by night, though I do forsee some times where I will stop and explore a day here and a day there.  For that I have decided to fit all of my gear in a hiking pack exept for those bulkier items required for boating.

So how are you going to manage to blog while you’re on the road/water?

I have come across a tiny laptop with solid state storage - the Eee PC 901 - that I will purchase to maintain the website while out and about, finding internet at villages/towns along the way.  I have also been consulting with a ham radio operator who is teaching me about the posibilities of using a hand-held radio and a 2 metre antenna hooked to my laptop with a radio modem for updating small portions of the site.

Haha, you can use a CB radio to connect to the internet?  How would that work, do you know yet?

I believe it is called “Packet”.

Wow, I just Googled it, that’s brilliant!  Let’s talk about Grid Runner Adventures.  You’ve got the site well established in a  relatively short amount of time.  How did you come across WordPress and how has it helped you?

WordPress has turned out to be an amazing content management system for me.  Previously all I have had at my disposal was HTML with cut ‘n’ paste coding.  As I say “Google is my College” and Google is how I came across WordPress.

That quote from your site is great :).  So you’ve made this site after no previous experience of CMSes or blogging software.  Did you start off with an existing theme and modify it to your own design?

Yes, I searched all over for a base to start with, and then I modified it to fit my own desires.

Videos are a big part of your site, what’s your videoing and editing setup?

I currently have a Sony Network Handicam - DCR-TRV70 I beleive the model number is.  It has been doing a great job for me so far.  I do all of my video editing in Linux on a laptop.  Kino is a great video editing application for making YouTube-quality videos.  Cinelerra is another amazing application that I have not been able to master yet, but when there is a need i will put my Googling skills to work.

Haha, sounds good.  What inspired you to make a website about your adventures?  Did the hassles of blogging on the run put you off?

Hrmm, it’s a large combination of things that have happened in my life and people I have met.  Tinny at minibulldesign.com may very well have as large as fault as them all for inspiring me to get out and do it.  I am extremely happy to have Mini Bull Design as my first sponsor!  Blogging is relaxing for me.  It helps me set goals that I wish to keep.  Also it satisfies the geek side of me for all things technical.  As far as bloging on the run, why travel if you don’t wish to share in what you experience with others?

Absolutely, couldn’t agree more!  You mentioned you’re trying to take the bare minimum on this trip.  What tips have you got for travelling light?

I have only recently involved myself with ultra light backpacking and travel.  I have been a hammock tent camper for since I can remember, but my pack was an old REI rental.  I’ve never had a sleeping bag that wasn’t as big as my torso.  But now I am now able to lift my pack with just a finger, and that makes me quite happy.  For light travelling I recommend alcohol stoves.  Check out the Gram Weenie Kitchen, it weighs under 1 lb.  All in all just keep it small, keep it simple and layer your clothing.

Sounds like good advice!  Are you going to be videoing your packing and preparation for the trip?

Yes!  I will be documenting the entire build process of rigging the canoe for sailing and building the outriggers, sewing the sails, and all of the other bits and bobs and gear.  You can subscribe to the site by RSS if you want to keep up to date on my progress.

Are you taking the video camera with you on the trip?  Will you be posting video updates?

I will, it’ll be in a water bag.  I will have to save video uploads for stable internet connections though.

Will you be able to upload still photos regularly, even if you can’t manage videos?

Yes, by radio modem or even dialup!  I will find a way to keep the site updated as much as possible when I am on the adventure.

I expect comments on the site will be really encouraging for you while you’re travelling.

I am definently looking forward to developing a community around Grid Runner Adventures, to have the regular supporters as well as the first time lookers. Eventualy I would like to offer to take people on adventures with Grid Runner Adventures.

What have you used so far to tell people about your site?

I have mainly relied on word-of-mouth to spread the word, also some IRC contacts and lately I’ve started in a couple forums.  I am really suprized at how fast the site is taking off.  This is really something people are interested in and I am greatful to be a part of it.  Also, people can look for me driving across the USA starting November 1st.  I’ll be travelling in southern Wisconsin and stretching across to Washington State in preparation for the big canoe sailing trip this spring.  I will have a large billboard ontop of my roof displaying the site’s URL.

What would you say to someone who wants to start a website about their own particular interests?

I highly recomend you all get out and get a blog of your own, and spend the nine bucks for a domain name you can be proud of.  Free hosting is very prevalant.  You will get the full benifit and experience as well as satisfaction of creating something yourself from the ground up.

I’m sure you’ll continue to inspire people as you continue to plan and go on your adventure.  Good luck!  Thanks for taking the time to chat.

It was my pleasure.