Very very brief synopsis: My wife and I, --three times entered and completed the world's longest non stop 'river' kayak race the MR340.
The MR340 is 340 miles down the Missouri River from Kansas City to just upstream of St. Louis, Missouri. 88 hour time limit. Sleep optional. What an adventure!
"Lets get this done" (start of the MR340)
No Motor Zone of Kennedy Space Center
Well, about us.....
(web designer SBI says you want to know)
Don't know why, but...
For those of you in a hurry: Another brief synopsis: My wife and I were raised on the family horse ranches-Hers "back east" & my family's in the Midwest. Our jobs took us to Hurricane prone Florida where we both discovered the addiction of fishing the "No Motor Zone" of Kennedy Space Center. (I guess one could have worse addictions)
Family battle with the EPA, DNR and an oil company to clean up their pipe line leak in eastern Missouri. Due to the length of that fight, I made a separate page: Pipeline leak on the O'Day Creek.
Power and money= the oil company owns the regulatory organizations.
O'Day Creek in east Missouri
"After the storm"
(Long boring version) Raised in rural Missouri on a horse farm Stonebridge Stables, enlisted in the United States Air Force to get to Alaska (Is there anyone who does not want to go to Alaska?)
.....And the infinite wisdom of the USAF; I was assigned to Cape Canaveral Air Force Station and Patrick Air Force Base Florida.... Supporting the Cape and Kennedy Space Center.
(What the heck USAF?)
In support of the Air Force Eastern Test Range, duty was to exotic locations (to me anyway) Ascension Island, the Lesser Antilles, the Bahamas, followed by travel to the less exotic....Nevada, Texas, California, North and south Florida.
Was in California for the first landing test of the Space Shuttle Enterprise. Exciting time in the California desert
Honorable discharge from the USAF and then hired by the Air Force as a diver.....go figure...And back to Ascension Island, the Lesser Antilles, Grand Turk, Grand Bahama and Puerto Rico.
Seven years, all expenses paid to dive and dive and..... lots of lobster. Took up wind surfing and night diving.
Taught myself Flintknapping in the Obsidian fields of Ascension Island.
My job as a diver for the USAF.....Cave dives & lobsters in our spare time. Ascension Island South Atlantic
I hiked every volcano on Ascension Island, no matter how painful.
My Wahoo caught on Grand Turk Island.
(Long way from the midwest)
Everything has to end and so did the job as a USAF diver.
However hit the lottery again and was hired on at Kennedy Space Center during the Shuttle program.
Heady days that allowed my sons and I to explore every bit of Kennedy Space Center and Merritt Island Wildlife Refuge and watch space shuttles.
Photo credit: Mine!
Picture from Launch Pad 39B to pad 39A on KSC
My three sons on a trip to Missouri,
Johnson Shut Ins State Park
Sons are grown and moved on to their own adventures: Clean up of a homeless camp on the beach.
Three times entered and completed the worlds longest non stop river kayak race the MR340 340 miles down the Missouri River from Kansas City to just upstream of St. Louis, Missouri. 88 hour time limit.
Had to point out the word "completed" because one third to one half of the 600 racers drop out from injury or exhaustion.
Goal: Another run at the MR340 race, for it is an awesome adventure!
A side effect of this race hobby: Lots of unused boats and gear--and any excuse to paddle!
Thought it was only fair to share the boats to show others some of the remote wilderness areas of the east coast of Florida.
Admission: And still have not made it to Alaska...... But have done the MR340 three times....
The elusive MR340 race finish line!
Do wish to express my thanks and appreciation to the United States Air Force for taking an untrained kid out of the Ozarks, giving me training in a career that landed me a job at Kennedy Space Center and a seven year job in the Caribbean and South Atlantic as a diver. --A far, far distance from the green hills of Missouri!
Thank you USAF!
So I mostly over skipped the entire nightmare scenario of having to fight with an oil company when their pipeline burst. Reason for passing? because it did not happen in Florida and it is a long read and was a long nightmare. However it might be of some interest & posted the link twice on this page:
Pipeline break on the O'Day Creek
Kayaking Kennedy Space Center!
Banana River, south boundary of KSC
When on KSC: Never forget you are guest in a wildlife sanctuary!
(my other web page)
Wild Turkeys of Kennedy Space Center
Return home from about us
Kayakingksc.com
For the video versions of information, please check out my YouTube Channel (Turkeys, Flintknapping, dive stories etc.)
My fictional series/stories on Florida history:
Freedoms Quest (book one)
Struggle for the northern frontier and other lost tales of old Florida.
Available on Amazon