Running Around The World

by Kraig Becker on

Back in February of 2000, Serge Roehteli, along with his wife Nicole, set out on an amazing journey to circle the globe, running the entire way. The plan was to cover more than 25,000 miles, on six continents, crossing 37 countries in the process.

Serge, an experienced ultra-runner, estimated that it would take him five years to complete the project that would see him running the equivalent of a marathon every other day, through all kinds of different conditions and across a myriad of terrains. Nicole would serve as his support crew, riding along side him on a motorcycle, carrying all of their gear and supplies. She also filmed their travels, capturing every aspect of the journey. Those video tapes are now the basis of a new film entitled Beyond the Epic Run.

You can learn more about Serge, Nicole, and the film at their website, where there are blog entries with more details on the run, and promises of updates on the release date and screenings of the movie. Other ultra-runners, such as Dean Karnazes, weigh in on the Epic Run as well, and there is plenty of video posted, such as the trailer for the film that you can watch below.

Plenty of people have traveled around the world, and for many it is the ultimate trip. But for Serge and Nicole it became something even bigger than that. It was a challenge of will and determination unlike any other. The film will allow us to go along with them, and experience their amazing journey.

A Scorpion Queen is crowned in Thailand

by Brenda Yun on

Imagine finding a scorpion in your bag on your trip through customs. That’s what happened to my friend on her way from Oaxaca back to the States. She had thought her boyfriend had planted a fake scorpion when she found a real one sitting atop her clothes during the bag checkpoint.

Now multiply that scorpion by 5,000 and live with them in a glass-enclosed showroom of a mall for 33 days. That’s what 39 year-old Kanchana Kaetkaew, a Thai scorpion handler, accomplished this new year. She didn’t walk away completely unscathed though; she was stung 13 times in that month’s time, but she has built up an immunity to the venom. Enduring that pain is enough for this Scorpion Queen, however, who In accomplishing this broke her own Guinness Book of World Records.

Wacky flight attendant announcements from an airline no longer with us

by Scott Carmichael on

This hilarious collection of cabin announcements was made by Kurt Stecker who recorded them during his time at ATA airlines. The clip is part comedy and part tribute to ATA, which ceased operation on April 2nd 2008.

The end of ATA put 2300 people out of work, and stranded almost 10,000 passengers around the country. Still, it is obvious from the clip that at least one person working with ATA had a great time, as he puts on a fantastic show to entertain his passengers.

Booger Mountain and Booger Hollow: What’s with the boogers?

by Jamie Rhein on

While looking for funny names of towns, I came across Booger Mountain and Booger Hollow. Intrigued I dug further to find out where these names came from and more about these places in the United States.

Booger Mountain is a place in North Carolina known for its Christmas trees. As a marketing campaign, the area uses the motto, “Always Pick a Booger.”

Don Burleson, who pens the blog, “Don Burleson Blog: Because you have the right to my opinion,” presented that detail, plus information about Booger Holler and Booger Swamp wine. He also included a picture of Queen Elizabeth going fishing, if you know what I mean.

Further sleuthing turned up Booger Woods in the Charlie Daniel’s song “The Legend of Wooley Swamp.” In the lyrics, Booger Woods is said to be in this swamp.

There is more booger lore, such as Booger Hollow, Arkansas and the origin of the name “booger.”

There are a few places called Booger Hollow. A hollow (holler) is a narrow valley between hills and mountains. One Booger Hollow is in Arkansas. Here you can find the Booger Hollow Trading Post and the Booger Burger.

From reading the details on a Web page on the Booger Hollow Trading Post, I’ve learned that the word booger is not connected to nose boogers, but to spirits or ghosts. It’s a short form for “boogie man” as in “If you don’t behave, the boogie man will get you.” Like the boogie man that’s under your bed.

Various regions of North Carolina, Arkansas, Tennessee, and Kentucky use the term. These were settled by Scotch-Irish who came from a part of the world where shadows, mountains and fog added to a sense of the mysterious belief that places could be haunted. Still, this did not keep The Daily Show with Jon Stewart from doing this hilarious segment on Booger Mountain. The date is April 1, 1999. I expect the story was jazzed up a bit. Still, what a hoot.

The Booger Mountain Tree Farm is listed as winning awards in the 1980s but isn’t on the page of current wholesale growers. However, in this recent thread on City-Data.com has info about where the farms are. Plus, Steve Rhode’s photo was posted this past December.

The Volvo Ocean Race heads Eastward

by Grant Martin on

Somewhere in the South China Sea, seven VO70s are pushing northeast towards Qingdao. They’re part of the Volvo Ocean Race, the round-the-world sailing competition that happens once every four years, pitting the best in technology and skill against some the wildest oceans on the planet. It’s an intense, nine month race, with stops around the world in five continents, in port racing, fanfare, glory and loss. More than one team has experienced hardship on the seas, both technical and fiscal — team Russia just pulled out of the race because they couldn’t afford the massive fees.

Later this spring, after a treacherous crossing of the South Pacific and a hook around Cape Horn, the fleet will work its way up past Brazil and towards the US. May 9th in Boston marks their only event in the United States, so if you’re interested in seeing the amazing group of ships you should stop by for the in port race. After that they’ll be headed to Western Europe and finally towards the finish line in St. Petersburg.

We’ll keep you updated on the fleet and their arrival into Massachusetts. In the meantime, check out the media intensive volvooreanrace.org for a wealth of updates, news, pictures and data.