Chasing Waterfalls & Pursuing Life with Retired Pro Extreme Kayaker Pat Keller

06/02/23 • 64 min

Pat Keller is known for his waterfall first descents as well as being a repeat winner of the coveted Green Race, winning the Great Falls Race and the inaugural Rey del Rio Waterfall World Championships in Mexico where he battled the world’s top boaters over three back-to-back waterfalls—a 25-footer, a 55-footer and a 35-footer. Accolades also include being a two-time Teva Mountain Games winner and the first Descents as I just mentioned including: Toxaway Falls, Linville Falls, Valser Rhein Falls, Cane Creek Falls, Wolf Creek Falls, and Ozone Falls.

All these accomplishments are super impressive, but what also stands out to me is Pat’s passion, zeal for life, and his constant need to set goals and push himself in whatever he does.

Although Pat now considers himself a retired pro-athlete, the quest for finding outdoor pursuits where he can totally immerse himself and find that flow state is as strong as ever. He may spend more time rallying around the endless network of gravel roads on his motorcycle these days, but he admits there are more whitewater kayaking missions on the horizon.

In this episode, Pat drops by the studio and we unpack all of this. We also talk about how being born and raised in the western North Carolina mountains has truly shaped him and helped develop his passions.
Mentioned In This Episode
Liquid Logic
Dagger
Green Race
TAT TransAmerica Trail
Dagger Green Boat
Blindfold Run of Green River

Mike Andress
Host, Exploration Local
828-551-9065
[email protected]
Podcast Website
Facebook
Instagram: explorationlocal

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All these accomplishments are super impressive, but what also stands out to me is Pat’s passion, zeal for life, and his constant need to set goals and push himself in whatever he does.

Mike Andress
Host, Exploration Local
828-551-9065
[email protected]
Podcast Website
Facebook
Instagram: explorationlocal

Previous Episode

O.G.R.E. (Outdoor Gear & Recreation Equipment) with CEO, Jason Bowman

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Jason Bowman grew up in the mountains of Southwestern Virginia chasing brook trout and working on trucks. Today he lives in Brevard, N.C. and still chases trout and works on trucks. The only difference today is that he’s a little bit older, LIVING with Stage 4 prostate cancer, a USMC Veteran, family man, business owner and creator in the outdoor gear space, and he spends as much time on the coast surfing as he does fishing the local rivers these days. Oh, and the trucks he works at O.G.R.E. on aren’t the everyday, run of the mill trucks. They are purpose-built tools designed to get adventurers to their favorite river, trail, or hunting spot.

In this episode Jason stops by the studio and we unpack a lot. We talk about life, family, business building, living life on purpose, and life’s perspective through the lens of cancer. We also talk about the effect of the outdoors on our physical and mental well-being, and the importance of making play and getting outside an integral part of our lives.
Be sure to check out:
O.G.R.E https://www.ogreoutdoors.com/
Warrior Surf https://www.warriorsurf.org/
Outdoor Gear Builders of WNC https://www.outdoorgearbuilders.com/
Mountain BizWorks https://www.mountainbizworks.org/
Carbon TV: OGRE Outdoors https://www.carbontv.com/shows/ogre-outdoors/
Brevard, NC https://explorebrevard.com/
TC Webb https://www.thomascwebb.com/
Mental Health America https://www.mhanational.org/mental-health-month

Mike Andress
Host, Exploration Local
828-551-9065
[email protected]
Podcast Website
Facebook
Instagram: explorationlocal

Next Episode

Building Community & Making Memories with BRAVO (Blue Ridge Adventures Vision Optional)

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In this episode I sit down with very special guests Layla & Stacey Hildenbran, and Jay Hardwig from BRAVO which is Blue Ridge Adventures – Vision Optional, whose mission is To provide outdoor enrichment programsto youth with blindness and low vision.

This is an especially fun episode for me because I have been hearing about Layla’s story since my wife taught her in first grade six years ago. She is a super special girl who is completely blind...and pursues life full on. And it’s not by accident. Her parents, Stacey and Jason have always taken the approach that they didn’t want to limit Layla, but instead wanted her to thrive and experience as much as she possibly could in her life. The outdoors has always been a draw for their family, and they’ve made adventure a priority in their lives.
Sadly, there is a shortage of quality programs for students with visual impairments, particularly in the area of outdoor experiential education. Multiple studies have confirmed that students with visual impairments are more likely to be less active, less healthy, and less socially engaged than their sighted peers. These discrepancies have become more pronounced following the Covid pandemic.
So, when the camp program that Layla had been participating changed their focus and direction in the fall of 2022, Jay, Stacey and others knew what they had to do. They started the non-profit BRAVO program to continue bringing blind and visually impaired students into the outdoors so they too can experience the positive impact on their mental and physical wellbeing, and improve symptoms of stress, anxiety, and depression.
MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE
https://www.blueridgebravo.org/
https://wildwaterrafting.com/
https://noc.com/

Mike Andress
Host, Exploration Local
828-551-9065
[email protected]
Podcast Website
Facebook
Instagram: explorationlocal