I had the honour of presenting to the society in 2009 following my source to sea paddling descent of the Amazon River, so to be invited a second time is humbling. My Amazon lecture attracted a large audience, filling the 750 seat Ondaatje Theatre to capacity and then some. An indication more, I think, of the lure of the Amazon than the story I had to tell.

To my Iran lecture, my ego would be well chuffed to attract an audience half that size, but my heart would crushed. An opportunity for me to open a window into an amazing country and it's people and one that would be lost to those who don't attend. Granted, talking about Iran may not have quite the same "adventure" quotient as the Amazon but the topic is an important one. What do you really know about Iran, beyond what is reported in the media? For most people, I would hazard very little. Having now spent almost 4 years researching the country, including walking more than 1000 miles across it's surface, I would like to think I know a little about the place and it is certainly a tale worthy of telling.

With new sanctions against the country activated this week, the latest IAEA report into Iran's nuclear activity just released and the spectre of war looming large, understanding the issue is, I believe of great importance, not just to those with their fingers on the buttons but to everyone.

Now, I am no Michael Axworthy or Professor Ali Ansari, but after studying Iran in depth for the last 3 years, walking clean across the country last year and of course trying desperately to write a book about it, I reckon I might have at least a little idea about what is going on.

I am honoured to have been invited to speak at the Royal Geographical Society headquarters in London on December 5th regarding my walk across Iran and I am hella nervous. Presenting on stage in the Ondaatje Theatre in front of 750 RGS members and their guests is a formidable challenge at the best of times. When your topic is one of the hottest and polarising (not to mention most complex) in the world today things really get interesting. Since my return from Iran I have been accused of being pro-regime, anti-regime and everything in between. A sure sign that my lecture is bound to be an interesting one, for me and the audience.

My experience walking 1700km from the Caspian Sea to the Persian Gulf across the Alborz mountains, through Tehran, Qom, the Central Plateau, Esfahan, the Zagros mountains and on to the gulf was, to me, amazing and thought provoking.

If you think that I might be able to provide you with an evening of entertainment and I hope, some thought, then please come along. I am super amped (and kaking it just a bit!) to speak for the second time at the RGS headquarters. An honour for sure! I really hope that the topic of Iran proves just as inviting as the Amazon paddling descent which garnered a full house and more.

Gerry Moffatt first arrived in Nepal on a British kayaking expedition in 1983 at the age of eighteen. Over the next twenty years he became the first man to descend all the major rivers in the Nepalese Himalayas. In 1990 he established the first river company in Northern Pakistan. Currently he serves as the white water consultant to the Kingdom of Bhutan. National Geographic regard him as “the most experienced river guide in the Himalayas.”

Throughout his career, Moffatt has spent a considerable amount of time working in the field of adventure documentary production. He has summited Mt. Everest on two occasions for film productions. In June 2006 he climbed via Tibet's north face as the behind the scenes Television Presenter for the epic motion picture ”The Wildest Dream”, which retraces the life of George Mallory and the tragic 1924 Everest Expedition. More recently, in May 2009, as Head of Film Production for Eddie Bauer’s “Return to Everest Expedition”, Moffatt summited Mount Everest from the Nepalese south side.

Moffatt has produced adventure documentaries for National Geographic Television, Discovery Network, Outdoor Life Network, Channel 4 and Trans World Sport. His experience in the world of adventure is derived from a lifetime of expeditioning, instructing and guiding skill based outdoor pursuits such as kayaking, back country skiing, mountain biking and kite surfing throughout Asia, Africa and South America.

Moffatt resides between the Himalayas and Sun Valley, Idaho where he can best pursue his professional expertise in the world of filmmaking and adventure travel.

So, yes, I will definitely be there. Should be awesome! The lecture tomorrow is at Brookbank London. Entry is free, but you should put your name down here. If anyone is keen to head out there, let me know.

At the height of summer last year I spent a few weeks on the other side of France near Montpellier. I was fortunate enough to train during that time at Arte Suave, a grappling gym in the city run by Florent and Jean-Claude Luccioni. Getting to spar with both of them was a revelation. I learnt a lot by getting my ass handed to me in rapid succession. Grappling no-gi, Florent submitted me in approximately 15 secs via guillotine. I fared better against Jean-Claude, forcing him to attack me relentlessly for just under a minute before submitting me in similar fashion. I outweigh both of them by around 30kg (the boys fight at about 72kg, I fight at 102kg). Far from being frustrated or angry, once I got my breath back I was smiling from ear to ear. The lessons I learnt in those sessions were huge and pushed me to even greater heights.

A month ago, I had the fortune to present for that eclectic and wonderful group of people, The Globetrotters Club, alongside Alastair Humphreys. A double-bill of adventurous speaking for the club sounded pretty good to me. I pride myself on being a fairly relaxed but passionate speaker. Not the most polished performer but able to paint a nice picture of my expeditions and delivered with feeling. I went well over my allotted time (providing good joke material for Al), but it seemed to be enjoyed nonetheless. Al followed my somewhat chaotic performance. Bloody heck! It was like getting an ass whupping from Florent and Jean-Claude all over again! Al and I were not there for a verbal stoush but inevitably comparisons must be made. Al has a similarly relaxed style (very British but still pretty laid back) but his delivery is tight. No superfluous clutter, just what he wants to say and no more. It was a great presentation. Again, instead of being jealous or upset at this sort of pasting I was over the moon as I left the pub where we had gathered following the talks. I had seen what my talks could become, keeping my own style of course. I was stoked thinking of the possibilities.

Two pretty convincing beat downs, that over the course of the past months have helped me become a better person not just as a fighter or speaker, but as a whole. I ain't perfect but thanks to Al, Florent and Jean-Claude I am at least on the right path.

NB. Had I crushed Florent and Jean-Claude into the mat and made Al look like a bumbling fool of a speaker, just what would I have learnt?

But let me leave you guys with yet another awesome Friday Stoke. Remember when you used to get sick on the rides at the fun fair?

Next week I will fill you in on a few of the challenges that I am looking forward to whilst on river for the rest of the year and fingers crossed reveal the pretty gnarly kayak that I will be paddling. Cannot wait!

I have a bunch of talks coming up on the ol' London circuit. It kicks off with Adventure Travel Live on the 29th and 30th January at 11am both days (Royal Horticultural Halls, Victoria). I am there to chat about "challenging yourself to make a difference". Of course I will try my darndest to talk about myself as much as possible as usual.

Next up is a slot at The Times Destinations Holiday and Travel Show in Earls Court. I am speaking on Thursday 3rd February at 3pm. I will be talking about some of my past adventures and opening up about my upcoming Missouri-Mississippi River paddle as well as the 7 rivers, 7 continents project as a whole. Looking forward to this one.

Both shows look very cool this year and not just because I will be there. You can come listen to real stars like Al Humphreys, Dave Cornthwaite, Bonita Norris and even the big fella, Ben Fogle!

I am back in London next week to speak at the sold out Night of Adventure and in Darlington for the RGS. Keep an eye out as well for an exciting announcement regarding one of the experts joining us for the Expedition School in August. Very happy to have this fella on board. Have an ace weekend!

I am really looking forward to the event and have put together a great selection of images from the journey, working hard to ensure it is not just another "look at my holiday snaps" show. As with my journey down the Amazon, I have developed a real passion for Iran and it's people. I was lucky to get a real insight into this country that despite being a mere 6 hour plane ride from London, is still regarded as such a secretive place full of strange people, harbouring ill-feeling towards the west.

With the presentation, I will reveal a place that is not only one of the most fascinating countries geographically but has an amazing history and a unique contemporary position in today's world. My journey includes just enough thrills and spills to keep the audience listening but also the right amount of in-depth analysis of the country and people I encountered. Be prepared for a passionate, heart-felt recollection of my time there. It might get quite lively!

Date: Thursday May 6th 2010
TIme: 8pm
Venue: Stamford Arts Centre, Stamford PE9 2DL
Tickets: £12 (£10 RGS members) book online here

Please do come along. I am really excited to present at such a great venue and for the first time reveal my journey across Iran.

]]> http://www.markkalch.com/2010/04/walking-on-a-dream/feed/ 3 http://www.markkalch.com/2010/04/missionexplore/ http://www.markkalch.com/2010/04/missionexplore/#comments Wed, 14 Apr 2010 10:01:47 +0000 Mark Kalch http://www.markkalch.com/?p=2350 I travel around the world and undertake some pretty tough journeys (well, they seem reasonably difficult to me!). Upon my return I take all my best photos and memories, put them…

]]> I travel around the world and undertake some pretty tough journeys (well, they seem reasonably difficult to me!). Upon my return I take all my best photos and memories, put them together and share them through writing a few articles and speaking. A big part of my speaking focus is on schools. "Lucky" students get to sit through an hour of me regaling them with my derring-do in tricky situations. Along the way I hope to inspire them to explore the world for themselves. They can start with their own backyard, the local park, then onwards and upwards. I am confident that my talks have a positive impact on the willingness of the pupils to get out there for themselves and become more inquisitive of our planet and it's people.

But, what if, after that initial spark of inspiration, they could carry something around in their back pocket that would remind them everyday to be curious? To get their hands dirty and their clothes torn while clambering through bushes to find new adventures? Wouldn't that be great?

Well, now they do! Enter MISSION:EXPLORE This book is brilliant! Put together by the team at the Geography Collective, it encourages kids aged "10 - 10 000" to explore the world while undertaking a series of missions (102 in total). From their website, "Playful research is (usually) at the heart of each mission, exploring geography, politics, science, sociology, psychology, history, religion and other subjects in provocative, fun and engaging ways". Beside each mission in the book you can draw, rub, smear, write, scrape and print your findings and achievements as you complete each one. It sounds like something for the modern Huckleberry Finn! I can imagine a bunch of kids getting around with a torn, dog-eared, mud-covered copy in their pocket, ready to whip out and record the next mission. Cool!

I think this book is a great initiative and hope it does get kids out there and exploring. For more info or to buy the book for yourself (I think I need a copy!) visit the book website - www.missionexplore.co.uk. The website also acts as an interactive portal and you can even view it as an ebook.

]]> http://www.markkalch.com/2010/04/missionexplore/feed/ 0 http://www.markkalch.com/2010/03/enough-with-the-feelgood/ http://www.markkalch.com/2010/03/enough-with-the-feelgood/#comments Tue, 23 Mar 2010 10:34:17 +0000 Mark Kalch http://www.markkalch.com/?p=2195 My brother introduced me to the works of Richard Marcinko, a former US Navy Seal commander and all round bad-ass, known for his straight talking attitude and ability to piss…

]]> My brother introduced me to the works of Richard Marcinko, a former US Navy Seal commander and all round bad-ass, known for his straight talking attitude and ability to piss a lot of people off. I have a few of his books. I don't agree with everything Dick has to say but he definitely does not sugar coat things. He tells it like it is. An attitude that I very much try to prescribe to. I don't mean speaking your mind and hurting other people (don't you just hate those okes?) but rather more so in talking to yourself. I believe sometimes getting too caught up in motivational quotes and feel good back-slapping can take the place of real action. Better just to pull your finger out and do it! Which is exactly what Marcinko thinks.

"What's your goal for today? Say it, out loud, and be specific. Don't give me some vague horseshit. You've got 3 seconds. One. Two. Three. Say it.

Did you come up with it? If you already had a goal for today, hell yes, you came up with it. If you didn't already know your goal, you probably just stammered like an idiot. If all you did was hem and haw, the smartest thing you could do right now would be to pick up this book and smack yourself over the head with it. That way, you might remember rule number one of planning: Have a specific goal every day."

Richard Marcinko, The Rogue Warrior's Strategy for Success - A Commando's Principles of Winning

Did you have a specific goal for today? (I didn't and now have a sore head!). I will have a specific goal for tomorrow I can assure you.

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