The Goodland Journal: Volume Two
The Goodland is an outdoor adventure website featuring the work of up and coming creatives and athletes worldwide. We publish a biannual journal that fosters creative storytelling and mindful living through outdoor experiences. Check out our latest journal! @tothegoodland #findyourgoodland
The Goodland is an outdoor adventure website featuring the work of up and coming creatives and athletes worldwide. We publish a biannual journal that fosters creative storytelling and mindful living through outdoor experiences. Check out our latest journal! @tothegoodland #findyourgoodland
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<strong>The</strong> <strong>Goodland</strong><br />
V OLUME T WO - JULY 2021<br />
<strong>Volume</strong> <strong>Two</strong> 1
Letter From Basecamp<br />
<strong>Volume</strong> <strong>Two</strong> Contributors:<br />
G.P. Scheppler Simon Bell<br />
@gscheppler<br />
@Simon_Bell<br />
Santino Martirano Alben Osaki<br />
santinomartiarno.com albenosaki.com<br />
Evan Ruderman<br />
evanjruderman.com<br />
About Us:<br />
<strong>The</strong> <strong>Goodland</strong> was founded as a medium<br />
to share untold stories and creations from<br />
athletes, photographers, writers, and artists<br />
who all take inspiration from the beauty of<br />
the outdoors.<br />
Our goal is to have our reader find the<br />
stories, music, and visual art we feature to<br />
be reflective, inspiring, and timeless.<br />
<strong>The</strong> <strong>Goodland</strong> Basecamp:<br />
Oliver Ambros Mitch Bender<br />
Art Director<br />
Editor & Illustrator<br />
Micah Shanks Alben Osaki<br />
Editor<br />
Editor & Marketing<br />
Evan Ruderman<br />
Editor-at-large<br />
Contact Us:<br />
<strong>The</strong> <strong>Goodland</strong> <strong>Journal</strong><br />
basecamp@tothegoodland.com<br />
@tothegoodland<br />
Covers:<br />
Front Photo: Simon Bell<br />
Back Photo: G.P. Scheppler<br />
It’s undeniable, the outdoors is a special place; seemingly as much<br />
a human playground of serenity, expedition, and gathering as it is a<br />
realm of diverse life, unpredictable threats, and humbling vistas. Yet, as<br />
the whispers about this special place have turned to shouts in the form<br />
of social media geotagging, 3 hour lines into <strong>The</strong> Valley, and brands<br />
jockeying to sell “essential” gear, it is easy to forget the roots of it all.<br />
Like most, we appreciate the death-defying pursuits and celebrity<br />
athlete stories, but can find them unrelatable and frequently recycled<br />
by big media companies. Instead, we prefer to find our inspiration and<br />
creative roots from the voices of those often overlooked in the outdoor<br />
landscape: the average, dedicated outdoor lover. <strong>The</strong>y come from all<br />
types of backgrounds, from the local at your nearby crag or lineup, to a<br />
quiet coworker sneaking out to Cascade peaks each weekend.<br />
To them, it is never about the flashy gear, carving like Seal Tooth, or<br />
the delusional belief that we all weren’t beginners at some point. Rather,<br />
it is the unadulterated and wholesome pursuit of getting out there no<br />
matter the circumstances, simply for the sake of passion, challenge,<br />
mindfulness, and fun.<br />
In the following pages, you’ll find a collection of stories that showcase<br />
this mentality and amplify these often unheard voices. Though tales<br />
of intrigue, creativity, danger, and awe, these stories likewise remain<br />
relatable and incredibly inspirational to all.<br />
We believe Santino Martirano sums it up best in his piece, “An Ode to<br />
Hobbyists”, found on page 20: “I am here today to celebrate hobbyists,<br />
those who thrive between 5pm and 9am and find the sweet spot that we<br />
call balance.”<br />
We’re here to celebrate with them too.<br />
Keep trekking,<br />
Basecamp<br />
© 2021 <strong>The</strong> <strong>Goodland</strong>. All rights reserved.<br />
Nothing in whole or in part from this volume may be reproduced without written permission from<br />
2 <strong>The</strong> <strong>Goodland</strong> <strong>Journal</strong> <strong>Volume</strong> <strong>Two</strong> 3<br />
<strong>The</strong> <strong>Goodland</strong> or the contributors found within this volume.
<strong>The</strong> Stories Inside<br />
08 Goodlist <strong>Volume</strong> <strong>Two</strong> 42 Sometimes I Wonder<br />
<strong>The</strong> musical accompaniment to<br />
best experience the journal.<br />
By: <strong>The</strong> <strong>Goodland</strong><br />
A contemplation of the value of<br />
modern photography.<br />
By: Evan Ruderman<br />
10<br />
Just a Kid From Kaua’i<br />
A climber’s journey from the<br />
volcanoes of the Pacific to the<br />
granite towers of Tuolumne.<br />
By: Alben Osaki<br />
54 Stoke Seaker<br />
One man’s journey to the creative life.<br />
By: G.P. Scheppler<br />
20 An Ode to Hobbyists<br />
I am here today to celebrate those<br />
who thrive from 5pm-9am.<br />
By: Santino Martirano<br />
30 Progression, Succession,<br />
and Some Skiing<br />
Searching for lines and perspective<br />
in the High Sierra.<br />
By: Simon Bell<br />
4 <strong>The</strong> <strong>Goodland</strong> <strong>Journal</strong> <strong>Volume</strong> <strong>Two</strong> 5
<strong>The</strong> Goodlist:<br />
Music as Inspiration<br />
<strong>Volume</strong><br />
<strong>The</strong> <strong>Goodland</strong> has always paused to<br />
make room for music in our adventures<br />
and in our stories. Just as nature is a gift,<br />
music also gives to us without reciprocity<br />
or expectation.<br />
Carrying on our tradition, we hope that<br />
<strong>The</strong> Goodlist: <strong>Volume</strong> <strong>Two</strong> sets the<br />
mood as an inspirational soundtrack to<br />
accompany the stories found within these<br />
pages. Enjoy!<br />
Scan or click our Spotify code to listen to<br />
<strong>The</strong> Goodlist: <strong>Volume</strong> <strong>Two</strong> while you read.<br />
<strong>Two</strong><br />
6 <strong>The</strong> 6 <strong>The</strong> <strong>Goodland</strong> <strong>Journal</strong> <strong>Journal</strong> <strong>Volume</strong> <strong>Volume</strong> <strong>Two</strong> <strong>Two</strong> 7 7
Just a Kid<br />
From Kaua'i<br />
By: Alben Osaki<br />
A climber’s journey from the volcanoes of the<br />
Pacific to the granite towers of Tuolumne.<br />
8 <strong>The</strong> <strong>Goodland</strong> <strong>Journal</strong> <strong>Volume</strong> <strong>Two</strong> 9
I<br />
grew up on a tiny island called<br />
Kaua’i, in the middle of the Pacific<br />
ocean. Rock climbing wasn’t a thing<br />
for me growing up. It wasn’t until years<br />
and years later, in my late twenties, did<br />
I climb my first route. A forty foot route<br />
on top rope, using a static rope, at a<br />
crag in Makapu’u, Hawai’i. It was pretty<br />
sketchy.<br />
Little did I know that a few years<br />
later I’d be topping out on a seven<br />
hundred foot route in Yosemite.<br />
I blinked wearily as we pulled into<br />
the trailhead for Cathedral Peak, in<br />
Yosemite National Park’s Tuolumne<br />
Meadows. It was just after 6AM,<br />
and about twenty seven degrees<br />
Fahrenheit. <strong>The</strong> air was crisp, even<br />
sharp, as I inhaled. Ahead of us was<br />
what the guidebook said was an hour<br />
and a half approach. Despite having<br />
been awake since 3:30AM, all I could<br />
think was, man, I really love this.<br />
I always wanted to climb something<br />
like Cathedral. It has this air of wildness<br />
to it. Sure, Cathedral Peak isn’t that<br />
wild. Since John Muir did the first<br />
ascent back in 1869, people regularly<br />
climb it in a day and can be back in a<br />
hotel room by the evening. But it was<br />
wild to me. As primarily a bolt-clipping<br />
sport climber, more used to 15 minute<br />
approaches to crags, rather than a<br />
miles long approach to the base of a<br />
mountain, this definitely fell under my<br />
“wild” column.<br />
It was interesting starting my<br />
climbing “career” in a place like<br />
Hawai’i. It’s not a huge sport there,<br />
but it’s definitely growing. I remember<br />
basically learning how to climb by<br />
asking the guys at the only climbing<br />
gear store on the island for some tips.<br />
Add a dash of Youtube and a sprinkle<br />
of asking randos at the crag some<br />
questions, and you have the recipe for<br />
the foundation of my climbing. Not<br />
what I would recommend, by the way,<br />
but that was the reality of the time. I<br />
didn’t learn to climb in a gym; my first<br />
three or four months of climbing was<br />
all outdoors.<br />
It’s not that there wasn’t a gym on<br />
the island. In fact, there were two<br />
at the time. <strong>The</strong> one I went to was<br />
Volcanic Rock Gym on the east side of<br />
the island. My friend Sean and I would<br />
make our daily pilgrimage to pull on<br />
some plastic in this tiny gym filled with<br />
chalk dust and good people.<br />
As we approached the base of<br />
Cathedral Peak, I stared up at the<br />
imposing wall of granite and I could<br />
start to feel the butterflies flutter in my<br />
stomach. This would be the largest<br />
wall I’ve ever climbed, by a country<br />
mile. One of my climbing partners,<br />
Bodin, led the first few pitches, before<br />
he graciously let me lead the rest of<br />
the way. “This was your idea,” he said<br />
to me, “You should lead.”<br />
Despite some choss, the climbing<br />
was pretty easy and I never felt like I<br />
was ever in any danger.<br />
10 <strong>The</strong> <strong>Goodland</strong> <strong>Journal</strong> <strong>Volume</strong> <strong>Two</strong> 11
It was like nowhere else in the world I<br />
had ever been, and it was a climb unlike<br />
any other I had ever done.<br />
12 <strong>The</strong> <strong>Goodland</strong> <strong>Journal</strong> <strong>Volume</strong> <strong>Two</strong> 13
Vertical Roots: Climbing at the crag in Mokulē'ia, Hawai'i<br />
14 <strong>The</strong> <strong>Goodland</strong> <strong>Journal</strong> <strong>Volume</strong> <strong>Two</strong> 15<br />
Yosemite: Belay station on the Southeast Buttress; Bodie and I shortly after beginning.
<strong>The</strong>re were always good ledges to build anchors on.<br />
Everything felt quite comfortable, which I suppose I should<br />
expect for such an easily graded (5.6) route. Regardless, to this<br />
day it was one of my most satisfying climbing experiences in my<br />
life.<br />
As we kept getting higher and higher, I couldn’t help but look<br />
back behind and beneath us. Photos don’t do this landscape<br />
justice. Alpine lakes and granite towers abound. It was like<br />
nowhere else in the world I had ever been. It was like being on<br />
another planet.<br />
As I topped out and tagged the summit block, I gazed into<br />
the wilderness. <strong>The</strong> sun was lying low on the horizon and the<br />
sky was as clear as can be. I couldn’t have asked for more<br />
perfect conditions. I hate to utilize a cliché, but I can’t think of<br />
any other word to describe it but “epic”.<br />
I think back on my climbing “origin story” often. We didn’t<br />
have fancy climbing gyms or bougie outdoor stores with the<br />
newest and shiniest gear in Hawai’i. Volcanic Rock Gym was<br />
essentially a very large garage with bouldering walls. Climb<br />
Aloha, the only place that I knew of on the island to buy gear,<br />
was a small, unassuming store tucked in the corner of a busy<br />
street.<br />
I never would have dreamt that my path would lead me, just<br />
a kid from a tiny island called Kaua’i in the middle of the Pacific,<br />
to the top of Cathedral Peak in Yosemite.<br />
But there I was.<br />
16 <strong>The</strong> <strong>Goodland</strong> <strong>Journal</strong> <strong>Volume</strong> <strong>Two</strong> 17
An Ode to<br />
Hobbyists<br />
I am here today to celebrate hobbyists,<br />
those who thrive between 5pm and 9am and<br />
find the sweet spot that we call balance.<br />
By: Santino Martirano<br />
18 <strong>The</strong> <strong>Goodland</strong> <strong>Journal</strong> <strong>Volume</strong> <strong>Two</strong> 19
Through life<br />
we dabble...<br />
We try new things, and we test the waters by sticking a<br />
toe in. But every so often something special happens and<br />
we can’t help but to dive deep.<br />
This my friends, is a hobby and more poetically known<br />
as a passion. Whether it is dirt biking, ice climbing<br />
or writing that makes us tick, we tend to look up to<br />
professionals who inspire us. We use the same gear,<br />
techniques, and even help build cultural trends from the<br />
nonchalant “dudeee” to the way we act and dress.<br />
20 <strong>The</strong> <strong>Goodland</strong> <strong>Journal</strong> <strong>Volume</strong> <strong>Two</strong> 21
I am here today to<br />
celebrate hobbyists, those<br />
who thrive between 5pm<br />
and 9am and find the sweet<br />
spot that we call balance.<br />
Balance (to me) is spending<br />
time doing what you love and<br />
letting that magical feeling<br />
spill into the rest of your life.<br />
From work to play, everything<br />
seems easier when we spend<br />
a few hours a week expressing<br />
ourselves.<br />
<strong>The</strong> professionals keep us<br />
going but the people that<br />
truly inspire me are the ones<br />
working from 9-5 every day<br />
that still make the time to<br />
chase their hobbies.<br />
You see, we do not have to<br />
trek up the tallest peak for it<br />
to matter. We do not need to<br />
write a book to enjoy writing,<br />
and we certainly do not have<br />
to climb without ropes to<br />
make something epic.<br />
22 <strong>The</strong> <strong>Goodland</strong> <strong>Journal</strong> <strong>Volume</strong> <strong>Two</strong> 23
<strong>The</strong> Send Off: Allen Stoltzfus making some quick adjustments before heading out.<br />
<strong>The</strong> Neighborhood: Winter Park, CO: where balance may come easy.<br />
24 <strong>The</strong> <strong>Goodland</strong> <strong>Journal</strong> <strong>Volume</strong> <strong>Two</strong> 25
Through the day to day, hobbies<br />
allow the world to disconnect<br />
from pressure, work, stress,<br />
and anxiety. <strong>The</strong>y allow us to<br />
focus on the present, enjoy the<br />
moment, and leave the worry<br />
behind.<br />
And, if you are lucky enough<br />
to find yourself slipping into that<br />
flow state, recognize it, capture<br />
it, and<br />
Run with it.<br />
Mondays: Allen jumping<br />
on a pitch of ice on a<br />
Monday afternoon after<br />
26 <strong>The</strong> <strong>Goodland</strong> <strong>Journal</strong> <strong>Volume</strong> a day in <strong>Two</strong> the office. 27
Progression,<br />
Succession,<br />
and Some<br />
Skiing<br />
By:<br />
Simon Bell<br />
Searching for lines and<br />
perspective in the High Sierrra.<br />
28 <strong>The</strong> <strong>Goodland</strong> <strong>Journal</strong> <strong>Volume</strong> <strong>Two</strong> 29
If you asked the greatest<br />
thinkers, doers, and<br />
achievers what they have for<br />
inspiration, I bet they’d all say<br />
the same thing at some point:<br />
a person, place or thing that<br />
has motivated them along<br />
their journey. It seems critical<br />
to the success of a person to<br />
have mentors and inspirations.<br />
Someone that’s better at<br />
something, a person who<br />
has mastered their craft, or a<br />
place that sparks imagination<br />
is often the reason for<br />
attraction to and progress<br />
toward something.<br />
As a twenty-something,<br />
I can respectfully say that<br />
I’ve come a long way. But,<br />
being a young man, newly<br />
licensed dentist, and outdoor<br />
enthusiast, it seems the room<br />
for improvement in most<br />
aspects of my life is literally<br />
sky high. It can often be<br />
overwhelming to find your<br />
personal rhythm and authentic<br />
style in life these days with all<br />
of the influence we have. How<br />
do we find our way amongst<br />
millions of ways to do things?<br />
Let’s apply the concept to<br />
sliding on snow. <strong>The</strong>re are<br />
many ways to ski: in bounds<br />
vs. out of bounds? Skiing solo<br />
to improve vs. skiing with your<br />
Modes of travel: <strong>The</strong> many wheels and vessels that make the backcountry accessible.<br />
<strong>Two</strong> Faces of a Journey:<br />
<strong>The</strong> final push versus<br />
R&R after a big day<br />
trekking in the Sierra.<br />
30 <strong>The</strong> <strong>Goodland</strong> <strong>Journal</strong> <strong>Volume</strong> <strong>Two</strong> 31
uds to drink beer? Skimo, freeski...<br />
freemo? At some point you latch on to<br />
something.<br />
For my ski world, it was the<br />
mountains and a small group of dudes<br />
who cared about being outside,<br />
pushing physical limits, finding good<br />
snow, and staying super safe in the<br />
backcountry. Being relatively new<br />
to the sport, it took a while to catch<br />
up with the knowledge, fitness, and<br />
awareness. But my backcountry<br />
partners were vital in igniting the fire<br />
while simultaneously creating a vision<br />
of where I wanted to end up. And<br />
the mountains, well, they spoke for<br />
themselves.<br />
This spring we were on the East<br />
Side. <strong>The</strong> Sierra are California’s pride<br />
and joy of spring skiing. Being in<br />
those zones is always a whirlwind of<br />
sentiments but this time specifically I<br />
was overwhelmed with the joy of the<br />
perspective of where I came from both<br />
literally and figuratively. And I was<br />
doing it with friends. Friends who I’ve<br />
learned from and who have inspired<br />
me to push toward a goal.<br />
Simon Says: Nice<br />
place for a walk!<br />
32 <strong>The</strong> <strong>Goodland</strong> <strong>Journal</strong> <strong>Volume</strong> <strong>Two</strong> 33
Scenes from above: Heads down, counting steps, pushing mentally and phsycailly.<br />
34 <strong>The</strong> <strong>Goodland</strong> <strong>Journal</strong> <strong>Volume</strong> <strong>Two</strong> 35
“It seems<br />
critical to the<br />
success of a<br />
person to have<br />
mentors and<br />
inspirations.”<br />
- S.B.<br />
36 <strong>The</strong> <strong>Goodland</strong> <strong>Journal</strong> <strong>Volume</strong> <strong>Two</strong> 37
Despite all attitudes toward skinning<br />
up icy hardpack or the boot pack up<br />
exposed couloirs or the long approach,<br />
I’ve got to say the feeling of euphoria<br />
after ripping skins and skiing is far out.<br />
So it seems that progress requires a<br />
vision. That vision is usually created by<br />
a person, friend, father, grandfather,<br />
personal hero, who has come before<br />
you and made an impact. Keep<br />
your eyes open! <strong>The</strong>n the figurative<br />
trigger is pulled and initiates the rest:<br />
thinking, planning, putting in the<br />
hard work, asking for advice, taking<br />
the class, finding a way to make the<br />
vision a reality. <strong>The</strong> mountain top is the<br />
pinnacle – the realization of the dream<br />
come true. <strong>The</strong>n the fun begins as you<br />
take your turn to feel what it means to<br />
accomplish and reap the reward for<br />
taking initiative. But I promise you, on<br />
that mountain top as you look deeper<br />
into the mountain range, you’ll see<br />
someone or something else that will<br />
energize you again. <strong>The</strong>rein lies the<br />
addictive property of progression and<br />
success. Reach one blissful peak to<br />
envy another and so on. So again: on<br />
your quest, whatever or wherever it<br />
may be, don’t forget to ENJOY IT!<br />
Reflection: (Left to Right) All<br />
natural ice bath in spring runoff.<br />
Always good perspective to<br />
38 <strong>The</strong> <strong>Goodland</strong> <strong>Journal</strong> see how <strong>Volume</strong> far you’ve <strong>Two</strong> come. 39
SOMETIMES I WONDER BY: EVAN RUDERMAN<br />
40 <strong>The</strong> <strong>Goodland</strong> <strong>Journal</strong> <strong>Volume</strong> <strong>Two</strong> 41
Sometimes I wonder. Sometimes<br />
I wonder about the point of it<br />
all, about the value in spending<br />
so much time and effort shooting<br />
photos. For the past two years, this<br />
is what I have spent the majority<br />
of my life doing. Shooting photos,<br />
planning photo shoots, prepping<br />
camera gear for said shoots, editing<br />
photos, sending photos to brands and<br />
publications, thinking about what the<br />
next shoot should be and pitching<br />
ideas to brands. When I’m not doing<br />
any of these, I’m likely daydreaming<br />
about one of them. But every once in a<br />
while, I snap out of it, and ask myself,<br />
what’s the point of all this anyways?<br />
I can’t help but think about all the<br />
other people working to do the same<br />
thing, to shoot photos revolving<br />
around the outdoors and outdoor<br />
recreation. While everyone likes to<br />
think their work is important, in a time<br />
with so much content being created<br />
on a daily basis it’s hard to even<br />
pretend individual pieces of work are<br />
important. I debate this internally day<br />
after day, which is strange for someone<br />
who is exactly where they one day<br />
wanted to be.<br />
I began shooting photos as a<br />
hobby in high school but didn’t study<br />
photography in college as I never<br />
thought it could be anything more<br />
than something I did for fun. I did,<br />
however, longingly look at a wide<br />
range of photographers who had<br />
created careers out of shooting photos<br />
and fantasized how cool it would be to<br />
one day do the same.<br />
As college came to an end I had no<br />
idea what I was going to do and just<br />
for the sake of it applied to intern for<br />
acclaimed photographer Chris Burkard.<br />
Still unsure how, I got the internship,<br />
asked to stick around for a second<br />
internship round, and eventually got<br />
hired on full time as a photo assistant.<br />
Today I continue to both work for<br />
Chris and am pursuing a freelance<br />
career of my own. When people ask<br />
me what I do, I tell them I am an<br />
outdoor photographer. Fifteen year<br />
old me would be incredibly happy, but<br />
twenty-four year old me can feel quite<br />
conflicted about it.<br />
For some context, my mom is a<br />
Superior Court Judge. My dad works<br />
for an affordable housing nonprofit,<br />
and my older brother creates<br />
renewable climate action plans for<br />
towns and cities throughout the West<br />
Coast. And I, the youngest, have to<br />
chuckle to myself a little bit when I tell<br />
people I’m an outdoor photographer.<br />
When I look at the big picture in<br />
this way, what I do seems incredibly<br />
unimportant. Aren’t there better ways<br />
to spend my time - both for myself and<br />
for others? I wonder.<br />
42 <strong>The</strong> <strong>Goodland</strong> <strong>Journal</strong> <strong>Volume</strong> <strong>Two</strong> 43
I was always curious if other<br />
creatives felt this way, if they<br />
pondered the importance of their<br />
work and careers - or if they all<br />
just thought they were the coolest<br />
things since sliced bread. At times<br />
it feels as if everyone in the industry<br />
takes themselves too seriously, with<br />
long winded Instagram captions<br />
and lots of self professed hours<br />
of “grinding.” Others however,<br />
seem to revel in the fact that they<br />
have turned such a funny thing<br />
- spending time outside - into a<br />
viable career. I don’t think I’ve<br />
chosen which side of the fence to<br />
stand on for this one yet.<br />
It wasn’t until I watched a film<br />
made by one of my biggest<br />
inspirations in the photo world that<br />
I realized other photographers do<br />
think about this, and that some<br />
have thought far longer and harder<br />
than I on the issue. In Jerome<br />
Tanon’s self-narrated film, <strong>The</strong><br />
Eternal Beauty of Snowboarding,<br />
he offers his own thoughts on<br />
the matter after years of shooting<br />
photos of snowboarding.<br />
Somewhere in the hour long film he<br />
exclaims:<br />
“But still, while the world is<br />
struggling for peace, human rights,<br />
and saving our planet, we’re up<br />
here jumping in the snow, thinking<br />
that we’re the coolest thing around.<br />
Where’s the beauty in that?<br />
Roots: A Childhood of<br />
snowboarding comes<br />
in handy for capturing<br />
44 <strong>The</strong> <strong>Goodland</strong> <strong>Journal</strong> athletes <strong>Volume</strong> in <strong>Two</strong> Japan. 45
“What is the point of having<br />
freedom if you don’t use it to<br />
do what you love most?”<br />
Well, aren’t we using that very freedom<br />
our ancestors fought for? Shouldn’t we<br />
be a little more grateful, though? Surely,<br />
yeah. Thank you. Now let me ask, what is<br />
the point of having freedom if you don’t<br />
use it to do what you love most?”<br />
In this short quote he nails it all. <strong>The</strong><br />
subtle feeling of guilt, the uncertainty<br />
on the matter, and the idea that maybe<br />
we’re actually doing exactly what we<br />
should be. Yes, there are so many more<br />
important issues facing the world today<br />
that it seems silly to be shooting photos<br />
- yet I think that a lot of good can be<br />
done with photography. And yes, my<br />
ancestors surely had it harder than I.<br />
My great grandfather immigrated here<br />
from Russia to create a better life for his<br />
family. On the other side of the family, my<br />
grandmother immigrated here will fleeing<br />
Poland during WWII and the Holocaust.<br />
But doesn’t that make what I am lucky<br />
enough to do all the more beautiful?<br />
Few things give me more pleasure than<br />
calling my grandmother and telling her<br />
about my most recent adventures, my<br />
trips that I get to call work. She tells<br />
me every time we talk about how lucky<br />
I am and how much joy she gets from<br />
seeing me take advantage of all the<br />
opportunities I’m given.<br />
46 <strong>The</strong> <strong>Goodland</strong> <strong>Journal</strong> <strong>Volume</strong> <strong>Two</strong> 47
Cold Fingers: Dumping<br />
snow in Japan, captured on<br />
48 <strong>The</strong> <strong>Goodland</strong> <strong>Journal</strong> <strong>Volume</strong> 35mm <strong>Two</strong> format. 49
Like Jerome, I have a feeling that many<br />
years down the line I’ll still be contemplating<br />
the value of my work, but I’ll still be doing<br />
it. I don’t think there will ever be an answer<br />
- it’s something I’ll always wonder about,<br />
somewhere between feeling lucky and feeling<br />
guilty. For now, the more I do think about<br />
it, the more I desire to shoot meaningful,<br />
impactful projects that could put my work<br />
closer to the “do good” nature of my parents’<br />
and brother’s work while still making a living<br />
from shooting photos. Another piece of me<br />
will work to just be happy where I am, making<br />
good use of all the freedom I’ve been lucky<br />
enough to have to do what I love most - taking<br />
photos.<br />
50 <strong>The</strong> <strong>Goodland</strong> <strong>Journal</strong> <strong>Volume</strong> <strong>Two</strong> 51
One man’s journey to the creative life.<br />
By G.P. Scheppler<br />
52 <strong>The</strong> <strong>Goodland</strong> <strong>Journal</strong> <strong>Volume</strong> <strong>Two</strong> 53
<strong>The</strong> air tastes of salt<br />
as we wiggle into<br />
neoprene second<br />
skins above the metronomic<br />
thumping of south swell. Blue<br />
rays of the new day illuminate<br />
groups of stoke seekers<br />
scattered about the parking<br />
lot like dandelion on seeds.<br />
Before locking my keys in a<br />
strong box and turning on my<br />
camera I always try to take a<br />
second to be grateful.<br />
Today is a good day to be<br />
alive and in nature.<br />
My surf buddy for the day<br />
is a soon to be retired Force<br />
Recon Marine, a man who by<br />
the looks of his service record<br />
should be wired tighter than a<br />
duck’s asshole. Yet, before me<br />
stands a smiling man as slack<br />
as the tide; more <strong>The</strong> Dude<br />
than Rambo.<br />
We met through One More<br />
Wave, a 501(3)(c) non-profit<br />
based out of San Diego that<br />
provides custom adaptive surf<br />
equipment and community<br />
to disabled veterans, but we<br />
would have been friends no<br />
matter the circumstance. Cut<br />
from the same cloth, as the<br />
saying goes.<br />
Between sessions we gab<br />
about work, relationships,<br />
54 <strong>The</strong> <strong>Goodland</strong> <strong>Journal</strong> <strong>Volume</strong> <strong>Two</strong> 55
family, and other things normal friends<br />
talk about. Only occasionally does the<br />
conversation drift to darker subjects or<br />
tales of our time in service. Such is the<br />
nature of life in a community afflicted<br />
by the plight of suicide.<br />
One tends to focus on the present<br />
and future to keep from going mad<br />
when haunted by echoes of the past.<br />
Had you told me a decade ago that<br />
I would spend my days working in the<br />
surf zone I would’ve assumed it would<br />
be in a water safety capacity. That I<br />
get paid for words and pictures is a<br />
fact that still makes me giggle with<br />
amusement whenever a paycheck<br />
clears.<br />
If only my high school English<br />
teachers could see me now.<br />
My career as a professional<br />
storyteller started in 2018 when I<br />
became a Rebele <strong>Journal</strong>ism Scholar<br />
at Cabrillo College. I was assigned to a<br />
local paper, the Pajaronian, and told to<br />
introduce myself to the Sports Editor.<br />
Gone were my days in booty shorts<br />
leading Crossfit classes replaced with<br />
late night deadlines and hours onend<br />
spent at amature sporting events.<br />
Though I would have been loathed to<br />
admit it at the time, the turn of events<br />
couldn’t have made me happier. I<br />
always wanted to be a sports writer.<br />
I figured out quickly that I could get<br />
paid twice as much by taking pictures<br />
of the games I covered, so I invested<br />
in a Sony A6000 with a couple of<br />
kit lenses. After a short runway of<br />
watching Youtube videos I was selling<br />
shots to local publications of various<br />
sporting events and eventually<br />
parlayed my skill set into a staff<br />
position at Cabrillo College.<br />
Life as a grown up was starting to<br />
take shape. My path stretched out in<br />
front of me clear as day.<br />
After two hours of intermittent<br />
light and elusive swell we call it quits<br />
and leave to punch into our day<br />
jobs. Living as close as we do to the<br />
sea comes with a great deal of fiscal<br />
responsibility. So we hustle off to Zoom<br />
calls and clay diamonds, all the while<br />
texting each other updates and surf<br />
projections for our inevitable evening<br />
session. <strong>The</strong> morning has yielded<br />
some gold, but the two of us failed to<br />
link up for the perfect shot. <strong>The</strong> hunt<br />
must continue, we shall return.<br />
When the pandemic hit, I found<br />
myself out of a job and looking for<br />
ways to make ends meet. Freelancing<br />
my services to whomever would<br />
return my calls, I cobbled together a<br />
couple months and spent all my free<br />
time studying the technical elements<br />
of photography in a way I never had<br />
before. I was leveling up my skills,<br />
something told me I was going to<br />
need it.<br />
56 <strong>The</strong> <strong>Goodland</strong> <strong>Journal</strong> <strong>The</strong> Head Honcho: One More Wave founder Alex West drops into <strong>Volume</strong> a perfect <strong>Two</strong> peak. 57
“If only my high<br />
school English<br />
teachers could see<br />
me now.”<br />
When dry lightning ignited the state<br />
of California in late August I found<br />
my way into the CZU Lightning<br />
Complex Fire evacuation zone and<br />
started getting stories out through<br />
words, pictures, and social media<br />
reporting. A few well placed jokes and<br />
knowing how to carry myself in unsafe<br />
scenarios enabled me to go beyond<br />
the conventional press junket out<br />
onto the fireline with federal wildland<br />
firefighters from the Bureau of Land<br />
Management.<br />
<strong>The</strong> images and stories I gathered<br />
there changed the trajectory of my<br />
whole career. I sold my first cover<br />
photo and suddenly my phone started<br />
ringing with inquiries.<br />
For the first time, I felt like a true<br />
professional storyteller.<br />
My surf buddy is hardcore about<br />
surfing, much as I suspect he has been<br />
hardcore about everything in his life<br />
up until this point. He regularly logs<br />
double days, and has been known to<br />
surf three times between moons.<br />
58 <strong>The</strong> <strong>Goodland</strong> <strong>Journal</strong> <strong>Volume</strong> <strong>Two</strong> 59
<strong>The</strong>n again, if surfing brings peace<br />
who could blame his borderline<br />
obsession with the sea.<br />
Working together to get impactful<br />
images is truly a pleasure. <strong>The</strong> more<br />
experienced the rider the safer the<br />
shoot tends to be. Folks often ask why<br />
I don’t frequent beginner breaks. Short<br />
answer, I like having both eyes and<br />
only the idea of what it feels like to be<br />
run over by a surf fin.<br />
As the sun begins to set we connect<br />
perfectly on three consecutive waves.<br />
<strong>The</strong> feeling of excitement at getting<br />
such epic shots is only elevated by the<br />
fact they feature a friend. <strong>The</strong>re is no<br />
talk of Instagram, no thought of how<br />
to sell the shot, just a moment of stoke<br />
between two new, old friends.<br />
<strong>The</strong> mission of One More Wave<br />
is to save veteran lives through surf<br />
and art therapies, and whenever we<br />
surf together the mission gets a bit<br />
stronger.<br />
Deep: Unknown rider<br />
getting so pitted at <strong>The</strong><br />
Hook in Santa Cruz.<br />
60 <strong>The</strong> <strong>Goodland</strong> <strong>Journal</strong> <strong>Volume</strong> <strong>Two</strong> 61
Seekers of Swell,<br />
Snow, and Stoke<br />
Thank you for reading <strong>Volume</strong> <strong>Two</strong> of the <strong>Goodland</strong> <strong>Journal</strong>! We<br />
hope these five stories of adventure in the outdoors have motivated<br />
you to get out and chase your own experiences in nature.<br />
Above all, we believe that the outdoors is a place for people from<br />
all backgrounds, where one doesn’t need to be a sponsored athlete<br />
or own a fancy camera to discover special, life-changing moments.<br />
But when you do happen upon one of these special moments of<br />
swell, snow, or stoke, be sure to live it out fully.<br />
As always, keep trekking!<br />
62 <strong>The</strong> <strong>Goodland</strong> <strong>Journal</strong> <strong>Volume</strong> <strong>Two</strong> 63
<strong>Volume</strong> <strong>Two</strong><br />
<strong>The</strong> Send Off: (Top to<br />
Bottom) inser typing<br />
about each photo here.<br />
64 <strong>The</strong> <strong>Goodland</strong> <strong>Journal</strong><br />
www.tothegoodland.com