Opinion/Educational/Humor
Opinion/Educational/Humor
Back to Basics 2: On the essence of travel
For the last few months I have been driving a bone stock 2006 Jeep Wrangler Unlimited. There was a brief period of adjustment since prior to that I had been driving a 2003 Jeep Grand Cherokee with 330,000+ miles on it. Both of these Jeeps fall in the shadow of my 2004 Jeep Wrangler Unlimited […]
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Opinion/Educational/Humor
Overland in the Time of Quarantine
Needless to 2020 has been a near total wash when it comes to overland adventure travel. Every major event and most minor events have been canceled. Any events managing to survive the chopping block outright found themselves a nerfed capacity. Travelers themselves were either stuck at home or relegated to short trips in their own […]
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Update on Videos
Last month I announce the ECOA YouTube channel. Sadly, shortly after it went live, my new camera broke and I have been unable to film any additional videos. Seriously, sometimes I just can’t catch a break. That said, the channel is up and running and as soon as my camera comes back from the Canon […]
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Opinion/Educational/Humor
A response from Backcountry Discovery Routes Board of Directors
I like to update everyone who read my open letter to the Backcountry Discovery Route Board of Directors. They reached out to me earlier today and facilitated a conference call between their board and myself. I’ll start by saying I was a little bit nervous. While I wanted to bring attention to what had happened, […]
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Opinion/Educational/Humor
An Open Letter to the BDR Board of Directors
Dear Backcountry Discovery Route Board of Directors, I am a longtime fan of the Backcountry Discovery Route (BDR) Series. Over the years I have logged countless miles along many of the routes. Some of my favorite travel memories in recent history are from traveling portions of the Utah (UTBDR) and Arizona (AZBDR) routes. I was […]
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Opinion/Educational/Humor
Videos & Patreon
I went and did a thing. I bought a new camera. I’ve been teasing for far too long that I will be getting into video production, and I just got another step closer to that day. What’s happening with the blog and podcast? So here’s how it’s going to work. Things here on the ECOA […]
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Opinion/Educational/Humor
Intro to Overland Etiquette & Decorum
Over the years I have attended multiple overland themed events in a variety of locations across the spectrum of sizes. People often ask me what it’s like to go to a large event like Overland Expo and how it differs than a smaller regional rally. I’ve decided the time has come to pen my thoughts […]
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Opinion/Educational/Humor
2020 Overland Skills Weekends
The time has come to get our learning on! For 2020 there will be FOUR Overland Skills Weekends. They will be as follows: March 13-15 = OSW #1: Basic Recovery April 10-13 = OSW #2: Communication & Navigation June 19-21 = OSW #3: Advanced Recovery September 18-20 = OSW#4: Trip Planning and Logistics Overland Skills […]
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Opinion/Educational/Humor
My Overland Mount Rushmore
Mount Rushmore was completed in 1941 as a way to not only promote tourism to the local area but pay tribute to some of our country’s greatest leaders. I thought it would be interesting to explore my own conceptual “Overland Mount Rushmore” of the four fellow overlanders that I enjoy following. So let’s take a […]
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Opinion/Educational/Humor
ECOA is Back!
The ECOA blog is back… sort of. Still a few things that need tweaked (mostly cosmetic stuff), but for the most part the site should be working. You’ll also notice a few new secotions. First, new for the second half of 2019 is a revival of the Patron Support Team. This will go a long […]
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Opinion/Educational/Humor
ECOA is about to get a facelift!
Over the next few days the East Coast Overland Adventures website will be undergoing a major comprehensive overhaul. This will be an inside out teardown and rebuild of our digital home. This will not only increase functionality of the blog but it will also add some new features to the site. What are those features? Well, you’ll […]
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Opinion/Educational/Humor
Back to Basics
I recently returned home from managing the Overland Demo Area at the 9th Annual Bantam Jeep Heritage Festival. It was a modest display, but between my trailer, Dan’s Africa Jeep, and Eric’s Postal Scrambler and Bantam Trailer we did a solid job of representing the overland adventure lifestyle to the Jeep community. During the event […]
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Opinion/Educational/Humor
[Status Update] Overland Skills Weekend, Overland Expo West, and the LS Swap
By the time you read this I will already be on the road headed to Virginia for the first Overland Skills Weekend hosted by ECOA and Overland Experts. As soon as it’s wrapped up I’ll be making a marathon dash westbound to Flagstaff, Arizona for Overland Expo West. Sadly I will be doing it all […]
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Opinion/Educational/Humor
Has overlanding become the next form of off-road cosplay?
With Overland Expo just a few weeks away my thoughts have turned westward with wide eyes. Having missed Expo West last year I made a promise to myself I wouldn’t miss it this year. Overland Expo West, it’s like Boy Scout summer camp only with Jeeps and Skottles Having been to both Overland Expo West […]
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Opportunity, Reflection, and Ambition
As the year winds down I’ve been taking the time to do two things. First, reflect upon 2017 (spoiler alert – awesome year). Second, look ahead to 2018 (no spoilers, you’ll just have to keep reading). One of my all time photos from my 2017 adventures.Tanto National Forest, Arizona I like to think of myself […]
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You need to go read this article – Now!
I’ve made it a point to keep the content here on the ECOA blog my own. Part of that is just because this is my own little slice of the digital world. Also because I don’t have the funds currently to pay anyone else to contribute to the site. As such, the job of content […]
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My Aussie Locker story
There was a 500 foot cliff to my right. That same cliff swept across in front of me. To my left was an escarpment of unknown height. All the GPS was telling was, “Turn left here.” Alone, with no spotter, in unfamiliar territory, I had only one option. I couldn’t go back. I couldn’t go […]
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In defense of “overlanding”
Overland Expo East 2017 is just around the corner. This week I’ll be leaving for two weeks in North Carolina. First I’ll be dropping down to Uwharrie National Forest for the annual American Adventurist Appalachian Rendezvous. Then the following weekend I’ll be in Asheville for Overland Expo East. With such a high profile event like […]
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ECOA BLOG POST #100!!! — A look back at the origins of ECOA
In the fall of 2014 I was faced with a pretty tough decision regarding what to do with my life. I had recently lost my job and had my plans to finish a doctorate degree in education derailed. I had a lot of swirling emotions to deal with that ran the gamut from anger to […]
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What do fortitude, courage, adversity, and perseverance have to do with overlanding?
Growing up I played a lot of Scrabble. Kind of ironic given I’m dyslexic and a terrible speller (thank you inventor of spell check). Despite that I really enjoy the game. I think without the hours upon hours of playing the game I would be a much worse speller than I am now. Not […]
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