Escaping the Recession by Boat
In the midst of the Great Recession and its bleak job prospects, Alex and Nick Kleeman scraped together enough cash to buy a 32-foot sailboat and plunged into the Pacific for the adventure of their lives. So what if they didn’t know how to sail?
Unprotected
Uncovering a legacy of sex abuse in competitive swimming.
Life’s Swell
The Outside magazine article that inspired the movie ‘Blue Crush.’
The Long Captivity of Michael Scott Moore
How should the media cover hostage situations? Examining the case of journalist Michael Scott Moore.
The Body Electric
Life after being struck by lightning.
Reboot or Die Trying
David Roberts, a staff writer at Grist, shares what he learned after a year of digital detox and spending more time outdoors.
SeaWorld’s Most Rewarding and Traumatic Job
Animal care workers, who tend to the health of mammals at SeaWorld and other marine parks, have unrivaled access to the animals—and the challenges of captivity. They are on the front lines of the debate over marine mammals in captivity, and their stories are fascinating and deeply troubling. Here, three former employees go on the record about their experiences.
We Don’t Need No Education
Ben Hewitt describes “unschooling” his children Fin and Rye, who do “self-directed, adult-facilitated life learning in the context of their own unique interests” rather than attend public schools or participate in the kind of homeschooling that mirrors a public education.
The 25-Year-Old at the Helm of Lonely Planet
Last year, a media-shy billionaire bought the flailing Lonely Planet travel-guide empire, then shocked observers by hiring an unknown 24-year-old former wedding photographer to save it.
But when I knock on his hotel room door at 7:30, Houghton, now 25, is chipper. The space is fastidiously organized: bed made, camera gear in one neat pile, North Face and J.Crew clothes in another. Houghton, who is six foot four and 150 pounds, with a long neck and blue eyes, has rewired the sound system in the room to allow him to play M83 and the Lord of the Rings soundtrack from his iPhone. As he waves me in, he’s on the line with his boss, billionaire Brad Kelley, the former tobacco magnate who bought Lonely Planet last year, when the storied company was in the midst of a financial nosedive. Houghton wishes Kelley a happy birthday, then we’re off to ride what’s billed as the steepest tree-to-tree zip-line on earth.
Can Checks Save Lives?
As a teenager, Jonah Ogles began sponsoring a poverty-stricken boy in the Caribbean. Twelve years and thousands of dollars later he flew down to meet him—and to learn if his efforts did any good at all.
When I started sponsoring Ervenson, I was camping at a Christian alt-music festival in rural Illinois, where bands played concerts for sweaty mosh pits of Jesus-loving teens. Between two of the shows, someone from Compassion International got on stage and talked about how difficult it was to be a child in places like Haiti. They described the lack of clean water, the rampant disease, the voodoo ceremonies on every corner. Even then I was vaguely aware of my privilege as a white American male and felt a little guilty about it. Plus, I had a part-time job at a guitar store, which meant that I had enough spending money that I wouldn’t miss thirty-odd dollars out of my monthly paycheck. I signed up as soon as I got home. All I had to do was get online, do a quick search by age, country, or birthday (in case I wanted someone who shared mine), and then click that I agreed to send the checks.