ALASKAN BIRTHDAY ADVENTURE

Fairbanks, Alaska 49th Birthday Trip

Life is too precious to not get on a plane and go live it!

- Jason Romero

Tomorrow is my birthday, and I gave myself and early present this year. I just got back from a trip to Alaska! I want to share the last 72 hours with you, as they were amazing to me and perhaps they may inspire you in some way.

Sunday, March 3, 2019

I went to church for the early service, per my usual Sunday routine when I find myself in Denver, Colorado - my hometown. When I was leaving, a friend asked me "Jason, what do you call a Polar Vortex in Alaska?" I was stumped. He responded, "Tuesday!" We were having a cold snap in Colorado, and he was telling me that Alaskans know the cold, as he had lived in Alaska for years. I asked him if he had ever seen the Northern Lights. I had always wanted to see this phenomenon, but assumed my degenerative eye condition had robbed my eyes of the rods necessary to have the night vision to see the Aurora Borealis. My friend responded, "Yeah, I've seen the Aurora. They're going crazy right now!" "When is the best time of year to see them?" I asked. My friend responded, "Right now!"

I walked home, got on my computer and booked a roundtrip ticket to Fairbanks, Alaska for the next morning. I was going to try to see the Northern Lights!

Monday would be my night to see the Aurora if possible, it would be a clear sky that night. I called many tour operators, but many were sold out. I found the Aurora Chasers on Trip Advisor and they had a great rating - 5 STARS. They were booked for Monday, but I decided to email and ask to see if there was any chance to get on their tour for Monday night. On Sunday evening, I got a return e-mail from the Aurora Chasers telling me that they were moved by my story, and they would have a seat for me.

I knew that I would have the whole day free on Tuesday, as my return flight to Denver was on Wednesday morning (March 6) at 5:30 am. I wanted to speak at some schools. I e-mailed every school I could find in Fairbanks, asking to speak to their students. I was only giving them 24 hours notice by the time they received my e-mail. I was hopeful maybe I could speak to one school. I told my Mom about my plan, and had invited her to come along - she declined due to conflicting plans. I told one friend about my plan, and that friend knew me as spontaneous but this was a new level. I told my kids, arranged care for my pets, packed my backpack and went to sleep.

Monday, March 4, 2019

The alarm went off at 5 am. I struggled to get up and had only slept for 5 hours. My flight left at 8:15 am to being the 11 hours of air travel to Fairbanks, Alaska some 2,500+ miles away. I learned that Fairbanks is a little over 100 miles away from the Arctic Circle - WOW!

Mike & Tina - On the first flight from Denver to Seattle I sat between Mike and Tina. Mike had just taken a new job and was traveling to Seattle for work. He was into meditation and a super nice fellow. Tina is a hotelier who is Indian, born in Kenya, educated in London and had lived in America for decades. Her and her husband just came back from a conference in Vail, Colorado where George Bush, the Free Solo climber, the Super Bowl MVP and a couple volleyball Olympians were Keynote Speakers. I was intrigued by her experience with the speakers, and asked her many questions. As she had travelled the globe, I told her about my speaking and asked her for help as I set out to pursue a dream to speak to children in schools all over the world.

Hannah - When I arrived Seattle, I had time for lunch. At the airport restaurant, I had to ask to share a table. Hannah let me sit at her table. As it turns out, she lived in Fairbanks, Alaska - where I was headed to. Her family had lived there for generations and homesteaded. We shared stories, and she had an AMAZING story of overcoming adversity and developing a strong Faith. She gave me many tips about trying to see the Aurora. I also told her about my desire to speak in Fairbanks and she immediately started telling her contacts about my offer to speak to kids. She also referred me to her sister's travel agency - Santa's Travel - in Fairbanks. They would be my go to local contact for an Aurora Borealis tour, if my Plan A fell through

April Pt. 1 - On the flight from Seattle to Fairbanks I sat across the aisle from April. She was an Alaskan and lived in Fairbanks. I told her about my birthday plan and eye situation. She immediately started giving my tips, and our chit chat turned into a fairly deep conversation family quickly. April was really nice, and I asked for her help to find schools where I could speak. After giving her my card, we departed the plane. She had offered to give me a ride to my hotel, but I didn't want to inconvenience her. We found each other again at the baggage carousel, and she insisted on giving me a ride so I accepted. As it turned out, her ride did not come, so we shared a cab ride and after dropping April off, I finally arrived at my hotel. I had 3 hours until the Aurora Chasers picked me up at my hotel, so I got some food and took a quick nap

with April

Ronn & Markete Murray - At 9:35 pm sharp, a black van pulled up in front of my hotel. Ronn came to great me and helped me into the van, which already had about 6 people in it. We picked up a few more folks, then were off to chase the Aurora. Ronn & Markete were both photography junkies who fell in love with the Aurora in different parts of the world, then they met and fell in love with one another; and now, they chase the Aurora together. They gave off a really good vibe. On the way to our viewing point, we were taught all about the Aurora Borealis. In short, solar explosions send dangerous stuff hurtling toward earth, and we are saved from obliteration by a magnetic field that is about 50 miles above earth. When the suns explosions hit our magnetic field, photons are ejected and this causes the Aurora to light up. The more stuff the sun sends at us, the more magnificent the Aurora Borealis.

When we started the night the Aurora was faint - other people on the tour could see it, but I saw nothing - just black. After a few hours, we thought the night was over and packed up. THEN IT HAPPENED!! The LIGHTS turned on! The group jumped out of the van oohing and ahhing. I jumped out expecting to see lights dancing all over the sky - a dream I had for almost 40 years. I jumped out and looked in the direction of everybody else, but i still saw nothing - just black. Apparently, my retina had deteriorated too much to detect the light that was being thrown off by the Aurora. I was heart broken. Devastated. At a loss. I was crying on the inside, but I wouldn't let others see it on the outside. I did not want to be a downer on their experience. For two couples on the tour. this was their third attempt to see the Aurora, and finally it was happening. Markete (Aurora Chaser) took a picture of me in front of the Aurora so I could have a souvenir to show others. Then Ronn (Aurora Chaser) grabbed me and told me to look through his camera. There was a display on the back - an LED screen. I saw something! I put on my 3.00+ reading glasses and magnified the screen. I could definitely see something moving. Then I pulled out my phone, turned on the camera and magnified the LED screen even more - I SAW THE AURORA DANCING!!!!! Now I couldn't help but cry; and I didn't care if everybody knew. I was so happy. I was able to see the Aurora Borealis before I see nothing.....which I know is coming. I could not thank the Aurora Chasers enough for helping me.

Thursday, March 5, 2019

I had one school set up to speak at early in the morning - Barnette Middle School. I was supposed to speak to the 5th graders at 9:30 am then the 6th graders at 10:30 am. It was just wonderful to share with these students. The had dreams about being singers, NHL players, veterinarians, and more. Then, I was told the 7th and 8th grade students had an option of coming to an assembly at noon, so I gave a third talk. I was amazed at how responsive and engaged this school was. They understood that motivating children, and filling them with stories of hope goes along way in helping people succeed in life.

Barnette Blazers - Fairbanks, Alaska

Then, I got an e-amil from Tanana Middle School across town, telling me that they wanted me to speak to their students. So I Ubered over there and was met by Elijah, a student ambassador. He is a bright young man who told me stories about how he moved from Texas to Alaska a little less than 2 years ago. Now he was splitting logs and was the man of the house, while his father and sister took a trip for ROTC. The robotics teacher (tech junkie) - Casey - gave me his lunch to eat, rather than having me eat school lunch. I had an orange, hummus, grain chips, carrots, Noosa yogurt and a seltzer water. I was truly humbled - this teacher just gave a total stranger his food, his lunch.......and it was REALLY GOOD FOOD! I was beginning to learn that this was the "culture of Alaska" - people up there are just really, really GOOD! I spoke with 

Tanana Middle School - Fairbanks, Alaska

With Elijah, student ambassador

After the talk at Tanana Middle School and many hugs, I received a text from Hannah, the lady I had met at the airport in Seattle, Washington the day before. She had lined up a talk for me with some high school wrestlers at Interior Grappling Academy. However, the talk was supposed to be Thursday....I was going to be in Denver on Thursday. I called Coach Bockert, the wrestling coach and explained the situation. I told him if he wanted me, I would hop in a cab and head over to speak with his athletes. He told me to come on over. I spent the late afternoon speaking with some elite high school wrestlers. There were State Champions, athletes who had made the podium, and athletes who were intent on improving in their sport and in life. Young men and women Some dreams that this group had were to be "a state champion", and "to get a scholarship". These kids were on fire and motivated. After the talk, I chatted with some of the kids and Coach Bockert gave me a ride back to my hotel.

With Coach Bockert

Interior Grappling Academy

Alice Pt 2 - The lady from the plane I had met the day before met me at my hotel. She took me to dinner at a great Italian restaurant. We continued out conversation for a couple hours, until I was almost falling asleep. We talked about Faith, being broken, finding our way back, and trying to help one another. Alice has become a friend for life,

Wednesday, March 6, 2019

Kalista & Shannon - The alarm went off at 3:30 am. My flight was at 5:30 am. I had begun feeling sick and worn down, so I took a hot, steam shower. I rode the hotel shuttle to the airport and when I was checking in, I heard "Hey! I know you!" One of the students from Barnett Middle School, Kalista, and her mother, Shannon, were at the counter. Kalista and I were on the same flight, so we walked and talked telling stories and laughing. Kalista is an amazing young lady, and I can't wait to witness her journey. She is a smart, happy, kind-hearted young lady. And her mother, Shannon, loves this young lady - she is a very, very good Mom. We sate in different rows on the plane, and Kalista and I saw each other after we landed. She went to her next gate and me to mine. I missed my new friend.

with Kalista

Darrell - I boarded my second flight of the day and was seated next to Darrell, a dentist from Seattle. He was on the way to a "Keto" conference in Colorado. This man was amazing. Filled with knowledge on a multitude of fields. Then, I learned he had 4 children, 3 with PhD's and one who is an endodontist. He had done something right! We chatted all the way to Denver. I told him about my speaking, and as it turned out one of his children lived in Knoxville, Tennessee - a city where I am going next week for a 100 mile race, and a pre-race pep talk. I needed to find a school to speak at in the area, and I asked if maybe I could ask for his daughter's help. He connected with his daughter, and is now helping me try to find a school to speak at next week in Tennessee. We exchanged information, and Darrell helped me get to the baggage carousel and find my bag. He offered to give me a ride home, but I wanted to take the train and process what all had happened in the past 3 days.

It is hard for me to believe all the people I met, and all the experiences I had.

If I was not impulsive and chose not to book the ticket to go to Alaska, I would never have experienced this great state, all these great people, and had all these wonderful experiences, including seeing the Aurora Borealis.

We can pretend to live and sit idle and wait, or we can step out into the unknown and take a wild ride. I choose "WILD RIDE!"

#ONWARD

Jason is an expert at teaching people to transform Dreams into Reality. He has amassed a lifetime of expertise in the field as a General Manager for General Electric leading large teams, where he ran a $400 million dollar business, he was a former leader of Global Operations for a Fortune 100 company, an attorney and CEO of a non-profit that helps children with Autism. In addition to his professional experience, he is a US Paralympian, holds 15 world records in ultra-running and mountain biking, is an author, a highly sought after motivational and business speaker and is the 1st and only blind person to run across America - 3,063 miles where he averaged 51.5 miles/day for 59.5 days. For speaking and media inquiries visit www.jasonromero.net