This is probably one of the most remarkable and inspiring interviews for me yet! I have been inspired by all of my guests so far as we meet life on life's terms and go beyond what our perceptions of our abilities as blind/low vision people tell is possible.

I am thrilled to share part one of my interview with Julius Mbura. Julius rang in the New Year with an incredible feat—summiting Mt. Kilimanjaro! This remarkable achievement is part of his Heights Unseen campaign, dedicated to raising funds for 4,000 white canes to support visually impaired children in Kenya. This is a conversation that will leave you awe-inspired and motivated to climb any mountain, especially the metaphorical ones we encounter in life!

Stay tuned for part two of my interview with Julius which airs on February 27, 2025.

More about Julius

Connect with Julius

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/juliusmbura01/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jsupercharge/?hl=en

Linked In: https://www.linkedin.com/in/juliusmbura/?originalSubdomain=ke

Tik Tok: https://www.tiktok.com/@jsupercharge

Website:

Official Julius Mbura site: https://www.jmbura.com/

Heights Unseen: https://heightsunseen.hustlesasa.shop/

Thanks for listening! Off The Beaten Path is brought to you by Dave Epstein and Awarewolf Gear, makers of the All Terrain Cane and the Urban Xplorer. To purchase a cane or find out more visit https://awarewolfgear.com/awghome

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In this episode of Off The Beaten Path I am interviewing Taryn dickens. Taryn, who has Cone-Rod Dystrophy, shared her experience of being diagnosed at the age of 35 and how it has led to a new life of sports and helping others. She is currently preparing for her first World Cup and is excited about the opportunities ahead. I really admire her resilience and adaptability in the face of change.

More about Taryn
Taryn is an 42 year old adventure seeker who is new to blindness. She was diagnosed with Cone-Rod Dystrophy at 36 years old and hasn't looked back (pun intended).

After taking time to grieve, she transitioned from track cycling as a non adaptive athlete to Para Nordic skiing and Para Biathlon as a Vision Impaired Athlete. She had never skied before her sight difficulties, so she has been training hard. Now two years since first getting on snow she is off to her first world cup events representing Australia this January in Europe.

She hopes to qualify for the 2026 Winter Paralympics and be the first Australian woman to compete as a Para Cross Country skier and Biathlete. She says, "My blindness has changed my life so much for the better and I am going to keep pressing forward to prove that not only women can do anything but so can everyone no matter their ability." She lives with vision which is different, not lost.

You can connect with Taryn

Insta @lowvisionathlete

Facebook Taryn Dickens - Low Vision Athlete

Thanks for listening! Off The Beaten Path is brought to you by Dave Epstein and Awarewolf Gear, makers of the All Terrain Cane and the Urban Xplorer. To purchase a cane or find out more visit https://awarewolfgear.com/awghome

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In this weeks podcast I interview Shawn Cheshire. My new bestie to the north (she lives in Flagstaff) She is an amazing human being who shares her inspiring adventures with us. You're gonna love this interview with as much as I did!
More About Shawn
Shawn Cheshire is a 49 year old US Army Veteran who sustained a traumatic brain injury rendering her totally blind. She is a 13 time Paracycling US National Champion, both on the road and the track and represented the US at the inaugural Invictus Games in London in 2014 and the 2016 Rio Paralympics. Shawn is a member of the US Army Women’s Hall of Fame. Since Rio, Shawn has focused on breaking social norms for the blind.

In 2019, she smashed the blind record for the double crossing of the Grand Canyon (45 miles with 22,000 feet of elevation change in 24 hours and 15 minutes, breaking the blind man’s record by almost 4 hours).

In 2020, Shawn completed the 50-mile route of the Dirty Thirty gravel bike race in Michigan on a single bike following a speaker playing music on the back of her sighted guide’s bike. It was the first known time a blind person has completed a bike race on a single bike (as opposed to a tandem).

In 2021, Shawn raced her single bike from the Pacific Ocean to the Atlantic Ocean (3700 miles in 60 days).

In 2022, Shawn took on the Tour Divide, a 2700-mile mountain bike race from Banff Canada to Mexico along the Continental Divide with over 400,000 feet of elevation change. It was the worst weather in the history of the race and more than half of the riders who started the race dropped out. Shawn finished the race in 50 days, cycling through snow, mud, hail, rain, freezing temperatures and triple digit temperatures.

Moving into 2023, Shawn decided to face Mt Everest in attempt to be the first blind woman to summit. Unfortunately due to extreme altitude while attempting to camp 1, Shawn suffered severe hearing loss and damage to her ears. She hopes to return one day.

Once again on May 23, 2024, Shawn set out to show the world that blind individuals are capable of so much more than we have been taught to believe. She became the first blind person to hike cross the Grand Canyon, North Kaibab Rim to South Kaibab Rim without a sighted guide. Shawn hiked completely on her own, navigating the massiveness of the Grand Canyon without assistance of a sighted person or navigation. Finishing in an unbelievable time of 10 hours and 58 minutes!

Shawn is typically the strongest woman in the gym and is known to run a marathon with no preparation. She is an avid cross country skier, downhill skier and biathlete and is known to play a round of golf occasionally.

TELL SHAWN A BLIND PERSON CANNOT DO SOMETHING AND SHE WILL PROVE YOU WRONG!

Connect with Shawn on Social
Instagram http://www.instagram.com/shawn_cheshire
Facebook https://www.facebook.com/shawn.cheshire.9
@choosingtosee

Thanks for listening! Off The Beaten Path is brought to you by Dave Epstein and Awarewolf Gear, makers of the All Terrain Cane and the Urban Xplorer. To purchase a cane or find out more visit https://awarewolfgear.com/awghome

Join our community!
Stay up-to-date on all the latest news from Sedona Dave and Awarewolf Gear: https://awarewolfgear.com/signup

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