Off The Beaten Path Episode One-Sedona Dave

Hey Everyone!
Sedona Dave here with a brand new offering from Awarewolf Gear!
You guessed it- A Podcast!

I will be dropping a new episode every other week until March of 2025. We are going to have some amazing guests like, Sam Seavey from the Blind Life, Penn Street of the Blind Chick, outdoor adventurers Lonni Bedwell and Taryn Dickens and many more.
I am so excited to be offering this to inspire you to get out there and get 'r done!

Awarewolf Gear is the producer of high performance supportive and adaptive gear:

The All Terrain Cane  -a supportive hiking and mobility cane
and
The Urban Xplorer  -a supportive mobility cane that you can lean on for your urban adventures
Visit   https://awarewolfgear.com/awghome

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!
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Transcript

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Dave Epstein: Hey, everyone, Sedona, Dave here, and this is off the beaten path.

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Dave Epstein: This is where I get to sit down and have some amazing conversations with some really outstanding blind people in our community. Some real leaders, influencers, people who are not taking no for an answer, and who are showing us all sighted and blind. What's possible.

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Dave Epstein: We've got Podcasters, some terrific athletes, business leaders.

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Dave Epstein: terrific people who are really, really stepping up, not taking no for an answer and

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Dave Epstein: getting it done in very epic epic ways. This is our 1st show, and if I did my math event correctly, today is October 10, th white cane day, great time to launch off the beaten path.

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Dave Epstein: And that's really where we're going to go with this podcast talk to some great people, but not just wow. You're great. Let's let's celebrate your greatness.

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Dave Epstein: That's just a stepping off point for me.

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Dave Epstein: I want to get into how you got there, how you achieved that top rung of the ladder. What are the tools that got you there? Either

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Dave Epstein: in the mind, either you know thoughts or creativity, or education, and training.

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Dave Epstein: or tools, as in hardware. What are the hardware choices that you've made over the course of your careers

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Dave Epstein: to get to this level of achievement where you are today? So that's where we're going with off the beaten path.

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Dave Epstein: Who you are

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Dave Epstein: and how you got to be so damn great.

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Dave Epstein: It's really that easy, plus a number of thought-provoking questions along the way to really get into the personalities and the minds and the mindsets of these great great people.

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Dave Epstein: And I get to sit in the Hot Seat today being our debut show. Show you what we're all about.

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Dave Epstein: So I'll dive right in, hey? Everyone, I'm Sedona, Dave.

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Dave Epstein: I do live in Sedona, Arizona, 60 years old, and I've got retinitis pigmentosa, Rp.

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Dave Epstein: Where am I today? With it?

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Dave Epstein: About 3 degrees left in my left eye, and not much remaining in the right. It's it's kind of failing.

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Dave Epstein: I'm okay with it. Let it go. I wear an eye patch at night to avoid any headaches and confusions

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Dave Epstein: adapt and overcome.

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Dave Epstein: What else can I tell you about myself?

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Dave Epstein: 60 years old.

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Dave Epstein: and I'm an avid hiker, very much wanting to be out in the wilderness and the trails, 400 miles of trail surrounding Sedona.

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Dave Epstein: and I want to explore all of them.

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Dave Epstein: So

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Dave Epstein: here's a little bit about me and my backstory, starting with what I would call that day, and that day is is really the the inspirational.

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Dave Epstein: Kicking the pebble that started the avalanche of of how I got here in front of the podcasting cameras.

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Dave Epstein: That day.

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Dave Epstein: So my wife, Deb Deb, awesome, and I moved to Sedona, Arizona in 2016.

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Dave Epstein: At about that time I realized my vision was really starting to decrease at a rapid rate.

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Dave Epstein: plunge myself into the state of Arizona's O. And M.

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Dave Epstein: World looking for help, learning what's all about the white cane.

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Dave Epstein: I know I'm losing my vision. Let's let's take that next step

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Dave Epstein: now, about in the middle of my year-long O. And M. Training.

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Dave Epstein: One fine late afternoon my wife and I were on the trails with our

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Dave Epstein: our dog, Griffey

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Dave Epstein: Griffey was in the lead.

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Dave Epstein: We were hiking between Bell Rock and Courthouse Butte

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Dave Epstein: this one afternoon late afternoon again, and as we're ambulating along, Otto was in the lead, then Deb then myself.

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Dave Epstein: The sun did manage to dip below the horizon.

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Dave Epstein: I lost all my shadows.

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Dave Epstein: depth, perception, I lost contrast.

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Dave Epstein: and I lost my joy to be on the trail, and as we were moving along I started

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Dave Epstein: spewing out some apparently some pretty negative stuff. What I would refer to as poetry, but it really wasn't

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Dave Epstein: to the extent that my wife turned around and checked in with me and said, You know what seems to be the problem. You don't sound very happy back there, and I admitted, I don't belong here. I can't do this.

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Dave Epstein: I can't see. I lost all references. I'm hurting myself, and I just I just don't feel like I belong here. I need something. I need some kind of tool to help me along, but I don't know what that is.

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Dave Epstein: The next day

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Dave Epstein: I found myself at Canyon outfitters looking for

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Dave Epstein: the blind hiking section. A true story, and they didn't really know what to do with me other than to show me things like

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Dave Epstein: 1st aid kits, flashlights, whistles, water bags.

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Dave Epstein: not really helpful, but I get what they were trying to do.

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Dave Epstein: I did leave with a set of trekking poles, thinking well it might be a start.

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Dave Epstein: and it was I took those trekking poles into the garage, which very quickly became my cane. Lab.

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Dave Epstein: and I went to town and and just broke it down and rebuilt to what I felt I needed at the time to keep me safe and secure and balanced and successful out on the trails.

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Dave Epstein: and that really was the beginning of the journey with the all terrain cane.

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Dave Epstein: and after the 1st iteration I dove into a second version of my prototypes of the Atc. And we're getting there. Okay, we've got the weight not thrilled with the locking mechanisms not really thrilled with the grips, but I could make it work.

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Dave Epstein: I got this

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Dave Epstein: until

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Dave Epstein: I realized, yes, I've got a community to look after, and I want other people to be out on the trails with me.

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Dave Epstein: So

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Dave Epstein: went to town and and really developed what I felt we needed. What do we, as a community need in a

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Dave Epstein: supportive mobility. King?

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Dave Epstein: Well, it has to look like a mobility cane, white and red, not dark black, graphite. Other colors has to look like a cane I wanted to fold and unfold like a cane, not with internal locks or or extendable telescoping mechanisms that really didn't work for us as a blind community.

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Dave Epstein: The locks weren't blind. Friendly, is it? Is it tight enough? Am I twisting tight enough? Did I pull it? Oh, I pulled it too far.

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Dave Epstein: and now there are separate pieces that I have to try to put back together, but with low vision, not as easy as it May sound

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Dave Epstein: finally came up with our final working model of the all-terrain cane.

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Dave Epstein: and

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Dave Epstein: where we are today, the factory is producing some amazing pieces, solved a lot of small problems along the way. And today we've got a very successful

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Dave Epstein: supportive mobility device that allows me to hike safely

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Dave Epstein: on the trails safely and confidently

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Dave Epstein: whether it's a trip and fall situation, or breaking or balance issues ascending, descending safely, not blowing shoulders or rotator cuffs.

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Dave Epstein: It was quite the innovative process to keep me active, and where I want to be.

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Dave Epstein: And as a result, this certain language, my wife and I have on the trail to announce things like there are people coming. There's a cactus on the right. There's loose rock to be careful of.

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Dave Epstein: All went away, and now we just hike.

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Dave Epstein: We chat if we want to. We're silent if we want to.

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Dave Epstein: and it's just a joy to be out there in Nature

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Dave Epstein: independent.

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Dave Epstein: And that's what for me. That's where I wanted to be. That that's my goals.

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Dave Epstein: More independence.

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Dave Epstein: not taking no for an answer, listening to what the O. And M. Instructors have to say about leaning on canes, putting weight on canes, a weight bearing.

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Dave Epstein: I had to say, no, I had to say. You know what I hear what you're saying, but I need this. So

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Dave Epstein: the development, the birth, the genesis of the all-terrain came.

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Dave Epstein: Okay.

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Dave Epstein: now.

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Dave Epstein: how did I get to be in front of here in front of the camera.

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Dave Epstein: I'm no role model, you know. I'm not.

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Dave Epstein: I'm not really anybody famous or

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Dave Epstein: not much. I mean, I developed a a hiking

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Dave Epstein: device that allows us to be on the trails.

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Dave Epstein: But I didn't start out that way, obviously didn't start off saying, I can't wait to be blind, so I can do this. What did I want to do? Obviously

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Dave Epstein: want to be a fireman like everybody else, or collect dinosaurs? But seriously, as I went through high school.

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Dave Epstein: My my passion for aviation

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Dave Epstein: was there

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Dave Epstein: didn't

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Dave Epstein: imagine I would be here today. What were my career? So I wanted to be a pilot. Okay, that didn't quite pan out because of my vision.

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Dave Epstein: Took some time off. My wife went back to school for forestry

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Dave Epstein: a forester.

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Dave Epstein: Alright

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Dave Epstein: again. How did they? How did they get here? Well, let's get into it.

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Dave Epstein: My past experiences.

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Dave Epstein: although they had seemingly nothing to do with

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Dave Epstein: hiking at the time, they really did

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Dave Epstein: as a pilot fascinated with aviation airplanes. What makes one plane more successful at its mission than another?

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Dave Epstein: A couple favorite

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Dave Epstein: aircraft, military aircraft in my heart were were planes like the Lockheed, Sr. 71. The Blackbird Super. Fast.

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Dave Epstein: stealthy.

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Dave Epstein: recon aircraft, with an awful lot of titanium built into it.

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Dave Epstein: lightweight, super super strong metal

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Dave Epstein: as well. Another favorite is the Fairchild, a 10 warthog, which is a slow.

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Dave Epstein: ugly, square shoebox looking plane.

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Dave Epstein: I

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Dave Epstein: not much for recon. But man, is it a tank, Buster. It's slow, it's quiet.

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Dave Epstein: And again it's got an awful lot of titanium in it to keep the pilot safe.

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Dave Epstein: Keep the weight down

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Dave Epstein: so.

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Dave Epstein: my my love, my interest in titanium

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Dave Epstein: didn't really realize where I was going with titanium

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Dave Epstein: when we got married. When Deb and I got married. Our wedding rings are titanium, ironically, maybe.

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Dave Epstein: But titanium, where is it going to be useful in my life? I don't know.

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Dave Epstein: But let's sash it away, for for when I do need a super strong lightweight material

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Dave Epstein: and guess what? Here it is. When I was looking for the right or proper material for the all terrain cane

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Dave Epstein: titanium.

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Dave Epstein: Okay? Who would have thought?

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Dave Epstein: Another career that I had of interest was that I was a scuba instructor back in New England.

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Dave Epstein: spent a year down in the Caribbean, running a dive boat, teaching being a dive, master corralling.

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Dave Epstein: It's like herding kittens underwater

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Dave Epstein: When I wasn't in the Caribbean up in New England, teaching, instructing, diving some wrecks with my my wingman.

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Dave Epstein: Joe. Hey, Joe.

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Dave Epstein: spent an awful lot of time in Joe's garage with him through the winters.

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Dave Epstein: when we weren't teaching.

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Dave Epstein: we do what we call tech diving. The tech community is.

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Dave Epstein: it's not really a recreational diving. It's a lot more technical.

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Dave Epstein: where

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Dave Epstein: we tend to break, bend, break the rules of recreational diving might go deeper.

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Dave Epstein: Then the then the recreational limit actually go into shipwrecks.

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Dave Epstein: so some things that are a bit more risky than the recreational

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Dave Epstein: enjoy the dive.

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Dave Epstein: And as we're doing this.

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Dave Epstein: the dependency on our equipment just increases in magnitudes

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Dave Epstein: and

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Dave Epstein: our own equipment, our own redundant systems. That is, we've got not just one computer, but

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Dave Epstein: 2 dive computers, all right, not just one dive knife, but 3 dive knives.

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Dave Epstein: They've got the mask on our face. There's also one around our necks just in case something bad happens to this. Okay, so we've got backups, lots and lots of backup systems, 2, 3, maybe 4 tanks

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Dave Epstein: of air and other mixed gases on us.

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Dave Epstein: So our dependency is on ourselves

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Dave Epstein: and for really us to be self dependent, self reliant.

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Dave Epstein: So that if we do get into a situation.

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Dave Epstein: we've got the equipment and the resources and the mindset to get us out

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Dave Epstein: without being dependent on a dive. Buddy, who might or might not be right there. Next to us to be able to help with a spare regulator if needed.

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Dave Epstein: So

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Dave Epstein: where does all this? How does this get us onto the trails

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Dave Epstein: again? It doesn't. And yet it does. Back to Joe's garage. We'd spend hours. We'd spend days just tinkering with our equipment up on the benches

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Dave Epstein: for balance, for equipment, placement for modifying equipment. Right? You know this real

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Dave Epstein: a wreck reel isn't meeting my needs as

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Dave Epstein: configured right now. So what do I need to do to make it work for me?

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Dave Epstein: And that's what we do take brand new equipment apart and build it back together.

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Dave Epstein: Okay, another terrific skill. I learned bringing it forward to hiking as a blind person

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Dave Epstein: the confidence and and the ability to and the the confidence, the lack of fear to break down some equipment and build it back to what my needs are

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Dave Epstein: being creative thinking outside the box. How do I get from this

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Dave Epstein: to this?

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Dave Epstein: Okay, so recreation and technical diving skills?

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Dave Epstein: One of my careers in New England was that I was a surveyor.

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Dave Epstein: did a lot of land surveying in the private sector, but a lot more in the civil engineering sector. A lot of work up in Boston. Yes, the big dig I was on that. I did some interesting hydrographic surveying, some dredging work in New England, off of Boston and down in New York.

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Dave Epstein: So, surveying, what did that provide me?

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Dave Epstein: Quite often, especially on the big dig, the central artery tunnel project?

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Dave Epstein: My task was to get information onto the ground way down in the hole right where the guys are working. How do I get top of concrete marked off from here to there. So there's an awful lot of problem solving to be able to get

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Dave Epstein: survey control down into the hole, to to be able to mark out and provide the information for the laborers, the ironworkers, the concrete, the forms, everybody else who needs their markings from survey. So problem solving skills.

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Dave Epstein: Another huge

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Dave Epstein: resource, I was able to apply to where I am today

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Dave Epstein: to solve the problems of you know what this this prototype isn't working quite right.

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Dave Epstein: What do I need to do? Where do I need to go to

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Dave Epstein: resource to source the materials? Okay.

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Dave Epstein: what problems can I solve? What problems do I need to solve? And where do those skills come from?

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Dave Epstein: Okay, one more career that lend itself to my present position is a a forester.

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Dave Epstein: I went to school in Montana for forestry fell in love with fire. I brought my love for fire with me to be honest.

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Dave Epstein: and I spent about a decade on the fire line cutting line, fighting fires, lighting off sections of forest.

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Dave Epstein: Yes, working with helicopters, but more importantly.

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Dave Epstein: working the fire lines really gave me that passion for the wilderness, for being outside, for

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Dave Epstein: building and maintaining trails.

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Dave Epstein: rehabbing trails.

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Dave Epstein: That's where I wanted to be outside. That's that's where that passion really grew. So that when in 2016 my family moved to Sedona.

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Dave Epstein: I was surrounded by 400 miles of trails, and I was just as happy as can be. So

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Dave Epstein: those past experiences, although they don't have anything specifically directly

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Dave Epstein: lending to building a mobility cane.

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Dave Epstein: they all had a component.

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Dave Epstein: And this is an interesting element of successes that I don't think we really cover

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Dave Epstein: when we look at. Wow! Somebody who's

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Dave Epstein: conquered Mount Everest like wow! You you were there. That's what a feat! But you didn't get there overnight, and you didn't get there without an enormous amount of planning

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Dave Epstein: purchases, research resources.

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Dave Epstein: This is where I want to go.

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Dave Epstein: Speaking of equipment.

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Dave Epstein: What equipment provides me with the successes

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Dave Epstein: that I'm getting

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Dave Epstein: out here in Arizona on the trails.

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Dave Epstein: Well, we talked about the Atc. The all-terrain came, and that's that's crucial. That

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Dave Epstein: makes a difference for me. Without the all terrain cane I would not be hiking honestly. I'd be sitting in that room over there watching reruns of the Flintstones really not doing much else with my life.

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Dave Epstein: The all terrain cane does provide me with the freedom

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Dave Epstein: to be independent, to be hiking

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Dave Epstein: on the beaches of Rhode Island. You know we're in the snowy environments of New England parks and playgrounds for the grand dude

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Dave Epstein: wherever I want to be. That's not flat and smooth and safe.

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Dave Epstein: I'm supported.

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Dave Epstein: I need boots.

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Dave Epstein: and because I am blind I don't want to be staring at my feet when I'm hiking. I'd much rather be looking

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Dave Epstein: at the scenery where I'm going. What I'm doing out there

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Dave Epstein: and the Atc does. It's it's amazing job of identifying tripping hazards

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Dave Epstein: and terrain changes and obstacles support navigation.

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Dave Epstein: but it's still the wilderness.

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Dave Epstein: and without a good set of ankles.

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Dave Epstein: I'm not going anywhere, so I'm very adamant about having a good, worthy pair of hiking boots not 6 inch.

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Dave Epstein: I want ankle protection. I want

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Dave Epstein: something that I can really count on without thinking about my feet.

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Dave Epstein: Okay, so 8 inches.

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Dave Epstein: and with a good lug sole. I'm not afraid to spend some good money on an amazing pair of boots, because for me. That makes all the difference when I don't have to worry about twisting an ankle on the trails.

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Dave Epstein: So I did a lot of research on hiking boots.

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Dave Epstein: and I ended up with a pair of mammu MAMM. UT.

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Dave Epstein: Believe they're French.

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Dave Epstein: but it's a super super, strong, super, lightweight pair of hiking boots, gore-tex 8 inch.

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Dave Epstein: And now that they're fully broken in, I'm totally comfortable with them on. I won't go on to the trust without them.

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Dave Epstein: I just depend on them, and they

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Dave Epstein: provide that support and confidence that I need

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Dave Epstein: a backpack.

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Dave Epstein: Love my backpack. Okay, that's what obviously brings the water and snacks along with me.

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Dave Epstein: Most of my backpack is filled with 1st Aid kits. I've got 2 kits

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Dave Epstein: I've got a soft pack on the outside, and that's really for abrasions, cuts, bruises, irrigation tweezers.

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Dave Epstein: things of that sort inside in a more hardened case. I've got more supplies for

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Dave Epstein: twists, sprains. Strains. So I've got ace wraps ice packs

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Dave Epstein: vet wrap very, very good to have moleskin, so more of the the hard injury.

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Dave Epstein: First, st aid supplies as well. A super splint kit splints have come a long way since when I was a lad, so I've got a terrific splint, kit. I haven't had to use it yet, but you know what it's there. It's bright orange, and it's there.

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Dave Epstein: and it's ready to go.

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Dave Epstein: So the pack I'm using is really one of my original firefighting packs. Back in 1993,

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Dave Epstein: after my 1st year on the fire line, I said, You know what I love this. I love fire. I love fighting fire. I'm going to get my own backpack, and I did from a Wildfire Supply company. It is a backpack that's made for fighting wildfires, so it's got that fire shelter.

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Dave Epstein: Hmm, pouch.

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Dave Epstein: and it's made from really hardcore ballistic nylon red with with brilliant reflectors. And it's just been an amazing backpack right from the start. So it's what it's 32, 33 years old.

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Dave Epstein: and I wouldn't give it up for anything. I continue to modify it

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Dave Epstein: again to meet my needs

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Dave Epstein: myself. I like my tools

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Dave Epstein: upfront, but I like

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Dave Epstein: the body to be wide open. I don't want anything sort of in front of me, but some tools around the waist belt everything else on the back.

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Dave Epstein: This bag is configured to have 2 water bottles up by my shoulders.

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Dave Epstein: My next modification is really to convert those water bottles into a hydration system like you see in the like the bladder bags.

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Dave Epstein: the camelbacks. There's a great company that has developed the hose system for water bottles

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Dave Epstein: beautiful, not much of a modification for the backpack. But now.

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Dave Epstein: with with these hoses, I'll be able to drink water on the fly and not have to hold up.

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Dave Epstein: Take the pack off, grab a water bottle, drink, and then

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Dave Epstein: settle it back onto my back, and then back onto the trail.

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Dave Epstein: So I want to be able to drink on the fly as my wife does.

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Dave Epstein: And and that's that's really what I use on the trails for my successes.

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Dave Epstein: constantly modifying, constantly improving. One of these days I'll get it right.

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Dave Epstein: or it'll be perfect. But you know what I don't want it to be perfect. Let's keep working towards that goal

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Dave Epstein: keeps the interest going.

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Dave Epstein: Okay? So

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Dave Epstein: so far, we've discussed things like where I was, where I am today.

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Dave Epstein: how I got here. So the tools, the hardware, the the tool selections

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Dave Epstein: that I went through to get me to

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Dave Epstein: be on the trails, taking people out onto the trails

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Dave Epstein: and sitting in front of a camera, talking about taking people onto the trails.

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Dave Epstein: And this is where I want to go with these guests of mine, I mean, they all have so much to offer.

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Dave Epstein: I want to know how they got there.

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Dave Epstein: Other questions I'd like to ask, and these questions really come from my curiosity about my blindness. Remember, I wasn't born in front of a camera. My blindness is a progression

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Dave Epstein: just like yours is.

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Dave Epstein: Some of you have were born without sight.

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Dave Epstein: A lot of you have had sight some useful vision

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Dave Epstein: on the decline, and I'm right there with you. So

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Dave Epstein: I had to find my way as well.

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Dave Epstein: And along the way I've asked myself many, many questions, and and these are these are kind of

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Dave Epstein: I don't know esoteric questions that really help me.

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Dave Epstein: Imagine what makes you tick.

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Dave Epstein: For example.

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Dave Epstein: if I were to go back in time

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Dave Epstein: to my little, my little kid self, my little Dave.

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Dave Epstein: Huh!

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Dave Epstein: Boy, at a time. Say, if he was 7 or 8 years old, what one piece of advice would I give to him?

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Dave Epstein: That's 1 question. I don't have a good answer for that.

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Dave Epstein: I used to be very, very involved in taking vitamin a palmitate, Lutein. I was part of the lutein study with mass eye and ear.

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Dave Epstein: fish oil. The dha I was. I was adamant about not missing a day until another study came along

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Dave Epstein: and said, You know what?

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Dave Epstein: It's not really that all effective. So I got to choose at the age of 60.

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Dave Epstein: Do I want to continue taking something that might degrade my bone density or not. So that was my own choice.

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Dave Epstein: Before the study. My answer to this question would have been, I would have gone back to my 7 year old self and said, Take your medication seriously. All right, don't skip a day. Don't skip the 4 years that you think you might want to do in your mid forties.

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Dave Epstein: Take them faithfully

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Dave Epstein: again today, since the studies have changed, probably won't go back with that message. But

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Dave Epstein: what would I

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Dave Epstein: advise? A younger version of myself? Always a question in my mind.

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Dave Epstein: Another question, and

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Dave Epstein: interestingly came from me, waiting outside a a store down in Phoenix. One day I was waiting for a friend to wrap up his purchases.

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Dave Epstein: and I had my cane in front of me, leaning against his pickup truck, and a group of people came by.

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Dave Epstein: put their hands on me and said, Brother, let us pray for you.

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Dave Epstein: And I said, What are you going to pray for? And they said, Well, I'm going to pray for a cure, I said, Please don't!

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Dave Epstein: And they didn't know what to do with that.

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Dave Epstein: And I said, You know what I

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Dave Epstein: I appreciate what you're doing, but I've got this for a reason.

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Dave Epstein: and if you come along and pray and heal me. Well, the way I feel you're you're thwarting

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Dave Epstein: my purpose for being here.

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Dave Epstein: whether I know what my purpose is or not, whether I know why I'm blind or not.

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Dave Epstein: Let me have my experience.

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Dave Epstein: And that really took them by surprise. They understood. They walked away, but

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Dave Epstein: that really got me thinking if there was a cure, I mean, I'm not talking about, like vitamin, a palmitate to to

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Dave Epstein: arrest the progression of the condition. I mean

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Dave Epstein: to be able to get my my full vision back.

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Dave Epstein: Would I take that

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Dave Epstein: and my answer? Since I get to be in the hot seat today, my answer is absolutely not

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Dave Epstein: again. I've got this for a reason.

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Dave Epstein: and

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Dave Epstein: let me let me explore this. Let me explore my life as a blind person

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Dave Epstein: as well

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Dave Epstein: would. I want to be sited again. Yeah, that'd be great. I could go to home depot and get that 2 by 4 I so desperately need.

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Dave Epstein: I would be terrified to get behind the wheel of a car.

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Dave Epstein: I mean, nowadays I lost my license back in oh, 2,009. So it's been. It's been 20 some odd years.

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Dave Epstein: Well.

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Dave Epstein: I'll do the math later, but it's been a long time since I've been behind the wheel of a car, and cars have changed. They're a lot smarter than when I was driving. I mean, they do things on their own nowadays. They can almost

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Dave Epstein: drive themselves.

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Dave Epstein: I have Rp, meaning. I see that much, and there are lots of holes and patches, and I see light and move movement here and there.

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Dave Epstein: I know I can't rely on my eyes

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Dave Epstein: to go back into the world where I could rely on my eyes, if that were possible, would I trust it?

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Dave Epstein: Would I feel comfortable behind the wheel, imagining, knowing, thinking, that I'm seeing everything, that I'm receiving all the information.

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Dave Epstein: Would my brain be able to handle all the information again?

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Dave Epstein: Would I want the responsibility of driving again.

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Dave Epstein: I know that right now. I'm

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Dave Epstein: more or less along for the ride, and when I need to go

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Dave Epstein: to the lumber yard.

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Dave Epstein: You know it's a discussion. It's a negotiation. It's

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Dave Epstein: when

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Dave Epstein: my wife is available. All right. I can't just up and go.

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Dave Epstein: I know it would be wonderful to be able to up and go when I want to, but

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Dave Epstein: my feeling is again. I've got this for a reason.

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Dave Epstein: I've adapted my life to be blind. I've learned

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Dave Epstein: how to be blind. I've learned the skills, the tools.

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Dave Epstein: my new life as a developer of a cane is blind centric.

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Dave Epstein: So

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Dave Epstein: you know what? No.

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Dave Epstein: give the sighted world back to the sighted people. I'm not interested. I'm very happy where I am.

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Dave Epstein: So

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Dave Epstein: other interesting questions, other more philosophic

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Dave Epstein: art centered questions

359
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Dave Epstein: really get to know what makes our our guests tick

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Dave Epstein: alright. So that's where we are with off the beaten path.

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Dave Epstein: again. And hopefully. Today is October 10th white cane day. If it is

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Dave Epstein: Happy white Cane Day. Everybody.

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Dave Epstein: I hope you're getting out there very successfully with your mobility devices.

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Dave Epstein: My goal is to get us where we want to be.

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Dave Epstein: And with that we just need the right tools.

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Dave Epstein: All right, I think that's going to be it, for now I am Sedona. Dave, this is off the beaten path.

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Dave Epstein: and look forward to having you join us

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Dave Epstein: every other week as we

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Dave Epstein: air. Another interview with another amazing blind. Yak out there

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Dave Epstein: alright. Until then I want you all to continue to crush it.

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Dave Epstein: Have great great adventures.

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Dave Epstein: and we'll see you off the beaten path.

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Dave Epstein: Take care

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Dave Epstein: and see!