Tom Jones is anything but your average guy. He is an extreme athlete, but extreme might not be a strong enough word for what this man is capable of doing for a cause he believes in. Tom has committed his life to furthering causes through his athletic skills, his most recent endeavor taking him down the coast of California, one paddle at a time. Armed with a paddleboard and a conviction to raise public awareness about the disturbing trend of increasing levels of plastic pollution in our oceans, Jones set out to fight this problem by paddling the entire 1,250 mile coastline of California.
His journey started on August 7 at California’s northern most tip and concluded on November 9, at Border Fields State Park, south of San Diego at the south-western most part of the United States. During his world record-making endeavor as the first human being to ever paddle the entire coastline of California, Tom endured winds over 50 mph, the rugged, sharky waters of Northern California, swells that took his board and smoke from the Southern California wildfires, not to mention the grueling physical exhaustion from such an extreme athletic challenge.
He was supported along the way by local beachgoers, lifeguards, the coast guard, and perhaps most appropriately, a host of oceanic creatures including pods of killer whales, elephant seals and schools of dolphin.
His mission received significant media attention as news spread of Tom’s journey. Following is an interview with Tom Jones, who We Can Live Green honors as our Green Pioneer for November 2007.
WCLG: Tell us a bit about yourself.
Tom: I try to be a good father, husband and humanitarian.
WCLG: What do you do and how did you start doing it?
Tom: I am an extreme endurance athlete. That means I take athletic sports like running, biking, paddleboarding, and fighting to extreme levels.
WCLG: When did you begin to ‘go green’?
Tom: I think that I’ve been pretty “green” most of my life by instinct.
WCLG: Was there a turning point for you in your life that started you on the path you are on now?
Tom: Yes, I started to paddle board in harbors and the ocean so that I could get better at surfing. When I started to paddle, I noticed an unacceptable amount of trash in our water and decided to do something extraordinary to bring attention to scientific facts that I discovered while doing some casual investigation on plastic content in the water.
WCLG: What do you see as the biggest priorities of your generation?
Tom: Making a change in the way that we co-exist with nature. We must be much more in harmony with nature that we currently are, I believe.
WCLG: What three things do you think all people must learn to do?
Tom: Respect, Research and Restore the environment.
WCLG: Do you have any advice for our readers?
Tom: Go to www.CaliforniaPaddle.com and join the “Campaign for a plastic free ocean”. Help me continue to get the word out. When people find out and investigate the facts, they tend to get involved.
WCLG: Is there anything you would like to add about yourself?
Tom: No…….Just a good guy trying to make a positive difference in the world around us.
WCLG: Who inspires you and why?
Tom: Everyone, because everyone that I come in contact with teaches me something about myself.
WCLG: Where do you see yourself ten years from now?
Tom: Doing the same thing, just getting better at it hopefully.
