I interviewed a truly extraordinary man yesterday: 75-year old scientist, venture capitalist and extreme adventurer Alan Walton.
Over the past 20 years Walton has trekked to the North Pole, scaled the summit of Mt. Kilimanjaro and skydived over Mt. Everest, to name just a few of his famed travel expoits. (The photo above was taken in 2010 as he bungee jumped 700 feet off the Bloudrans Bridge in South Africa, equivalent to leaping from the top of a 50-story building.) What amazed me most about this man, however, was neither his vigor nor his courage, though he still possesses prodigious amounts of both. No, what really impressed me was his patience and gentleness.
Frankly, I was expecting someone so successful to be gruff. I thought Walton would be restless to conclude the interview and jet off to some exotic locale or get back to business. After all, his company has funded such important scientific endeavors as the Human Genome Project and the discovery of DHA, a vital component of mother’s milk which has since been added to baby formula. He’s also one of the original founders of the Virgin Galactic Space Flight.
But he was anything but gruff with me. His eyes twinkled when he spoke, and he exuded a childlike joy as he talked about his accomplishments and adventures. ”Old age is not a lot of fun unless you have [an adventure] to look forward to,” Walton has often said.
From my vantage point, it seems as if Walton’s life has been one incredible adventure after another. And he’s not done yet.
Note: I lifted the above photo from a 1/4/11 article about Dr. Walton in The Westport News.
