Hi all!
My name is Randy Jackson, and two years ago as a college sophomore my plans changed drastically. I called my parents and asked about their thoughts on me studying abroad. A rather normal question, to which my dad answered, “That’d be a great semester!” listing off several places across Europe to check out.
Then came the bigger question of their thoughts on me driving across Central and South America, followed by a long, uneasy silence. Maybe solo travel through some notoriously dangerous parts of the world threw them off at first.
Unlike the traditional semester abroad, the idea was to replace spending an extra year at Elon, intended to gain a science minor on top of my entrepreneurship and marketing double major, with a more impactful and multifaceted use of my time. The shift was aimed to get more out of exploring, practical experience, and searching out where I want to make my mark. The idea took, following several persuasive conversations, and I’ve been working on what has become known simply as ‘ The 5th Year ’ ever since.
Following my graduation from Elon University in May of this year I will be travelling through Central and South America over the course of one to one and half years. The trip will cover approximately 36k miles across 17 countries, starting in North Carolina, looping all the way down to Ushuaia, and finishing up in San Francisco. The mission of the trip is to focus on three primary areas (condensed version):
1) Adventure – anything relating to the outdoors with mountaineering as the front-runner. The largest target for the trip is summiting Aconcagua.
2) Business – on the professional ‘get a job’ side of the trip will be my search for opportunities, development of contacts, and potentially starting a business within the renewable energies industry.
3) Philanthropy – education and micro finance are the areas I’d prefer to work in and gain experience from, though there are plenty of other open options along the way.
Currently I am buckling down all the details with paperwork and finishing up modifications to my crew cab F250, Waldo, all of which is taking up most of my free time. I’m looking to connect with fellow overlanders who will be traveling around Central and South America during the 2016-2017 timeframe. If anyone would like to get a conversation going or learn more/make suggestion in terms of my trip please feel free to contact me:
Email- [email protected]
Instagram – randy.g.jackson
Or you can message me here on Facebook
Thanks for your time and the read!
My name is Randy Jackson, and two years ago as a college sophomore my plans changed drastically. I called my parents and asked about their thoughts on me studying abroad. A rather normal question, to which my dad answered, “That’d be a great semester!” listing off several places across Europe to check out.
Then came the bigger question of their thoughts on me driving across Central and South America, followed by a long, uneasy silence. Maybe solo travel through some notoriously dangerous parts of the world threw them off at first.
Unlike the traditional semester abroad, the idea was to replace spending an extra year at Elon, intended to gain a science minor on top of my entrepreneurship and marketing double major, with a more impactful and multifaceted use of my time. The shift was aimed to get more out of exploring, practical experience, and searching out where I want to make my mark. The idea took, following several persuasive conversations, and I’ve been working on what has become known simply as ‘ The 5th Year ’ ever since.
Following my graduation from Elon University in May of this year I will be travelling through Central and South America over the course of one to one and half years. The trip will cover approximately 36k miles across 17 countries, starting in North Carolina, looping all the way down to Ushuaia, and finishing up in San Francisco. The mission of the trip is to focus on three primary areas (condensed version):
1) Adventure – anything relating to the outdoors with mountaineering as the front-runner. The largest target for the trip is summiting Aconcagua.
2) Business – on the professional ‘get a job’ side of the trip will be my search for opportunities, development of contacts, and potentially starting a business within the renewable energies industry.
3) Philanthropy – education and micro finance are the areas I’d prefer to work in and gain experience from, though there are plenty of other open options along the way.
Currently I am buckling down all the details with paperwork and finishing up modifications to my crew cab F250, Waldo, all of which is taking up most of my free time. I’m looking to connect with fellow overlanders who will be traveling around Central and South America during the 2016-2017 timeframe. If anyone would like to get a conversation going or learn more/make suggestion in terms of my trip please feel free to contact me:
Email- [email protected]
Instagram – randy.g.jackson
Or you can message me here on Facebook
Thanks for your time and the read!