About AdventureCORPS, Inc.

AdventureCORPS, Inc. is an athlete-run firm producing and promoting ultra-endurance and extreme sports events, lifestyle, and media. Adventure is our way of life.

AdventureCORPS’ world-class events for athlete-adventurers include epic races such as the Badwater Ultramarathon and Furnace Creek 508, muiti-day Cycling Lifestyle Adventures, plus several endurance cycling events and charity rides in Death Valley and beyond. We also host and develop our adventure-related websites and provide a variety of adventure-related services, as outlined below.

Founded in 1984 by Chris Kostman, this group effort is dedicated to exploring the inner and outer universes, seeking adventure, energy, and insight both in daily life and "out there."

Event Production

AdventureCORPS is, first and foremost, a special event production firm. We annually produce the legendary Furnace Creek 508 and Badwater Ultramarathon races, CORPS Camp Death Valley, the JDRF Ride to Cure Diabetes in Death Valley, and the twice-per-year Death Valley Century and Double Century (March and October). On demand, we also present the Mt. Shasta Snowshoe Safari, Adventure Sunday, and other events. Other AdventureCORPS creations are in the works.

Past AdventureCORPS Productions include the 1992 to 1996 Team Race Across America Bicycle Race, 1995 LA Marathon Bike Tour with over 12,000 participants, American Lung Association's 1993 Klamath Loop Bike Trek and Misty Redwood Run, 1993 Earth Day Sports and Fitness Symposium at the Biosphere, 1993 Santa Fe Outdoor Performance Training Camp with Steve Ilg, 1991 Earth Journey British Columbia Triathlon Stage Race, 1989 HPV Race Across America Bicycle Race, Furnace Creek Spring Tour from 1999 through 2003, and the Southern California Brevet Series from 2001 through 2003. From 2001 through 2004, AdventureCORPS' Chris Kostman also served as founder and 50% partner in Planet Ultra and all of its events.

	Furnace Creek 508™, "The toughest 48 hours in sport," has been an AdventureCORPS event held annually in October in Death Valley and the Mojave Desert since 1990, but it dates back to 1983 under the directorship of John Marino, founder of the Great American Bicycle Race and the Race Across America (RAAM). This 508 mile bicycle race - "Where the West is Won!" - is revered the world over for its epic mountain vistas, stark desert scenery, desolate roads, and its reputation as one of the toughest but most gratifying endurance challenges available, bar none. Solo, tandem, and relay divisions are offered in this exciting and unusual bicycle race. 48 hour time limit. 35,000 feet of elevation gain. Our 25th anniversary edition will be held in October, 2008. Visit the 508's dedicated website at www.the508.com.
	Badwater Ultramarathon™ is the world's toughest foot race. This legendary, epic, 135 mile running race travels non-stop in the heat of Summer from Badwater in Death Valley (elev. 282 feet below sea level) to Whitney Portal on Mt. Whitney (elev. 8360 feet). Field size is limited to up to 90 runners. The 31st edition will take place in July, 2008. Visit the race's dedicated website at www.badwater.com.
	Death Valley Century and Double Century™ is held twice per year, providing incredible, one-of-a-kind, 100 mile and 200 mile cycling events in Mother Nature's greatest sports arena, Death Valley! The field limit is 300 riders total and it always sells out. The March and October editions feature greatly varying routes, giving the adventurous cyclist two awesome opportunities to explore and enjoy one of American's greatest National Parks. With full rider support, roving SAG vehicles, awesome cycling jerseys, and impossible-to-get-lost routes with very little traffic, there's no better place to ride a century or double century cycling event! For all the info, click here.
	Death Valley Ride to Cure Diabetes™ has been an AdventureCORPS event produced the on behalf of the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation since 2001. Each October, hundreds of people ride their bikes through Death Valley National Park to help cure diabetes. The ride supports the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation International—the world's leading nongovernmental contributor to research on diabetes prevention, treatment, and potential cures. In addition to the actual rides, riders have extra time in one of America's most exotic natural wonders for hiking, swimming, or just enjoying the scenery. So, whether you're a competitive cyclist, Sunday rider, or novice, join us for a fantastic weekend and one incredible Ride. Challenge your will. Challenge your body. We'd like your company, and we need your help. For all the info, click ride.jdrf.org. To see the webcasts from 2001 to the present, click here.
	CORPScamp™ Death Valley is our annual cycling lifestyle training camp hosted in Furnace Creek and featuring up to 400 miles of epic, one-of-a-kind cycling in and around “Mother Nature’s Greatest Sports Arena,” Death Valley National Park. Come join the folks at AdventureCORPS along with fellow athlete-adventurers from around the globe for five fabulous days of cycling and camaraderie in beautiful, one-of-a-kind Death Valley! For all the info, click here.

Mt.Shasta Snowshoe Safari™ is our unique four day retreat on and around Mt.Shasta, high in Northern California and far away from anywhere else. This mystical, whimsical trip is limited to nine adventurers and is held just once each year. This event is held "on demand"—we produce this for small groups upon request.

Adventure Sunday™ is a day of outdoor adventuring in the West L.A. area. Each eight to twelve hour day is a unique adventure in itself. Activities usually include a veritable smorgasbord of urban athletics, such as hiking the Santa Monica Mountains, running the 4th Street Stairs, trekking on the beach, plus indoor cycling, kinesthetic training, and more. Tons of fun with no competition. This event is held "on demand"—we produce this for small groups only upon request.

Official Charity: Challenged Athletes Foundation

Since 2001, the official charity of AdventureCORPS has been the Challenged Athletes Foundation. CAF was created on the belief that people of all abilities should have the opportunity to pursue a life full of physical activity and of sports. Be they recreational or in pursuit of a gold medal at the Paralympic Games, people with a physical disability are limited only by their access to funding.

As one of the very few charities that provides grants directly to athletes with a physical disability, the Challenged Athletes Foundation has raised over twelve million dollars and directly assisted over 1600 challenged athletes world wide. A small endowment fund has also been created to ensure challenged athletes will always have a place to go for funding.

One of the goals of the AdventureCORPS events is to raise funds for, and awareness of, this organization. Athletes, crew, fans, and friends of AdventureCORPS are encouraged to support this fine organization. Additionally, all entrants in any AdventureCORPS event may become fund-raisers on behalf of CAF and thus dedicate their athletic efforts towards this wonderful cause, potentially earning a free entry in the process. Fund-raising is made simple with a fully automated and personalized webpage where your friends, family, and co-workers may log onto your website and donate to your efforts in a totally safe and easy manner.

To read more about CAF and AdventureCORPS, click here. To read about the events that AdventureCORPS' Chris Kostman has competed in on behalf of CAF, click here. To donate to CAF right now, click here. Click here for the "Race For a Reason" program - You can personally participate in our events on behalf of CAF - and even earn cool incentive prizes in recognition of your efforts!

To read about our charitable work with the Major Taylor Association and Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation, click here. To read about the AdventureCORPS Community, click here.

The AdventureCORPS Websites

www.adventurecorps.com (where you are now) is a useful and entertaining resource for information and inspiration dedicated to adventure, energy, and insight. We archive extensive materials regarding all the things we're into, including over 220 articles about cycling, snowshoeing, triathlon, adventure, ultra-endurance sports, cave and technical scuba diving, archaeology, exploration, extreme races and events such as Badwater Ultramarathon, Furnace Creek 508, Death Valley Century & Double Century, CORPS Camp Death Valley, Ultraman, Great American Bike Race, Race Across America, Iditasport, Triple Ironman, Ironman Triathlon, and much more. You're in that site right now, so head to the front page, "The Write Stuff" section, or the navigation menu on the left side of this page to check it out!

www.the508.com is the official website for the Furnace Creek 508 Bicycle Race and an extensive on-line resource for ultra-endurance cycling. It features over 100 first person reports on the race, dozens of articles on training, nutrition, strategy, equipment, plus an archive of all the webcasts from 1999 to the present. If you're into cycling, or Death Valley, then you will want to visit this site.

www.badwater.com is the official website for the Badwater Ultramarathon 135-Mile World Championship and an extensive resource for ultramarathon running. It features dozens of first person reports on the race, articles on training, strategy, organizing a crew, plus an archive of all the webcasts from 1999 to the present. If you're into ultrarunning, or Death Valley, then you will want to visit this site.

www.XO-1.org is the official website and blog for the Rough Riders, our cycling lifestyle club. The Rough Riders slogan is "Any Bike, Anywhere" and we believe in riding any distance, in any conditions, over any terrain, at any time of day or night. That sounds really hard-core, perhaps, but mainly we enjoy getting "out there" by riding roads, dirt roads, trails, and paths on whatever bike we happen to be on or have handy. Sometimes the pavement's long gone and we're still on our "road bikes" or some bike that would be commonly considered inadequate for the job - and that's just fine by us! Rough Riding is not defined by the type of bicycle or type of riding surface. Rough Riding is a state of mind, a riding style with limitless freedom and an all-pervasive sense of adventure.

www.3sa.com is the official website for the 3-Speed Adventure Society, dedicated to the enjoyment and promotion of riding 3-speed bicycles, sporting camaraderie, tea drinking, and getting out there without lycra clothing or astride an arsenal of hi-tech foolery.

Other Adventure Lifestyle Services

Adventure Media Correspondent for Print, Web, and Broadcast
Chris is one of the founding fathers of adventure sports writing and editing, having published more than 240 articles in almost 40 different publications since 1984. Chris was also the founding Senior Editor, with Michael Bane, of Over The Edge, the short-lived but trend-starting adventure sports magazine published in 1994 by Larry Flynt. Nearly all of Chris' work is archived here on this website.

On camera, Chris was the subject of a National Geographic Explorer feature which aired several times in 1997 on TBS to an average viewership of 1.6 million, then aired regularly in 175 markets on the syndicated version of Explorer. The episode documented Chris' experience exploring Alaska's Iditarod Trail by mountain bike and snowshoe in February of 1997. It won the Cine Golden Eagle Award for excellence in documentary film-making. Chris co-produced, wrote, and narrated ESPN2's coverage of the Race Across America bicycle race from 1993 to 1996 and has appeared as an adventure, extreme sports, and fitness personality on MTV, Good Day L.A., CBS San Francisco, and many others.

See his media bio or contact us to secure his writing, editing, and on-camera talents.

Special Event Development
When a company, group, or organization wants to host or produce a unique outdoor sporting event that involves hundreds or thousands of participants or covers hundreds or thousands of miles on the open road, they often call us. We turn ideas into reality. We are extremely detail-oriented, efficient, and competitive in every way.

Some of our past productions include:

• Team Race Across America Bicycle Race, an epic non-stop transcontinental race, 1992 to 1996.
• LA Marathon Bike Tour with over 12,000 participants, the first of its kind, 1995.
• American Lung Association's 1993 Klamath Loop Bike Trek and Misty Redwood Run to benefit lung research.
• Biosphere II's 1993 Earth Day Sports and Fitness Symposium.
• Earth Journey British Columbia Triathlon Stage Race, a three day journey through BC's best, 1991.
• Outdoor Performance Training Camps, multisport workshop retreats presented in collaboration with Steve Ilg, author of "The Outdoor Athlete."

Fitness and Lifestyle Workshops, Retreats, and Small Event Development
We have had the privilege of developing or creating, and leading, several programs, workshops, and small events for health clubs, fitness enthusiasts, and outdoor athletes. Some of these have taken on a life of their own beyond us, while others we will still produce on demand. Our creations include:

• RoadRacers Indoor Cycling Program for the Bodies in Motion chain of health clubs in Los Angeles, CA.
• FlyWheel Indoor Cycling Workshops and specialty classes, regularly presented anywhere on demand.
• Adventure Sunday outdoor adventure day for The Sports Club/LA, Bodies in Motion, and on demand.
• Mt. Shasta Snowshoe Safari, a three day adventure retreat originally created for the editors of Shape and Men's Fitness Magazines, and now offered on demand.
• High Performance Movement and Lifestyle Workshops with Ron Jones.

Contact us for more info about our "on demand events" or creating a new one just for you or your group.

Archaeology, Exploration, and Expeditions
We work in the field of archaeology through Archaeoscience International™ and the University of California at Berkeley and are also the proud creators and hosts of the Official Website for the Insititute of Nautical Archaeology-Egypt's Sadana Island Shipwreck Project. Chris has worked on, or led, expeditions to Egypt, Pakistan, Turkey, and the United Arab Emirates and has published extensively. He is also involved in cave and technical diving. See his C.V. Chris has also competed in numerous wintertime wilderness races in Alaska.

If you need advice on going somewhere really off the beaten track, need an experienced team leader or member, or want to collaborate on a research project or wilderness expedition, contact us. We are always interested in new adventures.