Navy airplanes

Heading Off on a BIG Adventure with the @USNavy on #VinsonEmbark

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I'm packing up my flippy floppies and I'm going on a boat! Well, not really I'm bringing my practical shoes since I'll be doing lots of walking but I am going on a boat. I've been invited for a special mission to embark on the U.S.S. Carl Vinson with some of America's finest: the Navy! I have to admit, I've been singing Highway to the Danger Zone a lot since I found out.

How did I get invited? Guy Kawasaki recommended me. He may be trying to get rid of me. We'll see. In case you didn't know, Guy would love to be a Navy Seal. Here's his photo essayย from one of his adventures. Guy has been part of the blogger/media embark program since it's inception. “The embarks include embarkations to and from Navy vessels underway at sea using Navy airplanes with tailhooks and catapults or helicopters.” Wow.

Some past participants are Robert Scoble (please check out his amazing photos here), Jenny “The Bloggess”ย Lawson, and Pam Slim. The nomination process can take from a few days to three years starting from the time of nomination to vetting by the Navy and finally selection and embarkation to a ship at sea.ย  Dennis Hall, founder of Avere Group LLC, made my embark possible via his nomination of me.ย  Dennis Hall initially submitted my nomination to the Deputy Public Affairs Officer for the Commander, Naval Air Forces โ€“ Pacific, US Pacific Fleet for the Distinguished Visitorsย  Program. They checked me out, I was approved. Imagine that! Thank you for all your work in putting this together, Dennis.

The universalย hashtagย for the embark isย #vinsonembark.ย Twitter Handles of embark participants and support organizations so you can give them a tweet:

- USS Carl Vinson ย - (1)@CVN70

@coronadonavy

@USNavy

@FlyNavy

@usmc

 

 

I'll be heading out to sea with a fine crew of media and blogger peers:

Analisa's made a Twitter list if you'd like to follow everyone.

Jeremy Epstein, Vice President of Marketing with Sprinklr, (@Jer979)

Phil Giordano, Senior Software Systems Engineer, The MITRE Corporation (@GiordanoPhilip)

Kim Merrill, Principal & Founder, Merrill Marketing/Communications (@KimMerrill)

Rocky Barbanica, Managing Producer, Rackspace Hosting (@rocmanUSA)

Don Levy, Founder, Smith Brook Farm Consultancy (@dblevy)

Steve Broback, @sbroback Christian Rahl Cisco, (@rahlxcb)

Analisa Farias, Community Manager at USAA (@analisafarias)

Bill Wohl, PR guy, Volunteer firefighter and EMTย (@billwohl61)

Nick Turner, Founding Partner, TV4 Entertainment (@nickturner101)

Susan Katz Keating, Author, journalist, blogger, veteran, and troop supporterย (@SKatzKeating)

Brett Murray, Global Marketing Campaigns, Mobile, NVIDIA Corporation (@oyingo)

Stephen G. Bustin of Bustin Media (@stevenbustin)

My pre-trip adventure starts with a stay at the Kimpton in San Diego and then I'll be WAY out of my element on a ship at sea. This will be my first stay at a Kimpton as their official brand ambassador so I'm extra excited.

I'll be taking photos and asking questions so I can share this really cool adventure with you when I get back. Can I stay out of trouble for twenty-four hours? We'll see… ย It's sure to be a life-changing event!

Photo credit: Robert Scoble via Flickr/CC

Article by Peg Fitzpatrick

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17 Comments

  1. What an amazing once-in-a-lifetime trip! I can’t imagine the amount of incredible photos you will take. You are one lucky girl, but more than that, they are lucky to have you! Have a blast!

  2. Have a great time, Peggy. The USS Carl Vinson is much less a boat than a floating city. Can’t wait to hear all about it. Take something special from your hometown to share with some of the sailors. They’ll really appreciate it.

  3. What a wonderful opportunity! And thank you for taking all of us along with you. One of the things I love about following your posts and blogs is your amazing ability to connect people with one another. ย Helen Keller once said, “Alone we can do so little; together we can do so much.” As a result, in your own Pegesque style, you change the world!

  4. PegFitzpatrick I’m sure there are some great things from New Hampshire or your home town. Candy? The sailors can get big brand candy but how about some maple candy or honey candy? Or soap? Or even from the chamber of commerce are there lapel pins or keychains? Just something as a little way to leave some of your sparkle with them!

  5. DrJulieConnorย Wow, Julie! What a beautiful thing to say. I’m really touched. Thank you and I’m so happy to be able to bring people along on my amazing journey. I’m having such a fantastic time.

  6. Hello Peg: ย I took this trip back in 2010. ย It truly changed my life. ย 

    http://www.robde.com/Blog/people-and-machines/#.UtwXLhAo5aQ ย  ย  ย 
    http://www.robde.com/Blog/uss-lincoln-afterwards/#.UtwWKBAo5aQย 

    What I expected to see and what I saw was very different. ย What happened in my life afterwards was even better. ย 

    I am proud to be sponsoring my friend Phil Giordano on this trip. ย He is a fellow photographer.ย 

    http://robde.smugmug.com/Public-Events/USS-Abraham-Lincoln/i-pTcsR2J

    Enjoy the experience and I look forward to read about your observations.

  7. Oh Peg, this is fabulous. Is there anyway a ย 72-year-old blogger could take part in all of this? I always wanted to stand at the end of a ship and wave in the jets as they land. Love that. I’d love to be a Navy Seal as long as I didn’t have to train for it or participate in anything scary.ย 

    But I am serious I would love to particiapate in this program ย How?

  8. Wow….!!! I also dream to experience this one of a kind adventure..Hope to receive invitation too..

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