The Divergent Path with Rollie Peterkin (Rollie Peterkin)

While the rest of us couch potatoes binged Netflix and drank beer during the quarantine, Mark Larson thru-hiked the entire Appalachian Trail during the corona pandemic. Being an experienced endurance athlete, Mark finished in 3.5 months (107 days), when most people take around 6 months to finish the grueling trail.

The Appalachian Trail has been a lifelong dream of mine and I was extremely curious about all of the preparation, logistics, equipment, lodging, wildlife encounters, and physical strain. So I grilled Mark like an FBI interrogator until he answered every one of my questions.

Read more about Mark's journey here: https://rolliepeterkin.com/mark-larson-appalachian-trail

And here: https://rolliepeterkin.com/running-ultramarathons-with-mark-larson/

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As always feel free to reach out to me on social media!

Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/rolliepeterkin

Twitter - https://www.twitter.com/rolliepeterkin

Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/rollie.peterkin

Website - https://www.rolliepeterkin.com

My book - The Cage: Escaping the American Dream http://amzn.to/1Y0xbzD

Gregor "The Gift" Gillespie was a four time Division I All-American wrestler and a national champion. He currently fights in the UFC and has a professional record of 13-1. In this episode we discuss Gregor's obsessive personality and how it led him down the destructive path of drugs and alcohol. It's crazy that he was able to be such a top wrestler while abusing his body. But he has been clean for over ten years now and is a dominant UFC fighter.

Instagram: http://www.instagram.com/gregorthegift

Read more about Gregor here: https://rolliepeterkin.com/gregor-gillespie-addiction-wrestling-mma/

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As always please feel free to reach out to me on social media!

Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/rolliepeterkin

Twitter - http://www.twitter.com/rolliepeterkin

Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/rollie.peterkin

Website - http://www.rolliepeterkin.com

My book - The Cage: Escaping the American Dream http://amzn.to/1Y0xbzD

Claudio Puelles is UFC fighter from Lima, Peru. He was features on the reality show The Ultimate Fighter (TUF) where he finished second and got a contract to fight in the UFC. In this episode he tells the story of how he first got involved in MMA and the time he lived in the US when he was younger. You might recognize Claudio's name from my book, as we were teammates and friends during my time in Peru. 

Kenn Kweder is a musical legend in Philadelphia. He has been playing music around town since the late sixties and has some amazing stories to tell. He talks about a postering campaign in the 70's based around Jack Ruby, Lee Harvey Oswald, and Carnation instant milk. Kweder talks about wanting to play in the NBA as a teenager and then picking up a guitar in order to impress the girls. He talks about writing new songs and where the inspiration comes from. So many interesting topics. 

Definitely check out the documentary

Adventures of a Secret Kidd: The Mass Hallucination of Kenn Kweder

Website: http://kennkweder.com/

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For the full description of this podcast, check out: www.rolliepeterkin.com/kenn-kweder

Follow me on social media for more updates:

IG/Twitter: @rolliepeterkin

Feel free to reach out any time!

Amy Currie is a video producer who specializes in culinary and lifestyle videos. She was a full-time video producer at Panna Cooking where she won a James Beard Award for her work. She has worked with the who's who of top chefs on their videos. And she eventually co-founded HotDish Productions.

Website: https://www.amydcurrie.com/

HotDish Productions: https://www.hotdishproductions.com/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/amydcurrie/

Read more about Amy here: https://www.rolliepeterkin.com/amy-currie

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As always feel free to reach out to me on social media!

Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/rolliepeterkin

Twitter - https://www.twitter.com/rolliepeterkin

Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/rollie.peterkin

Website - https://www.rolliepeterkin.com

My book - The Cage: Escaping the American Dream http://amzn.to/1Y0xbzD

Andy Steves joins us today from his cabin in Washington. Andy is the author of Europe: City Hopping on a Budget and the founder of Weekend Student Adventures. In this episode he talks about what student travel and study abroad will look like in a coronavirus world. What he learned from his father, travel guru Rick Steves. And his favorite places in Europe!

https://andysteves.com/

IG: andystevestravel

In this episode of the podcast, I get the chance to speak with legendary music composer Jonathan Wolff who wrote music for 75 primetime series, including the theme songs for 44 TV shows. Most famously, he wrote the iconic theme song for Seinfeld. Jonathan is a fascinating and thoughtful person and it was such a pleasure to speak with him!

Dan Cleland is the owner of the Soltara Healing Center in Costa Rica. He's spent eight years working with ayahuasca, a powerful psychedelic traditionally used by the Amazonian tribes. Dan lived for many years in the Peruvian jungle where he ran the Ayahuasca Adventure Center. He talks about the rituals of taking ayahuasca and what it's like running a tourism based business during the coronavirus crisis, as well as many other stories of being an entrepreneur abroad! His center was featured in a London Real documentary called Reconnect. He is also the author of Pulse of the Jungle: Ayahuasca, Adventures, and Social Enterprise in the Amazon.

Read more about Dan here: https://rolliepeterkin.com/podcast-dan-cleland-talks-ayahuasca-and-entrepreneurship/

Dr. Lorenzo Valterza is a scholar on Dante Alighieri and the Italian language. He holds a PhD from Rutgers and has taught at the University of Pennsylvania and Notre Dame. Lorenzo's doctoral thesis was about the impact of torture and Roman law in Dante.

In this episode we discussed many things about the Italian language. He grew up hearing different dialects and then went on to study and teach it later in life.

We talked a lot about Dante and how every generation will interpret his works through the prism of their times. For instance, the nature of torture, fate vs free will, or justice.

But most importantly, we discussed the many ways that Dante was like Regina George from Mean Girls. Hint: he the Inferno as a sort of Burn Book.

Read more about Lorenzo here: https://www.rolliepeterkin.com/lorenzo-valterza-phd-dante-inferno-italian-language

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As always please feel free to reach out to me on social media!

Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/rolliepeterkin

Twitter - https://www.twitter.com/rolliepeterkin

Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/rollie.peterkin

Website - http://www.rolliepeterkin.com

My book - The Cage: Escaping the American Dream http://amzn.to/1Y0xbzD

I've been waiting a long time to get the chance to talk to Lauren! She is a fascinating person and had led a truly Divergent Path. Lauren is a falconer who has worked with may species of birds of prey around the world. She even trained with Kazakh hunters in rural Mongolia. I mean, come on! Who does that? Lauren does. I was so happy to finally speak with her and hear her story.

Website: https://rolliepeterkin.com/

IG: https://www.instagram.com/rolliepeterkin

Lauren: https://www.instagram.com/eaglefalconer/

Brendan Reid is the owner of The Molly Malone, the top rated bar in Tenerife. He tells us about owning a small business during coronavirus and the quarantine. What it's like growing up in the Canary Islands. Brendan has lived in Germany and Norway. He talks about the lessons he's learned as an entertainer. And why The Molly Malone is such a special place.

Read more about Brendan here: https://rolliepeterkin.com/podcast-brendan-reid-molly-malone-tenerife/

Nils Parker can't even count how many books he's ghostwritten. I asked him and he estimated between 15 and 20. His books have been NYT and WSJ bestsellers many times over. As an editor he has worked with authors like Ryan Holiday, Tucker Max, and James Altucher (and many more) on every aspect of their books.

Nils was originally supposed to be a lawyer. But after a semester of law school and a summer position, he decided that the courtroom was not his true calling. His whole life trajectory changed when he stumbled across a forum created by Tucker Max, who would go on to become a multiple-time NYT bestselling author. That meeting launched him down a path that would change the course of his life forever.

Read more about Nils here: https://rolliepeterkin.com/nils-parker

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As always feel free to reach out to me on social media!

Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/rolliepeterkin

Twitter - https://www.twitter.com/rolliepeterkin

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Website - https://www.rolliepeterkin.com

My book - The Cage: Escaping the American Dream http://amzn.to/1Y0xbzD

Turney Duff is the New York Times bestselling author of The Buy Side and consultant on the Showtime series Billions. Turney had it all. He had a 7-figure salary as the head trader for a large Wall Street hedge fund. But he wasn't happy. He made a 2 million dollar bonus one year and was never more miserable. After developing a cocaine addiction, he spent two stints in rehab and has now been sober for over ten years. In this episode, Turney and I discuss his experience on Wall Street and talk about the craft of writing. 

Check out Turney's book here: https://amzn.to/3j0BzjC

Read the full post here: https://rolliepeterkin.com/turney-duff-wall-street-sobriety-writing/

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Please feel free to reach out to me on social media!

Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/rolliepeterkin

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My book - The Cage: Escaping the American Dream http://amzn.to/1Y0xbzD

In this edition of Rollie's Travel Tales, I talk about the time I spent in the country of Georgia.

After releasing Episode 23: HOW TO MAKE FRIENDS WHILE TRAVELING, I got a bunch of requests from people who said they wanted to hear more of my travel stories. So I started thinking about some one my best ones. I ran through them in my head and rehearsed them as I walked one day. And I thought about one time in Georgia where I was trying to find Joseph Stalin's spa on a rainy day in the middle of nowhere. But as I ran through the story, I realized it was part of a much larger and much crazier story. In fact, the more times I told it to myself the longer and crazier it became. Until I realized that it was a whole episode itself.

So this is a story that traces my wild and spontaneous journey around the country of Georgia in late 2018. If you enjoy it, please let me know. I love any feedback that I get. 

Read more and see pictures here: https://rolliepeterkin.com/joseph-stalin-dire-straits-chacha-georgia/

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Please feel free to reach out to me on social media!

Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/rolliepeterkin

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My book - The Cage: Escaping the American Dream http://amzn.to/1Y0xbzD

Ryan Warner is the host of the Wrestling Changed My Life podcast. He is one of the premier voices in the wrestling community and has interviewed all of the greats. He most recently produced the 7-part audio docuseries The Smiths which follows John and Pat Smith, two of the most successful American wrestlers. In this episode we talk about some of the challenges of producing the documentary and some of the inspirations behind it.

IG: @wrestlingchangedmylife

Twitter: @Ryan_N_Warner

https://wrestlingchangedmylife.com/

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Website - https://www.rolliepeterkin.com/podcast

Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/rolliepeterkin

Twitter - https://www.twitter.com/rolliepeterkin

Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/rollie.peterkin

My book - The Cage: Escaping the American Dream http://amzn.to/1Y0xbzD

Andy Valenti is a member of the band Oh He Dead. Their song Lonely Sometimes was described by the Washington Post as "an infectious, groove-based track about yearning for human connection." They had a major tour booked right before the pandemic hit, but have been trying to make the most of the downtime to write and record new songs.

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/2nLlWcvMIIGHHnDOQMi0h6

Band Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ohhedead/

Andy Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ohheandy/

Read more about Andy here: https://www.rolliepeterkin.com/andy-valenti

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As always feel free to reach out to me on social media!

Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/rolliepeterkin

Twitter - https://www.twitter.com/rolliepeterkin

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Website - https://www.rolliepeterkin.com

My book - The Cage: Escaping the American Dream http://amzn.to/1Y0xbzD

Geoff Riccio is a video producer and photographer who has covered the sport of wrestling at every level. He had been there for many big moments in wrestling, including when wresting was dropped from the Olympics in 2013. 

Read more about Geoff here: https://rolliepeterkin.com/geoff-riccio-wrestling

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As always feel free to reach out to me on social media!

Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/rolliepeterkin

Twitter - https://www.twitter.com/rolliepeterkin

Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/rollie.peterkin

Website - https://www.rolliepeterkin.com

My book - The Cage: Escaping the American Dream http://amzn.to/1Y0xbzD

Din Thomas (@dinthomas) has been around MMA since the 90s and has seen the sport evolve since the early days. He had a record of 26-9 and has beaten guys like Jens Pulver, Clay Guida, and Matt Serra. As a coach, he has cornered the women's GOAT Amanda Nunes and former UFC champion Tyron Woodley. Din was on Season 4 of the UFC's reality show The Ultimate Fighter. And he is the co-host of Dana White: Lookin' for a Fight.

In this episode, we discuss how Din initially got involved in MMA. We talked about the early days of the UFC and how much has changed. Din has fought all over the world, from Japan to Russia to Hawaii. And we discuss his passion for improv and how it's much more similar to MMA than you would imagine. Din has so many good stories and wisdom to share!

Read more about Din here: https://www.rolliepeterkin.com/din-thomas-ufc-legend-and-coach

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Please feel free to reach out to me on social media!

Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/rolliepeterkin

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Website - http://www.rolliepeterkin.com/contact

My book - The Cage: Escaping the American Dream http://amzn.to/1Y0xbzD

Tom Ryan is one of the most accomplished coaches in the sport of wrestling today. As the coach at Ohio State University, he's created an absolute powerhouse. The things that he's been able to accomplish as a coach are truly astounding.

• 2015 NCAA team champions
• Five-times NCAA team runner-ups
• Seven top-3 NCAA team finishes
• 12 individual NCAA titles
• 22 Big Ten champions
• 53 All-Americans
• Two-time NCAA Head Coach of the Year
• Three-time Big Ten Coach of the Year
• Four-time NCAA champion Logan Stieber
• Three-time NCAA champion and Olympic gold medalist Kyle Snyder

Tom talks about the immense impact that Dan wrestling for Gable had on his life and wrestling career. I asked Tom about the difficulties of shifting from wrestler to coach.

But the toughest test of his life came when he lost his son Teague at age five. An experience that brought him to his knees. Tom talks about how his life was changed by such a traumatic event.

Tom Ryan's new book Chosen Suffering is available and tells his story through his wrestling career to coping with the loss of his son.

Chosen Suffering book: https://amzn.to/3iXGocb

Read more about Tom Ryan here: https://rolliepeterkin.com/tom-ryan

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As always feel free to reach out to me on social media!

Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/rolliepeterkin

Twitter - https://www.twitter.com/rolliepeterkin

Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/rollie.peterkin

Website - https://www.rolliepeterkin.com

My book - The Cage: Escaping the American Dream http://amzn.to/1Y0xbzD

Rolf Potts is a travel writer, author of four books, and host of the Deviate with Rolf Potts podcast. Rolf is a sort of philosopher when it comes to travel and his book Vagabonding is considered the Bible of travel literature. NYT Best Selling author Tim Ferriss has said Vagabonding was one of his all time favorite books. 

Vagabonding changed the trajectory of my life when I first read it back in 2014 and I can honestly say that my life would be completely different had I never discovered it. It provided a roadmap for the backpacking and long term traveling I would do for the next few years.

Rolf's book Marco Polo Didn't Go There contains samples of his travel writing over the years and end notes which give a behind the scenes look at the pieces. Rolf is the author of The Geto Boys and Souvenir.

To see more of Rolf's writing, check out his website: www.RolfPotts.com

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Read more here: https://rolliepeterkin.com/podcast-rolf-potts-vagabonding-travel-writing/

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Please feel free to reach out to me on social media!

Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/rolliepeterkin

Twitter - http://www.twitter.com/rolliepeterkin

Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/rollie.peterkin

Website - http://www.rolliepeterkin.com/contact

My book - The Cage: Escaping the American Dream

Alexander Pekoff just finished running 560 miles across New York State from Niagara Falls to Montauk Point in 14 days. He ran an average of 39 miles a day, including running 102 miles consecutively on the last day to make it on schedule.

Alexander also biked from Key West, Florida to Prudhoe Bay, Alaska in 89 days. The stories he tells of bear encounters and rugged days in the Alaskan wilderness are absolutely insane.

This episode is perhaps the most inspirational I've recorded. It makes me so happy to share it with you.

Read more about Alexander Pekoff here: https://www.rolliepeterkin.com/alexander-pekoff-extreme-endurance-athlete

Instagram: http://www.instagram.com/alexanderpekoff

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCGlv13ichSsWIZl5Zu1aaTA

Adopt A Boxer Rescue: https://www.adoptaboxerrescue.com/

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As always please feel free to reach out to me on social media!

Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/rolliepeterkin

Twitter - https://www.twitter.com/rolliepeterkin

Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/rollie.peterkin

Website - http://www.rolliepeterkin.com

My book - The Cage: Escaping the American Dream http://amzn.to/1Y0xbzD

In this episode I speak with my friend Nancy Da Campo. She has some of the most amazing travels around the world and shares her great perspective on travel. Nancy just recently returned from 3 months in Iran. Then she traveled to Iraq and Saudi Arabia. Nancy shares what her experience was like as a solo female traveler around the Middle East. She also has an amazing Instagram with her architectural photography, make sure to follow her: @_nancy_dc 

Mark Larson has competed in four races OVER 100 MILES LONG. In the mountains. Running for over 24 hours. Besides his long distance running, he has also lived on four different continents and is currently living in France in order to learn French, his third language. Besides his ultramarathons, Mark has walked the Camino de Santiago four times. And he's done treks in Nepal and Andorra. Mark has so much wisdom to share about adventuring around the world.

Read more about Mark here: https://rolliepeterkin.com/running-ultramarathons-with-mark-larson/

Katlyn Chookagian is a UFC fighter (14-3) who fought for the Flyweight title back in February. In this episode we talk about her roots in martial arts going back to when she started fighting karate at age four. She spent every minute she could training like a girl possessed. By the time Katlyn was in high school, she was fighting in Golden Gloves boxing and kickboxing competitions.

When she first saw Ronda Rousey fighting in the UFC, she knew that she could do that too. And soon after she started fighting MMA. But it wasn't even a huge jump for Katlym, who had been competing in martial arts for almost her whole life. And when she got a call from the UFC, she wasn't surprised.

In this episode we discuss what it was like fighting in an empty area in her most recent fight against Antonia Shevchenko in a dominant performance. And what it was like fighting both of the Shevchenko sisters back to back. We talked about how she was able to train at home during the quarantine. She talks about how she got the nickname Blondefighter. And what it felt when Joe Rogan dissed her nickname during her UFC debut.

Katlyn has so many great stories from fighting over the years and it was so great talking to her on this episode!

Read more about Katlyn here: https://rolliepeterkin.com/katlyn-blondefighter-chookagian-ufc-fighter/

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Please feel free to reach out to me on social media!

Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/rolliepeterkin

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Website - http://www.rolliepeterkin.com/contact

My book - The Cage: Escaping the American Dream http://amzn.to/1Y0xbzD

Vlad Mozgovoi was traveling in Vietnam when he was diagnosed with corona virus. In this episode, he shares his crazy story of high fevers and Vietnamese hospitals. He was kept in quarantine for two weeks and tended to by doctors in hazmat suits. And he gives us a glimpse into a world we are lucky to not witness ourselves.

Read more about Vlad's story here: https://rolliepeterkin.com/podcast-vlad-gets-corona-virus-in-vietnam/

Danielle and Wilson spent 7 months traveling to 15 different countries and had the adventure of a lifetime. In this episode they discuss the benefits and pitfalls of traveling as a couple. They talk about getting stuck in Indonesia during the coronavirus crisis. About their travels around the USA, through Europe, and Asia. And why you should ALWAYS carry snacks when traveling with your partner.

Read more about their story here: https://rolliepeterkin.com/podcast-danielle-wilson-travel-world-couple/

Ben Reiter first moved down to Peru to volunteer in a small village outside Arequipa. He was teaching English and helping the local children. During his early days in Peru, Ben founded two charities. He began fighting MMA as a way to raise money and awareness for his charitable initiatives. With his Division 1 wrestling background, he quickly rose through the ranks of Peruvian MMA and became a legend down there. He eventually got a contract to fight in Bellator MMA and trained at Jackson Wink MMA.

Ben is the reason I first moved to Peru and became an MMA fighter. It was great to catch up on his story of everything that has happened since then. Ben is now working for a charity called Beat the Streets Philly which helps inner city children in Philadelphia through the power of sports. Ben is an inspiration in the truest sense of the word.

Ben's story is featured prominently in my book, The Cage: Escaping the American Dream. 

Read more about Ben here: https://rolliepeterkin.com/podcast-ben-reiter-talks-mma-charity-and-peru/

Kelly is a world traveler who hosts a vlog on YouTube called Go with Kelly which takes viewers on travels with her to all corners of the globe. She tells about getting stuck in Bali during coronavirus. She has lived on four different continents and worked all sorts of jobs around the world. In this episode we chat about living abroad and making new friends. And she tells us about being a tour guide in Asia!

Instagram: gowithkelly

Read more about Kelly: https://rolliepeterkin.com/podcast-vlogging-with-kelly/

Sam Sheridan is the author of three books: The Fighter's Heart, The Fighter's Mind, and The Disaster Diaries. Recently, he wrote and produced a miniseries called I am the Night.

Sam traveled the world and trained martial arts. He interviewed the greatest minds in MMA about the mental game. And he worked with top survival experts in order to learn how to prepare for the end of the world. But Sam also spent years traveling the world working as a sailor. He was a firefighter who battled forest fires. And he worked on a research station in Antarctica. 

Read more about Sam here: https://www.rolliepeterkin.com/sam-sheridan-fighters-heart

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As always please feel free to reach out to me on social media!

Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/rolliepeterkin

Twitter - https://www.twitter.com/rolliepeterkin

Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/rollie.peterkin

Website - http://www.rolliepeterkin.com

My book - The Cage: Escaping the American Dream http://amzn.to/1Y0xbzD

Mike and Anne Howard (@HoneyTrek) left for their honeymoon in January 2012 and never came home. And most importantly, they share their adventures with the world through their blog HoneyTrek.com, which chronicles their journey across all seven continents. Their story as the World’s Longest Honeymooners has been featured in hundreds of media outlets, from USA Today to Lonely Planet. Together, they've written two books. Their first book, Ultimate Journeys for Two is National Geographic’s bestselling couples travel guide to destinations all over the world. And their second book, Comfortably Wild, details their journey to find the best glamping spots in North America. As full-time nomads and travel writers, Mike and Anne are always searching for off the beaten path destinations, uncommon adventures, and the human stories that make each place so special.

Mike and Anne met each other playing volleyball as partners when they were working in New York City. They spent their first Valentines Day together sneaking into Cuba...before it was cool. And their life changed when they learned that they could travel the world for a cheaper all-in cost than their rent in Hoboken. So they quit their jobs and set off on what was supposed to be a 1-year trip around the world. That was 8 years ago. According to them, they haven't had the key to an apartment or house since December 2011.

In this episode we discuss so many things and they share their travel philosophy, which revolved around traveling slowly and taking in as much as possible from the local culture. They share tips on making the most from Airbnbs. Why you shouldn't wait to travel until you're 65 and retired. And so many more lessons they've learned from the road.

Ultimate Journeys for Two - https://amzn.to/38IKsKa

Comfortably Wild - https://amzn.to/2GStrjc

Read the full post here: https://rolliepeterkin.com/mike-anne-howard-honeytrek-world's-longest-honeymoon

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My book - The Cage: Escaping the American Dream http://amzn.to/1Y0xbzD

Anthony Gray is the chef de cuisine at Le Bernadin, a three Michelin star rated restaurant in Manhattan. Antony tells us how a red pepper changed his life in high school and set him on a trajectory to become a chef. He talks about why he dropped out of culinary school. What its's like working for Eric Ripert at Le Bernadin, one of the best-rated restaurants in the world. And the difficulties of working in a kitchen. What an amazing story he has for us!

More info here: https://rolliepeterkin.com/podcast-anthony-gray-chef-le-bernadin/

In this episode, my old friend Andy interviews me about my recet travels. Andy was a atural in his podcast debut and it was such a fun conversation. YouTube Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0GkYmtbVAuw

Website: https://rolliepeterkin.com/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/rolliepeterkin

Andy: https://www.instagram.com/ohhebandy/

Jeff Buxton is one of the most well-respected names in the sport of wrestling. As the wrestling coach at Blair Academy, he led teams to 30 consecutive Prep National titles and 10 National titles. While coaching Blair wrestling, he coached 12 wrestlers who went on to win Division 1 NCAA titles, as well as 41 All-Americans. He is currently the coach of the Lehigh Valley Athletic Club Regional Training Center.

In this episode Buxton talks about the challenges of training wrestling during the coronavirus. He talks about what it was like coaching legends like Steve Mocco. And his background in the sport of wrestling.

Read more here: https://rolliepeterkin.com/jeff-buxton-blair-wrestling/

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Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/rolliepeterkin

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Website - http://www.rolliepeterkin.com/contact

My book - The Cage: Escaping the American Dream

Wayne Catan was a world class wrestler in his day. He was a three-time All-American and two-time NCAA finalist for the Syracuse University. After college, he wrestled internationally and even placed third at the legendary Tbilisi Tournament in Georgia.

Nowadays, Wayne is an Ernest Hemingway scholar and English teacher at Brophy College Prep. He has published 37 articles about Hemingway. He's reviewed just about every Hemingway biography out there. He lives and breathes Hemingway.

Wayne would read Hemingway's short stories on the bus when they were traveling to away meets for wrestling in college. Even though he rose to the top of the wrestling world, he got a bit of a slow start. He first trained in judo and when he transitioned to wrestling, he never even placed in New York states. But the summer after his senior year of high school, he wound up placing at nationals and getting recruited to wrestle in college.

Wayne and I first met in the Blair Academy wrestling room many years ago. And we always loved talking about books. We kept in touch and always bonded over our love for Hemingway. So it was so much fun sitting down and talking.

In this episode we discuss our favorite Hemingway works. We talk about how many times Hemingway rewrote the last paragraph of A Farewell to Arms. About how The Old Man and the Sea is a book without one misplaced word. About the Hemingway in the Spanish Civil War and Hemingway's experiences in Spain which led to For Whom the Bell Tolls. Did Hemingway really lead charges as a war journalist? Wayne suspects it might just be part of the Hemingway lore. The Iceberg Theory. The Sun Also Rises. The Nick Adams stories. And so much more.

Read more here: https://rolliepeterkin.com/wayne-catan-hemingway-wrestling-grace-under-pressure/

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Please feel free to reach out to me on social media!

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My book - The Cage: Escaping the American Dream http://amzn.to/1Y0xbzD

Charlie Brenneman has done it all. He wrestled in college, taught high school Spanish, fought in the UFC against top opponents, wrote two books, and hosts a podcast. In this episode, Charlie tells us how he went from a "wimpy" kid to a UFC star. The many lessons he's learned along the way and why he now shares those lessons with the next generation. Follow Charlie on social media @charliespaniard.

His books:

-Driven: My Unlikely Journey from Classroom to Cage

-Becoming the World's Toughest Lifelong Learner

http:\\www.charliespaniard.com

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For more info click here: http://rolliepeterkin.com/podcast-charlie-brenneman-from-high-school-spanish-teacher-to-ufc-fighter

In this episode I finally get the chance to chat with Nathan Pettijohn who has a really crazy story. He left LA, where he was firmly established for years, and packed his stuff in his car, along with his dog Rafa, and drove south through Mexico and Central America and into South America. 

Jake Hunter is the Chief Operating Officer of Wrestling Mindset. But this episode is about so much more than wrestling. We talk about Jake's career path from high school teacher to mindset coach to a fulltime job with Wrestling Mindset. Jake and I nerd out a little bit about Roman history also. It was great catching up with Jake!

Read more about Jake here: https://www.rolliepeterkin.com/jake-hunter

Find me here:

Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/rolliepeterkin

Twitter - https://www.twitter.com/rolliepeterkin

Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/rollie.peterkin

Website - https://www.rolliepeterkin.com

My book - The Cage: Escaping the American Dream http://amzn.to/1Y0xbzD

Alix Seyfarth was working for a tech company in Boston when a typhoon hit the Philippines and she decided to go volunteer and help to rebuild local communities that were devastated. She didn't realize it would change her life forever. That was six years ago, and Alix is still working in the disaster relief field. Alix spent 14 months in the Philippines, living in conditions without electricity, WiFi, or running water.

Alix eventually got a job working full time for the nonprofit, which is called All Hands and Hearts. She's been helping coordinate their efforts around the world. She has visited and helped out in the so many disaster situations and has an incredible story.

Read more about Alix here: https://www.rolliepeterkin.com/alix-seyfarth

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sayfarthy/

All Hands and Hearts: https://www.allhandsandhearts.org/

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As always feel free to reach out to me on social media!

Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/rolliepeterkin

Twitter - https://www.twitter.com/rolliepeterkin

Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/rollie.peterkin

Website - https://www.rolliepeterkin.com

My book - The Cage: Escaping the American Dream http://amzn.to/1Y0xbzD

Steven Kampmann holds a masters in Psychological Counseling and wrote a thesis on the topic of dreams, which has evolved into a lifelong passion. He teaches a course on dreams which revolves around the works of people like Carl Jung and Herman Hesse. 

Steven began his film and TV career as a comedic actorand writer at the legendary Second City Theater appearing both in Chicago and Toronto. He co-starred as Kirk Devane on the successful Newhart show. He has appeared as an actor in eight movies including Club Paradise with Robin Williams, For The Boys with Bette Midler, and Analyze That! with Robert DeNiro and Billy Crystal. Along with his close friend Harold Ramis, he co-wrote the hit comedy Back to School starring Rodney Dangerfield. And he co-wrote and co-directed the film Stealing Home starring Jodie Foster and Mark Harmon.

Read more about Steven here: https://www.rolliepeterkin.com/steven-kampmann

As always feel free to reach out to me on social media!

Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/rolliepeterkin

Twitter - https://www.twitter.com/rolliepeterkin

Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/rollie.peterkin

Website - https://www.rolliepeterkin.com

My book - The Cage: Escaping the American Dream http://amzn.to/1Y0xbzD

What an amazing and inspirational story! Wes and Shane both had sub 2.0 GPAs in high school and were unsure of what to do after. So they joined the Air Force. In the process, they gained lucrative careers and got the chance to travel the world. Now Shane holds an MBA and Wes is a PhD candidate, even though he failed freshman English three years in a row. One of my all time favorite stories!

Dave is the best Spanish speaker that I know and someone who is deeply thoughtful about languages and language acquistion. In this episode we talk about the best way to learn a new language and some tips and tricks for practicing. And the big question: Why learn a new language?

Marina Zoppei spent two years traveling the world. She's been to 106 countries and many of them as a solo female traveler. Marina hails from Brazil and she tells the story of how she saved money fro the trip after the Brazilian real crashed and her savings were devalued overnight. She sold pastries on the streets of Sao Paulo. She didn't just travel to typical tourist destinations too. She visited almost all of the -stan countries of Central Asia, such as Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan. Marina's adventures are full of amazing encounters and such fun adventures. It was an absolute pleasure speaking with her.

Her awesome travel video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0xMRHUKx628

Instagram: mazoppei

Read more about Marina: https://rolliepeterkin.com/podcast-marinas-world-tour/

Matt Valenti was an old teammate and friend of mine. He was a two-time Division I NCAA wrestler. After college he was coaching at Penn while pursuing an Olympic Dream for 2012. Matt now works at the athletic department at UPenn.

Read more about Matt here: https://www.rolliepeterkin.com/matt-valenti

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As always feel free to reach out to me on social media!

Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/rolliepeterkin

Twitter - https://www.twitter.com/rolliepeterkin

Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/rollie.peterkin

Website - https://www.rolliepeterkin.com

My book - The Cage: Escaping the American Dream http://amzn.to/1Y0xbzD

Daniele Bolelli is the host of the History on Fire podcast, where he has captured audiences with episodes that range from Teddy Roosevelt to Caravaggio to Crazy Horse. He has written many books on topics from religion to martial arts. His books include:  On the Warrior's Path and Not Afraid. And don’t miss his Drunken Taoist Podcast for some awesome interviews.

One of the things that has always fascinated me about Daniele is the seeming contradictions in his life. He is a college professor and serious academic, but he doesn’t take himself too seriously. He is both irreverent and disciplined and his content that is entertaining and informative.

Daniele was generous enough to read my book back in the day and give me a blurb. For which I am eternally grateful.

In this episode, Daniele talks about growing up in Italy and what he learned from his literary parents. And how he moved to the United States to study Native American history at UCLA. And how he trained in martial arts such as karate, jiu jitsu, and boxing. And what he’s learned from the godfather of history podcasting, Dan Carlin.

It was such a good conversation and I hope you enjoy it!

Read more here: https://www.rolliepeterkin.com/daniele-bolelli-history-martial-arts-podcasting

Kim Macquarrie is an author, documentary producer, and journalist. He has written four books about South American history and his book The Last Days of the Incas, is the definitive book on the Incan Empire. His latest book, Life and Death in the Andes, traces Macquarrie's travels through South America as he reveals the history of each place he visits through the portal of iconic events.

Kim has earned 4 Emmy Awards for his work in documentaries. He wrote and produced a documentary called Living Edens about the natural beauty of the Amazon jungle in Peru.

Website: http://www.kimmacquarrie.com/

Green Our Planet: https://greenourplanet.org/

Read more about Kim's story here: https://www/rolliepeterkin.com/kim-macquarrie-incan-empire-peruhttps://www.rolliepeterkin.com/

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As always feel free to reach out to me on social media!

Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/rolliepeterkin

Twitter - https://www.twitter.com/rolliepeterkin

Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/rollie.peterkin

Website - https://www.rolliepeterkin.com

My book - The Cage: Escaping the American Dream http://amzn.to/1Y0xbzD

A few years ago I lived in Croatia for a summer and wound up traveling around the Balkans after. And I had some crazy stories from hitchhiking through Croatia, Serbia, and Bosnia. Including run-ins with the Croatian police, a crazy random music festival in with a stranger who picked me up on the side of the highway, and jumping off an 80-foot bridge in Bosnia.

Read more about the story here: https://rolliepeterkin.com/croatian-police-hitchhiking-serbia-bridge-jumping-bosnia/

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As always please feel free to reach out to me on social media!

Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/rolliepeterkin

Twitter - https://www.twitter.com/rolliepeterkin

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Website - http://www.rolliepeterkin.com

My book - The Cage: Escaping the American Dream http://amzn.to/1Y0xbzD

Ellis Rosen is a cartoonist for magazines such as The New Yorker, Wired, and MAD. He posts a weekly cartoon series called Junk Drawer on GoComics.com and is the illustrator for a children's book called Woundabout.

Rosen attended art school and then got a master's degree, but wasn't sure where to go with his artwork. Until one day in 2016 when a friend encouraged him to submit gag cartoons to The New Yorker, and he knew right away that he had found his calling. Since then Ellis has sold around 60 cartoons in the magazine.

Weekly Cartoons: https://www.gocomics.com/junk-drawer

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ellisjrosen

Read more about Ellis Rosen here: https://www.rolliepeterkin.com/ellis-rosen

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As always feel free to reach out to me on social media!

Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/rolliepeterkin

Twitter - https://www.twitter.com/rolliepeterkin

Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/rollie.peterkin

Website - https://www.rolliepeterkin.com

My book - The Cage: Escaping the American Dream http://amzn.to/1Y0xbzD

Haley Tepavac spent seven years working on cruise ships around the world. Her Divergent Path started while working at a jewelry store in Minnesota. After a rough breakup she saw an advertisement for a job in Juneau, Alaska. So she packed her bags and moved to the far north.

Little did she know that decision would be the first domino in a chain of events that would send her careening around the world on a ship. She eventually met her husband Mirko onboard and now they've settled down in Las Vegas, where they were married by Elvis.

Read more about Haley's story here: https://www.rolliepeterkin.com/working-on-cruise-ships

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As always feel free to reach out to me on social media!

Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/rolliepeterkin

Twitter - https://www.twitter.com/rolliepeterkin

Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/rollie.peterkin

Website - https://www.rolliepeterkin.com

My book - The Cage: Escaping the American Dream http://amzn.to/1Y0xbzD

Paul Rosolie is an author, conservationist, and adventurer. He's written two books. His first book, Mother of God, is about the years he spent in the Peruvian Amazon. He recounts stories of wrestling down giant anacondas, plunging in the river after caiman, coming face-to-face with jaguars, and solo journeys deep into uncharted parts of the jungle.

Paul's second book The Girl and the Tiger  is a beautiful story about a girl in India who finds a tiger cub. The book addresses many of the important issues with tiger and elephant conservation in India.

Paul was the star of a 2014 nature documentary special on the Discovery Channel called Eaten Alive. In the show, he was going to be eaten by an anaconda in the Amazon. The show drew a lot of criticism from many groups, and even Paul himself who wasn't happy with the way it turned out. But he explains that it was a massive learning experience and he remains dedicated to his conservation efforts.

Paul is a very passionate conservationist, but he has a different perspective than many others. He is the co-founder of Tamandua Expeditions, which takes visitors of tours into the Amazon. He also founded JungleKeepers, which hires locals as rangers to help protect the Amazon and stop illegal activities like logging or poaching.

Read more about Paul here: www.rolliepeterkin.com/paul-rosolie-anacondas-amazon-conservation-ecotourism

Website: http://paulrosolie.com/

Instagram: http://instagram.com/paulrosolie

Tamandua Expeditions: https://tamanduajungle.com/

JungleKeepers: https://junglekeepers.com/

Mother of God: https://amzn.to/2XVBLI8

The Girl and the Tiger: https://amzn.to/2PMSI2X

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As always please feel free to reach out to me on social media!

Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/rolliepeterkin

Twitter - http://www.twitter.com/rolliepeterkin

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Website - http://www.rolliepeterkin.com

My book - The Cage: Escaping the American Dream http://amzn.to/1Y0xbzD

Dave Hinkle played professional basketball overseas for 11 years. While most of his career was in Mexico, he played all over the world from Germany to Taiwan to Bolivia.

Dave didn't even start playing basketball until late in high school when he hit a growth spurt. He attended University of San Francisco and played basketball on their club team. On the podcast, Dave jokes that he learned how to play basketball while in college. He grew to be 6 foot 8, and started finding some success. A chance encounter with a coach who offered an opportunity to play pro basketball overseas changed everything.

Read more about Dave here: https://www.rolliepeterkin.com/dave-hinkle-playing-pro-basketball-overseas

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As always please feel free to reach out to me on social media!

Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/rolliepeterkin

Twitter - https://www.twitter.com/rolliepeterkin

Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/rollie.peterkin

Website - http://www.rolliepeterkin.com

My book - The Cage: Escaping the American Dream http://amzn.to/1Y0xbzD

D'Juan Owens is a professional MMA fighter with 35 fights of experience, even though he never played any organized sports growing up! D'Juan has a fascinating perspective and such a great attitude in everything he faces. In this episode he talks about dealing with losses and why he fights. He also discusses the 14 trips he has taken to the African continent, where he has led projects teaching self-defense to women as well as other initiatives. It was great speaking with D'Juan!

Read more about D'Juan here: https://www.rolliepeterkin.com/djuan-owens

Find me here:

Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/rolliepeterkin

Twitter - https://www.twitter.com/rolliepeterkin

Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/rollie.peterkin

Website - https://www.rolliepeterkin.com

My book - The Cage: Escaping the American Dream http://amzn.to/1Y0xbzD

Shelby has basically been everywhere after five years as a tour guide on bus trips around the United States. The country has become her back yard and she's scoured every corner of it during her days driving the bus across the country. Shelby and I get into what it takes to be a tour guide, including the challenges and times it makes you cry. Her career path has been far from normal and she is a true Divergent Path! Best of luck leading your "normal person" life now!

IG @shelbywanders

---The Divergent Path Podcast with Rollie Peterkin---

IG/Twitter: @rolliepeterkin

http://www.rolliepeterkin.com

My book is available here on Amazon: The Cage: Escaping the American Dream

Cristian Velez has a job that every child dreams of. He works for the Amazon Rescue Center (Centro De Rescate Amazónico) in Iquitos, Peru. The center was built 11 years ago in order to rehabilitate baby manatees which were illegally kept as pets by private citizens.

Amazon Rescue Center: https://www.centroderescateamazonico.com/

Fundraising campaign: https://www.facebook.com/groups/2980742958671786

Instagram: http://www.instagram.com/centroderescateamazonico

Cristian: http://www.instagram.com/cristianovelez

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Please feel free to reach out to me on social media!

Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/rolliepeterkin

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Website - http://www.rolliepeterkin.com

My book - The Cage: Escaping the American Dream http://amzn.to/1Y0xbzD

Ty Dalitz is an Australian who has spent the last six years traveling the world. And he hasn't taken a single flight. It started off when he sailed to Asia and planned on making it to London by an overland route. But it has morphed into a six year journey filled with some of the most incredible adventures under the sun.

Here are some things Ty had done:

• Rode a motorbike the length of Vietnam
• Crashed a wine convention in China by creating fake business cards
• Caught the Trans-Siberian railway from Mongolia through Russia to Europe
• Hitch-hiked around Europe
• Caught a ride on a sailboat across the Atlantic
• Sailed through the Panama Canal
• Crossed the Pacific in a sailboat twice
• Assisted in an attempt to SWIM ACROSS THE PACIFIC OCEAN
• Rode alongside the swimmer in a dingy
• Saw sharks in the great blue ocean
• Visited the Pacific Ocean Garbage Patch

And that's just scratching the surface. I could sit and listen to Ty tell stories all day.

Follow Ty's story on his website LostAussies.com.

https://www.instagram.com/tydalitz

https://www.facebook.com/thelostaussie

Read more about Ty's journey here: https://www.rolliepeterkin.com/ty-dalitz-six-years-traveling-the-world-without-flying

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Please feel free to reach out to me on social media!

Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/rolliepeterkin

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Website - http://www.rolliepeterkin.com

My book - The Cage: Escaping the American Dream http://amzn.to/1Y0xbzD

Tommaso Ferrari hails from Verona, Italy, of Romeo and Juliet fame. Tommaso played guitar in a heavy metal band as a teenager, but soon found that he was paying more attention to the sound equipment and acoustics. He became so passionate about audio engineering, that he decided to pursue a career in the field.

Tommaso wanted to work on films and TV. So he worked as a driver whenever people from the film industry visited Verona. And one day he was driving to the set of Hollywood movie Letters to Juliet, when they noticed that he was the only person around who spoke English. This led to his breaking into the industry.

Now Tommaso resides in Tenerife in the Canary Islands and works on film and TV sets all around Europe.

Read more about Tommaso here: https://www.rolliepeterkin.com/tommaso-ferrari

Find me here:

Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/rolliepeterkin

Twitter - https://www.twitter.com/rolliepeterkin

Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/rollie.peterkin

Website - https://www.rolliepeterkin.com

My book - The Cage: Escaping the American Dream http://amzn.to/1Y0xbzD

Alejandra Arias-Stella is the co-founder of the Llama Pack Project, an organization in the Urubamba Mountains of Peru which creates opportunities for indigenous populations to raise llamas and work tourism. They teach Andean villagers to breed and raise llamas to serve as pack animals on treks for tourists in the area. Because llamas are more suited to the Andres, they are more environmentally friendly than mules, which have been forced on the native people ever since the Spanish conquest.

Website: https://llamapackproject.com/

Donation: https://www.globalgiving.org/projects/help-llama-farmers-in-peru-access-fair-work/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/llamapackproject/

Read more about Alejandra here: https://www.rolliepeterkin.com/llama-pack-project

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As always feel free to reach out to me on social media!

Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/rolliepeterkin

Twitter - https://www.twitter.com/rolliepeterkin

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Website - https://www.rolliepeterkin.com

My book - The Cage: Escaping the American Dream http://amzn.to/1Y0xbzD

Donald McNeil grew up wrestling in Massachusetts and won a state championship his sophomore year. But that summer, tragedy struck.

While wrestling in an off-season tournament, he got thrown on his head and fractured two vertebrae. He couldn't move or feel his body. He spent over a month in the hospital and a year rehabilitating. But despite the traumatic experience, he returned to wrestling.

And he returned with a vengeance. He wound up wrestling Division I in college for Ryder University and still competes at the senior level.

Read more about Donald here: https://www.rolliepeterkin.com/donald-mcneil

Instagram: @realdeal__mcneil

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As always feel free to reach out to me on social media!

Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/rolliepeterkin

Twitter - https://www.twitter.com/rolliepeterkin

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My book - The Cage: Escaping the American Dream http://amzn.to/1Y0xbzD

Bogdana Voicu is in charge of North American operations for G Adventures, a large international tour company. In this episode we talk about the things she loves about the US. She explains how growing up in Romania gives her a different perspective. And how corona virus will impact the tourism industry going forward. 

In this episode I chat with my frien Illimani about our travels around the world and experiencing different cultures. We talk about learning about the history and traditions of a place and how that leads to deeper travel and understanding. 

David Azzolina has taught folklore at the University of Pennsylvania since the mid 90s. He thinks about things a little differently than most and has a lot of novel thoughts on folklore.

Read more about David here: https://www.rolliepeterkin.com/david-azzolina

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As always feel free to reach out to me on social media!

Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/rolliepeterkin

Twitter - https://www.twitter.com/rolliepeterkin

Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/rollie.peterkin

Website - https://www.rolliepeterkin.com

My book - The Cage: Escaping the American Dream http://amzn.to/1Y0xbzD

In this episode I talk with Kyle Cerminara, about his career in wrestling. Being an All-American at the University of Buffalo. Why wrestlers do so well in MMA. Why falling short of his goals made him a better coach. Training for an Olympic dream. And the mental side of wrestling. Kyle always has a different and interesting perspective that I was so happy to talk with him! 

Wrestling Fanatics Video: https://fanaticwrestling.com/collections/new/products/single-leg-seat-belt-series-and-mat-returns-by-kyle-ceminara

Instagram: kycerm

Madison Tuff is an amazing human being. Born and raised in Canada, but truly a citizen of the world. In my travels I have met many adventrous travelers, but she takes it to another level. In this episode, she explains how she became interested in traveling to off the beaten path places and fell in love with experiencing new cultures. She visited North Korea, Afghanistan, Sudan, and many other places that most of us would never dream of. And she recently returned from volunteering on the front lines of Bakhmut, Ukraine with an organization that was helping evacuate citizens from the brutal warzone that is the current situation. It was so inspirational speaking with Madison and this is one you don't wanna miss! 

Bruce Poon Tip is an international leader in the travel industry. He founded G Adventures, which has operations in 100 countries and runs tours on every continent. He is a leader in social entrepreneurship and the founder of the Planeterra Foundation. Bruce has been invited to speak at places such as Harvard, Oxford, the World Bank, UNESCO, and the UN. Bruce talks about the state of the travel industry in a post-corona world. He talks about his motivations for founding G Adventures. And the impact that the Dalai Lama has had on his business. 

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IG/Twitter: @rolliepeterkin

Kendall Cross won an Olympic gold medal in wrestling in 1996 in Atlanta, Georgia. He was on the Olympic team in 1992 in Barcelona. He was an NCAA champion for Oklahoma State. And he's a member of the National Wrestling Hall of Fame. He is currently the coach of the New York City Regional Training Center. He's done just about everything there is to do in the sport of wrestling.

Kendall impacted my life in a way few others ever had. I first met Kendall when I was around 10 years old and he became my coach. Over the years he taught me so many things and completely changed my style of wrestling in ways that I carried with me through my whole career. And he me many lessons off the mat as well.

In this episode of the podcast, I peeled back some of the layers to some of the stories he's told me over the years and really dig into the strategies that he used to become the best in the world, an Olympic champion.

Kendall talks about his roots in the sport of wrestling, following his older brother's footsteps when he started wrestling in Montana. And then moving to Mustang, Oklahoma and being immersed in the next level of wrestling. At the time he was inspired by wrestling legend Dave Schultz.

At Oklahoma State, he witnessed his teammates Kenny Monday and John Smith become Olympic champions right before his eyes and realized that winning the Olympics was a dream he could pursue.

In this episode we break down the strategies and mentalities that he honed in order to reach that next level. And to get through guys like Brad Penrith in 1992 and Terry Brands in 1996.

It was so great to get into some of the deeper stories that Kendall has to share from his many years in the sport of wrestling and learn more about a wrestling mentor of mine.

Read more here: www.rolliepeterkin.com/kendall-cross-olympic-gold-medalist-wrestling

Gregor "The Gift" Gillespie was a four time Division I All-American wrestler and a national champion. He currently fights in the UFC and has a professional record of 13-1. In this episode we discuss Gregor's obsessive personality and how it led him down the destructive path of drugs and alcohol. It's crazy that he was able to be such a top wrestler while abusing his body. But he has been clean for over ten years now and is a dominant UFC fighter.

Instagram: http://www.instagram.com/gregorthegift

Read more about Gregor here: https://rolliepeterkin.com/gregor-gillespie-addiction-wrestling-mma/

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As always please feel free to reach out to me on social media!

Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/rolliepeterkin

Twitter - http://www.twitter.com/rolliepeterkin

Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/rollie.peterkin

Website - http://www.rolliepeterkin.com

My book - The Cage: Escaping the American Dream http://amzn.to/1Y0xbzD

Jennifer Tye had a steady job as a marketing executive, but that wasn't what she wanted out of life. So one day she decided to leave it all behind and go to culinary school. She next worked for two years at Michel Richard Citronelle, one of the best restaurants in the country. And she eventually started her own catering business. Jennifer talks about the scrappy early days as she grew her business and how it compares to the current environment after going through months of quarantine. Jennifer's story is an inspiration to anyone looking to change careers and follow a dream.

Her catering company: http://dctaste.com/

Instagram: http://www.instagram.com/dctaste

Read more about Jennifer here: https://www.rolliepeterkin.com/jennifer-tye-chef

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As always please feel free to reach out to me on social media!

Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/rolliepeterkin

Twitter - https://www.twitter.com/rolliepeterkin

Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/rollie.peterkin

Website - http://www.rolliepeterkin.com

My book - The Cage: Escaping the American Dream http://amzn.to/1Y0xbzD

Brace for some tears in this episode. Matthew Bocchi was just nine years old when he lost his father in the attacks on 9/11.

He's just come out with a new book titled Sway, which recounts his personal journey in coping with the trauma surrounding his father's death. As a teenager searching for answers, an older man took advantage of his vulnerability and sexually assaulted him. Matthew descended into the depths of a drug addiction to numb the pain.

Matt and I discuss trauma and healing and how he is able to maintain a positive outlook on life despite so many bad things happening.

Sway: https://amzn.to/3oaGp0f

Read more about Matthew here: https://www.rolliepeterkin.com/matthew-bocchi-sway

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My book - The Cage: Escaping the American Dream http://amzn.to/1Y0xbzD

Jason Bryant is one of the most well-known wrestling journalists out there who knows everything there is to know about the sport. He tells his story of how he got into broadcasting at a young age when he was obsessed with sports. And how he grew to love the sport of wrestling. He is the host of the Short Time Wrestling Podcast and founder of Mat Talk Online. 

You can check him out at: https://www.mattalkonline.com/

Twitter: @mattalkonline and @jasonmbryant

As always feel free to reach out to me on social media!

Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/rolliepeterkin

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Website - https://www.rolliepeterkin.com

My book - The Cage: Escaping the American Dream http://amzn.to/1Y0xbzD

Olly Richards is a polyglot who speaks eight languages. He runs a site called I Will Teach You a Language which offers a series of books and courses to aspiring language learners. He is also the host of the I Will Teach You A Language Podcast.

Olly believes in the power to stories in learning languages and has dedicated his life to teaching people languages through stories. He has published a series of books with basic stories geared to the language learner's level, covering every language from Turkish to Russian to Chinese.

Website: https://www.iwillteachyoualanguage.com/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/iwillteachyoualanguage

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/iwillteachyoualanguage

More about Olly here: https://www.rolliepeterkin.com/olly-richards-polyglot

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As always feel free to reach out to me on social media!

Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/rolliepeterkin

Twitter - https://www.twitter.com/rolliepeterkin

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Website - https://www.rolliepeterkin.com

My book - The Cage: Escaping the American Dream http://amzn.to/1Y0xbzD

Mark Neilan never ran cross country in high school. And he wasn't very into sports. But now he runs 100-mile races regularly. Find out how he made the transition to becoming an endurance athlete, how he trains, and the mentality he uses to survive such grueling tests of willpower. Mark is the owner of Excel Fitness Center.

IG: @excelfitnesscenter @mark_neilan

Find me here:

Website - https://www.rolliepeterkin.com/podcast

Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/rolliepeterkin

Twitter - https://www.twitter.com/rolliepeterkin

Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/rollie.peterkin

My book - The Cage: Escaping the American Dream http://amzn.to/1Y0xbzD

Dr. Coyte Cooper is a former university professor at UNC, holds a PhD, was a Division I All-American wrestler, speaker, and has authored three books. It seems like he's done it all. But Coyte and his family have recently embarked on a new adventure: they sold all of their possessions and bought an RV. Together with his wife and two children, they have been traveling around the country for the last 5 months, experiencing a nomadic lifestyle. And they have no plans to return to their stationary life. It was a fascinating discussion we had!

Learn more about Coyte : https://coytecooper.com/

Instagram: @coytecooper / @livingoutsidethelimits

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Website - https://www.rolliepeterkin.com/podcast

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My book - The Cage: Escaping the American Dream http://amzn.to/1Y0xbzD

Travis Bays is the founder of Bodhi Surf and Yoga--a retreat in Costa Rica. Travis combined his lifelong passion for surfing with his ideas tourism, sustainability, and local experiences. His camp, he is able to educate people about a variety of environmental issues. And the guest get to surf the beautiful beaches of Costa Rica.

Travis didn't always run a surf camp though. After graduation from college, he worked in banking, but eventually decided he was looking for more, and so he joined the Peace Corps. Lucky for Travis, he was sent to Costa Rica.

Website: https://www.bodhisurfyoga.com/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bodhisurfyoga

Read more about Travis here: https://www.rolliepeterkin.com/travis-bays
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As always feel free to reach out to me on social media!

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My book - The Cage: Escaping the American Dream http://amzn.to/1Y0xbzD

Caitlin Lanigan didn't even own a passport growing up in suburban Buffalo, New York. But deciding to do a semester abroad in Australia sent her down a Divergent Path that took her all around the world. After college, Caitlin volunteered for the Peace Corps in Botswana. She lived there and worked in a medical clinic for two years.

Caitlin has some amazing stories to tell from her experience in Botswana. She was profoundly impacted by the kindness of the people there every day. And experiences like having to wash her clothes by hand or being without tap water for weeks at a time made her grateful for the little things we take for granted. She hitch hiked around the country and met many generous and friendly Bostwanan people. She even learned to speak Setswana, the national language of Bostwana.

Botswana has the highest concentration of elephants in the world and is home to such natural beauty. Caitlin would see elephants almost every day on her way to work! They would even terrorize the village at times and dig up sewer drains in search of water. Crazy stuff!

Read more about Caitlin here: https://rolliepeterkin.com/caitlin-lanigan-volunteering-peace-corps-botswana/

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My book - The Cage: Escaping the American Dream http://amzn.to/1Y0xbzD

In this episode I speak with my friend Irina who is a tour guide in Moldova. We met a few years ago and have become good friends since then. We talk about what to do and see in Moldova. Since this is called the Divergent Path podcast, I feel it's fitting to talk about a place not many people visit but they should! 

Joe Williamson was one of the first employees of FloWrestling, a company which would change the whole wrestling community forever. In this episode, Joe recounts his history with Flo and its founder, Martin Floreani. He tells about skipping being best man at his best friend's wedding to join the Flo team and traveling around the country and the world, covering wrestling. What an amazing story!

My friend Inna joins us on this episode and shares her experience traveling around the world to crazy places like North Korea, Iran, and Chechnya. We talk about he war in Inna's home country of Ukraine and what it means to be Ukrainian. She is someone who inspires me 

If you've followed this podcast you might remember Marina from the VERY FIRST EPISODE. She brought it then and she brings it again on this episode. Marina is someone who has been one of my biggest trave inspirations over the last few years. She's been a sounding board for ideas and always gives great advice. She has now been to 115 countries, which is completely crazy! And she's been working on yachts for the past year and has some cool insights to share. Hope you enjoy this episode!

Amber Young has lived on four different continents. She grew up in California to a family that loved to travel. And so after finished college at UC Santa Cruz, she decided to move to New Zealand. She spend the year volunteering on farms and hitchhiking around the country. Then she moved to Australia, where she worked for the next year, including a job picking strawberries. After that, she wanted a big change so she moved to Japan to teach English with the JET program. She lived in a small village in Japan for the next two years. And then she lived in Spain for three years teaching English.

While some may be worried about her hitchhiking and CouchSurfing experiences, Amber says, "In the eight years I lived abroad I never got robbed. I never had anything bad happen to me."

Amber's website: https://whereisamber.com/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ambertraveling

Read more about Amber here: https://rolliepeterkin.com/amber-young-on-couchsurfing-hitchhiking-and-living-abroad/

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My book - The Cage: Escaping the American Dream http://amzn.to/1Y0xbzD

Ted Alexander is the founder of Sierra Andina, a very popular and large microbrew in Peru. He also started a guiding company called Skyline Adventures, which leads climbing expeditions in the Andes Mountains out of Huaraz, Peru. Ted has lived in Peru for 20 years and has lived so many adventures.

More than all of those things, Ted is an extremely thoughtful guy. He is a deep thinker and a compassionate purpose. When he first launched Sierra Andina, he wanted to create a product that Peru could be proud of. He works tirelessly to give back to his local community. He organizes activities in his local community, where he regularly organizes events and even helped found a school.

In this episodes he talks about the challenges of living in Peru and how he learned to shift his mindset and learned to love the little things. He is so insightful and it was an absolute pleasure speaking with him.

Brewery: https://www.sierraandina.com/

Skyline: https://skyline-adventures.com/

To read more about Ted, check out this blog post: https://www.rolliepeterkin.com/ted-alexander-sierra-andina-brewery

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As always please feel free to reach out to me on social media!

Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/rolliepeterkin

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Website - http://www.rolliepeterkin.com

My book - The Cage: Escaping the American Dream http://amzn.to/1Y0xbzD

Quint Clarke had a successful career as a lawyer. And he admits that he hadn't led a very adventurous life before he decided to book a trip to climb Mount Kilimanjaro. And his life was never the same. So profound was Quint's experience that he came home, quit his job, and spent the next year traveling the world. Since then, Quint has been teaching history at Blair Academy for the past twenty years. But the story doesn't end there.

Inspired by his experiences abroad, he always encouraged students to travel and experience the world. And he has led countless student trips abroad in search of a greater understanding of the world. And on one trip to Africa, he was inspired to make a difference. So he began raising money to build a school there. Today, they have two schools where serve 1,000 Kenyan students.

Read more here: http://www.blairinkenya.com/

Quint's journey is fascinating and I was so happy to have him share it with me on this episode of The Divergent Path!

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Website - https://www.rolliepeterkin.com/podcast

Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/rolliepeterkin

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My book - The Cage: Escaping the American Dream http://amzn.to/1Y0xbzD

This podcast episode is a little different from the other ones because I don't have a guest. I am speaking about a topic that I am very passionate about: making friends while traveling.

A few years ago, I wrote a book called How to Make Friends While Traveling, but I never published it even though I wrote over 100 pages! At the time, I was living abroad and traveling and I began to treat meeting people like a science. I would go out every day and talk to strangers on the street and attend random events.

So this is the podcast version of that book. I really enjoy talking about this subject and even though I talked for over an hour, I could have easily talked for another two hours if I wanted to.

I talk about such things as: Staying in hostel. How to travel solo. How to overcome social anxiety. Tips to travel as an introvert. How to use meetups to interact with more people. The difference between meeting locals and meeting other travelers. How to meet people at language exchanges. Using CouchSufing to meet new people. Why it's easier to meet people when traveling. How to talk to strangers. How to overcome limiting beliefs and become more social.

Carlos Venzano has spent four years traveling the world by bicycle. He's been to 90 countries. In total he's biked over 40,000 kilometres, greater than the circumference of the earth. But he wasn't always a super adventurer. Before 2016 he led a "super average life" with a steady job and an apartment in Santiago, Chile. He decided to leave it all behind to travel the world and experience different cultures.

He started riding from his home in Chile and rode his bicycle all the way to Canada! In this episode he shares the obstacles he encountered along the way and what it was like getting used to the routine.

But he didn't stop there. Next, he rode from Iceland, crossing the whole European continent to Turkey. But that wasn't enough either. So he crossed Africa from Mombasa, Kenya to Namibia. Then deciding to cross Europe again, he started again in Portugal and crossed Europe and into Asia. He was crossing Kazakhstan when he encountered some problems.

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/carlos.jeldres/

Website: https://www.cleteando.com

Read more about Carlos here: https://rolliepeterkin.com/carlos-venzano-around-the-world-by-bike/

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As always please feel free to reach out to me on social media!

Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/rolliepeterkin

Twitter - https://www.twitter.com/rolliepeterkin

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Website - http://www.rolliepeterkin.com

My book - The Cage: Escaping the American Dream http://amzn.to/1Y0xbzD

Mark Metry became an entrepreneur as a teenager and was making six figures. But he suffered from extreme social anxiety. Mark took control of his life and set out making himself better. In the process he created the Humans 2.0 podcast, which is a global top 100 podcast. He wrote the book Screw Being Shy, which details his struggle with social anxiety and how to overcome it. In this episode, we discuss so many things from entrepreneurship to emotional awareness.

Mark’s book: https://amzn.to/38hKqIR

Website: https://www.markmetry.com/

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Website - http://www.rolliepeterkin.com/contact

My book - The Cage: Escaping the American Dream

Chris Gillette is an expert at handling, conserving, and caring for alligators. He helps rescue "nuisance gators" from people's properties in Florida and brings them to a rescue center. He is extremely passionate about animal welfare and conservation.

Chris is famous for the death-defying photos and videos he posts where he swims in the water with the gators and plays with them as any of us would a kitten. It's truly mind blowing.

Check out his YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCpzli-m3OlZ0jBmsoWPKYxQ

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/gatorboys_chris

Twitter: https://twitter.com/gatorboys_chris

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/GilletteChris

Everglades Outpost: https://www.evergladesoutpost.org/

Everglades Holiday Park: https://www.evergladesholidaypark.com/

Read more about Chris here: https://www.rolliepeterkin.com/chris-gillette-gator

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As always feel free to reach out to me on social media!

Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/rolliepeterkin

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Website - https://www.rolliepeterkin.com

My book - The Cage: Escaping the American Dream http://amzn.to/1Y0xbzD

Chris Stefanou is a shark fisherman who is well-known for catching massive sharks from the beach in Long Island. He talks about the techniques he uses and how he got into it. Chris is passionate about the conservation of these animals and works with NOAA to tag the sharks and release them so that they can be studied and tracked.

Instagram: @lisharkman

Read more about Chris here: https://www.rolliepeterkin.com/chris-stefanou-sharkman

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As always feel free to reach out to me on social media!

Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/rolliepeterkin

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Website - https://www.rolliepeterkin.com

My book - The Cage: Escaping the American Dream http://amzn.to/1Y0xbzD

In this episode, I talk about my love of hitchhiking. I tell you about why I love it so much and the lessons it can teach you. And I go into some safety measures you can take. And then I go into the mechanics of it.

Read more here: https://www.rolliepeterkin.com/hitchhiking

As always feel free to reach out to me on social media!

Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/rolliepeterkin

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Website - https://www.rolliepeterkin.com

My book - The Cage: Escaping the American Dream http://amzn.to/1Y0xbzD

Justin Jenny is a photographer who specializes in exploring abandoned buildings and quarries. He has some crazy stories about sneaking into rundown asylums at night and run-ins with police and metal scrappers. Check him out on Instagram @justinjenny

McDojoLife (@mcdojolife) is one of my all time favorite accounts on all of Instagram. The page exposes fake and fraudulent martial artists who teach people tactics such as no-touch knockouts. No only does Rob expose fakes, but he exposes conmen who rip off their students and convicted sex offenders who work with children in martial arts. He is basically a real life super hero!

In this podcast episode, Rob talks about how he first got involved in martial arts before the days of McDojoLife. As a child he had a cleft palate and required many surgeries and his mother wouldn't let him participate in sports despite his pleading. But that all changed after some bullies at school beat the crap out of him one day and a friend encouraged him to try martial arts. He started with karate, but eventually moved on to sample a wide variety of martial arts like boxing, kickboxing, taekwondo, and Brazilian jiu jitsu.

During the podcast episode with Rob, we discuss many theories as to why people follow these fake martial arts masters. We talk about how the rise of MMA and the UFC have shed some light on what works and what doesn't.

Rob and McDojoLife are currently in the process of putting together a documentary about fake martial arts and has launched a crowdfunding campaign and hopes to start shooting in August. If you go to the Instagram page @mcdojolifedoc and donate there, you get access to exclusive content as well.

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Read more here: https://rolliepeterkin.com/podcast-mcdojolife-rob-exposing-fake-martial-arts/

If you enjoyed this episode, you might want to check out my book, The Cage: Escaping the American Dream, where I detail my journey from Wall Street bond trader to professional MMA fighter.

Enrique "El Fuerte" Barzola es un pleador de MMA Peruano que tiene un record de 16-5-2. Barzola fue campeon del The Ultimate Fighter: Latin America 2 y ganó un contrato con el UFC. Despues, entrenó en los EEUU en Florida con American Top Team, y luego en California con AKA. Ha tenido muchas experiencas en el deporte y nos comparte en este episodio.

Lee mas aqui: https://www.rolliepeterkin.com/enrique-barzola

Instagram: @fuertebarzola

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My book - The Cage: Escaping the American Dream http://amzn.to/1Y0xbzD