DJ Shadow & Ben Pridmore

There are very few “cool” videos out there relating to memory. Usually the show, explanation, demonstration, etc. of memory is a re-hashed version of some previous one. For once someone has done it right. In what is one of the coolest videos I’ve seen in a long time, check out Ben Pridmore’s thought process while memorizing a deck of cards….only soundtracked by DJ Shadow and acted it in one continuously shot nightmare-ish stage show:

Ooops

Had to remove my last post that had to do with a TV show I’m not supposed to mention yet, for a TV network I’m not supposed to mention yet, with a host I’m not supposed to mention yet. I’ll probably be allowed to mention it near the end of the year though, so I’ll re-post that blog-post then. Sorry! If any of you guys read it, try and forget it! In other news (hopefully I’m allowed to mention this), I’ll be filming with for the Martha Stewart show in January and then with ABC Nightline as well. Also I’ll be in a two-page spread in the March 2012 Nat Geo magazine. I’m also doing a shoot for Playgirl. Just kidding. Stay tuned!

Fusion IO!!

So it’s official. For the next year I will be working side-by-side with this awesome tech company out in Utah, Fusion IO. Ever heard of the legendary Steve Wozniak? Yeah, he’s their Chief Scientist (just to give you an idea of how awesome they are).

What do they do? They create memory software and hardware for computers that is the most efficient (and badass) out there on the market. They basically have the best memory in the world. At least for computers…

Why am I working with them? It only makes sense that the best memory for computers is paired up with the best memory for the brain (mine!). The methods they use to create such efficient memory devices is pretty similar to what I use as a mental athlete to memorize things. Our goals are one in the same, to make the best use of what is available out there in order to store data. They use the latest hardware and cutting edge software technology, while I use the most effective memory techniques. We live in a world that has information flying out at us at a mile a minute. To be able to properly memorize some of things is key to being an efficient and successful human being, but for the thousands of other things we need to store, we use computers. So why not use the best memory systems out there for that? We need to store those things fast and without any problems. That is what Fusion IO can do.

What will I be doing for/with them? Numerous things. Memory seminars and workshops, helping them promote their title of having the best memory, hyping the upcoming memory championships, etc. The sky is the limit.

How can I learn more about Fusion IO? Go to their website here: http://www.fusionio.com/ and follow them on twitter at @fusionio.

(Fusion IO is working with Nelson Dellis, not Climb For Memory….as of yet anyways. While Fusion IO is not affiliated with the charity Climb For Memory, Inc., they are 100% behind it)

One Month Before WMCs

I have one more month of rigorous training before the World Memory Championships (WMCs). There are still a few uncertainties about the competition (which is quite nerve-wracking). It was moved last minute to Guangzhou a few weeks ago and the people hosting the events are extremely hard to communicate with. Here’s a sample of my email back and forth with the guy who’s supposed to be in charge of booking hotels for all of the international competitors:

ME:
Hi there, I’m registered for the 2011 World Memory Championships in Guangzhou. I’ll be coming from the USA and need accommodations. Can you help?

THEM:
Hi: may i help you ?

ME:
Hi yes, I was told to contact you to book a hotel room in Guangzhou for the World Memory Championships. Can you help me with this?

THEM:
I will give you the imformation of the hotel to you .

ME:
Um okay…..When?

THEM:
NO REPLY

Looks promising….Anyways, there are a lot of rumors and concerns that the competition will be scrapped or changed again at the last minute. Oh yeah, and the $92,000 worth of prize money has suddenly vanished too. No prize money is going to be offered, which is totally fine, but not when we were promised a bunch of it before hand. There is even talk about the top memorizers not even going to the competition as a kind of boycott. If that ends up happening, I’m down to join in. We competitors just don’t feel very protected.

Whatevs. I’m still training bloody hard. It would be a waste if I didn’t go….all this time spent training for nothing? No way. I’m still on for China….I’ll probably get my plane ticket this or next week. But it’s still a bit scary to know that I might get to China and then get royally screwed.

As for other news….the Alzheimer’s walk in Coral Gables last Saturday went swimmingly well. Over 3000 people showed up and I think about $150,000 was raised. AWESOME! Thanks to everyone who remembered all the words I listed during my introductory talk!

There’s another Alzheimer’s walk this weekend in Hollywood, FL – so if you’re interested, come walk! I’ll be there! So will an ABC camera crew who’s filming a story about me and my yes, you guessed it…..memory.

Cheers!

First Double Summit Ever

Ever since I came within 280 feet of the summit, I haven’t been able to stop thinking about Mt. Everest. It literally haunts me and populates my dreams and each of my every waking moments. I wish I could go back next March already, but alas I can’t. BUT…..in 2013, I can.

In fact, here is my plan (I’ve told a few people about this already, but never publicly): In March 2013 I’ll be heading to Tibet to try Mt. Everest from the north side. Some say it’s harder, some say it’s easier. The fact remains that it’s still Everest, and is hard either way. I just want to try something different. It would probably be easier for me to try again from the south side (the side I know well), but I don’t like to do things easy And anyways, this is all for Alzheimer’s Disease awareness….and the more attention I can get for doing something extremely difficult, the more awareness the disease will get.

Anyways, so here is where it gets interesting. Not only will I attempt to summit coming from the north, but I will continue down to the South Summit (roughly where I stopped this year) and then come back over to the north side all in one go, essentially summiting twice in a matter of hours.

This will be insanely difficult, but I believe I can do it. What’s more (and if I’m wrong, someone please correct me), no one has ever tried this or successfully completed anything like this before. A few people have tried to do a double traverse (which is where after summiting they go all the way down to base camp on the other side, rest a few days, then come all the way back over to the original side via the summit), but haven’t succeeded. While I won’t be going down all the way to base camp, I will be trying to do this all in one summit push. So I will have summited Everest twice in a span of a few hours. Pretty darn cool. Plus, I will have completed the rest of what I couldn’t complete this year on Everest. Nice.

Stay tuned for more updates. This is gonna be awesome. I haven’t decided on the company I will be going yet with because very few teams set up expeditions on the north side (it’s kinda like the wild wild west over there) and preparations won’t start happening until next year, so we will see. I’d love to go back again with Peak Freaks but I don’t think Tim will run an expeditions on the north side because of how difficult it can be to organize logistics over there (maybe he will make an exception??)….otherwise I’m pretty sure I’ll be working with a guy named Ronnie Muhl who runs Adventures Global, an expedition company that has successfully run trips on the north side in the past.