Dancing on the Edge of an Endangered Planet

by John Mattson

Dancing on the Edge of an Endangered planet portrays the life of a poor farmboy who has a very strong love for the environment and believes in following his dreams. These dreams have taken him on a lifelong journey of adventure and exploration that covers six continents and five extreme sports. The book includes twenty-six thrilling adventure stories that span the globe and include kayaking many of the world's deepest canyons, climbing some very famous mountains, freestyle ski jumping, downhill ski racing, and western rodeo. The stories have been written in a style that is very entertaining and humorous as well as inspirational. The author hopes that his book will inspire the readers to live their dreams, because this crazy planet is such an incredible place, and you might only live once. The book is documented with hundreds of brilliant photos, so get ready to take a great adventure from the comfort of your armchair.

260 pages, Paperback

Published November 26, 2008

About the author

John Mattson is the grandson of Scandinavian immigrants who homesteaded on the lonesome prairies of western North Dakota. His education started in a one room school house with one teacher for eight grades and a mobile library called a bookmobile that visited the school twice a month. An early love of books opened his eyes to the great world that surrounded him and he began to dream of future adventures.
The dreams started to become a reality when he dropped out of college to pursue a passion for alpine skiing. His first employment was in an underground gold mine in Deadwood, South Dakota, which became a bigger adventure than the skiing. A near brush with death in the mine persuaded him to move to Aspen, Colorado and practice the basic carpentry skills that his father had taught him. It was 1973, and the rich and famous were beginning to discover the quant mountain town. This provided many jobs for carpenters, and the somewhat seasonal labor provided plenty of time for adventures.
The small mountain town was a haven for sports enthusiasts of all types and John started climbing the local mountains, and kayaking the nearby rivers, while he continued to pursue his skiing passion. Freestyle (hotdog) skiing was in it’s early days of existence, and he trained diligently and competed in the local jumping contests. This involved completing single and double backflips off of a large ski jump. Aspen was also a Mecca for alpine ski racers and had a great local racing program, which included one of the best amateur downhill races in the world.
The passion for kayaking eventual overtook the other sports, and John spent more than twenty years paddling many of the great rivers of the world. He has kayaked extensively on four continents and has organized many expeditions including a 230 mile journey on a remote river in western Nepal, and a first descent of the Mekong River in Tibet.
He moved to Boulder County in 1982, and finally graduated from CU with a BS in Architectural Engineering at the age of 38. The combination of engineering and carpentry provided a good foundation for a design-build construction business. This business consisted of designing and building custom solar homes and the self-employment provided enough money and spare time to pursue his passions.
He has also been a serious amateur photographer for most of his life, and has recently self-published a thrilling book of short stories about his adventures. John, his wife Mary, and their fearless German Shepherd Miss Lily currently live on the mountain slopes above Nederland in a home that is heated by the sun.

Reviews

[Alan Apt · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is an excellent adventure book from an expert skier, kayaker and mountaineer that spans the globe. It's a very well illustrated great read. Join John Mattson on his amazing journey. I also appreciate his environmental perspective on our imperiled planet..

[Snickerdoodle · Rating 5 out of 5]

A book for the adventurer in all of us. Inspiring - even for those of us who are now mostly relegated to only reading about such things. John not only got out there and lived his life on his terms, but he wrote about it - actually wrote a book about it! It's a gift, John, and it's terrific!