Team from adventure travel insurance firm includes VP, paramedic and race’s medical director
San Mateo, CA - Ripcord travel insurance will be racing in 4 Deserts’ 250km self-supported Sahara Race Namibia to raise money for Next Generation Conservation Trust Namibia in order to help save endangered rhinos and elephants. Funded and driven by the Namibian business community, the not-for-profit trust has as its sole aim to curb poaching by putting large swatches of Namibia under constant aerial surveillance.
Competitors will carry all of their own equipment throughout the race, battling temperatures ranging from 95 degrees Fahrenheit during the day to below freezing at night. TIME magazine has included the event in their Top 10 Endurance Competitions around the world.
Ripcord, designed for adventurers and adventure travel enthusiasts, is powered by Redpoint Resolutions to offer consumers the same elite evacuation, rescue and travel insurance solutions available to corporations and other organizations.
The Ripcord racing team will include Redpoint Vice President, Tom Bochnowski and Operations paramedic Andrea Waters. Waters has a long resume of adventure-travel-related qualifications, including ropes rescue and swift-water rescue certifications. She is a two-time Iron Man finisher, and has completed numerous marathons and long-distance trail runs, most notably the 50-mile North Face Endurance Challenge.
“I’ve always been an endurance athlete, but I’ve never undertaken something like this,” Waters said about the seven-day race. “I’m humbled to be a part of it and am glad to do my little part in giving back to the communities where our clients travel and live.”
Redpoint and Stanford Medicine physician Avi Patil will serve onsite as the race’s medical director. Dr. Patil is Board Certified in Emergency Medicine, and has worked in developing countries in education, patient care, and health-care systems development.
Dr. Patil also has broad experience in wilderness medicine, providing planning and support for various adventure races in remote settings around the globe. He is the Senior Medical Advisor for Outward Bound, California, has been guiding whitewater rafting trips for 20 years all over the Western US, is an avid snowboarder, surfer, and diver. Dr. Avil Patil and Redpoint Vice President, Tom Bochnowski, summited Mt. Kilimanjaro last year to benefit Tusker Trail’s Climb for Valor, which raises money for the families of fallen American soldiers.
“When we started Redpoint and launched our Ripcord travel insurance program for individuals, we incorporated our values into the business,” Bochnowski said. “Running 250km in the Namib Desert allows us to travel with our Ripcord clients while supporting conservation efforts,” the former Ranger qualified US Army officer added.
“Conservation is top of mind for our Ripcord travel insurance clients and one of Redpoint’s core values. I’m thrilled that by running 250km we’re contributing to Next Generation Conservation Trust’s efforts to reduce poaching of endangered rhinos and elephants in Namibia.”