ABOUT ADVENTURE SCHOOL

Adventure School is a resource for you, run by me, Chris Allen.

I want to teach you how to see the world through the eyes of wonder, awe, and amazement! Life is too short to not enjoy it.

I’m passionate about the healing, restorative, calming, empowering, and confidence-building results that come from spending quality time adventuring and exploring nature and I want to share it with you.

teaching adventure skills
Me teaching some friends navigating in the outdoors

Who is Chris Allen?

I’m a family guy who grew up in Utah on a healthy diet of outdoor adventure. I’ve done just about everything out there and have gained a whole wealth of skills and knowledge along the way. I’ve spent months of my life sleeping, hiking, wandering, biking, skiing, climbing, rappelling, boating, and just plain living life outdoors. I’ve seen a lot and I’m an avid learner. I have plenty more to learn but have enough experience to share something with everyone.

  • Certified Single Pitch Rock Climbing Instructor
  • Certified in wilderness first aid
  • Certified NICA level 3 mountain bike coach
  • Certified NLP life coach
  • Certified ASQ Six Sigma Black Belt
  • Certified Medical Laboratory Scientist

I have a few certifications, and these help lend credibility to my experience and skill, but I find the true desire to learn and teach people how to live lives of adventure more valuable than any certification.

I’m dedicated to teaching correct, helpful, and safe information regardless of the subject.

What Can Adventure School Offer Me?

I established Adventure School as a resource for people to learn adventure skills, but more importantly, to develop purposeful, meaningful lives that will last as larger-than-life legacies for those around them.

I do this work primarily through coaching. If you’re interested in learning more learn about it here:

This photo of my son captivated by the tadpoles in this pool of water we found on a canyoneering hike perfectly captures the spirit of adventure I believe every one of us can live with every day and the magic that we can create for our posterity through adventure.

Life is a beautiful adventure when we choose to make it one

The key to this is developing the mindset of a child – curious, carefree, eager, full of love, without judgement, shame or anxiety.

When we can live life like this, we’ll wake up every morning excited for what the world has to offer. We’ll be able to overcome life’s challenges without becoming overwhelmed, and we’ll bring so much more joy, energy, and love to all our relationships.

My story of healing through adventure

I’ve always been drawn to the wild, but a crucible event in my life has created a deep and poignant connection between me and all things wild and natural. This story started not long after I had graduated from college and moved my family across the country to start a new career at the prestigious Mayo Clinic. Life was great. I was getting in my groove out in Minnesota and finding good mountain bike trails and hiking trails through the hardwood forests. I loved how verdant the landscape was all the time. My adventures soon came to a halt as I fell ill with a mysterious illness that left me largely bedridden. I needed a cane and a wheelchair to get around and I really couldn’t do much more than walk from the bed to the couch. I just happened to be at the best place in the world for medical mysteries, but even the experts at Mayo couldn’t figure me out. Eighteen months passed and I was still sick. My life had largely been taken from me and I was mostly resigned to a life of doing little more than staring out the window and dreaming of all the adventures that I still had left to live. My identity and purpose had largely been taken from me and I came near the point of giving up on life altogether, but I never lost the hope and faith I had that I would somehow regain my health and ability to live life in a meaningful way. 

At long last, I miraculously found the root of my medical mystery and after getting on the right medication, I was up and walking around the block within a week and running a mile within a month!

It. Was. An. Absolute. Miracle! 

I had spent so many months dreaming of being better and being able to do little but lay in bed and stare at the wall and writhe in pain being unable to sleep more than a few hours at a time, that I cannot begin to describe the excitement and energy that I felt as my body began to heal. I had huge goals at this point. I was going to not only get my life back by recovering my health, but I was never going to take my health and energy for granted again. I was going to live every day with an attitude of adventure!

I set my sights on some lofty fitness goals and began putting my still weak and tired body through some serious work. I decided I was going to race in and complete the Xterra offroad triathlon National Championship course at Snowbasin Utah. I swam and biked and ran mile after mile working toward my goal and it felt so good!

After about a year and a half of training, I felt ready. I signed up and showed up on race morning ready to roll. That day was an absolute dream come true as I reflected back on the many months I spent dead in bed. 

Xterra Snowbasin 2011

I felt alive again!

This race marked not only a high point in my physical healing and recovery process but also a huge milestone in my mental and emotional recovery process. My life had been taken away, but I was able to fight, work, and struggle to get it back.

It’s been many years since that long dark chapter of my life, but ever since I recovered, I’ve vowed to never take my life for granted and to use every day to the fullest. The way I do that is to turn to nature because that’s where I feel the spirit of adventure and feel most alive fulfilled.

No feeling can match that of freely roaming the planet without anything holding you back. That’s the feeling I get when I’m flying down a trail on my bike or navigating my way to the summit of a mountain peak or into the depths of a dark cave. It’s during these moments when I’m exploring the natural world that I truly feel alive and it’s these moments that I feel most fulfilled. 

My mission with Adventure School is to share the passion and the connection I have with nature with everyone else and teach you how to life with a mindset of adventure no matter what you’re doing. You can break free from those feelings of boredom, stagnation, and stress. I want to give the incredible gift it is to be confident, excited, and joyful every day of your life.

My services

I offer to you many informational “how to” articles and online courses, but the main modality I use to help people learn to live life as a beautiful adventure is through professional coaching. As I’ve worked with people over the years, I’ve found a skillset and a passion for coaching others through life’s challenges. I find it incredibly rewarding to help people step outside their own thoughts and see a new perspective. That’s why I’ve started offering professional coaching services here through Adventure School specifically focused on helping people learn the 6 tenets of a well lived life.

Learn more about coaching services here.

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