Thirst for Fear Sends Him to the Water

Ben Wade used to be afraid of heights, but he faced his fear: He took up mountain, rock and glacier climbing.

When the 24-year-old trumpet player and former machinist first paddled a kayak in the Pacific Ocean six months ago, he got seasick. Today, he sets off on a 6,000-mile kayaking trip to South America.

On the way, Wade expects to conquer loneliness, encounters with sharks, monsoons and perhaps a hurricane or typhoon.

“I love fear,” said Wade, a Fullerton resident. “When I’m in fear, my body is physically and mentally at its peak. My mind is in total control, and I like that.”

There are other reasons for Wade’s trip, he said. He could break a world record if he reaches his destination: the northern tip of Ecuador.

Also, Wade said, the journey will “be a life-changing event.”

“I have an intense passion for life,” Wade said after a kayak training session Wednesday off the Balboa Peninsula in Newport Beach. “I like challenges, and I wanted to do something as extreme as possible, something almost insurmountable.”

Chuck Mobley, a close friend, said this week that he believes Wade “has the drive and determination to succeed.”

For his South American venture, Wade is packing dried foods, nutrition bars, a radio, a Bible, a desalinization pump to make seawater potable, a fishing pole, flashlights, a knife and a flare gun.

He is also taking a journal so that he can write about his experiences every day.

Wade, who plans to paddle 30 to 40 miles a day, will stop each night and sleep strapped to the top of his kayak.

He plans to take a break at Cabo San Lucas, Mexico, then travel toward the Panama Canal, staying five miles offshore and ending up at a town in coastal Ecuador.

“One of two things will happen,” Wade said as he prepared for his trip. “I’m either going to die or I’m going to come very close to death. I really don’t think I’m going to die.”

Wade said he expects the voyage to give him greater physical, spiritual and mental strength.

“It’s just going to make me a better person all around,” Wade said. “I’ll feel I’ll be able to conquer anything.”