Adventure Journal’s
Historical Badass Column
I had the pleasure to be the primary writer of this popular feature for several years. It was way too much fun to dive into the stories of these incredible lives, so many of whom were pushing back on the expectations of their times. (And yes, there were a few that moseyed right along with their privilege.)
Not too long ago, Adventure Journal, like so many of the badasses featured below, opted to buck the prevailing expectations and now publishes (almost) all in print. For that reason, the links below go to pdfs.
As a fan, I encourage you to subscribe to AJ. Worth it.
Photo credits are in the linked articles.
Cyclist Marshall "Major" Taylor Just Kept Winning
Eddie Aikau: "Eddie Would Go" is About So Much More Than Sending It
The First Gonzo Journalist, Nellie Bly
Ernie Blake Didn't Care That Taos was "Too" Steep
Tom Crean Quietly Kept Saving the Day on the Shackleton Adventure
Endurance Cyclist Billie Fleming
Fausto Coppi, Arguably the GOAT
Surfer Mark Foo
Polar Explorer Matthew Henson
Unclear if Canoeing is Badass? Meet Verlen Kruger
The Mysterious Disappearance of a Rock Star Scientist
Snowboarder Craig Kelly
The Delicious Mystery Around Annie Londonderry's Round-the-World Bike Trip
Reptile Whisperer and King of Khaki Steve Irwin
Steep Skiing Pioneer Patrick Vallençant
The Musher Who Beat Everyone, Susan Butcher
Big Wave Surfer Buzzy Trent
Pilot and Alaskan Conservationist Ginny Wood
Snowboarder Bruno Gouvy
No One Pushed "Extreme" Limits Like Jean-Marc Boivin
What the Hell Happened to the Man Who Mapped the Amazon?
Whitewater Rowing Revolutionary Nathaniel Galloway
Mountaineer Annie Smith Peck Had the Audacity to Wear Pants
Duke Kahanamoku, Ambassador of Aloha
Beryl Burton Was Britain's BEST Rider Bar None for 25 Years
John Hornby's Vie for Arctic Minimalism was Ambitious if Not Successful
A Pre-Shackleton Survival Epic, Courtesy of Benjamin Leigh Smith
Can We Blame Harriet Chalmers Adams for the Rise of the Influencers?
Lady Hester Stanhope and the Unspoken Line Between Gutsy and Foolish
Skier Toni Matt Did Not Know Speed Control
Sacagawea: Can We Just Say the Leader of the Lewis-Clark Expedition?
Explorer and Human Rights Activist Florence Baker
Emma "Grandma" Gatewood Kept it Simple and Just Did It
Franz Romer's Insane Sea Crossing
Solo Circumnavigator Captain Joshua Slocum