Stone Gossard to help save sea turtles! - Great Turtle Race! (old)

Vedder_Girl77 · April 2009

Pearl Jam, R.E.M., and U.S. Olympic Swimming Champs Dive In To Save Sea Turtles

Conservation International and National Geographic Combine Science, Celebrity Talent and Action Packed Fun to Help Protect Endangered Leatherbacks in Great Turtle Race

ARLINGTON, Va., April 13 /PRNewswire/ -- Conservation International (CI) and National Geographic will hold a telephone news conference April 15 to kick off the "Great Turtle Race," with 11 leatherback sea turtles competing in an epic journey from feeding areas in chilly waters off Canada's Atlantic coast to breeding areas in warm tropical waters throughout the Caribbean.

Participants in the call include Pearl Jam's Stone Gossard, NBC announcer Rowdy Gaines, Olympic champions Jason Lezak and Eric Shanteau, as well as scientists and experts from Conservation International, the Canadian Sea Turtle Network and National Geographic.

The call-in # is 1-800-894-5910 -- the pass code is "Turtle" and the program title is "The Great Turtle Race." To RSVP, please email <a href="mailto:lbowen@conservation.org">lbowen@conservation.org</a>.

Race fans can see the action online at http://www.GreatTurtleRace.org, created in partnership with NationalGeographic.com, which puts the spotlight on one of today's most iconic animal species and what can be done to protect them and their ocean home.

Who: Pearl Jam's Stone Gossard, NBC Announcer Rowdy Gaines, Olympic
champions Jason Lezak and Eric Shanteau,, Conservation
International Scientists and Representatives from National
Geographic

What: Press Call for The Great Turtle Race: An exciting event that
allows people worldwide to witness these magnificent creatures
journey from their feeding grounds off Canada's Atlantic coast to
nest on Caribbean beaches, and to learn about the challenges and
threats they face along the way.

When: April 15, 1:00 pm EDT USA

Where: http://www.GreatTurtleRace.org, hosted by National Geographic.

Why: To raise awareness and support for protection of leatherback sea
turtles and the worlds oceans.

How: A suspenseful race combining science and action-packed fun via
the interactive website, http://www.GreatTurtleRace.org. The site will
feature a map following the journey of each turtle, with daily
updates by guest bloggers including champions of surfing and
swimming, marine scientists and conservationists.

SOURCE Conservation International

jimbojones1138 · April 2009

omg...mental image of stone in water helping out sea turtles, similar to south park's take on kanye west in last week's episode...

wilfmiss · April 2009

I've missed Mr. Leatherback.

Travelar · April 2009

I donated to CI the last time that Stone was saving the turtles, and let me tell you, for a conservation company, I get TONS of printed material and letters from CI asking for more money. Do we really need to continue chopping down trees to send letters, to ask people to adopt acres of rainforest? It seems counter... intuitive to me.

TiaMija · April 2009

Sounds fun!

TrAvELAr wrote:

I donated to CI the last time that Stone was saving the turtles, and let me tell you, for a conservation company, I get TONS of printed material and letters from CI asking for more money. Do we really need to continue chopping down trees to send letters, to ask people to adopt acres of rainforest? It seems counter... intuitive to me.

Ask to opt out of the mailings. They should have a number in the small print on the back of something you get. Saves trees and money!

mattcoz · April 2009

Makin' the rounds ten miles a day,
Once a month they'd spot him, here's what they'd say...
"Here he comes, he's a turtle of the sea.
He's leatherback. Smile on his face, a shell on his back.
He's leatherback."

decides2dream · April 2009

awesome!
very cool mr. gossard.

this:

A suspenseful race

made me laugh. the idea of 'suspenseful' and 'turtles'....just doesn't quite.....jive. :P
good stuff!

pdalowsky · April 2009

Good on him for doing this.....

Personally wish more would be done to conserve the ailing species of the world.

Everyone is so wrapped up in greed and profit to forget about the things that are good in the world.

Stone gets my upmost respect for putting his time into this

Kat · April 2009

Go Backspacer!!!! swimswimswimswimswim, you can do it, swim swim

http://www.conservation.org/great_turtl ... pacer.aspx

pdalowsky · April 2009

'in time for their new album in the fall' i like this a lot even if it is made up!!!!

Kat · April 2009

http://blogs.reuters.com/environment/

"Olympic swimmer Eric Shanteau is coaching female competitor Backspacer, sponsored by alternative rock group Pearl Jam. He had nothing but praise for her training regimen.

“She’s bulked up on jellyfish to a stout 825 pounds, but that being said she is in her peak aerobic shape,” Shanteau said on a telephone conference call promoting the race. “You guys try swimming 4,000 miles down the coast and doing it all lugging around a 1000-pound shell!”

To show what good condition Backspacer is in, Shanteau said, “She’s almost able to do her first sit-up, which for a turtle I think is pretty good … I’ve got faith in our girl. She’s put in the work, she’s put in the training, she’s going to come out on top.”

The competitors should complete the 4,000 mile journey in about 14 days, though the general migrating period lasts four to six months. They’ll be tracked as they swim with satellite transmitters attached to their leathery backs, which will let scientists and fans know not just where they are but how cold the water is and how deep the turtles are diving."

:arrow: see above link for more.

LukinFan · April 2009

pdalowsky wrote:

'in time for their new album in the fall' i like this a lot even if it is made up!!!!

wolfamongwolves · April 2009

Backspacer, hm?

Possible album or song title, y'think?

Kat · April 2009

The race has begun and the map is up now.

http://www.nationalgeographic.com/turtlerace-map/

Backspacer is off to a turtle's start.

Maybe the other turtles will stop for lunch.

http://kidsblogs.nationalgeographic.com ... pacer.html

http://deepseanews.com/2009/04/the-grea ... nt-page-1/

CJMST3K · April 2009

My mom is one of the volunteer turtle people down in Florida... she is some certificate-holder from her town that she runs the volunteer program. I have to tell her about this. She's up at like 5am every morning looking for turtles and their nests.

Kat · April 2009

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/earth/wildli ... -Race.html

Celebrities cheer on favourite runners in Great Turtle Race
Celebrity turtle-watchers will be cheering on their favoured leatherbacks as the Great Turtle Race kicks off on Thursday in Canada.

Last Updated: 10:23AM BST 16 Apr 2009

The race will kick off in waters off Halifax, Nova Scotia at 11am local time Photo: BRIAN HUTCHINSON
Over the course of two weeks, 11 of the sea creatures will be tracked as they swim 3,700 miles to the Caribbean as part of an event organised by Conservation International and NationalGeographic.com.

They will be backed by sponsors including bands Pearl Jam and R. E. M, and swimmers from the US Olympic team.

The race will kick off in waters off Halifax, Nova Scotia at 11am local time. The "finish line" will be the turtles' nesting grounds in the Caribbean, which they should reach by April 29.

Leatherbacks are the largest sea turtles and have lived on earth since the times of dinosaurs. But fishing techniques, pollution and egg poachers have seen their numbers decline in recent years.

The eleven selected to take part in the project launched today have been fitted with state-of-the-art satellite transmitters, allowing people to follow their progress and learn about their protection at http://www.GreatTurtleRace.org

Data gathered through the exercise will help experts learn more about their environment, while funds gathered through the race will go into conservation.

It is the second such race organised. Last year 11 female leatherbacks made their way from Costa Rica to the Galapagos Islands, tracked by conservationists.

Roderic Mast, vice president of Conservation International, said: "The magic of the Great Turtle Race is that it puts actual data from migrating sea turtles into a captivating, fun-filled format that draws attention to important biological research and inspires people to act on behalf of ocean conservation."

Pearl Jam guitarist Stone Gossard said: "The fate of sea turtles, the global marine environment and humanity itself are inextricably tied to the choices we make today. Pearl Jam is happy to be a part of the Great Turtle Race and we are encouraging all our fans and friends to join the fun, cheer on our turtle Backspacer and help save the seas."

Vedder_Girl77 · April 2009

Kat wrote:

Go Backspacer!!!! swimswimswimswimswim, you can do it, swim swim

http://www.conservation.org/great_turtl ... pacer.aspx

Backspacer is so cute! I love that he can play the guitar too!

Sea · April 2009

From: https://www.pearljam.com/news/great-tur ... backspacer

Pearl Jam Audience Favorite Great Turtle Race Challenge:

Want to do more than just cheer on your favorite turtle? Pearl Jam has a challenge for you. Help us support sea turtle conservation by donating to Conservation International in the name of your favorite competitor. All funds donated in support of the Great Turtle race will be matched by dollar by dollar by Pearl Jam and other race sponsors.

How to take the Pearl Jam Audience Favorite Challenge:
Vote for your favorite turtle when you make a donation – whatever you can afford – to support Conservation International’s sea turtle conservation efforts at https://secure2.convio.net/cintl/site/D ... tion=form1

The audience favorite winner will be tallied and announced at the end of the race at http://www.conservation.org/turtlerace

Ok · April 2009

This is awesome. Can't believe I'll be watching a turtle swim across the atlantic and be receiving daily email updates on the progress...who would have thunk it?

mattcoz · April 2009

They should have Twitter updates for this.

Kat · April 2009

Race Update: Day 2, April 17, 2009

All the turtles except for Lindblad have exited the Gulf and appear to be heading south. Cali is taking advantage of his head start and is near the front of the pack. Billy is heading for the east coast of the U.S., and Nueva Esperanza is starting to pick up speed. Seabiscuit spun out once he got out of the Gulf, but he has his bearings and is making progress. Wawa Bear is making a big turn and is the farthest east of any turtle in the race.

Backspacer is doing better...she's in the middle of the pack now.

Stone Gossard to help save sea turtles! - Great Turtle Race! (old)

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