Conrad read Call of the Wild by Jack London at the age of six, the same year he joined his first swim team in Merced CA, the book reminded him of his dog Wolfgang and their daily adventures. He learned to surf when his mother gifted him a surfboard on his twelfth birthday. He used to ride The Bus along the Malibu coast by himself in search of waves at the age of fourteen. He swam in college for the division III National Champions at the time, Kenyon College. He joined the Lifeguard Service for the San Diego Coast District following a brief hiatus with Vail Associates Real Estate in Beaver Creek Colorado. He began to write short stories about his travels and fictional tales involving unique characters and place as ventured in various world oceans. He wrote RAINBOWNESIA under a giant Koa tree while on breaks from teaching History and English at a private academy in Kapolei. He coached swimming and taught an English course while at Colby-Sawyer College in New Hampshire. He has coached his own USA Swim Team, the University of Hawaii as an assistant and with the Mission Viejo Nadadores. Mr. Kohrs has coached 3 National Champions.Conrad firmly believes travel to be first the exploration of inner-conflict, transformation, personal change, and letting go of fear. Secondly, related to physical movement extrinsically connected to spontaneity of action, and third is the integration of these experiences.One of his favorite books about travel is Valleys of the Assassins by Freya Stark. This is not an oft referenced work for contemporary bookshelves, though given the choice her memoir resonates with individual commitment to place, cultural assimilation, and spontaneous adventure. Other favorites include Bones of the Master by George Crane, A Sense of the World by Jason Roberts, and Shantaram by Gregory Roberts.Conrad was born in Iowa City, Iowa but his family soon migrated to Pacific Palisades, CA. He currently resides on the island of Mauritius in the Indian Ocean where he is coaching a South African Olympic Swimming hopeful and engaged in writing and producing the documentary about their experiences training around the world. He attended Kenyon College, the University of Hawaii at Manoa, and New England College.A dear friend who owned a pearl diving business on the island of Pakin in the South Pacific. He was a diver himself in his youth and spoke only basic English, dialectic Polynesian, and Pohnpeian. Conrad used to listen to him for hours telling stories about the struggles and beauty of life on his island. They tell stories based on a tradition of oration so his stories were captivating to listen to. Kohrs used to share with him his own stories of life on their islands and realized over time he was constructing a translation of a way of life joined parallel with but never crossing their cultural disambiguation. He still enjoys telling these stories.With aloha pumehana,ConradRead more about this authorRead less about this author