Former speaker and author, Dr. Rick, demonstrates his 'proactive' technique, says "Surf's Up, Dude!"
Dateline So. Oregon (AFI)

Today, Dr. Rick Kirschner announced his retirement from his career as an author and professional presenter. Why? Because he is convinced that this is the moment to fulfill his lifetime dream of becoming a champion national championship landsurfer.

At 53, many say Rick is too old to take on such a challenge. The average age of a landsurf champ is 23 years old. But if you ask Rick, he'll tell you that a person is never too old to follow their heart. "I'm not that old, anyway. Ask my wife. She's always wanting to know when I'm going to grow up!" Rick declared defiantly in a recent interview. "Besides, age is all mind over matter. If you don't mind, it doesn't matter."
Rick has already had a number of careers, and, he says, not because he was fired alot either. But he has pursued his interests his entire life, and changing careers comes naturally to him. When it comes to fulfilling this dream, he doesn't seem willing to wait any longer. "When I was a boy, growing up in the mid-west heartland, I just wanted to be a champion land surfer. Other than girls, it was the only thing I could think about. I thought Alp Lorifo and Apollo Foi were the coolest guys alive. The earth was theirs to ride, and they had style." Rick copied their style, too, from madras shorts to seersucker suits to penny loafers with a penny stuck in. He fondly remembers the '59-'63 championship see-saw, as the two champs took turns winning every other year. "It was incredible! That's what made landsurfing America's other national pastime. And I wanted that kind of excitement in my life! I'd get up at the crack of dawn, lay on the floor in my pajamas, watched those NCLL (National Championship Landsurfing League) championships and imagined myself as the landsurf champion. Yes, I know it was all in my mind, but to me it felt very real. I could see the crowds gathering around the last hill, shouting my cool landsurfer dude name, Reno McRickster, ' as I slipped gracefully across the finish line. I just knew that was going to be my destiny when I grew up!"

But as he grew up, Rick let his dream slip away. Instead, in 1968, he chose to travel the world and find himself. And a few years later he did find himself, at college, in a pre-med program, with a baby on the way. He earned two degrees, began seeing patients, giving speeches, and writing, and soon he was too busy and responsible to landsurf. "It's been hard these past many years keeping away from the sport, the competition. But for the last year and a half, I've been working out, practicing in my free time and off hours. There's a great landsurf park near my house. And though the sport is still popular, it isn't what it used to be, that park is empty most of the time. I've been able to get my balance back, without the embarrassment and humilation of getting jeered by the younger folks with every fall or scrape. I've regained my rhythm, too. It is now or never. All this talk I've been doing about living a life by design, well, now it's my turn. I've got to fulfill my dream." Rick's eyes look off into the distance as he talks, as if he sees some fabled land where his "cool" name is the stuff of legend. His eyes glaze over and he becomes incredibly quiet.

I hated to interrupt his reverie, but I asked him if he would miss speaking. A sad look came over him, and in a low, graveley voice choked with held back emotion, he replied, "That's the hardest part about shifting careers again. I love being a speaker. I love the opportunity to help people organize their lives around their values, improve their communication, and embrace the opportunities of living through these times of intense change. And I love the people who have listened to me speak, or read something I wrote, or who think I'm someone else and say hello. They are, and always will be, my people. The little people. No matter how big I get, I'll never forget them. And I know that if they remember me, then they will trust me to do what I must, just as I trust them, at least the ones I remember!"

This writer has to admit. Rick is clearly toned. He's fit. And it's obvious that he's not going to quit. He's in for the duration, and filled with elation. Rick has already created a body of work that has crossed the lines from music, to speech, to tape, to the written word, and then to the internet. Now he has the national landsurf title in his sights. If his track record is any indication, if anyone can defy the odds and win that title in a young man's sport, it's Rick. We'll all be rooting for him!