The world wide Save the Poles polar extravaganza reached far and wide this past week. After wrapping up my hob knobbing with English (quasi) royalty, I flew back to Colorado for a night then on to Salt Lake City the next morning.

There are many reasons to visit salt lake city (3.2 beer aside); however, my biannual visits focus on one simple thing: Outdoor Retailer - a national gear expo featuring every imaginable piece of camping and outdoor equipment under the sun. It's very cool!

While its always nice to see all the new and exciting gear for the upcoming year, I am on the trail of funding. Save the Poles is slated to start in November and I am on a mad dash to raise the necessary funds - nothing like a deadline to keep me motivated.

It's a tough time to be raising money for a major expedition like this; however, mixed in with all the meetings and sponsorship proposals are some clear signs of success: Optic Nerve is on board for some cash and donating a percentage of profits from a bio-based sunglass. SOLE (insoles) signed up as a product sponsor. I also spent a lot of time at Terramar - base layer sponsor for the expedition.

Most of the meetings were positive. Some a little disheartening. Its hard to hear 'no' for an idea that you know in your heart is good and a cause that is important. Protecting our environment (reducing carbon emissions) not only helps preserve the quality of life on our planet but also serves as smart business and a way to save money in this difficult economy.

My PR superstar, Lora Lederman from Scream Agency was with for most of my meetings and helped promote the Save the Poles message despite all the road blocks.

Of course, special thanks go to sponsor Andy Wundrock at Wisconsin Pharmacal who put me up for a night. Nice not to have a couch for a change!

And then there is Martha from Action Wipes. I first met Martha through my friend, Bryan Hansel who was planning a major kayaking trip around the great lakes. I had been looking for a product to take on expeditions besides wet wipes (you know because of the whole two months with no shower). Enter Action Wipes. They are naturally antiseptic, anti-fungal and anti-inflammatory, so they're good for your skin. 70 days without a shower=no problem with these.

Do I sound like a commercial? Sorry, its hard not to get excited about gear. At times, my life literally depends on the type and quality of gear that I bring on an expedition so touting benefits just comes naturally.

In other STP news: Denali pictures are posted on my web site. Check them out at http://ericlarsenexplore.com/press/

Lastly, if you live in the San Francisco bay area, I'll be doing some REI presentations next week.

7 pm, Tuesday, July 28 at REI Berkeley
7 pm, Wednesday, July 29 at REI Corte Madera
7 pm, Thursday, July 30 at REI Saratoga

See you there? Hope so.

If your on twitter you can follow me at ELExplore. On Facebook it's Polar Explorer Eric Larsen. For media inquiries, please contact lora@screamagency.com. Special thanks to Tim Harincar at WebExpeditions.net