Ann Beman doesn't just write about outdoor sports and adventure travel. She lives them.

Based in California's Southern Sierra Nevada, Beman is a freelance writer, an American Canoe Association-certified whitewater kayak instructor, avid sea kayaker, surf kayaker, and canoeist.

Occasionally, this paddle-happy scribe parks her kayak in the boat barn to juggle other far-ranging projects. Currently pursuing a Master of Fine Arts degree in creative writing from the Whidbey Island Writers Association, she also works on staff for Racing the Planet, putting on 150-mile, multiday expedition footraces through the Gobi, Atacama, and Sahara deserts. She's pondered the whos and whys of adventure racing in a number of outdoor publications and websites, while covering three Eco-Challenge races, in British Columbia, Australia, and Argentina.

No wonder Ms. Beman is also passionate about food and how it fuels us for our endeavors. As a freelance food editor, she edits and contributes to books published by a small cookbook press.

Ann pens recreation, travel, and education columns, as well as news stories and features for weekly community newspapers in the Kern River Valley. Both the California Newspaper Association and the Kern Press Club have recognized her articles with awards of excellence.

Before becoming a freelance writer, Ann worked in Los Angeles as a managing editor and copy editor for monthly magazines, both trade and commercial.
Her background reflects a unique mix of experiences requiring attention to detail, respect for deadlines, and outdoor fitness and leadership skills. She is capable of writing articles on numerous topics, as well as copy for catalogs, newsletters, cookbooks, and informational websites.

Ann clocks out from desk-jockeying for distance running, rock climbing, surfing, skiing, mountain biking, anything dog-related, cooking and eating, travel, and college basketball -- especially when her alma mater, Duke University, is on the court.

Her favorite food is pumpkin pie.

Ann Beman, freelance writer
PO Box 681, Kernville, CA 93238
(fax) 760/495-6086
Beemer@alumni.duke.edu