Benjamin Wade
A former Redding resident is one of the contestants on the next edition of the CBS hit show “Survivor,” which premieres Feb. 12. And by all accounts, it looks like Benjamin Wade is going to be a dynamic participant on the show, which takes place at Tocantins, in the Brazilian highlands.
Well, dynamic is one word for Wade. Host Jeff Probst describes him this way in a video on the show’s Web site: “Hands down one of the most fascinating guys that’s been on the show. He is so full of himself, and he’s full of himself in the way Richard Hatch (the show’s first winner) was…. I wouldn’t want my sister to date him, but I love him on ‘Survivor.’ “
You can check out Wade’s personality on his own preview video on the site.
There’s no doubt that Wade has quite a background. He was the Simpson University women’s soccer coach for a couple years in the late 1990s and is currently the women’s soccer coach at Southwest Baptist University in Bolivar, Mo.
An award-winning trumpet player, he’s also the artistic director for the Susanville Symphony and has written a number of classical works.
But WAIT, there’s more! Wade is also an ocean kayak adventurer and I remember that we did stories on him years ago when I was at the paper. According to the “Survivor” site, he set the world record for the longest solo kayak expedition on the ocean (6,132 miles) and has also been attacked by a tiger shark, stalked by a jaguar in the Amazon and has been bitten by a piranha on his right hand.
I vaguely remember meeting Wade when he lived here. My wife went kayaking with him once.
I’ve watched quite a few editions of “Survivor,” but lately I’ve been burned out on it. Considering this loose association with a contestant, however, I’m sure when Feb. 12 rolls around I’ll be tuned in.
