Steering Committee

NWNA Steering Committee - The NWNA Steering Committee was born from our
Ask The Experts section of our First Nordic Walking Expo in Santa Monica California.
We were able to collect many of the top Nordic Walking Educators and have them
come and teach at this one event. After the expo we all met the next day to see what
we could do to help steer the direction of Nordic Walking in North America and to
foster a sense of cooperation among the different educational organizations and to
create a sense of unity for Nordic Walking. To that end we developed some simple
definitions for Nordic Walking and for a Nordic Walking Pole, though these definitions
were simple they were much more descriptive than what we had before (walking with
poles) The steering committee continues to meet several times per year with the
goal of furthering our original premise to help steer the direction of Nordic Walking in
North America and to foster a sense of cooperation among the different educational
organizations and to create a sense of unity for Nordic Walking.
Both Malin Svensson and Gary Johnson of NWNA serve on the Steering Committee
along with these industry experts.
Suzanne Nottingham
Nordic Walk Now founder Suzanne Nottingham is a fitness industry
pioneer, well known for original award winning program
development, with specific leadership expertise for outdoor sports and
fitness. Her extensive marketing and exceptional educational
leadership spans 25 years, hundreds of articles, television
appearances, books and conferences. Since 1990, Suzanne is a
spokesperson and continuing education provider for the American
Council on Exercise and is on the California Governor's Council on
Physical Fitness and Sports. In 2000, she received the fitness industry's highest
honor for teaching excellence as IDEA's Instructor of the Year, and is well-known as
one of the early pioneering marketers who was instrumental in the launch and
success of inline skating in the US. After completing a multi-year contract as LEKI's
Director of Nordic walking education, she remains focused on continuing to help lead
the launch of Nordic Walking in North America with innovative programs and
products. Her new book, Nordic Walking for Total Fitness, Human Kinetics, was
released in December 2009 and is sure to change the complexion of how people
utillize poles to train for health and fitness.
www.nordicwalknow.com
Tom Rutlin
Tom is considered by many to be "the father of Nordic walking". He
has been fitness walking with specially designed poles regularly for
more than a quarter century. His introduction of the first specially
designed, rubber- tipped fitness walking poles through his new
company Exerstrider Products in 1988 marked the beginning of his
role as a pioneering promoter of fitness walking with poles, as well
as his role as an innovator in both walking pole design and technique.
From the earliest days of Nordic walking Tom's has been among the leading voices
in effort s to unite the Nordic walking community in promotion of the critically needed
public health benefits of this great physical activity for people of all ages and abilities.
www.walkingpoles.com
Claire Walter
Claire Walter is an award-winning veteran freelance writer and
author. She specializes in quality-of-life topics such as travel, skiing
and food, always with an eye on budget-stretching tactics to get the
most from the dollar. Her articles have appeared in national and
regional magazines, newspapers and on websites. She is the author
or co-author of nearly 20 books, including Snowshoeing Colorado,
Skiing on a Budget, Culinary Colorado and Nordic Walking: The
Complete Guide to Health, Fitness and Fun. Claire is a partner in
www.milehighonthecheap.com, the Denver-Boulder area's leading website for values,
bargains and deals. She also maintains blogs about travel, food and Nordic Walking,
the subject of her most recent book. It is worth noting that snowshoeing and Nordic
Walking (fitness walking with specially designed poles) are economical ways to stay
active in Colorado's splendid outdoors. She lives in Boulder.
www.claire-walter.com
blogs www.travel-babel.com http://nordic-walking-usa.blogspot.com
twitter http://twitter.com/ClaireWalter
Mike Gates
Mike Gates was one of the original Master Trainers to train under
Marko Kantaneva at INWA, at the turn of the millennium. He is famed
for his Ultra-Distance Nordic Walking exploits. His achievements have
included "World Bests" for both 24 hours and 36 hours of non-stop
Nordic Walking plus Nordic Walking over 2000klms in just 22 days for
charities . He is affectionately known as the "Walking Wizard". Mike is a
strong advocate of endorsing inclusiveness for everybody in the Nordic Walking
world (be that of type,technique or ability). He is a director of The PoleAbout
International Education Institute and his Life's Dharma "Is all about helping
communities to get back up their feet."
www.polewalkabout.com



