The Experience of Stories

"When you open this mailbox to put a letter in, do you think it squeaks or it doesn't squeak? And I said, oh, it probably doesn't squeak. And he said, but if you were on Main Street in small town, Missouri, would it squeak? I said probably."

Bob Weis, retired President of Walt Disney Imagineering and author of "Dream Chasing," returns to turn the table and ask me a few questions. Our conversation explores my time as a park ranger, the epic journeys of Lewis and Clark, and the art of storytelling.

His first question is about my own journey as a park ranger. For eight years, I had the privilege to serve in the breathtaking landscapes of Washington state, from the parks near Idaho to the scenic Olympic Peninsula. It was a reminder of why storytelling is so powerful. The ability to bring history alive is what makes our experiences memorable.

Our conversation took an fun turn when Bob tested my knowledge on two historic figures: Meriwether Lewis and William Clark. These explorers braved countless hardships to discover new lands, and their stories remain a testament to human perseverance. Bob even threw in a trick question about William Clark's middle name (or lack thereof). It was a great reminder that there's always something new to learn.

One of the highlights was revisiting an unforgettable moment when I recounted the story of Captain George Vancouver to a visitor. The joy of sharing that history on the exact spot where it happened was indescribable. There is a special kind of magic that happens when you are prepared for that one moment when a visitor's curiosity aligns with your passion.

Bob emphasized that whether it's in national parks or at Disney, capturing someone's imagination can make their entire experience. This episode reminded me why I love helping others connect with the stories that shape our world.

Connect with Bob Weis

www.bobweis.com

Order the book - Dream Chasing

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Episode Transcript

(00:03):
Welcome to the Jodi Mayberry show, last episode.
Our guest was Bob Weiss, the author of Dream
Chasing, and he is back with us as I like to do
when there's a guest on the show. Bob is back to ask me 3 questions.
These questions are not prompted by me, not encouraged by
me, not planted by me. I don't even know what we're going to talk about,

(00:26):
but I do know it will be a great conversation because
Bob is with us. Welcome back, Bob. Great to be
back. And now I get to ask the questions now. I like this even better.
Alright. Well, let we'll just get right into it. What's your first question?
Well, first first question, does this doesn't count as my question. I
just ask you to reprise for the audience

(00:48):
where your park ranger career was set and where you live
now. Okay. This is like a update. This is not my question.
Alright. As an update, I was a park ranger
for 8 years in the state of Washington,
which I've learned as I've traveled. If you're from
Washington state and you're east of the Mississippi, you have to

(01:10):
say Washington state. Otherwise, people start talking about the Smithsonian.
So I was a park ranger in Washington state
4 years in a park very close to Idaho, 4 years
out on the Olympic Peninsula, which is 3
months out of the year. This is absolutely the best place in the country.
I believe it. So I'm going to ask you my first question, sir.

(01:34):
2 of your most famous visitors in history
came all the way from the East Coast
to find a path across the country. Their
names, I'll tell you, were Lewis and
Clark. What were their full names? Meriwether
Lewis and William Clark. So William Clark, did he have

(01:57):
a middle name? William you know that? I'm
sure he did, but I don't think I know it. No. It's a trick question.
Oh, it's a trick question. Now you're just trying to tell me. William Clark William
Clark did not have a middle name. Okay. Lewis Lewis
Meriwether Clark had that great name. Now they're both from
the same state. What state is that? Virginia.

(02:18):
But what is the state that is most associated with
William Clark With William Clark. For most of his
life? Missouri. Bing, bing, bing, bing, bing. No. That's
that's it. No. Bing. It's Kentucky. Kentucky.
Alright. When he was, when he was a young teen,
his family moved him to Kentucky. So these

(02:40):
guys braved black flies,
mosquitoes, freezing cold starvation,
came across the country through Idaho that you know well through
finally got to Washington, undoubtedly just
kissing the sand of a Columbia River saying, thank
God we made it. What did they do? What did they

(03:02):
do? They well, I'm not sure where you're leading me,
but they camped at Fort Clatsop. They built
a little fort, and they wintered over in Fort Clatsop
with a salt works in near what is
well not a yeah, it would be Astoria somewhere over in there. So
that's what they did. They wintered over in Fort Clatsop. The

(03:25):
amazing thing that I accept that answer. But the amazing thing
about them, in addition to that answer, is that after all
they went through, they turned around and they went all
the way home the same way. Isn't that unbelievable? That is
unbelievable. And I That they nearly lost their lives. They
nearly lost, you know, so many things. And but what else they gotta

(03:47):
do? They they turned around and went all the way back home. Yeah. It
is a fascinating story, and it delights me that you
are Lewis and Clark enthusiast because the I
don't live anywhere near their route. I've been to many places
along their route, and it is it is just wonderful. And to think that they
did that 2 years, which is perhaps a

(04:09):
bigger deal than going to the moon in 1969,
perhaps. And that they the only person they lost
was someone from appendicitis. That's it's just incredible to
think what they they pulled off. And there's so many places you can
still go along their route that look very similar to what it
did back then. Yeah. I took I took the

(04:32):
trip across the Lolo Trail, which is one of the areas where
they they nearly died and they went on they were
on horseback and went across the Lolo Trail and they
were running out of food. And, and it was really the it was really,
I think the Mandan Indians that were native to that
area that were responsible for them surviving and making it

(04:54):
making being successful with their trip. But I did that. I did that trip 9
days on horseback. Oh my goodness. Wonderful. With a, with a
curator emeritus from the Smithsonian Natural History
Museum. So it's one of the great trips in my life. I I loved it.
But the appreciation that you have of I asked my my
questions, I think. But the appreciation you have for for great storytellers

(05:15):
of which you as a national park person
know is the ability to stand anywhere, stand on a
rock, stand on a field, and make history come to life
for people. So now I'm gonna put you on the spot. Last
question. What's one of your favorite stories that you talk about
or did talk about when you could stand there and just make something

(05:38):
come to life for somebody? Well, I will tell you one
that I only got to tell once. And you would think,
how could it be your favorite if you only got to tell it once? When
I moved from Eastern Washington to Western Washington, I did
a lot of research because I thought, oh, I'm gonna have to tell a whole
new set of stories. I'm gonna have to to learn new landmarks,

(06:00):
new animals. And captain George Vancouver
was the first to explore this area, the first European to
really go in-depth in this area, 17/93.
And I read a lot about Captain Vancouver thinking, well, I'm gonna
end up talking about Captain George Vancouver all the time.
And one of the parks I was at, Captain Vancouver had come

(06:22):
ashore right in this very Marestone Point, And that's where
he named Mount Rainier as he was standing on Marestone Point. And I thought,
well, Marestone Point is in the park. I'm going to have to tell that
story all the time. And I I did my research. I
rehearsed it. I was ready. And in 4 years, no one had
asked ever. I didn't. I underestimated

(06:45):
how little Americans care about a British explorer.
And no one ever asked. And one time I was on Maristone
Point in uniform, walking towards my truck and
a vehicle pulled up real slow and a window
rolled down. And a gentleman in a British accent
said, Excuse me, do you happen to know anything about George

(07:07):
Vancouver? And I said, sir, please turn
your car off. We've got some talking to do. And I
spent 30, 40 minutes talking about George Vancouver, how he
stood on this spot, where the ship was named Mount
Rainier from this very spot. Only time I ever got to tell that
story, but very memorable because I was so ready for it and waited

(07:29):
for years for the chance to tell that story. It's
awesome. That's great. And I think that's, to me, the epitome
of National Park Rangers or curators
and museums or people that are out preserving
and telling history to people or history or science
or whatever is the opportunity to

(07:51):
to tell someone something in the context
when they're standing there, when they're standing there looking at Mount Rainier.
He will never forget that moment because you you told him right
there. Right. That that the opportunity to capture someone's
imagination at this golden time when they happen
to be there is an unbelievable opportunity. And that is those are

(08:13):
those things that people will remember the rest of their lives. I so
appreciate you saying that because I've always felt for
that one family in that car, that story at
that moment in that spot made their vacation.
And perhaps I'm giving myself too much credit. But imagine
that, traveling all the way from Britain, knowing of George

(08:35):
Vancouver, wanting to learn about George Vancouver, and you get over here and
there's nothing. You cannot find any information about him. And
so what do you do? You ask a park ranger because that's what you do
when you're in a park. And I feel confident had they asked
any other park ranger in that park, they would have got, oh, I'm sorry.
I don't know. But they happened to ask me, and I was ready. And

(08:57):
it it made my day, and I hope it made their vacation. Well,
they don't know that you didn't tell that story 20 times a day. They're not
aware that that's the only time you ever got to tell that story. But that's
one of the great things too, is that even if it was a
story that you told 20 times a day, your responsibility
is to make it fresh for them. You were lucky. That was the first time

(09:18):
you told it, and you had all this preparation. You were glad to be able
to tell it. But it's almost as almost harder sometimes
to tell people who say the same thing every day because
they're sitting at, you know, Valley Forge or they're sitting someplace
where, you know, people are going by and they're asking maybe a lot of the
same questions is to care about every visitor's

(09:41):
question. Or in the in Disney lingo, you care about every guest
question and to be there for them. You know, it's their day.
It's their it's not about you. It's their day. And you have the
opportunity to make their vacation. Well, on both sides of that,
they happen at parks. They happen at Disney. How, like, how many times a day
at Magic Kingdom as a cast member asked, what time is the 3 o'clock

(10:03):
parade? And in a park, if you you I used to
tell the staff that reported to me, look, it may be
the 13th time today you get asked that question. It is the
first time they have ever asked it and they would deserve a
response equal to them asking for the first
time. And then the other side Completely. The the other side is

(10:25):
the experience created for the one visitor who happened to ask about
George Vancouver. Imagineers do that too. I know
you put details in your designs
that 1 in 10000 people will notice, but the one that
does, it absolutely delights them. And well, and if
you don't, you will get a letter from somebody

(10:48):
that says you got that wrong. And so,
you know, you endeavor to do things authentically and in detail
for that reason because you want people to get it right. You want people
to realize that you cared enough to get it right.
Yeah. It's great. And it reminds me of I've been
on Main Street many times. Only one time have I been

(11:11):
on Main Street with Jeff Knoll, who was a Disney
Institute keynote speaker for 15 years. And we walked by the
mailbox at the end on the right. And you can put letters in
there and mail them. And as we walked by, he said,
when you open this mailbox to put a letter in,
do you think it squeaks or it doesn't squeak? And I said, oh, it probably

(11:33):
doesn't squeak. And he said, but if you were on Main Street
in small town, Missouri, would it squeak? I said probably. And
then he opened it and it squeaked. And and he
said, most people don't notice, but the ones that do, it
delights them. And and That's awesome. Yeah. I just love it that
Disney's full of that. And even in parks, we

(11:55):
have the same thing, this idea of being park like.
And you wouldn't expect that keeping things looking
natural is a park ranger intervention.
For example, at a trailhead, you don't want cars driving onto the
trailhead. So maybe you block it off with a boulder on each side,
but a boulder sitting on top of the ground does not look natural. It is

(12:17):
not park like. So what do you do? You dig a little indention and you
put the boulder in the indention because that's how you see things in
nature and and parks intervene to
make parks look like a park. That's what we do. That's what
rangers and park staff do is we just if you want
the park experience, there are many times we have to intervene to make

(12:39):
it park like. But you also have to preserve what it is that
makes it authentic. Yeah. That's great. That's right. Alright,
Bob. I I wasn't keeping track, but I feel like we've probably have done
3 questions. And I liked every one of them. I think we have. Good. Well,
I wanna take a moment to promote the book again, Dream
Chasing by Bob Wise. I traced chased a dream and became a park

(13:02):
ranger, and I'm still talking about it all these years later. So you
can find Dream Chasing anywhere you get books.
And, Bob, it it was so generous of you to come back for a
second episode. And, hopefully, this is not the last because I still have all
these notes that we didn't get to the last time we talked. Well, I'd love
to do it, and I hope all those people that have their own dreams will

(13:24):
shoot me a note and tell me how their dreams are working out and just
have the boldness and the confidence to pursue them. That's
wonderful. Thank you so much, Bob, and thank you for listening to the
Jody Mayberry Show.
He's cracked it, so he's having a suk. It's sugar jay.