Hiking: Top 10 Tips every Beginner Hiker needs to know

In our latest World Travel Blogger series, hiking expert Rebecca Crawford shares her top tips for a beginner hiker/walker.

Hiking is so much fun, and can be therapeutic at best! You get to exercise and connect with nature at the same time, which unravels a world you had no idea existed in the first place. If you’ve never gone on hikes before, there are a couple of things you need to know before you actually get on that trail. Keep in mind that no one knows everything; but it sure does help having a few tips that will guide you through this awesome adventure and make your first trip a memorable one.

Beginners Guide to Hiking

Here are some Do’s and Don’ts as you embark on your backpacking journey, as well as some tricks you can use to make things better and easier on the trail. Read on for a full guide on just what you need to know as a beginner hiker.

1. Do your Research

The moment you decide that you want to start hiking, you should start reading extensively on the subject, as well as watching online tutorials and documentaries so that you get a scope of just what it entails, and what you will need to look out for during your first hike. For instance, you can research on the best pocket knife to use during your hike. There is a whole wealth of information out there, especially on online platforms like YouTube. You can also join hiking communities that are made up of other hikers who will be more than willing to show you the ropes.

2. Plan ahead

For every successful hike, there was intensive planning behind it. You have to plan out your hike before you embark on it. Get a map and study the trail so that you can get a feel of the place. Get enough gear to last you the whole trip, including food and money. And most importantly, if you will be staying in hotels, make your reservations in advance to avoid the last minute rush.

3. Prepare your Hiking Gear

We all know that you can’t just wake up one morning and decide that you are going for a hike. It has to be after days or months of preparation, which also involves purchasing the right gear for your trip.You will need a large and comfortable backpack you can use to carry your clothes, food, sleeping bag, footwear and a camera if you are into photography or you want to capture every moment of your adventure.

For your sleeping bag, ensure that you purchase one that’s lightweight and can fit about two people comfortably, especially if you will be sharing it with your hiking partner. It should also pack small because you will be moving around with it for the rest of your trip. Since this is your first trip, we advise that you borrow a sleeping bag so that you can first try it out and know what to look out for when you will be buying your own.

Pack enough canned foods and water purifiers because you just don’t know the next time you’ll come across fresh drinking water or food. If you are hiking in a large group, it’s better if you carry a stove along with you, to heat food and water, and a large tent you can all sleep in.

4. Get an Experienced Hiking Partner

Even after watching tons of hiking documentaries and interacting with other enthusiasts, you should not think that you can handle going out on the trail by yourself. This is because nothing ever prepares you to face the real situation. We recommend seeking out an experienced partner for your first trip. They will help you maneuver the trail easily as they teach you the hiking basics that will help you on your subsequent trips

5. Safety First

You are going out in the wild and this makes you susceptible to animal attacks as well as diseases from eating contaminated foods and water. Safety has to be one of your key priorities. Ensure that you have a way to keep animals at bay,  especially when you are sleeping. Moreover, bring a hand sanitizer with you to use before handling foods and most importantly, always carry your first aid kit with you. This also means that you have to know basic first aid beforehand to be able to use the kit effectively when the time comes.

6. Keep it short

For your first trip, you want to keep it short because let’s face it, you are never quite prepared to be on the actual trail and even if you have planned for a longer trip, in most cases, you won’t last until the end. Always plan for a shorter trek and keep advancing to longer hikes, and with time as you gain confidence on the trail, you will find yourself going for days without even realizing it.

7. Avoid pitfalls

During your research and interaction with other hikers, there are a couple of things you should avoid at all costs. For instance, there are trails you should avoid, plants you should not eat, and other general blunders you should not commit. Always stick to your plan.

8. Be Respectful

When backpacking, you have to learn to respect nature as well as other hikers trekking on the same trail as you. For instance, we advise that you always give the hikers trekking uphill the right of way. Another trick is to always have a plastic bag with you that you can use to carry trash with to avoid polluting the environment.

Also, do not feed wildlife you encounter on the way and never should you talk loudly or play loud music while on the trail. Keep in mind that people resort to hiking to get away from all the hustle and bustle of the city.

9. Hike Your Own Hike

You will hear this a lot; especially among other hiking enthusiasts. It only means that despite everything you have learned from other people and sources about hiking, when on the trail, it’s all about you. You should focus on getting the most out of your experience with nature and not try to conform to standards that have been put out there by others.

10. Practice

Lastly, you will never be good at hiking unless you are prepared to put a lot of work into it. The first few trips will be tough and you will feel like giving up. Don’t! Keep going back to the trail and trying to be better at it, and eventually you will.

Concluding Thoughts

We hope that you have learned a thing or two about hiking for beginners. We only give tips to improve your hiking experience and you should not feel pressured to get it right the first time. No one does. Just focus on having the best experience and everything else will fall in place.

Loved the tips given? Comment and let us know what you liked best and what we left out. Do not forget to also share this post with other hiking enthusiasts, family and friends.

Author Bio: Rebecca Crawford lives in USA, but loves hiking all over the world. Her favourite is Everest Base Camp Trek in Nepal. It usually takes 16 days, but she likes to slow down, enjoy mountains, company of other adventurers and take more pictures, so it took her 28 days last time. Another of her passion is the ocean, so all short and long hikes along the ocean shore bring a lot of joy. She also writes for Hiking Mastery.

Read more:

Top 3 benefits of walking in the great outdoors

An ideal walking holiday in Yorkshire

The post Hiking: Top 10 Tips every Beginner Hiker needs to know appeared first on The Quirky Traveller Blog.

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(4) TESTERS WANTED: KBS Graphite Tour Prototype Hybrid Shafts

When golfers get custom fit, it's usually the driver and irons that get all the love. We'll try an endless array of high-end driver and iron shafts to find golfing Nirvana: ideal launch, spin, carry, dispersion and distance.

And by the time you've dialed all that in, you're too tired to even think about hybrid shafts. More often than not, you wind up with either the OEM's stock offering or a shaft that matches whatever went into your driver or fairway wood.

Well, the guy who has designed the fastest growing hybrid shaft on Tour doesn't think that's right.

TESTERS WANTED!

There's no doubting Kim Braly's bona fides when it comes to golf shafts. Braly's KBS steel shafts are among the most popular on Tour and among fitters and OEM's. And now Braly and KBS are introducing the company's first graphite shaft, the KBS TOUR Graphite Hybrid Prototype.

As the name suggests, it's a hybrid-specific shaft. "Our competitors are used to making wood shafts," says Braly. "And they view (the hybrid) as a wood. We wanted to develop a shaft that would react exactly the way our iron shafts would."

KBS says the TOUR Prototype has that signature KBS feel and creates a seamless transition from your irons to your hybrids. That, of course, is what they say. At MyGolfSpy, we're more interested in what you say. And we need 4 of you to try these shafts out and have your say.

(Please note this review opportunity is for shafts only - you'll be responsible for grip and installation)

HOW TO APPLY:

As you know, MyGolfSpy takes its product testing very seriously. All of our reader reviews are published in our Community Forum (click here to check them out). We expect a lot from our reviewers – writing a thorough, detailed and honest review is a full two-month commitment, requiring extensive range and on-course work as well as participation in the Forum itself to answer questions and discuss product performance with other golfers.

That means to be a potential reviewer you must be a registered member of the MyGolfSpy Community Forum, where you’ll find thousands of like-minded golfers from all over the world anxious to talk about golf equipment.

To apply to test, review and keep a set of 2 KBS TOUR Graphite Hybrid Prototype Shafts, here's what you have to do:

- First, if you haven't already, please sign up for the MyGolfSpy Community Forum (click here to register).

- Second, apply ONLY in the KBS TOUR Graphite Hybrid Prototype Shaft Application Thread in the MyGolfSpy Community Forum (click here).

We'll announce our testers in the Community Forum thread next week.

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How to Harness the Power of Subtext

Subtext is the underlying message in a scene. In The Godfather, when Don Corleone says, “I’m gonna make him an offer he can’t refuse,” we know someone (and a horse) is in serious danger. When I tell my kids, “I’m gonna make you an offer you can’t refuse,” I probably mean “Do your chores or I’ll shut down the wifi.”

Same statement, different subtext.

Subtext is the message sent beneath the words we say. It can be carried by nonverbal cues, such as eye-rolls or silence, but it’s strongest when the spoken words are confounded, complicated, or subverted by the message implied. We sometimes call this “reading between the lines,” but how do we write between the lines?

How do I write subtext?

Start with a character in conflict. If your characters are blissfully married, and nothing is going to interrupt that happiness, there’s no conflict or need for subtext (or the scene, likely). Begin with a strong scene (a character who desperately wants something, but can’t get it).

Once you have a strong scene, think about how the setting can heighten the stakes and create subtext. Then create dialogue and action that indirectly expresses the characters’ messages, emotions, and needs.

Subtext in The Great Gatsby

The Great Gatsby is set in the 1920’s during a sweltering hot summer in New York. In chapter 7, some friends have lunch at Tom and Daisy Buchanon’s mansion, including Gatsby (Daisy’s lover), his neighbor Nick, Daisy, Tom (Daisy’s husband), and Jordan (Daisy’s friend).

Unbeknownst to Tom, Gatsby and Daisy have been having an affair (everyone else knows), and Gatsby expects Daisy to tell Tom she never loved him after lunch. Repeatedly, everyone complains about the heat. Subtext shimmers beneath nearly every exchange, as Daisy gets more agitated by the minute.

“Who wants to go to town?” demanded Daisy insistently. Gatsby’s eyes floated toward her. “Ah,” she cried, “you look so cool.”

Their eyes met, and they stared together at each other, alone in space. With an effort she glanced down at the table.

“You always look so cool,” she repeated.

She had told him that she loved him, and Tom Buchanan saw. He was astounded. His mouth opened a little, and he looked at Gatsby, and then back at Daisy as if he had just recognized her as someone he knew a long time ago.

“You resemble the advertisement of the man,” she went on innocently. “You know the advertisement of the man—”

“All right,” broke in Tom quickly, “I’m perfectly willing to go to town. Come on—we’re all going to town.”

Where’s the subtext?

First, think about what is being communicated by analyzing the context, message, emotion, and need. Everyone feels trapped by the heat and each other. When Daisy asks, “Who wants to go to town,” she is desperate for a diversion from the task at hand (telling Tom she’s leaving him). The strongest subtext, though, is her statement to Gatsby, “You always look so cool.”  

Her message: I want you.

Emotion: Desire

Her need: To say it without directly jeopardizing her security with Tom or overstepping propriety (if there’s any such thing in this novel)

Fitzgerald has the narrator explicitly translate the subtext (“She had told him that she loved him”), but it may not have been necessary. Tom’s reaction and interruption make it clear he knows the truth.

When you begin watching and listening for subtext in your favorite books, shows, and films, you will see it everywhere. (All innuendo is subtext, by the way.)

Four Ways to Build Subtext

Once you have a character in conflict, consider how you can send a nuanced message using the context, message, emotion, or need. Take each component and figure out different ways to communicate it.

Let’s say I have a couple in an apartment rehashing an old argument about having children. 

1. Context

The context is an apartment. Is this the best setting for the exchange? How would moving it to a public location change what is said?

What if I complicate the setting through changing the conditions, such as having the water heater or air conditioning break? What if his critical mother is present? Any of these details will impact the subtext.

2. Message

If the woman’s direct message is “I want a baby,” I might make a list of ways she could talk around it or use a keyword (like “discuss things” or maybe he’s referred to it as “the problem”). For a master class on this method, read Hemingway’s “Hills Like White Elephants.” (I’ll give you a hint: they are fighting about an abortion, but the word is never spoken aloud.)

3. Emotion

The emotions of the woman in our scene? Longing and frustration. Instead of stating, “She longs to be a mother,” how can I show it? What will she notice because she longs for a baby? How will it translate into her body language?

What other emotions are present? How does the man feel and how does he show it? Pitting characters’ emotions against each other in a scene can be powerful.

4. Need

Her need? She needs to know if he’s changed his mind without scaring him. Why is knowing the need important? Because it can alter the way we approach a discussion.

In The Godfather, Corelone’s need is to reassure Johnny that he has everything under control, so he uses understatement (“I’m gonna make him an offer he can’t refuse”). If he needed to display power? He’d use different words and body language. 

Our build-some-subtext example

The water had stopped gushing from the pipe under the sink, pooling on the kitchen’s cracked linoleum. Joan threw towels on the floor to begin mopping up the water.

“I’d still like to discuss things,” she said, wrapping her arms around her waist. 

“We always discuss things.” He snatched the towels closest to him and threw them in the sink. She flinched at the spray of water. Bottle in hand, Greg slammed the refrigerator shut. “I’m tired of discussing things.”

From the kitchen, she saw him flop on the couch and kick off his shoes. Joan turned to the sink to hide her tears.

“A couple with a dog moved in downstairs. Did you see them?”

“I don’t want a baby. I’m never gonna want a baby.” He took a long swig and flipped on the remote.

“They were chasing it together. The dog had the cutest polka-dot collar. I hope it didn’t get lost.” He didn’t respond. She wrung a towel until her knuckles were white. Dropping the towel in the sink, she shook off her hands, and headed to the bedroom to grab her packed suitcase.

She’s ready for a family. He understands her real message and answers her. What else does the subtext do that a direct statement wouldn’t? It shows her longing in a vivid way.

She’s chasing motherhood, like the couple chased the dog. Her observation that the couple chase the dog “together” contrasts how she feels about her own relationship. It shows the difficulties of discussing sensitive subjects.

The indirect communication creates a richer experience for the reader because meaning is happening on multiple levels at once.

Revise to add subtext

My first drafts of dialogue need significant revision. Sometimes my characters say too much, sometimes they sound too much like me, and sometimes they’re too direct.

Subtext can help. You might not need it in every single exchange, but subtext enriches our stories in so many ways. My first attempts are often too obvious and clumsy, but with practice, I can find subtle ways to include subtext that will surprise and delight readers.

Have you seen great examples of subtext in books or film? (Alfred Hitchcock is one of my favorites.) How could adding subtext improve your dialogue? Share in the comments.

PRACTICE

Take fifteen minutes to choose one of the lines below (or make up one of your own) and work it into two different short dialogue exchanges, each with different subtext.

“Can you spare some change?”

“I’ll go for a swim, thanks.”

“It wasn’t like that before.”

If you get stuck, here’s a tip I give students: Imagine the line in different genres. Any line spoken in the context of a horror story will likely have a much different meaning than when spoken in a romance.

When you’re done, share your practice in the comments and encourage each other.

The post How to Harness the Power of Subtext appeared first on The Write Practice.

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Vote for the Winner of the Summer Writing Contest

Last week, nearly four hundred writers submitted their stories to the Summer Writing Contest.

I’ve so enjoyed seeing how these stories have developed. Our contest Facebook group was full of lively conversations, writers collaborating to help each other find the best ideas and tell unique, creative stories. They’ve workshopped their stories and given each other great feedback in Becoming Writer.

These writers worked hard to craft their very best stories, and last week, they took that final, scary step: submitting their writing to the judges.

The Judges Are Reading . . . And So Can You

Right now, our panel of judges is reading through each story, looking for the ones that will make it to the winners’ circle. And while they’re hard at work, I have an invitation for you, too.

I’m inviting you to step over to the judges’ side of the submission table. I’m inviting you to try reading like an editor and decide which story you would choose as the winner of the Summer Writing Contest.

And then, I’m inviting you to vote on your favorite to win the Readers’ Choice Award.

“

The Summer Writing Contest stories are in! Vote on your favorite for the Readers’ Choice Award.

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Our entrants have put their all into writing stories they love, and we want to help them get their writing into the hands of excited readers.

Not only that, but as you read through the entries and pick your favorite, you’ll get a taste of the editor’s life. Judging this contest yourself will give you perspective on the mindsets of the people who will read your work.

Plus, I think you’ll find more than a few stories you love in this bunch.

How Does It Work?

Here’s how you can step into the judges’ shoes and help select the winner of the Readers’ Choice Award:

All the published stories from the contest can be found here at Short Fiction Break. You don’t have to read all of them; just pick three or five. (You can always read more if you want!)

When you decide on your favorite, let us know using the poll at the bottom of the page.

Then, support your chosen story by sharing it on social media. Let your friends and family know you’ve found a story you think they’d enjoy, and ask them to vote for it, too.

You can even leave a comment on your favorite story to let the author know you enjoyed it. Our entrants are nervously awaiting to hear the results of all their hard work, and I know they’d appreciate your encouragement.

Pick Your Favorite

I’m so proud of everyone who joined us in this contest. All our writers invested time and care into crafting something great, and I’m excited to share their stories with you now.

Come check out their stories, vote for your favorite, and help some amazing writers get the celebration they deserve!

What will you look for in a winning story? Let us know in the comments.

PRACTICE

Today, I’m challenging you to think like an editor.

1. Read three or more stories from the contest.
2. Vote for your favorite by filling out the poll.
3. Share your favorite on social media and invite your friends to vote, too.
4. Comment on your favorite to let the author know you enjoyed it!

I hope you find some stories you love!

The post Vote for the Winner of the Summer Writing Contest appeared first on The Write Practice.

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Building an Author Website: The First Step to Publishing

If you’re like most writers I know, you probably dream of getting published. But as I’ve worked with writers for the last six years, I’ve found that most are woefully unprepared for what publishing actually takes, and this means that either they never figure out what it takes to get published or when they finally DO get published, they find themselves disappointed with the process and with how many books they sell.

How do you prepare for getting published though? There are several steps, but the first step is building an author website. In this article, I’m going to share a step-by-step guide to building a simple author website yourself that will support all of your publishing efforts.

Why Building a Website is the First Step You Should Take BEFORE You Get Published

As book sales move more and more online, a website where you can develop a relationship with your readers is essential. It doesn’t matter if your book is being published by a big traditional publisher or if you’re self-publishing. You need a website.

Why is having an author website so important? Why not just focus on free and easy platforms like Facebook and Twitter for your book marketing efforts?

• Social media doesn’t sell books, but an email list does. You might think email is an old school way to sell books and that it can’t possibly work, but the numbers say something very different. In fact, 66 percent of people say they have made a purchase because of an email they received compared to only 20 percent of people who have purchased something from a Facebook post and six percent from Twitter. I’ve been watching this trend for years, and every statistic I’ve ever read has shown me that email is far and above the best way to get your audience to buy your book.
• The best place to build your email list is on a website. How then do you build your email list? Through your website. In fact, a simple, single-page website with an email opt-in form is enough to completely change your publishing success.
• You OWN your website. You don’t own your social media following. Facebook does. Twitter does. Instagram does. And they can change the rules any time they want, like when Facebook changed their algorithm to only show a fraction of people’s posts. Or when Instagram did the same.

“But I’m Not Tech Savvy”: Why Anyone Can Build an Author Website

If the idea of building a website is intimidating to you, though, it shouldn’t be. I’ve built over a dozen websites and helped other writers set up a few dozen more, many in just a few hours, and even though I’m pretty savvy, it doesn’t mean you have to be to setup a simple author website.

Anyone can set up a simple author website in just a few hours if you know the right steps and don’t get overwhelmed by all the options out there.

At the same time, when I built my first website, it took me weeks because I was doing it on my own, with no one to guide me through the process. My hope is that this guide will make the process simple enough that anyone can build a website.

10 Steps to Building an Author Website

If you read this article from start to finish and follow each step, you will have a great author website.

1. Choose Your Platform

You have many options when it comes to building a simple author website, but there are only three that I recommend.

Self-Hosted WordPress. My personal favorite is a self-hosted WordPress website (which is very different from a free WordPress.com website). I’ve been building websites on WordPress for almost ten years, and it combines ease, flexibility, and full control over your site.

You have to pay to host your website if you choose this option. That costs about $50 a year through Bluehost, which is the hosting company I recommend (you can click here to setup your WordPress website through Bluehost). Note that this includes a domain name, normally $12 a year. This is the least expensive, highest value option available.

WordPress has a number of free themes that allow you to quickly change the entire look and feel of your site. You can also purchase a paid theme (we use Divi at thewritepractice.com, and it’s amazing). Choose Self-Hosted WordPress (via Bluehost).

(HINT: I usually go with the Basic plan, paid yearly, with no add-ons. Bluehost and any other hosting service you choose will likely pitch you several add-on services for an extra cost. Personally, I always say no to all of them.)

Squarespace. If you’re not going to get a self-hosted WordPress, then Squarespace is a great second option. They have beautiful design and make it incredibly easy to set up and get started. Squarespace costs $12 a month to get started, about three times more than a self-hosted WordPress website, but they include a lot of features under that price. Choose Squarespace.

WordPress.com (free). Not to be confused with a self-hosted WordPress website (e.g. WordPress.org), WordPress.com is like the free, “light” version of a self-hosted WordPress website. If you want to get started quickly and for free, this can be a good option. I would still recommend Squarespace over WordPress.com—and a self-hosted WordPress website over both—but this can be a way to ease yourself into building an author website. Plus, it’s fairly easy to export and transfer to a self-hosted WordPress website when you’re ready to up your game. Choose WordPress.com.

Which Website Platforms to Avoid:

• Weebly. I’ve see a few good author websites built on Weebly, but most look clunky.
• Wix. Every author website I’ve seen built on Wix looks like it’s from 2005. Plus, their branding will be on every page. You should be advertising your writing, not your website platform.
• GoDaddy Site Builder (or any host’s native site builder). Hosting companies are good at hosting, not creating software for building websites.

2. Register Your Domain Name

A domain name is the URL where your website lives, e.g. joebunting.com. When people type it into their browser, they will arrive at your website. All three of the platforms I recommended above allow you to register a domain name through them, but you can also register through a third party like Google Domains or Name.com (although I do recommend registering through the platform you choose above).

Your domain name is one of the first branding decisions you make as you build your website. The challenge is that as the Internet expands, more and more domains are registered and the best ones become scarce. How do you find one that’s both available and right for you? Here are a few important tips:

• Look around before registering. Your first choice for a domain may already be taken, so it’s important to search before getting to far into the website building process. You can use Google’s Domain Search tool to quickly look through different domain options (HINT: Once you find your perfect domain, don’t register it on this tool. Instead, register it through the platform you chose above. You can always transfer domain names, but it’s an extra step that can be a little complicated.)
• Use your first and last name (e.g. johngrisham.com). If it’s available, that is. If you write under a pen name, then your pen name would be the domain name, and if your name is difficult to spell, then you might consider writing under a pen name. If your name is not available, you can use a .me, .us, or .net domain, but I wouldn’t use .org unless you write religious or service books. I would not use a middle initial in your domain name. You can also append a word to the end of your name, like joebuntingwriter.com or buntingbooks.com. Not as good as your author name, but it can still work.
• Don’t use your book title as your (main) domain name. Because what will you do when you write another book. It’s fine to have a simple landing page or a basic website for each book you write (like this one), but not for your main author website.
• Don’t include dashes in the domain. Adding a dash in between your first and last name is an easy way to get your name if it’s already taken, but it makes it a little harder for people to find you. Plus, in my opinion, it doesn’t look very good.

Other Domain Search Tools:

• Bluehost. Search here first but don’t register: Domain Search from Google. (Also helpful: Bluehost Domain Registration Guide)
• Squarespace Domain Name Search
• WordPress.com Domain Search

3. Find a Few Author Websites to Model Yours On

Before you get deep into the design process, find a few author websites you like to model yours on. Here are a few author websites I recommend checking out:

• Brad Thor
• Elizabeth Gilbert
• Gillian Flynn 
• Hugh Howey
• Jeff Goins

As you look at their sites, take notice of the main elements of each site. Here are some of the most important elements:

• Header. The image, logo, or name at the very top of the site. Don’t be overwhelmed if you have no idea how to make images look as awesome as the sites above. These authors all have design teams, but you can easily make simple but awesome looking images with a free tool like Canva.
• Featured Banner. Often authors will have an image with their latest book featured as the first thing you see when you visit their site.
• Email/Newsletter Sign Up Form. This is the most important section of the site, since your email list is the main way you develop a relationship with your readers. Building your email list is the number one best marketing step you can take for your writing. I really like Brad Thor’s site especially because his newsletter sign up form is above the fold.
• Menu. This is where you’ll get an idea of the main pages. You’ll almost always find an About page, a Blog, a Books page, and a Contact page.
• Endorsements and Reviews. Do they have any featured endorsements from well-known authors or reviews?
• Social media channels. Do they link to any of their social media profiles? Which channels do they feature, e.g. Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest?

4. Install WordPress

From here I’m going to assume you’re setting up your website with Bluehost on WordPress. 

After setting up your new Bluehost account and registering your domain (see steps 1 and 2 above), it’s time to install WordPress on your domain.

1. If you haven’t done so already, after you sign up for Bluehost, you will be able to register your domain (see steps 1). If you missed this step, you can also register afterward from the Bluehost dashboard so don’t worry.

2. On the Bluehost dashboard, click install WordPress.

What’s really happening here: When you sign up for hosting, you’re basically renting a computer, just a computer that’s set up to broadcast to the internet. Your domain is kind of a like a folder on that computer, and when you install WordPress, you’re basically installing an application on that folder.

3. Click continue WordPress installation.

4. On the next page, select the domain you registered earlier in the dropdown. Leave the directory form blank.

5. Enter your login credentials. Next you’ll be asked to create login credentials (username and password) for your new website. These are really important to keep in a safe place, but you’ll also get an email with them.

6. It will install for a few minutes. After it finishes, visit your new domain’s wordpress admin screen, e.g. http://ift.tt/2ttEqLB. Make sure to bookmark this page for the future.

That’s it! You did it! You now have a new website! Congratulations!

5. Familiarize Yourself With WordPress

WordPress is fairly easy to use once you find your way around, but it can sometimes be intimidating to new users. Here are a few things to take note of:

Dashboard

This is your home base, where you can see your website’s back end at a glance and access all your settings and pages.

Admin Header Bar

At the top of your screen is an admin bar with a few helpful buttons.

• + New. Creates a new post or page.
• Edit. If you’re on a post or page you want to edit, you can click the edit button here to make changes.
• Home / Dashboard button. If you’re on the dashboard, you can click this to get to your website’s home screen. If you’re on your website, then you can click this to go to your dashboard.

Dashboard Menu

This is the main way to create pages and access all the settings on your site.

• Posts & Pages. Posts are for your blog and usually include comments. Pages are for site-wide pages, like your About page, Books page, or Contact page.
• Appearance. There are several menu items under this that control the appearance of your site:

Theme. Change your theme here. We’ll talk about themes in a moment.
Customize. Depending on your theme, you can preview some appearance customizations here.
Menus. The menu on the front of your site is created and controlled here.
Widgets. These are things that appear in your sidebar, like an email sign up form or an image of your book cover and link to your book’s Amazon/Barnes and Noble page.

• Plugins. One of the things that makes WordPress so great is the huge community of developers building free and paid plugins to extend your site’s functionality. I’ll mention which plugins I recommend in a moment, but this is where you will install, activate, and configure them.
• Settings. There are a few settings you should configure at the start.

General. This is where you can change your site name and tagline, choose your time zone, and set your email address. You can leave these as the default, but I would change your time zone.
Writing. This affects how the page and post editor looks. You don’t need to change anything here.
Reading. This affects your homepage and how many posts display on your blog. We’ll come back to this screen in a moment to set your homepage, but you don’t have to do anything now.
Permalinks. This affects the URL structure, and I would highly recommend changing it to “Post Name” setting.

Plugins I Recommend Installing

There are a few plugins that are essential, in my opinion.

1. Jetpack. Gives you great features like visitor stats, hacker protection, and spellcheck.
2. Akismet. Blocks spam comments. Connect with your WordPress.com account and choose the free plan.
3. Sumo. Allows you to easy add sharing to your posts and pages, that thing that floats on the side of your post with sharing icons. Also gives you powerful email subscription tools. It’s free, but you have to create an account with Sumo after you install.
4. Contact Form 7. Create a contact form here and then copy and paste the shortcode that it gives you onto a new page that you create and title Contact.

Advanced

1. SEO by Yoast. Analyzes your pages and teaches you how to write so that Google can better find your website. Very cool!
2. Google Analytics by Yoast. Google Analytics is the best free tool for tracking your website users. First create a free account here, then connect to your website with this plugin.

6. Choose Your Theme

Themes drastically affect the way your site looks, so finding the right one for you is important. However, there are so many great free and paid themes it can be overwhelming. Here are a few I recommend.

Free Themes for Author Websites

PageLine. This free theme gives you a huge amount of control over every element of your website, and the best part is that you don’t need to know any code to use it. You can download it here or install it from your Appearance > Themes page.

Recommended Themes for Author Websites

You get what you pay for, people always say, and while that’s somewhat true for blogs, I think you can go a very long way with a free theme. Personally, I used PageLines for this very website for years. BUT there are a few things free themes aren’t the best at. They tend to be slower to load, for example, and not as feature rich as some paid themes. Plus, the two themes below are really cool.

Divi. If you prefer a “What You See Is What You Get” editor for your website, Divi is amazing. It allows you to edit font sizes, colors, spacing, and more all from the user-facing side of your site. After using many different themes for years, this is the theme we settled on for The Write Practice. You can get Divi here.

Tribe. A premium theme built by author Jeff Goins, this theme gives you what you need to build an author website and nothing else. Perfect if you want something simple but functional. You can get Tribe here.

Custom Themes. Alternatively, you can hire a web designer to build you a custom theme. This is a great option if you don’t have an eye for design and/or don’t have the time to do it. Designers cost anywhere between a few hundred bucks to $1,000 for an experienced designer to $3,000+ for a high-end designer.

7. Create Your Header

Headers can be a simple logo, like ours on The Write Practice. Or an image of the author’s name like Elizabeth Gilbert’s site. Or a full width image like Gillian Flynn’s site.

You can hire a designer for this, but it’s easier to create these on your own with Canva than you’d think. Here’s how:

1. Before you can start, you need to find out the dimensions your header needs. This is determined by your theme, so check your theme’s settings. For reference, Elizabeth Gilbert’s header is 308 px wide by 29 px tall (px stands for pixels, which is the most common unit of measurement for websites).
2. Go to Canva.com, create a free account or log in with your Facebook account, and then select “Use custom dimensions” (see screenshot). 
3. Enter your dimensions (e.g. 308 by 40, since Canva doesn’t allow dimensions smaller than 40).
4. Create your logo! I recommend keeping it simple for now with just your name on a white background.
   
5. Last, download your image (preferably as a PNG file) and then upload it into your theme!

8. Add Your Core Pages

After you install your theme, don’t obsess over the design right now. It takes a long time to get a website looking the way you want it to, but for now just focus on getting the broad elements setup. Your number one goal, remember, is to build your email list, so getting the simplest website possible to start collecting email addresses is ideal.

Home Page. Your website will default to displaying a blog, but for your author website, I recommend creating a custom home page. Take a look at Step 2 for the elements you’ll want to include here: for example, a featured book image (which you can create with Canva), email list sign up form (which we’ll talk about next), endorsements/testimonials, and link to your blog. A good model for this to start is Jeff Goins’s home page, because it’s fairly simple, text based, and doesn’t require a lot of image design work.

About Page. One of your most visited pages, this is where you’ll share a short bio. As you write your About page, remember that new readers don’t care about you; they care about themselves and the books they like to read. Don’t write out your full life story. Share only the information your reader will be interested in to discover whether or not your writing will be a good fit for them.

I like Brad Thor’s About Page as a good model for this, especially his strong brand tagline: “Brad has been called ‘the master of thrillers,’ and ‘America’s favorite author.’ His bestselling novels have been published in over 30 countries.”

Books Page. Simple a page with images of all your books and links to where readers can buy them. TIP: Embed Kindle instant book previews so readers can start reading your book right from your website. Here’s how.

Contact Page. Give readers the ability to contact you by creating a page with a contact form. Start by installing the plugin Contact Form 7 if you haven’t already. A “Contact” menu item will appear on your dashboard menu. Create a new contact form or use/edit the default one that’s pre-installed. Copy and paste the shortcode into a new page that you title Contact.

Editing the Menu

Depending on your theme, the menu on your site may automatically add each page you create. Either way, it’s a good idea to create a custom menu so you can have more control over what the menu includes. Here’s how:

1. On the dashboard, go to Appearance > Menu.
2. Click the button to create a new menu.
3. Add the pages or custom links you want (e.g. Home, About, Books, Contact).
4. Click the box to choose where the menu will appear, usually primary menu or secondary menu.
5. Save it and then go to your homepage to make sure it looks like you want it to.

9. Set Up Your Email List

Your email list is one of the main reasons you’re doing all of this, and your newsletter signup form could be considered the most important element on your website.

First, you have to choose an email newsletter provider. Here I usually recommend Mailchimp, because it’s free for your first 2,000 subscribers. Mailchimp is a great company, and a very friendly service. That being said, personally I find it to be a little clunky and hard to use. We use Convertkit, and while I highly recommend them for authors, it’s a paid service and it can be pretty expensive. Your email list is a good place to invest, though. This should be one of your first upgrades.

Assuming you’re using Mailchimp, you can learn how to create your first email list and sign up form here.

10. Celebrate!

You did it! You created your author website! And if you followed these instructions, it should have only taken you a few hours of work.

Next, you can learn how to write the perfect blog post or simply rest in the glow of your accomplishments!

Do you have an author website? Share a link in the comments so we can see what you’ve created! 

Have a question or did you get stuck? Before you leave a comment, try Googling it or asking your hosting company for help. If you’ve already done that, feel free to leave a comment!

PRACTICE

Don’t have an author website yet and need one? Start with the first step, searching for your domain name. You can use Google’s Domain Search to look for what’s available, and then register it using your preferred platform (e.g. Bluehost, Squarespace, WordPress.com). If you register it, let us know what you chose in the comments! (But if you don’t register it yet, don’t share so no one steals it!)

Good luck!

The post Building an Author Website: The First Step to Publishing appeared first on The Write Practice.

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The Best Golf Sunglasses for 2017

Get Down and Dirty with these 2 Beach Workouts

I believe in protecting the body today, tomorrow, and for the rest of our lives. But I also love, love, love playing in the sun! I chase it every chance I get.

Those that know me, know I'm a big fan of bodyweight based workouts. So when Coppertone® Sport Sunscreen asked me to share two of my favorite fun in the sun workouts while testing the new Coppertone Sport lightweight and breathable formula, I was totally game. I can barely feel it on my skin. After 80 minutes of sweating or swimming, just reapply and keep moving.

Ready and willing, with the sun out, we set out to Seseh Beach in Bali, Indonesia, and got our guns and buns out! Check out the video below…

2 Beach-Body-Ready Workouts to Help You Get Your Guns n' Buns Out Next Time the Sun's Out

Suns Out, Guns Out: 5 Rounds for Time

Set your timer and work through 5 rounds of the following circuit:

• 25-meter dash
• 10 push-ups
• 25-meter dash
• 10 squat jumps or Reverse Lunges
• 25-meter dash
• 10 burpees
• 25-meter dash
• 10 mountain climbers

When you're done, write down your final time and compare your progress next time you give this one a try.

Suns Out, Buns Out: 15 Minutes As Many Rounds As Possible

With your countdown timer set for 15 minutes, see how many rounds of the following circuit you can complete. 1 round is as follows:

• 25-meter walking lunge
• 15 glute bridges
• 25-meter 2-foot broad jump
• 15 squats to parallel (add a jump for spice)
• 25-meter dash

Don't Forget About Sun Safety for Healthy Skin

Don't forget to practice sun safety anytime you find yourself outside and playing this summer. Check out The Outside-In 5 Point Radiant Skin Maintenance Plan along with The Inside-Out 5-Point Skin Maintenance Plan to ensure your skin stays healthy, hydrated and vibrant.

Have fun!

This is a sponsored conversation written by me on behalf of Coppertone. The opinions and text are all mine.

And to be absolutely clear, this is my disclaimer: “Just so you know, I have been compensated to share my ideas on this topic. Sometimes it is in the form of products, or services or even money… But here’s the thing; I won’t  share anything with you that I don’t fully support. It doesn't matter what it is, or how much they are willing to give me, if I don’t believe in it, It won’t be on my site. Seriously. You’ll just have to trust me on this.” ~ Coach Moose

from Dai Manuel: Your Lifestyle Mentor http://ift.tt/2sTuVUv

The Ugly Truth About Self-Doubt as a Writer

Today’s topic won’t be a comfortable one. I’m going to address an issue I’m pretty sure you don’t want to hear—but by the time I’m done, you’ll be armed, better prepared, and stronger than you were. And what is this uncomfortable topic? Self-doubt.

No matter what you do, your doubt as a writer will never go away.

The Ugly Truth

We all have a hopeful goal we think will finally kill that self-doubt for good. It’s usually phrased like an if-then statement: “If I ever get _____, then I’ll ______.” E.g., “If I get published, then I’ll call myself a writer.”

Sound familiar? See if any of these feel like your hope:

1. If I get an agent, then I’ll stop doubting.
2. If I earn a certain number of good reviews, then I’ll finally feel confident.
3. If my writing gets approval from that person, then I’ll be a real author.
4. If I’m a bestselling author, then I’ll finally feel like I made it.
5. If I finish my book, then I’ll feel like a real writer.

The list could go on, of course. Right now, you may be thinking of your own if-then statement, and that’s good. You need to face it.

Here’s why: that if-then statement is a lie.

I know, I know, that is the worst possible thing I could tell you. Do I mean to say that you’ll never feel more confident about your writing? That you’ll struggle with the feeling you’re shouting into the void for the rest of your life? That you’ll never feel as confident as other authors look?

No, not quite. The self-doubt changes, lessens, and sometimes goes away. It also comes back. I need you to know that nothing you ever gain or accomplish will erase that doubt completely. I need you to know so that when the self-doubt hits, trips you up, bites the back of your neck in the middle of your successes and drains the confidence out of you, you will be prepared.

Writer’s doubt does not mean you suck.

Writer’s doubt does not mean you can’t do this.

Writer’s doubt is, in fact, a liar. Your self-doubt comes from your inner critic, who is, as we’ve established, a jerk. I know this from experience—and it’s not only me. Check this out.

Every Writer Has Self-Doubt

I know I do. I’m a twice-over bestselling author, and I’m still plagued with doubts; I feel like I can’t do this, that I’m going to be found out somehow as being “less good” than other authors, or less educated, or just somehow a fraud. The amazing thing is I’m not alone.

You know Neil Gaiman? One of the most celebrated living authors today? He’s written books for adults, children, and anyone in-between. He’s created graphic novels, scripts for movies and television, and won so many awards (four Hugos, two Nebulas, a Newberry medal, six Locus awards, and many more) that it should be really really clear he’s a good writer. Right?

Doubt still dogs his heels.

Surely not, you say. Well….

The problems of success can be harder because nobody warns you about them.

The first problem of any kind of even limited success is the unshakable conviction that you are getting away with something, and that any moment now, they will discover you. It’s Impostor Syndrome—something my wife Amanda christened the Fraud Police.

In my case, I was convinced that there would be a knock on the door, and a man with a clipboard (I don’t know why he carried a clipboard, in my head, but he did) would be there to tell me it was all over, and they had caught up with me, and now I would have to go and get a real job, one that didn’t consist of making things up and writing them down, and reading books I wanted to read. And then I would go away quietly and get the kind of job where you don’t get to make things up anymore.
—Neil Gaiman, Commencement Speech at the University of the Arts Class of 2012

You’d think that doubt would have gone away by the third Hugo, perhaps.

Not enough? How about we hear from Stephen King (twelve Stokers, three Locus awards—oh, you get the idea):

I’m afraid of failing at whatever story I’m writing—that it won’t come up for me, or that I won’t be able to finish it.
—Stephen King, Rolling Stone 2014 interview

Or this:

I have spent a good many years—too many, I think—being ashamed about what I write. I kept hearing Miss Hisler asking why I wanted to waste my talent, why I wanted to waste my time, why I wanted to write junk. I think I was forty before I realised that almost every writer of fiction and poetry who has ever published a line has been accused by someone of wasting his or her God-given talent.
—Stephen King, On Writing

You’d think being Stephen Freaking King might have slain that doubt-dragon, but nope. It did not.

Really, Every Writer Has Self-Doubt

Those two authors not your cup of tea? No problem. Here are a few more.

Dear God, I am so discouraged about my work. I have the feeling of discouragement that is. I realize I don’t know what I realize. Please help me dear God to be a good writer and to get something else accepted.
—Flannery O’Connor

Each day is like an enormous rock that I’m trying to push up this hill. I get it up a fair distance, it rolls back a little bit, and I keep pushing it, hoping I’ll get it to the top of the hill and that it will go on its own momentum. I’m very deeply inculcated with a sense of failure for some reason. And I’m drawn to failure. I often write about it, and I’m sympathetic with it I think, because I feel I’m contending with it constantly in my own life.
—Joyce Carol Oates

Such fear of writing always expresses itself by my occasionally making up, away from my desk, initial sentences for what I am to write, which immediately prove unusable, dry, broken off long before their end, and pointing with their towering fragments to a sad future.
—Franz Kafka

I have been successful probably because I have always realized that I knew nothing about writing and have merely tried to tell an interesting story entertainingly.
—Edgar Rice Burroughs

The more scared we are about our calling, the more sure we can be that we have to do it.
—Stephen Pressfield

I seek strength, not to be greater than other, but to fight my greatest enemy, the doubts within myself.
―P.C. Cast

Writing is finally about one thing: going into a room alone and doing it. Putting words on paper that have never been there in quite that way before. And although you are physically by yourself, the haunting Demon never leaves you, that Demon being the knowledge of your own terrible limitations, your hopeless inadequacy, the impossibility of ever getting it right. No matter how diamond-bright your ideas are dancing in your brain, on paper they are earthbound.
―William Goldman

What to Do About That Self-Doubt

So by now, I hope you see the ugly truth: no matter what you do, that doubt will dog you. But that is not the end of your story.

Step one to facing writers doubt is acknowledging you’re going to have it. That doesn’t make you broken or weird or deficient. That makes you a writer.

I have previously given you this advice: “Write it anyway.” Guess what? You need to write it anyway. Don’t listen to the doubt that tells you to quit.

Step two is giving yourself permission to write absolute garbage. Yes, this means what you write may be “all wrong.” In our worst moments, it’s often difficult to figure out plot points and character arcs; what we write is just nonsense on the page, deletable, failing to develop characters or move the story in any way at all.

And that’s okay. There is no such thing as wasted words. Words you don’t use or have to delete are still not wasted. Every time you put words on paper, no matter how clumsy they are, strengthens you as a writer. No, you aren’t practicing bad writing; you’re just practicing writing. If you keep going, you will improve—even when writing crap.

And now for the really hard one: step three is the choice to believe a truth you cannot see.

Yes, that’s faith. It doesn’t have to be a religious word. All it means is choosing to believe in something you cannot, at that moment, verify.

There will be times you can verify it—good reviews or responses from beta-readers, good moments when you write something and know it’s just right, great moments with your writing group in which they understand exactly what you were trying to say. During those times, you can see the truth: you are a writer, and you are getting better, and if you keep going, the story you’re trying to tell will take shape.

When doubt hits, you can’t see that truth. When writer’s doubt dogs your heels, bites your neck, hides the sun, you can’t even feel that truth. That’s the moment to hold onto it—even though it doesn’t feel real anymore.

The Writer’s Manifesto

The way I handle this is to write a manifesto. Something like this:

• I will write when I don’t feel like it.
• I will write when it hurts.
• I believe I can write, even if I suck a lot.
• People want to read what I write. I know because I want to read it, too.
• It’s okay if I suck right now. I will figure it out and get better.
• I will not stop writing.

The doubt will pass. It will also return. If you hang on to these three steps, you’ll make it through.

“

Writing is finally about one thing: going into a room alone and doing it. —William Goldman

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Facing the Ugly Truth and Winning

• Step one: accept the ugly truth that you will never get rid of your doubt. That means being prepared for its coming.
• Step two: give yourself permission to write terribly when the doubt comes. Do NOT listen to the doubt and stop writing. Writing terribly is far, far better than not writing at all; bad practice is better than no practice.
• Step three: believe you are a writer, and that this time of doubt will pass, and that being a writer is worth the fight.

It’s that simple and that hard.

It’s also worth it. If I can do this, you can, too. We’re in this together, fellow writer. The doubt will return, but that doesn’t mean you have to let it win.

How is your battle with writer’s doubt going? What do you do to beat it? Let us know in the comments.

PRACTICE

Ready for the challenge? Here it is: for fifteen minutes, work on your own writer’s manifesto of the truths you will hold on to during those dark and doubting times.

For many of you, you haven’t thought much about those truths yet. You may not be published, and may not have a support group or even encouragement from family or friends. That’s okay. If all you have is the gut-deep knowledge that the story you have to tell is good, then that is enough. That instinct isn’t wrong. If you want to read the thing you want to write, other people will, too.

Take that fifteen minutes and work on your manifesto. Make sure it’s truths you can hold on to even when you can’t see them. Doubt is coming; that means you’ll get the chance to kick it in the behind.

When you’re done, share your manifesto in the comments. Remember to leave feedback for your fellow writers—let’s spur each other on to out-write our doubt.

The post The Ugly Truth About Self-Doubt as a Writer appeared first on The Write Practice.

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{VIDEO} The Golf Shop – Spider Tour Putters

The guys from Fried Eggs Golf present:

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Tested: Alphard Golf eWheels Electric Push Cart Kit

Stop Pushing Your Push Cart

Push carts make playing golf easier on the body. Though some golfers negatively view push carts with a strange golf-must-be-as-hard-as-possible stigma, my body will attest to the joy that comes from moving the golf bag from my shoulders and onto the cart. For many golfers, myself included, less body strain leads to playing more golf, and usually lower scores.

Alphard Golf has recently launched a new Kickstarter campaign featuring a product that will make pushing your cart even easier. How much easier? How about not-having-to-push easier? Alphard Golf’s eWheels allows you to change your existing push cart into a remote controlled, electric “no-push” cart.

The eWheels unit installs in place of the rear wheels on your existing push cart. That means that in just a couple of minutes, with a couple of tools, your existing push cart can be transformed into a power cart.

Specs: Alphard Golf eWheels

• Weight: 23 pounds
• Unit Size: 11” (wheel) x 25”-33” (expanded)
• Motor: Brushless hub 130W (x2)
• Control Range: 50 Yards
• Top Speed: 5 mph
• Battery: 36V 4.4Ah Lithium Ion
• Battery Life: 27 holes
• Slope Stability: 30°
• Price: $449 on Kickstarter (will eventually retail for $599)
• Kickstarter Price with Clicgear Rovic RV1S cart: $499

Closer Look: eWheels Cart Conversion

Lots of products advertise that they are simple and quick to build. Such is not always the case though. I’m looking at you “quick and simple” IKEA dresser. Thankfully, assembling the eWheels is actually super simple. For the Clicgear 3.5+ that I converted, it was a wrench, a Phillips screwdriver, and about fifteen minutes, maybe less.

Each wheel mount on the Clicgear is attached by two bolts. You remove those bolts and mount the eWheels axle clamps in the same holes on the cart frame. With that, you are finished with the cart modifications.

Cart models with rear brakes will take a bit more manipulation to deal with the brake system, but it will still likely be a quick adjustment. Once the brackets are on, you are just two lever presses away from mounting and remote rolling.

If you don’t have the same cart as me, don’t panic just yet. There are a bunch of carts compatible with eWheels. You just need the right brackets. Check this list out and see if your cart is supported.

eWheels Performance Analysis

Transport and Parking Lot Performance

Getting the eWheels unit to the course is very easy. With the axles retracted, it’s only 25” long, and its attached handle makes moving its 23-pound mass around a snap. I can easily fit the eWheels unit, my Clicgear 3.5+, and my bag into my trunk. Remember, you removed the back wheels from your cart, making your push cart smaller, and lighter as well.

At the course, getting play ready is nothing more complicated than unfolding your push cart as usual, extending the axles on the eWheels, and then attaching the cart brackets to the axle. Of all of the design elements of the eWheels, this is the one that is most impressive. It is easy, easy, easy to get set up. This is so critical for continued use. Golf is frustrating enough without adding to that frustration before the round in the parking lot. The only other pre-round thing you need to do is to make sure that your unit is charged, and that you put AAA batteries in the remote before going to the course.

eWheels on The Turf

No matter how easy the unit is to assemble and transport, what is truly important is how the eWheels works on the course. I’ve taken my experiences with the unit and broken them down into the most relevant areas.

Cart Speed and Remote Controllability

The eWheels unit provoked many a question from onlookers, but the one I heard a lot was “How fast does it go?” I love this question, because I had it too initially, and because it’s a ridiculous question.

The eWheels unit has a range of speed settings, from slow to fast as you may expect. Changing speed requires a just simple click on the remote. My initial take on the 5 mph top speed was, “that’s kind of slow,” then I realized that the cart was steadily rolling away from me as I walked behind it. If it moves faster than I do, the top speed is likely sufficient. It’s for golf, not drag racing.

The spec sheet lists the remote range at 50 yards, but I would say that the range is longer. I bet Alphard scores this on the low side, just so they can be sure that the remote works every time. If you think about it, this is a huge thing to know for the cart. If the cart gets out of the remote’s range, and heads for the water hazard, you are likely looking at wet gear. During testing, I never once lost contact between the remote and the unit, nor did I experience any noticeable lag in response to commands. The eWheels unit stops immediately when told to do so.

Turning radius for the unit is a function of speed, and cart load. Speed-wise, the slower the cart is moving, the better it turns. It can rotate in place, but your top speed turns will be more slow sweepers. What I learned to do was to slow the unit down a click if I need more precise navigation.

Turning performance is also definitely affected by how you load your bag and cart with stuff. At one point, the unit was turning very slowly; then I realized that I had a 40oz water bottle in the bottom of my bag, thus adding weight to the front wheel and making it more difficult to slide laterally. In a fixed wheel cart, like my Clicgear 3.5+, the front wheel just slides side to side, with the rear wheels (and motors) controlling the turn. Moving the bottle to the console net immediately improved the turning of the unit, by decreasing the load on the front wheel. But be careful there too, as adding too much weight to the top can make the cart more prone to tipping back on slopes and while reversing. Balance is key, grasshopper.

Once the unit is turned on, the motors and brakes engage, and it will no longer freewheel. That means you can’t just push it. In the parking lot, I solved this problem by keeping the unit off, and freewheeling, until I got it to the first tee. The added weight makes it a bit more work to push like this, but less so than I expected.

On the course though, turning it off each time to make tight navigations would be annoying, and thankfully I figured out a fix. If you need to maneuver the cart in tight spaces, just turn it on at low speed and push it as you would normally. Now the wheels will respond nicely to your steering motions on the handle. I’d love the version 2.0 remote to have a dedicated freewheel button, but my powered-assist workaround works well too.

Battery Life

Alphard lists the battery life at 27 holes. I have not tried to grab that extra nine holes yet, but it has no problem with finishing 18. The five light battery indicator counts down the charge for you, with the lights flickering, then extinguishing as the charge depletes. I have always had at least one light on when finishing a round, so I know that there are more holes in there, but I’m not sure if it's enough for 9 more.

Like any other powered thing, how you use it will affect battery life. Hill climbing will use more juice than flat travels and watch those slopes. If it’s too steep, it can cause the cart to topple backward. On steep climbs, the motor gives enough power to climb, but my hands are on it to make sure it remains upright.

One huge thing to remember is that you will need to charge the unit before you go to play. I can see this becoming part of my pre-golf ritual, but I can also see myself forgetting to plug it in the night before. Maybe Alphard can sell a motorless axle and wheels combo as an accessory for the times when we forget to charge it. It would be nice to easily just clip the cart onto a non-powered axle in this situation, or if you are playing 36 holes that day and don’t have time for a recharge in between.

Other Notes and Observations

Much like transitioning from carrying your bag to pushing it changes how you play the game, adding a motor to your cart changes playing perspective as well. For the first few holes, I walked behind the eWheels cart, following its path as per usual push cart protocols. Later, it dawned on me that this connected following was not required. It was 105°F here in NorCal that day, and I wanted to hide in the shade as much as possible. I use an umbrella to hide from the sun as I push and quickly realized that was not really going to work as the umbrella attached to the cart rolled away. So much for the portable shade...

In a flash of brilliance, I realized that I could now separate from the cart and walk in the shade of the course’s trees, sending the cart by its lonesome down the sunny fairway. We were no longer connected by touch, and needn’t be connected by position on the course either. I could easily send my clubs to the ball from the comfort of the trees, without the added effort of actually pushing them, or the sun exposure. Like I said before, using a remote cart, like the eWheels, changes the golf experience.

Don’t completely lose focus as you wander in the trees though. You must remain mindful of steering the cart, but you are now free to walk the course unencumbered. Want to feel like a tour pro walking down the middle of the 18th while someone else carries your gear? Either get a caddy or a remote control cart.

Deals to be had, but the Kickstarter Campaign is Ending Soon

The eventual retail pricing on the Alphard Golf eWheels unit will be $599. If you compare the unit to some of the other remote carts out there, it makes for very competitive pricing when you start comparing cart features. If you act now, you can get it for less on Kickstarter presale. They have already reached the funding goal, so this one is going to deliver the products. There are a few units left at $429, and more at $449.

Yes, you do also need to factor in the cost of a push cart if you don’t have on already, but for $499, you can get the package that includes a Clicgear Rovic RV1S cart, giving you everything you need to get rolling remotely on the course.

If you want to be one of the first to have the eWheels, you’ll need to head to Kickstarter soon though as their campaign is ending in a few days.

Let Us Know

Would you interested in adding electric wheels to your push cart, or are you content with what you have?

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