Naming Our Beloved Truck

When we purchased our ’95 Toyota Tacoma, we knew we needed a name that would properly reflect the energy of the vehicle and the excursions it was destined for – a name that truly captured our desire for adventure. We went on a few trips and tossed around a handful of ideas, but there was one name we just kept coming back to: Ansell. You may wonder why we were so drawn to this seemingly peculiar name since it’s not very common in America, but we have our reasons:

First, Ansell embodies the spirit of the Australian adventure icon – Rod Ansell.

Rod Ansell was stranded in the remote area of Northern Territory in Australia in the late 70’s. He was there for 56 days before being rescued by local Aboriginals. In that time, he followed bees back to their hives for honey and slept in trees to avoid crocodiles, even though the tree was occupied by a brown snake. He worked with nature to find natural resources for water. To say the least, Rod Ansell was a badass. To learn more about his adventures, I highly recommend reading his Wikipedia page.

The other Ansel (note the single “l” for this fine gentleman), was Ansel Adams. While Rod Ansell’s story ignites our inner adventurers, the life and work of Ansel Adams inspires our inner artists. As you may know, Ansel Adams was a fantastic wildlife photographer, but also – arguably more important – an influential environmentalist. Ansel advocated for expansion of the National Park system, highlighting the importance of nature for humans and society as a whole. He had the amazing pleasure of experiencing and taking photos at 27 of the National Parks in the very early days when the crowds were virtually non-existent… can you imagine what that was like?

For more on Ansel Adams, visit his website.