Miles to Go
Writings & curated findings of Miles Magazine Editor Joshua Kagi
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Riding this wave for 15 years

Joshua Kagi April 5, 2013 No Comments

It’s hard to believe 15 years ago, today, I launched my first website.

That website ultimately became my first business, though I didn’t realize it was even a business at the time. I simply wanted to be a sports writer. When you’re 13, the options for writing about sports, or anything other than homework, are pretty limited. At least they were in 1998. Blogging wasn’t even a concept. Facebook, Twitter, Tumblr and other blogging platforms were still several years away. So, with the help of an HTML book from Borders and passions for both sports and writing, I got to work.

Maybe I knew where things were heading. Or, maybe I was just a nerd who found a way to merge two passions together. That said, I’ve always had an inclination that the world was changing, and I’ve been there, at the front, riding the crest of the wave. Even if it’s never amounted to much monetarily. It’s not like I became Mark Zuckerberg, who didn’t launch his first website until a year later. I’ve always simply merged writing, then storytelling in any form, with web programing skills simply because I love the feeling of discovery and I’m addicted to the light bulb in my mind illuminating with the next great idea.

Despite building and subsequently destroying several digital media products, from the initial sports website, to several blog launches, to a successful online political journalism site, I’ve failed to build the platform (which is more-or-less just a buzzword of the last year or so) to turn that into financial success. Despite acquired knowledge and forward thinking, there’s not a lot, on the surface that sets me apart from countless other bloggers.

Then, I read this quote from a newspaper man I deeply respect:



I then realize, how far the media world still has to come. And I also remember, I figured out this online journalism thing 15 years ago.

The gears of my mind are churning, and financial success or not, I’m just enjoying riding on the crest of the wave.

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What I’ve Been Reading

Joshua Kagi October 28, 2012 No Comments
Here in the Pacific Northwest, the rain has set-in for winter. Well, it’s not quite winter yet. The autumn colors seem to be popping more than they have in recent years. With the return of rain my tea drinking, coffee consumption, and time spent reading have skyrocketed. Here’s a sampling a few good finds, related to travel or the PNW, from the last couple days.

A Matter of Taste?, The New York Times

“Foodism has taken on the sociological characteristics of what used to be known — in the days of the rising postwar middle class, when Mortimer Adler was peddling the Great Books and Leonard Bernstein was on television — as culture. It is costly. It requires knowledge and connoisseurship, which are themselves costly to develop. It is a badge of membership in the higher classes, an ideal example of what Thorstein Veblen, the great social critic of the Gilded Age, called conspicuous consumption. It is a vehicle of status aspiration and competition, an ever-present occasion for snobbery, one-upmanship and social aggression. (My farmers’ market has bigger, better, fresher tomatoes than yours.)” — by William Deresiewicz

 

Portland’s Laidback Style, Condé Nast Traveler

 

(Re)exploring Ballard: Bastille, Christine in Spain

“If you were to ask me what I love most about Seattle, first I’d tell you that I think it’s one of the most beautiful places I’ve seen, despite traveling to a decent amount of places in this world. Then, I’d confess—that its neighborhoods are what I really love. From hipster-populated Capitol Hill to the student-friendly U-District, to funky Fremont, every neighborhood in the city has its own unique vibe, and I always stumble upon new things each one has to offer. ” — by Christine Medina

 

The Vine Nerds, Wired

“The establishment and the geeks have already scuffled in sports, advertising, medicine, policing, and real estate. And so it goes here in wine country. For the past 100 years, the farming decisions—planting, pruning, irrigating, and harvesting—have been dictated by experience and often even a degree of mysticism. This is the land of grape whisperers. And many of Napa’s elite are not going to change the methods that have proven themselves for a century just because a couple of Frenchmen show up with water sensors.” — by Jeffrey M. O’Brien

 

Why an Airline That Travelers Love Is Failing, Time Magazine

“Virgin America is the equivalent of a TV show that’s a hit with critics but risks being canceled because of failing to attract enough viewers. The San Francisco-based carrier is regularly voted to the top of “best airline” lists. But it is far from the best in the business at making money.” — by Brad Tuttle

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Where travel can take you

Joshua Kagi June 7, 2012 No Comments

Last summer the idea of Miles Magazine was beginning to gel. It didn’t have a name yet, but the team was beginning to form.

Janelle Frazier, a talented designer was on board.

Rick Dancer, an Emmy Award winner, would produce Anthony Bourdain-style videos.

Adam Sparks and myself would edit and manage the publication, while developing the website and iPad app.

While other travel or lifestyle publications existed, few (if any) actually told powerful, subversive stories about the people and places they profiled. Our team were excited to tell those stories.

Then one-day, looking at the newsstand at Barnes & Noble, the words “Get Local. The best way to travel,” jumped out at me. Afar Magazine was just what I had been looking for.

Finally! A publication that gets it. Storytelling from the point of experiential travel.

Then, panic set in. This was the magazine I was trying to create. Someone beat me to it. The design was spot-on; the stories compelling; the mission of introducing the world to just what travel could be was ideal.

With Afar established and seemingly well-funded, would Miles even have a chance to get off the ground?

Turns out, Afar was still in its infancy. The publication was celebrating its second anniversary with the issue I was holding in my hands. Two guys with vision, and a great team behind them, were able to build a successful publication in just two years.

If anything, Afar‘s success validated our hopes and dreams for Miles.

Editorially, our focus was on a more local level too. Afar, if anything, was a magazine worth emulating on a regional scale. Both could co-exsist and thrive. And maybe, someday, there would be an opportunity to become sister-publications.

Throughout the process of building Miles from the ground up, I have pointed to Afar on countless occasions. It is, in part, what I aspire for Miles to be.

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Finally a great taco in Eugene

Joshua Kagi June 6, 2012 No Comments

I don’t know if it’s because I’ve come-of-age and now appreciate great food more, or if it’s that in the last couple years the culinary scene in Eugene has itself had a coming-of-age.

Either way, you can find some great food that would rival the culinary greatness of Portland, Seattle or San Francisco in this once sleepy college town.

Need proof? Belly chef Brendan Mahaney was a 2012 James Beard Nominee, and in recent years Eugene has seen another Beard Nominee, Stephanie Kimmel, expand her Marché empire with three prominent eateries at the 5th Street Public Market.

Just a couple years ago, Ninkasi exploded onto the microbrewery scene. Thanks in part to their quick success, Eugene-Sprinfield is now home to nine breweries that includes World Beer Cup winners and medalists.

But, back to Belly.

The european farmhouse-style restaurant outgrew it’s small space on 5th Ave., so moved a few blocks away to Broadway & Willamette. Instead of shuttering the old space, Brendan Mahaney decided to expand the popular Taco Tuesday into a full-blown restaurant concept.

One cuisine Eugene has been severely lacking is quality Mexican. No more.

If an early Tuesday evening is any indication, Taqueria Belly appears to be a smashing hit.

Sure, Taqueria Belly is limited to, well, tacos. But, mighty fine tacos they are.

The atmosphere and menu remind me of another favorite taqueria, Por Qué No in Portland. If you’ve been there, that’s all you need to know about Taqueria Belly. Yeah, it’s that good.

The margaritas are strong, the menu is simple, the ingredients are fresh, and the flavors complex.


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No reservations

Joshua Kagi June 5, 2012 1 Comment
Anthony Bourdain is the reason I fell in love with what travel can be.

Maybe it’s because I’m part cynic.

Maybe it’s because I’m equally hopeful.

I’m a walking contradiction, but so is Anthony Bourdain. And so it’s easy to see why he’s the reason I fell in love with what travel media could be.

Prior to March of 2011, nine volumes into his show No Reservations, I had never seen an episode. I had never read his books. I had never stepped foot into a restaurant where he was preparing food.

A couple weeks before the volume 10 premiere on Travel Channel, I found out on short-notice (28 days) that I would be traveling to Haiti. I began a quest to soak up as much knowledge about the country as possible prior to my departure. As luck would have it, the season premiere was about Haiti.

My family, while excited for my opportunity to document the earthquake recovery, were legitimately concerned for my safety. Not so long ago, Haiti was the kidnapping capital of the world. It’s had more than one military coup in the last half century. And maybe most of all, with the Arab Spring happening half-the-world away, I would be in Haiti during the first post-earthquake presidential election.

You’ll never realize just how much we take peaceful democracy for granted in this country until you observe an election in the developing world. 

The No Reservations episode settled everyone’s fears. The irony was he mentioned the cholera, the poverty, the desperation all over Haiti, yet, “life goes on.”

A few weeks later, fresh off my return from Haiti, I had been re-bitten by the travel bug. This, traveling the world to tell the stories of people and places, is what I want to do with my life. But, how?

Paired with a lack of interest from my dream employer, GOOD Magazine, and my rediscovered passion for travel, Miles Magazine was born. Thanks to Netflix, the back catalog of No Reservations episodes became the soundtrack to the vision and creation process.

Anthony Bourdain recognized that the world didn’t need another World’s Best Fill-in-the-Blank (beaches, hotels, destinations) show. He decided that introducing us to the people and places of the world, particularly those you won’t find on best-of lists.

Last week, it was announced that Anthony Bourdain would be leaving the Travel Channel for CNN.

“It was never my intention on NO RESERVATIONS to be a reporter, a critic, an advocate. It was also never my intention to provide audiences with ‘everything’ they needed to know about a place—or even a balanced or comprehensive overview. I am a storyteller. I go places, I come back. I tell you how the places made me feel. Through the use of powerful tools like great photography, skillful editing, sound mixing, color correction, music (which is often composed specifically for the purpose) and brilliant producers, I can—in the very best cases—make you feel a little bit like I did at the time. At least I hope so. It’s a manipulative process. It’s also a deeply satisfying one,” he said on his Tumblr account.

My desire for Miles is to become a multi-media platform with a similar storytelling style to Anthony Bourdain. He has helped me realize just what travel can be.

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When GOOD goes bad

Joshua Kagi June 4, 2012 1 Comment
My dream job is gone, but the dream lives on… and it’s far more grand.

The genesis story of Miles Magazine has a lot of jump-in points.

You could say the seeds were planted when a 13-year old who, in the days of dial-up and AOL, dreamed of becoming a sports journalist started an online publication that eventually became ASU Devils.

There was also the time spent at the Register-Guard where late night discussions with the sports editing staff became a forum for far-ranging discussions on the current state of and potential road ahead for print media.

Armed with new-media theories there were two distinct versions of Wired Oregon. The first: a successful online publication covering the 2009 session of the State Legislature. The second version: a sometimes good, most of the time floundering, expanded effort to cover all things Oregon.

Yet, the “Let’s do this” moment may be when, about one year ago, GOOD Magazine failed to hire me.

It’s easy to see why they didn’t: lack of an Ivy League degree; few clippings outside of my various start-ups; dozens, probably hundreds of fully-qualified candidates.

GOOD Magazine was a dream job. Even if it meant moving this Northwest enthusiast to the nightmare that is Los Angeles.

When it became obvious I wasn’t going to get an interview, I started thinking of ways that would get GOOD‘s attention.

With most publications in flux, and layoffs occurring or imminent in newsrooms across the country, I was mostly unwilling to relocate for anything but the best opportunity.

So, I figured starting my own magazine was a pretty good bet.

Originally, it was just going to be a glorified portfolio piece. A one-time iPad publication. Something that could showcase my design, writing, tech knowhow and vision of what a magazine could be in the 21st century. Adam Sparks, my business partner at Wired Advanced Media (and former colleague at the paper), wanted to be a part of it too.

So, we began. Long story short, Miles Magazine was born. In 2013, we’ll launch our bi-monthly print and iPad publication.

GOOD became a media company to emulate: a brilliant web strategy; great journalism; beautiful design; a broader mission to improve the world. Despite different genre’s, GOOD‘s DNA is apparent throughout Miles. 

Now, I feel blessed that GOOD never gave me a second look. Not only has Miles come into being as a result, but on Friday, one day after a lunch party for the summer issue, GOOD fired most of their stellar editorial staff. To further rub salt in the wound, today GOOD released a video, featuring their laid off staffers, thanking their readers for reaching the 200,000 Facebook follower milestone.

Peter Sterne put together a great Storify post documenting the reaction to GOOD’s PR disaster.

Let’s just say with leadership like that, GOOD is far from a dream job anymore.

Over the last year, Miles evolved into my dream. It’s not just my dream anymore, either. A great team, many who have been with me in my other endeavors and a few new to the fold, have bought into Miles.

I’m excited about where this all is going.

I think it’s going to be far more grand than anything I previously imagined.

 

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