A NEW LIFE:For Keith McDonnell, being a tour guide at the sharp end of the business is a job he feels he was born for, writes Michael Kelly
WITH ANY new start-up business, there comes a nerve-jangling moment when you just have to get your product or service out there, even if you're unsure whether there's a demand there for it. When Dunboyne, Co Meath native Keith McDonnell set up a hiking and adventure tours company in 2007, he designed a 15-day adventure tour of Ireland, and put it up on his newly-established website.
Initially just two people signed up for the trip, and McDonnell was caught in a classic catch-22 situation. He had to go ahead with the trip now that people had signed up for it - but he didn't exactly relish the notion of touring around Ireland for two weeks with just two punters.
"With a tour like that, anything fewer than three people, really turns into an extended counselling session," he laughs.
Thankfully, orders for the trip trickled in eventually, and to be on the safe side, McDonnell managed to convince some friends to come along to bulk up the numbers.
In the end, the tour set off with an eclectic mix of Irish, Canadian, Israeli, Swiss and French tourists of all ages. "I knew if I could fill a tour like that in my first month, then it would probably work, long term."
An avid mountaineer and extreme sports enthusiast, McDonnell studied electrical engineering in Kevin Street and when he graduated spent time travelling in adventure sport Meccas such as Australia and New Zealand.
On his return to Ireland, like many engineering graduates before him, he ended up in the IT industry - he spent a year working in system administration in the Office of the Taoiseach, and then did contract work in the financial services sector.
The contract work allowed him to indulge his passion for adventure sports, and from the age of 25 to 30 he took about two months off a year to travel - the more he travelled, the more he felt the job that was waiting for him on his return was not for him. Between contracts, McDonnell spent some time working as a guide with tour companies such as Killary Tours and the Paddy Wagon.
"It gave me a taste for life as a tour guide. It was good craic but incredibly tough work. You basically can say goodbye to your friends and family, and forget it if you're in a relationship. You are on the road all the time. But I just loved meeting people from all over the world - that's the appeal for me."
It was enough to convince him that his dream job lay in operating tours and he also reckoned he spotted a gap in the tours market that wasn't being filled.
"I spent a lot of time in New Zealand and it is renowned around the world as an adventure activities destination. Ireland is sort of the northern hemisphere equivalent in terms of our scenery and we have the activities too, but there are no packages out there to cater for people who are interested in adventure and extreme sports."
In his spare time, he started making contacts with adventure clubs and tourism operators across Europe and beyond. "I was working away on it at night time and sometimes I have to say during the day at work. I would be up until two or three in the morning sending out e-mails to anyone who had any connection with adventure sports."
The company, Extreme Ireland, opened for business in May 2007 and he ran his first tour shortly afterwards. The decision to abandon the relative security of the IT industry for a more uncertain path was, he says extremely tough. "It was a huge step, but my advice for anyone thinking about a new career is simply to do it. It's daunting but incredibly exciting. You will have highs and lows, but overall you will feel so much better about yourself."
The tours the company offers include treks and hill-walking but also adventure activities like parachute jumps, bog snorkelling, kayaking, rock climbing and zorbing. Zorbing? "In a nutshell, you roll down a hill suspended inside a three metre tall ball. It's great fun."
His customers are generally pretty relaxed, he says, and there hasn't been any diva-like behaviour to contend with yet. "They are on their holidays so they are usually pretty cool. At the end of the day you are their guide, so you keep some distance. You don't want it to be too personal. They want to feel like they are in safe, professional hands so the main part of the job is making sure they feel confident and relaxed."
Not surprisingly he has even less time on his hands now that he is running his own company. "My girlfriend does a lot of international travel with her job and I am away a lot. That side of it is tough, I'll be honest. There's a huge difference between the idealistic side of a job like this and the reality of running a business. People say to me 'look at you, you've got a great tan' and I'm thinking, 'yes, but I'm working my ass off'."
Minor gripes aside, you get the impression of a guy who can't quite believe his luck. "Last week I was up Mount Brandon and I was sitting looking at the views and thinking, 'is this really what I do for a living?' There are lots of moments like that. I know this is a cliche, but this job is what I was meant to do. I get great pleasure knowing people are enjoying their holidays - that gives me more satisfaction than a slap on the back from a manager or a pay rise!"