CISCO, Grand County — Windy conditions make driving a bit dangerous on Interstate 70, about 29 miles from the Colorado-Utah border. Walking head-on through 40mph wind gusts and oncoming traffic, Anton Nutenboom seems undeterred.
Since leaving Los Angeles in February, he has been walking barefoot on every surface.
“For about a month, I continued to walk with an infected wound on my leg,” Nutenboom said.
He is determined, cheerful and known simply as “The Barefoot Dutchman”. His goal is to break the Guinness World Record for walking a total of 3,100 miles barefoot from Los Angeles to New York’s Times Square.
“I felt that I had achieved something here,” the Dutchman said proudly. “It’s as simple as using two barefoot flippers and some willpower to make a change.”
The difference he’s after isn’t changing the record books. It’s about changing men’s lives and their mental health.
“I want to change that perspective and encourage men to have the courage to speak up,” Nutenboom said. “Very high numbers of depression and suicide are linked to not speaking up, but we can prevent it.”
Nearly 1 in 10 men experience some form of depression or anxiety. Less than half of those patients seek treatment. Especially for men, finding balance with your mental health requires talking about it.
That’s why the barefoot Dutchman’s hashtag is #BRAVEMENTALK and his journey is all about breaking the silence. He now walks the world to draw attention to men’s mental health struggles. He went barefoot to Everest base camp and set a Guinness record by walking 1,800 miles barefoot in Australia.
Mr. Nutenboom is a military veteran who returned to civilian life after serving three tours of duty in Afghanistan for the Netherlands. That’s when his anxiety, panic attacks, and bouts of depression became severe.
“Interestingly, this has nothing to do with Afghanistan as everyone thinks. It’s more about life,” Nutenboom said. “I just fell into a deep black hole and I wasn’t ready. I just started crying and I had no idea where the tears were coming from.”
He credits friends, counseling, and apps for helping him practice mindfulness and meditation. Plus, I have a newfound love for walking barefoot.
His travels across Utah and the West are followed by many of his more than 97,000 Instagram followers. But one person who has never heard of Barefoot Dutch is Utahn Christer Edwards.
Edwards was camping near Goblin Valley and Capitol Reef when he felt mysteriously directed to Hanksville, Utah. “All of a sudden I saw him on the street and was drawn to him like a magnet,” Edwards said.
Edwards felt he needed to reset his career and personal life.
“Part of the reason for that was because I wasn’t emotionally available and couldn’t share what was going on. So when I saw this message from a brave man speaking, a man said, ‘I need help. , I am suffering.” That’s what I needed to see. ” Edwards said. “And I’m so glad that I listened to my gut feeling that I should go to Hanksville.”
For Nootenboom, Utah was a welcome sight. “And even though I was having a hard time standing up, at least I had something to see,” he said.
He is impressed by Utah’s small-town character.
“It’s the friendliest thing ever. They look out for each other, like a community. When there’s someone new in town and someone with a story, they’re genuinely interested,” Nutenboom said. he said.
The barefoot Dutchman claims his amazing journey will end in New York this fall and says there’s only one thing that can stop him.
“For this to end, I have to go to the hospital because I can’t use my legs anymore.”
