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January 2005 (Editor's note: Mark McMahon is the founder of Live Your Adventure web site and newsletter. Mark is also a regular contributor to Escape From America Magazine) If you're a fan of "Wayne's World" from "Saturday Night Live," you'll certainly remember Wayne and Garth bowing down before Rock God Alice Cooper repeating: "We're not worthy! We're not worthy!" That's how I felt in the presence of Adventure God, twice-'round-the-world author, Jim Rogers. His first trip in 1990 was on a motorcycle. It yielded the book Investment Biker. In his more recent Millennium Tour, he traveled for three years to 116 countries in his custom-built, sunburst yellow, hybrid Mercedes. This trip was the genesis of his book, Adventure Capitalist. The financial reference in both titles is no coincidence. Rogers entered the investment business in 1968 with $600 in his pocket. Thanks to some brilliant investment strategies he was able to retire 12 years later. But this was just the beginning of an even bigger adventure. As he says in Adventure Capitalist, "What I wanted out of Wall Street, and ultimately out of long-term investing, was not typical of the business. I wanted to buy the freedom to taste as much of life as possible — I wanted to see the world." And though everyone's goal may not be to retire young and travel around the world, Rogers is still an inspiration to all of us! He figured out what he was passionate about and went for it — risk, thrills, and all.

Jim Rogers

LYA: Are you a fan of "Wayne’s World"? 

JR: Who?

LYA: "Wayne’s World" from "Saturday Night Live." Wayne and Garth were talking to Alice Cooper and they said, “We're not worthy, We're not worthy,” you went on through 116 countries and I just went through 16. So I feel awed and inspired by the scope of your adventure and I’m looking forward to using a lot of what I learned in your book. When I finished your book I was touched by a lot of the same emotions that I had when I came back after being on the road for four years. Did you feel like the country was a totally different place when you got back?

JR: Well, yes and no. A country can't change that quickly in three years. I couldn't help but notice how much more expensive things have become. I got a physical from my doctor and the price was over twice what it was before I left. Who can afford to dry clean their clothes any more? A can of soup for nearly $3? Movies for $10 and popcorn priced like gold nuggets? But most things were still the same. Such as our inattention to the rest of the world. There was a blip there with 9/11, which caused a huge outcry, and justly so. Now there are a couple of wars where we are having serious problems, but the country is more or less the same. I wish we understood the rest of the world more. I wish everybody understood the world more, not just Americans. But essentially Americans because we’re the nation that has been on top. The events of 9/11 awakened some interest in the rest of the world but unfortunately I’m afraid it didn’t do it in the right way. Things are getting worse instead of better. Investors (and citizens) need to look outward rather than inward. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: Closing off from the rest of the world only hurts us, both politically and economically.

LYA: I think it’s interesting the way you said we have been on top. It seems to me we might have reached a point were we’re on a downhill slide in a lot of respects.

JR: There is no question that we have peaked. Whether it’s downhill now or walking across the top of a mountain ridge, I don’t know. History will decide that. There’s no question that we’re the world’s largest debtor nation, by a factor of many times. We owe the rest of the world eight trillion dollars. Trillion with a "T". Our debt increases at a rate of one trillion dollars every 21 months. Do the arithmetic. That’s not a nation that will continue to ascend. We’re a nation with serious problems. No country in the world in history has ever gotten itself into this kind of situation and gotten out without a problem.

LYA: I read a quote on the back of your book, Adventure Capitalist that says, “My success in the market has been predicated on viewing the world from a different perspective.” You obviously don’t go with traditional wisdom. How much of your success do you think is based on your gut or intuition about situations?

JR: Not much. My success comes from analysis and research, understanding… If you call understanding the “gut” then all of it. Emotion is not a usually good way to be successful, unless you’re a rock star or something. No, it’s the desire, the longing and passion to go out and see what’s happening, then explore it and figure it out. 

LYA: So essentially a desire to learn about things, and then take action based on what you learn.
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JR: Yes, and to take the action to learn. LYA: So tell me a little about your forthcoming book, Hot Commodities. JR: I never wanted to do a book about the investment world. I’ve always refused, in fact. But my publisher, Random House, pointed out that I had been talking about commodities at a time when nobody else had much interest. Now commodities have been booming, as you may know. And the publisher said, “Look, I’ve been trying to buy some books on commodities and there aren’t any. Certainly not any designed for the public. Why don’t you do one? It will be easy for you. We’ll get somebody to do the leg work if you need it.” It was a compelling case so I said, “Okay, I'll do it”. I do believe commodities need more explanation. It's not a very well understood subject at all.

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LYA: So you created the index years ago? [Editor's note: Rogers Raw Materials Fund (RRMF) index]

JR: Yes, I created it in 1998.

LYA: I’m not a financial person myself so I have a question about your index and how that relates to investing. It shows historical trends?

JR: Do you know what the Dow-Jones index is? 

LYA: Yes.

JR: Well this is the same thing. It just tracks commodities instead of stocks. The Dow Jones tells you what is happening in the stock market in any period and that’s what this does. It's an index fund that tracks the price moves of 35 raw materials on commodities.

LYA: Is the index going to be a big part of that book?

JR: No, no. It’s going to be a part of it obviously, but not much. It's more about explaining commodities. Commodities are real assets — raw materials and natural resources from all over the world. And while raw materials can lose value, the price of a commodity will never go to zero. When you invest in commodities futures, you're not buying a piece of paper that says you own an intangible piece of company that can go bankrupt. You're buying a contract to purchase a real, tangible bushel of corn or several hundred pounds of coffee. They're perhaps the best investment opportunity I see these days. 

LYA: So what's your next big adventure?

JR: My baby girl. I used to feel sorry for people encumbered with the care of small children. But I was wrong. I'm glad I didn't miss it. It's given me feelings I didn't know I had.

LYA: I read your daughter has her own Swiss bank account?

JR: That's right! My baby girl doesn't own any dollars, all her money is in Swiss francs. She knows the U.S. dollar is in decline [laughs]. And I'm making sure she learns mandarin Chinese. The 21st century belongs to China... my baby girl has a Chinese nanny and already she's beginning to learn words. She'll be ready. 

LYA: Thank you for your time! It was an honor to interview you.

JR: Your welcome, Mark. You did a good job.

Visit Jim Rogers' website at www.jimrogers.com

The following are Mark's previous articles for the magazine:

An Accountant In Argentina ~ An Interview With Joel Graham
Through Bolivia ~ Riding My Bike On The World's Most Dangerous Road
Living Large In Buenos Aires ~ Argentina
At The Bottom Of The World - Ushuaia
Adventures In Colombia ~ The Journey Continues
El Salvador Autohotel ~ Salvadoran Hotel Pleasure ~ by Mark McMahon
Bolivian Safari ~ Salar de Uyuni, Bolivia 
Baby Blue And La Paz ~ Making It Through In Bolivia
What Doesn't Kill You...  ~ Noel Kempff National Park, Bolivia
Bolivia To Buenos Aires -On The Road
ANTI-AMERICAN SENTIMENT ~ Politics In Latin America
Cuba ~ Having Fun

Go to Mark's web site and check out his new book, DRIVING TO THE END OF THE WORLD, due out at Christmas.  Click Here

To contact Mark Click Here
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