Everyone familiar with this site knows that I am a big fan of fundraisers and a big fan of Farm Sanctuary. Anytime those things come together I get really happy. We got these questions off to Cory just before his marathon fundraiser but he was busy training so we got them back after, but fear not, Cory is still taking donations for this past run and plans to continue to run marathons and raise funds for Farm Sanctuary. I suggest heading over to Cory’s site, The Vegan FireFighter to stay up to date with his fundraising. This is a great story and I wish Cory the best!

You adopted a vegan diet two years ago, as a fire fighter was it tough to convince your peers that what you were embarking on wasn’t going to effect your job performance? How important are books like the Engine 2 Diet in breaking down that wall with other fire fighters?

Well, you know how guys can be especially in my line of work. I definitely get a few comments here and there about being a tree hugger or being fragile, but its all in good fun. For the most part my crew and department has been pretty supportive of my “diet”. We have all vegan food days at the station where I will do all the cooking. On typical days I bring my own food from home. I still sit with the guys at meal time we are just all eating our own things.

As far as the wall goes with the other firefighters, it seems that being armed with information is key to helping them understand veganism and why it is important to me. Animal cruelty or bad farming practices do not really come up. It’s much more of a health based approach at work. I only recently met Rip Esstelsyn and picked up a copy of Engine 2 Diet. From what I have read it’s a good book and does broach some of the subject matter I have had come up at work. So I may use some of the information I gather from the book at a later point.

How long have you been running for? Have you noticed any difference as you moved towards plant based foods?

I have been running for about 3 years. I have noticed a difference in all facets of my life physically since moving towards plant based foods. I believe my endurance and overall performance with running did improve with becoming vegan. Not to mention my day to day energy level went up. I had also experienced some intestinal issues throughout my life (lower GI) and once I made the switch I no longer have those problems.

The connection between saving lives, in your professional live and your personal live, is a great story. I am wondering how deep that connection is for you, do you feel like human and non human animals are connected in an inextricable way?

I have always been compassionate towards animals but, becoming vegan really amplified that compassion. I became much more aware of the horrible conditions food animals must endure and that knowledge has undoubtedly raised my compassion for them. I do believe that non human and human animals are connected and that both feel pain, joy etc . I find that it has always been important to me to decrease the suffering of any living thing when possible if it be in those last fleeting moments or throughout their life. Dealing with death on a daily basis has made me all the more aware of the limited time we all have.

What advice and words of caution do you have for others looking to embark on a active fundraiser like yours?

My advice would be to people considering raising money is to go for it! I never anticipated how huge this whole thing would get. Inquiries like yours, donations from across country, mentions on various blogs… it’s just incredible! I was able to raise $1000 and so much awareness. That said, if it does get big be very aware of the time commitment that will be required. I believe if you are putting your name out there in support of anything that you want to do your best to represent yourself and the organization well, doing that may take more time then you would think. I would also tell people that raising money and receiving support from people that do not even know you is an incredible experience and is definitely worth all the time and sweat put into the fundraiser. I also think that representing the Vegan Firefighter in a professional and organized manner (the blog, t-shirts etc) helped instill confidence in people which allowed them to feel comfortable in sending money to me for Farm Sanctuary although that had not met me personally.

Your run is coming up this weekend, for those interested in supporting you how can they help donate to your run?

Obviously I got back to you a little late for this one. But, I am still accepting donations for Farm Sanctuary by check. The website donation program I had set up for credit card donations has ended. My mailing information is Cory Kalanick, 2697 Sun Drive, Hanford, CA 93230. The mailing information is also available on the blog.

I am by no means done raising money for Farm Sanctuary. I am in the process of mapping out the next race I will be doing and how to best raise more funds for Farm Sanctuary.

Soy Milk vs. Almond vs. Hemp vs. Rice

When I first went vegan I bought various types of milk and tried them all out. Initially, I only really cared for Rice Milk. But, two years later and I enjoy Almond and Soy milk even more then Rice. I get quite a bit of soy in my diet as a vegan so I tend to lean towards Almond Milk just to alleviate some of the soy consumption.

I also have found making cashew cream at home works better than most milks for cooking. I use it quite a bit for cream sauces on pasta and also use it to make various desserts.

Tofu vs. Tempeh vs. Seitan

Personally, I can’t stand Tempeh… maybe it was the way it was prepared but it tasted like hot garbage from behind a fish market. I do use a decent amount of tofu. I recently started making my own Seitan and that’s probably my favorite meat substitute. Purchasing it is rather expensive, but making it is very cheap and you can flavor it anyway you want. I use a No Chicken bouillon from Better Then Bouillon that is incredible.

What is on your playlist when you run?

I have a little bit of everything. Literally everything… Tainted Love to Black Eyed Peas to George Straight. Here is a sample list (the whole thing is pretty long)

Add It Up- Violent Femmes
All Summer Long- Rock Heroes
Big Weekend- Tom Petty
Come As You Are- Nirvana
Eye Of The Tiger- Survivor
Fortunate Son- Creedence Clearwater
The Fireman (of course)- George Straight
Mama I’m Coming Home- Ozzy Osbourne
Raise Your Glass- P!nk
Pump It- Black Eyed Peas
Shake It- Metro Station
Used To Get High- John Butler Trio (kind of a funny song about all the garbage we eat in America)
Ring Of Fire- Johnny Cash

Your first big meal after the marathon will be ………

My first big meal after the marathon was a great meal at the Encore in Las Vegas. The owner of the Encore and the Wynn, Steve Wynn is vegan. He has made it mandatory that all of his restaurants have vegan options. I definitely appreciated that and wanted to support him by eating out at one of his hotels. My family and I went to the Society Cafe and I had a killer Grilled Vegetable Flatbread topped with peppers, eggplant, vegan cheese, marinara etc. We also ordered a Vegetable Tasting for the table that was incredible. It had roasted beets, trumpet mushrooms, a lemon and thyme artichoke and some quinoa.