A decade ago today, was my first day in a high-tech machine shop in San Diego, CA. A long way from home in Minnesota, I had come out west to invent a device that could generate electricity from flowing water and provide zero emission power to people everywhere- I had no idea how hard it would be, and that's a good thing.

I was not successful at first, or at second or third, but continued experiments and observations led to one improvement and then another, until one day many years later, there was a working prototype in the water that met all the original criteria: have a low profile so it can fit in rivers and canals; be self-clearing in operation so it won’t clog and jam and stop working. And lastly, and most importantly, generate affordable power. Keeping with the "V" theme, we called it “Volturnus”(named after the ancient Roman God of rivers).

But that wasn’t enough- not nearly enough. The real challenge wasn’t inventing, it was recruiting others to join on this mission. As hard as it was to figure out Volturnus, it was even harder to find the right people. Sometimes consultants didn’t deliver, partners weren’t always accountable and everyone had an opinion about what should be happening.

Slowly but surely, recognizing what people are good at and what they aren’t good at- what they can actually deliver, becomes a learned skill (most entrepreneurs have quite a few "scars" to show from a bad experience with a consultant or vendor). Eventually, more and more of them believe in you and your mission- until one day it isn’t your mission anymore- its ours. Its the most important transition: from inventor to entrepreneur.

Something else started to happen as the years went on; we seemed to get luckier. Not usually in big breakthroughs, but in small and important ways. A little help writing a proposal, introductions and networking, and even people willing to hop in cold water with you to position a prototype. Its hard to estimate how much help we've had from friends, businesses and sometimes complete strangers over the years- but its been a lot, and its humbling.

Is luck just a combination of preparation and opportunity? I can’t say for sure, because sometimes you really do just get a "lucky bounce", but it never hurts to increase your odds.

By far, the best part of this journey has been the people. Because there will always be ups and downs- more than anyone can know at the beginning- but when you are part of the right team, that works hard together and gets a "bounce" every now and then, there isn’t anything you can’t overcome.

Things never move as quickly as you'd want; it's 10 years on and I still don’t know how this story ends, but it is truly astonishing what perseverance and a little providence has accomplished so far, and I can’t help but look forward to what happens next.

Verterra is on a mission to harness the power of flowing water in rivers, oceans and canals to produce abundant, reliable power.

Volturnus is a vertical axis turbine that uniquely harnesses the power of flowing water by combining the working principles of centrifugal pumps & hydrofoils with a rugged, hydrodynamic design. Similar to an underwater 3D weather vane, VOLTURNUS works in harmony with the current to dynamically adjust once deployed. When installed in modular arrays, the technology creates scalable, continuous power from small, 100 watt backpack scale, up to multi-MW arrays.

Based in St. Paul, MN Verterra is funded by mission driven investors and a multi-year DoD contract to commercialize the technology for multiple applications.

Phone: 651-315-8884

Website: www.verterraenergy.com