[Humanpowered] Thinking about a Fast Cob workshop? Here's what Fast Cob grads say about us...

[Dave Olsen]

Warning! This is a long email full of other people's words...people that have empowered themselves by taking one or more of our Fast Cob workshops...if you wish to join them, simply visit [cob.lasqueti.ca](https://cob.lasqueti.ca/workshops.html)

Fast Cob...the Fastest Build on Earth!

"Delightful, i enjoyed the holistic approach, willingness to be flexible and allow for the experience to be fluid! Wabi Sabi! To be honest i expected to work harder!" – Lars from Missouri...10/10

"The best thing that happened is I really feel able to build my own cob house!!!!" – Christine

"Wonderful, challenging, thought-provoking, exhausting, delicious, green, delightful in every way." – Dani

"Really appreciated your patience and inclusion with the kids. Still talking about the sand train. And great to have them feel comfortable working on your home - they weren't worried about doing something wrong or messing something up. Made for much more relaxed parents! Also appreciate your laid back approach, as it makes it so much easier with young ones." – Jenna and Jamie

"Overall, my experience at the workshop was empowering and a wonderful learning experience in natural building and collaboration. The workshop is unique in being tailored to individuals, encouraging them to envision their own projects, as well as providing an exercise in cooperation through various cob techniques. It was incredibly inspiring to see the cob walls growing up around us throughout the week, a physical manifestation of our joint efforts and collaboration. The workshop was really interactive, and was not only limited to building with cob, but was also an exercise in healthy lifestyle, from great food to open spaces for questions and discussion and learning about sustainable living in multiple areas of your life. It is unbelievably empowering to think that I can design and build my own house the way I want, and actively do this while building community and not going into debt!" – Libby

"The instruction was thoughtful and experience based. It encouraged experimentation to determine what worked best for us. The kids had a great time, and travelling on the sand train was extra fun." – Sachiko and Jeff

"Overall a really amazing week. I didn't expect to learn so much in one week, I really think I would have the confidence to start my own cob building project...really beautiful camp site in the 'burbs'" – Claire...10/10

"The experience was great and I learned more than I ever imagined! Dave is a knowledgeable and very patient instructor!" – Tom...10/10

"My questions were answered thoroughly and I felt I came away with a pragmatic and in-depth understanding of subject matter I was unfamiliar with prior to the workshop. I was initially worried I wouldn't have enough food because I tend to eat a lot throughout the day, but I was really happy to have more food than I could possibly consume in a day. The pace was set by the needs of the participants." – Sophee...11/10

"I appreciated the time you took to teach and answer questions. Content is great with the view on the other details such as electricity, roofing, plumbing, foundation. I am glad that you thought about including this." – Marina...10/10

"Instruction was excellent. Dave knows and lives cob and this is evident in his responses to questions posed by workshop attendees. His approach is knowlegable and professional in a gentle, patient and accepting manner. Dave is clear he still learns something new every day he cobs and welcomes new ideas and approaches toward cobbing. He believes we all bring something new to the table and is genuinely excited (in his calm way of course!) when we have a suggestion or idea which makes an aspect of the cob process easier."
– Rick

"Excellent!! The workshop was unexpectedly fun with work with people!! Meaningful to meet those people at same motivation to learn Cob at the same time. Step by Step Dave’s planted instructions were impressively organized." – Yoko...10+/10

"Far exceeded my expectations. First in
the area of increased cob knowledge for me especially as it relates to the materials
found on Lasqueti. In my spiritual tradition, we are taught that the only true knowledge occurs through
experience (not through books or lectures). I really enjoyed the hands/feet-on approach
to learning so that we learned to “feel” our way to correct fast cob." – Tejomaya
​
"Excellent, the workshop exceeded my expectations as the focus was solely on learning, not on labour...the instruction and answers to questions were perfectly thorough and clear....the food was Wonderful" – Alex

"This was a wonderful experience and I couldn't of expected anymore! This was positive in everyway, thank you! The time went too fast!" – Opal...9.5/10

"You always had thoughtful and insightful answers to any of my questions...I liked how the pace was determined by the participants." – Andrew...9.95/10

"I enjoyed how you let us experiment and fail and learn on the fly." – Luke...10/10

"I thought that the content was great! I liked to see the results of living and building by trial and error and seeing the things that you learned along the way. I also enjoyed getting an overview of off grid living in general and being able to ask questions as they came up." – Jessica...10/10
​
"In short, everything was a 10, but I want to also say that the overall experience was amazing. Spending 5 days at your piece of paradise was a pleasure in all ways and left lasting impressions, inspiration, and food for thought. Specifically about the workshop, the pace, content and delivery were all just right for Sylvie and me. We were able to learn not just by listening and watching, but by being encouraged try things our own way, to make mistakes, and experiment. As we hadn't had any experience with cob, this was a great way to get started.
Pre-arrival info and instructions were super clear and timely. Your help in getting us to and from the workshop made it easy and not stressful to both come to Lasqueti and return in a leisurely way.
The food was delicious, plentiful and nourishing. We have tried to mimic the 'Appa sauce' recipe Anicca shared with us. Ours was okay, but not quite as tasty... we'll have to keep trying. ;-) The food, the hosts, the company, the setting all made for highly enjoyable mealtimes.
The amenities were also great. The tent was nice and spacious and the bed very comfortable and blankets warm. We slept so well every night, in spite of those rowdy frogs. It was also very cool to use the composting toilets and no tp method regularly and get used to that perfectly primeval routine.
Coming back to 'on-the grid-city life' was overwhelming after 5 days of learning and living as we did while at the workshop. We left feeling calm, relaxed and inspired. Even though learning about cob was the objective of the workshop, we also experienced first-hand a way of life that feels right for these times.
Thank you, Dave and Anicca for everything. We are truly grateful for all you did to make the workshop what it was." – Karin

"The experience was far more than I expected. It really did feel like we were part of a larger family for the duration of the workshop. My 10 year old son was shy in the beginning and not keen on participating but within a day was in their getting his hands dirty and interacting with everyone, who were all very patient and engaging with him. The process of working with cob is certainly less intimidating now and it is something that I can see us all being able to work with and create something. Dave is very slow and thorough with his explanations and sharing of experiences. He was honest about his learning and eager to share. The content was very deep and easy to take in. He made it all seem very possible and not daunting at all. All questions were answered and when an immediate answer was not available he was able to talk it through and open to other participants feedback. The organization was outstanding. Dave was prompt in all his replies and very welcoming from the start when he met us at the ferry. The schedule for the day was well laid out and communicated and we were sent off as friends. The food was plenty and wonderful!" – 2023 Graduate

“It was empowering! I really feel like in a short week like I can get going on building my own cob house!” – Jodi

"The whole experience was amazing. It was a great sample of a wholesome, healthy lifestyle. Working outdoors in nature with the fresh air and sunshine was great. By days end, a good healthy tired was felt. This was probably the healthiest week of my life. The biggest take away that I have come away with is the confidence that I can build a cob home. Very empowering." – Gary

"I feel like you transferred your knowledge on cob really well...the food was amazing!" – Jan...9/10

"I feel that in the workshop I learnt much more than just cob. I learnt about myself and the world around me through cobbing and connecting with like minded people. It exceeded my expectations in every aspect. I feel empowered and prepared to build my own home.
I found that the way you let us learn through hands on experience really works. I found there was a good balance between explaining and discussing with hands on learning." – Ben...11/10

"You are very a patient man Dave. I asked many questions, some times more than once, you took the time to answer them and even reworded or showed by example so I would better understand.” – Ena...10/10

"I would have liked a slightly larger workshop with more people, but otherwise I was happy. ” – Victor...8/10

“Transformative and empowering!” – Kate

"It was a great adventure! I'm glad we went. We learned a lot and met some great people. I REALLY appreciated that we got to work at our own pace and didn't feel like we had to do everything a certain way.” – Beatrice

“Very instructive and hands-on.” – Matt

"100%. Professional, thorough, and authentic. Felt comfortable to ask any question. You are the only person practicing fast cob and I believe this is an important empowering method for all kinds of people. This is very unique.” – Anissa

"My overall experience was fantastic. The course gave me the hands-on experience and confidence I was looking for. I am so much more comfortable working with the material.
"The instruction was great throughout the workshop. Dave was always open to questions, and gave thorough answers and demonstrations. His delivery was relaxed, and we were left to work at our own pace. The content covered almost everything I'd need to know to build a house. I appreciated that Dave took us around the site and explained what he had learned from previous projects, as well as things that we didn't build like roofing and foundations." – Lori

"Loved how everything was hands on, informative, fun!...all instructions and directions easy to follow...amazing food...organically paced, good flow.” – Sylvia...10/10

“You have no idea how excited I am that I now pretty much know how to build a house out of dirt.” – Kate

“Learning what we needed to know as we put it to practical use rather than spending a lot of time on theory was a useful approach for me.” – Terry

"BRILLIANT!On a sensational level, simply being out in the woods learning with our hands and bodies in the BC weather with clay, straw and sand was a tonic to busy city life. On a personal level; David and Anicca were patient teachers, kind hosts as well as the funnest folks to hang out with. This was brilliant and felt unstructured, which we really enjoyed! We would not suggest you change the style ever. You knew what we were doing and (weather dependent) had each day planned; but we proceeded in such a relaxed and casual manner that it gave a sense of freedom to move on to the next stage or various other projects available for our learning or to stop and ask as many questions as we needed (we had many, many questions..!). This felt good and was very liberating! You answered all of our non-stop questions thoroughly, whether over meals or over cowpats, but the teaching felt so friendly and unconventional that we only realized the magnitude of everything we had learned a few days later, when we were going over our notes and discussing techniques :) We missed you guys the second we left and still do. You have such kindness and peace between you and that radiated on to us and through us in the next steps of our journey until now. I actually found the freedom of self-expression in such safe surroundings during the infamous Talent Night, to be the most important part of the whole workshop.” – Maryla and Geoff

We'd love for you to join the list above...just visit [cob.lasqueti.ca](https://cob.lasqueti.ca/workshops.html) to sign up for our workshops before they fill up for another year!

Dave Olsen

web:[cob.lasqueti.ca](http://cob.lasqueti.ca/) email: fastcob at proton.me phone: 877.873.1797 or 604.216.6700

Build your dream...easier, faster, and more affordably with Fast Cob!
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