Antarctic Update: Speed Attempts Go For Hannah's Record!

ExWeb has another very good article today on the emerging Antarctic season, with a good overview of what’s going to be happening on the ice in the coming weeks.

They note that there are no less than five skiers vying for Hannah McKeand’s speed record to the Pole via Hercules Inlet. Among them is American Todd Carmichael, Mark Langridge, who will also ski back to the start, and the Impossible-2-Possible team made up of Richard Weber,Ray Zahab and Kevin Vallely. The time to beat is 40 days. Good luck gentleman.

Some of the skiers are also making a go at the “solo and unsupported” category. Those include Carmichael and Landridge of course, but also Teemu Lakkasuo and Chus Lago, who is looking to become the first Spanish woman to make the trip to the South Pole. She is the only solo woman on the ice this season.

Speaking of the ladies, there are four of them currently in Antarctica, including Chus. Yesterday I mentioned ExWeb’s interview with Sarah McNair-Landry, who at the age of 22, is already an experienced polar guide. One of the members of her team is Kari Gundeso from Norway. They hope to reach the Pole together. Meanwhile, Jill Maxwell is part of the ANI Team departing tomorrow along the Messner Route.

A few other quick updates today. The Shackleton Centenary Team got underway yesterday and managed to log about 8.8 miles. There is also a great story about them on the BBC website today as well. Check it out here. You’ll recall that they set out from the Shackleton Hut and will be following in the footsteps of the famous explorer.

Todd Carmichael has a similarly successful day yesterday. His latest dispatch says that he’s still struggling to get his handheld computer to work for uploading photos and images, but his sat phone is working fine and he’s feeling well. He logged about 9 miles yesterday himself, all of it uphill, and hopes to break into the double digit mileage today.

Good luck to everyone! Enjoy the adventure, stay warm, and lookout for killer penguins.

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Kraig Becker

Kraig is an outdoor and adventure travel writer based in Nashville, TN. Over the course of his career, he has contributed to numerous online and print outlets, including Popular Mechanics, Gear Junkie, Outside Online, National Geographic, Digital Trends, Business Insider, TripSavvy, about.com, and of course The Adventure Blog.