do some people have a death wish?

WHAT SOME PEOPLE WILL DO TO KEEP FROM WORKING

Professional explorers are a people who chose to beg for support from companies that believe they need them to promote the products they make. Some of these activities cost hundreds of thousands of dollars. Who gets the benefit from these explorations, only the explorer as far as I am concerned! The explorer gets a free ride to where ever and also get to keep all of the gear supplied to them. One such professional is Ben Saunders.

Earlier this week I noticed a headline on an online news publication about this fellow who was going to walk from Berkner Island to the Ross Ice Shelf a distance of 1033 miles across Antarctica, a journey never accomplished by one person unsupported. It is his intention to walk pulling a sled with 300 to 400 pounds of equipment etc. in 65 days plus or minus. His purpose is to honor a friend Henry Worsley who attempted the same journey in 2015 and became ill and was medevacked to a hospital in Chile where he died. This journey is “unsupported” meaning that unless he calls them to take him out he will not be calling for any additional supplies or change of clothing.

I do not believe he can make it!!! Maybe he wants to join his friend.

The reason I do not believe he will accomplish the journey has to do with his clothing.

The human body gives off significant amounts of moisture in extreme cold. The temperatures he will be experiencing vary from 0 degrees F to -50 degrees F. He is pulling this sled over an icy surface or a snowy surface. When over ice the sled moves easily, but over the snow surface (it can snow many days) he is not pulling it over the snow but through the snow which requires a greater amount of energy. The more energy you expend the more moisture your body gives off.

He is starting at a sea level elevation and at some point will be pulling the sled over a mountain range at an elevation of 10,000 or so feet. That may be after 30 or 40 days after the start, and will take significantly more energy than pulling the sled on a flat surface. I do not know if the rise in elevation is gradual or not but the reality is he will now have less oxygen in the air to take in which will cause his body to work significantly harder, all the while giving off even more moisture.

KEEP IN MIND MOISTURE FROM YOUR BODY IS YOU WORST ENEMY IN COLD CONDITIONS!!!

On his feet he is wearing a boot that is completely waterproof. That means 100 percent of the moisture coming out of his feet is trapped within the boots.

UNTIL I READ THE ARTICLE WHICH WAS PAID FOR VERSUS SOME WRITER LEARNING OF IT BY CANADAGOOSE COMPANY I NEVER HEARD OF THE FELLOW!

He has been walking or skiing as is the case on this trip in various parts of the winter world and holds records for doing these activities. How has humanity benefitted from his activity? It has not, but he has.

Canadagoose is his major sponsor and from what I noted on his web site he has about a dozen others. I guess his greatest success is getting companies to support his way of life.

I remember years ago speaking with Will Steger about using my sleeping bags on his dog mushing trip across Antarctica sponsored by Gore. I told him if he wanted to not experience the ice buildup in his sleeping bags as he experienced dog mushing to the North Pole in 1985/6 (50 pounds) he should buy my Antarctic bags. His response was; give me $37,000.00 and the bags, so I told him to freeze. I question if he made it but that is history. He did come to see me when I still exhibited at the outdoor retailer trade show and told me;” if I didn’t have your mukluks I would not have made it”. He must have had someone purchase them because I have no record of him buying them, but that was a very nice compliment. Many expeditions to Antarctica from European countries have purchased them over the years.

As for this fellow Ben Saunders I believe his down fall is going to be his clothing. From what I have seen him wearing on pervious jaunts the base layers are close knit fabric garments and the insulated layers are all down layers. Where will all of his perspiration go, into his clothing for the most part and what will happen to it, it will condense and freeze.

Keep in mind that I personally experienced for a period of only three days surviving a snow storm at 12,000 feet with temperatures that varied from -20 degrees F to about -50 degrees created by wind chill. I lost about 3 pounds which was basically water loss and all of the moisture my body gave off is clearly visible on my parka. Since I was wearing fishnet underwear as a base layer the perspiration was free to move away from me and since the parka was Lamilite insulated it got through to the outside where it condensed. What I went through was a wonderful learning experience of how well my products do work.

Since his insulated garments are down filled they will do what down does, absorb whatever moisture gets to the down. There is no way to dry anything in an arctic environment unless you are in a heated building, but certainly not in his tent.

The process of moisture absorption takes place very quickly in an arctic environment because the human body dehydrates more quickly in a cold environment.

I do not believe he can accomplish his goal for one primary reason; the moisture from his own body is his enemy.

I have read up on his successes in walking/skiing for hundreds of miles in similar conditions but I do not believe they are as arduous as this is. His friend failed as did others as far back as the Scott Expedition and Earnest Shackleton. No one has completed a solo unsupported, unassisted crossing of the Antarctic continent.

In one of the photos I saw on the internet was him in front of two Twin Otter aircraft. That suggests to me that there is a possibility he may be resupplied at some point or stashes will have been placed along the way as Steger had when he crossed with dogs. He needed dog food but other items were probably placed there as well. if this were to happen who would know about it?

If he does not make it as I believe he can’t as is stated “unsupported” what his benefactors will be able to say, he tried. But they will never say the problem was our clothing, will they! They have a lot to actually lose so I would not put it past them to use those Twin Otters.

One last note, I saw an ad from Canadagoose this morning offering some of the $900.00 parka models they make for $299.00 each at retail. One of the models I believe is one they gave him. Has their bubble burst? What are their investors thinking now, since the company went public I believe this year. My advice is not to buy their stock. Just my opinion.