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Our People
Swapping oars for the Pole
Thursday, 21 September 2006
By DEAN WEDLAKE
• Howick and Pakuranga Times
FOR those who thought this year’s winter was a tad cold, spare a thought for Kevin Biggar.
Photo supplied.
The Howick resident and his former transatlantic rowing partner, Jamie Fitzgerald are about to embark on a 2200km trek to the South Pole and back — a journey that will involve about 75 days of hard slog across the Antarctic.
They are due to fly out to Chile — flights from Christchurch are limited to humanitarian assistance by local law — in late October.
There they will join Antarctic Logistics members to fly into west Antarctica on November 8.
Some locals may have spotted Mr Biggar (
pictured
) participating in bizarre training methods such as pulling old tyres down the street.
To simulate the effort needed to pull a 160kg sled through the snow, Biggar turned himself into a walking used-tyre advertisement, which he says has worked wonders for his training.
“I managed to grab four old tyres to use as resistance training, but had to grab the spare tyre off my car to increase the weight to the right level.
“The training has worked really well,” says Mr Biggar.
Another vital part of the duo’s preparation was spending 24 hours in an industrial freezer in south Auckland, in which temperatures were at a bone chilling 22°C below.
“It was a great time to test our electronics, cameras, clothing and everything we will be taking on the trek.
“It wasn’t quite the -40C that the Antarctic will get up to, but it’s the closest thing we could get,” Mr Biggar adds.
They also spent time in the Canadian Arctic, where they were shown the tricks of the trade by a local guide and were able to be more specific with their day-to-day activities.
Both men feel the experience will prove invaluable when they arrive in the Antarctic, as even the simplest act of opening a packet of food with thick woollen mittens can cause headaches in freezing weather.
A constant source of energy will be vital to their success, and their daily food routine would put even the most dedicated junk food addict to shame.
The pair’s daily energy intake, a whopping 6500 calories, is equal to 13 Big Macs.
Their food items will include chocolate, salami, shortbread and other delicacies.
This will help the men through the eight to 10 hour days that are before them.
They expect to cover about 20km daily before setting up camp each night.
Mr Biggar and Mr Fitzgerald are no strangers to the blood, sweat and tears that accompany an endurance event of this magnitude — they were victorious in the 2003 Transatlantic Rowing race from the Canary Islands to Barbados in record time.
Mr Biggar says while both events require a tremendous amount of mental and physical endurance, there are key differences between the two.
“Whereas our rowing was quite specific in terms of training, we are doing resistance, climatic and aerobic fitness for the South Pole journey.
“I feel fitter now than I ever have been.”
If successful, they will be the first to complete the trek to the South Pole and back totally unsupported, and two of only 200 people in history to complete the journey.
Considering more than 1500 people have reached the summit of Mt Everest, it will be a particularly impressive feat.
Their expedition will mark the 50th anniversary of the founding of Scott Base, and both men are excited about testing their will power against anything the Antarctic throws at them.
