CHICAGO, USA (Team Geared Up) - This week I’m posting some personal pictures. For the last 10 days I was in Alaska, USA on a vacation trip that is really worth the 6:30 hours (from Chicago) in a plane without room for even moving your toes. I was in Anchorage, Seward, Homer and Denali National Park hiking, fishing, bear viewing and kayaking, among other things and I’m posting a few pictures of the kayaking part. As our (wife and I) experience as paddlers is not great (nor we have any adequate equipment), we did a one day organized tour with Kayak Adventures Worldwide. 5 paddlers, an excellent guide and an awesome day paddling close, very close to the Aialik Glacier. Totally recommended!!

Also posting a picture of the Mt. Marathon race, an annual competition in Seward where runners go up a steep and muddy peak on a cloudy, 10C degrees day… half naked? ;)

-Ed-
Trail, ultra and adventure running at trailrunningsoul.com

Image credit….. myself!

CHICAGO, UNITED STATES (Team Geared Up) - The TGU blogging team gather on the phone to discuss the future of the blog, what we’ll be talking about over the next month, and what we’re getting up to. We got as far as item one, Aisling’s Ironman, before the call cut-off. Apologies - but this bit is worth a listen anyway!

Click play below, listen to the show in iTunes, or download here.

Don’t forget to leave some questions for tomorrow’s interview.

Make sure to subscribe to future episodes in the TGU Podcast in iTunes (or directly).

-Robin

CHICAGO, UNITED STATES (Team Geared Up) - Tomorrow I’m interviewing Simon and Fearghal from revolutioncycle.ie . They are aiming to be the first Irish people to circumnavigate the earth by bicycle.

This November, Simon Evans and Fearghal O’Nuallain will begin the first Irish circumnavigation of the globe by bicycle. Their unsupported expedition will cover over 30,000km, passing through 30 countries and some of the highest, lowest, driest, coldest, warmest and loneliest places on earth.

I want your questions… what would you like me to ask them about? So far I’ve got…

• Their training programme.
• Communications plans.
• What bike trailers are like.
• Security worries.

Add yours in the comments by 1600hrs (GMT) Friday and I’ll be sure to ask them…

-Robin.

Pictured above is Bronagh Ni Bhriain, Fionnuala Doherty, Christine Hannelly, Aisling Coppinger, Orla McEvoy and Geraldine O’ Shea. I got that photo from Peter O’ Farrell and you can see his picasa set here.

-Aisling-

Essentially it was an endurance event MTB race - 10 hours non-stop! It was in Kirroughtree in Sctoland which is a MTB park. We did it as a team of 3 but you could do it as a solo (i know 10 hours non-stop MTBing!), or pairs or trios or quads! We were also in the mixed senior category and I came second. We narrowly missed out on 1st by 6 minutes. Not bad over 10 hours 22 minutes racing I reckon!

I’m loving the grit and determination in that photo!! True spirit!

-Aisling-

Photo kindly sent to me by Vanessa!
UPDATE: Photo from Xpressphoto.

DUBLIN, IRELAND (Team Geared Up) - Well Lewis Gordon Pugh is the guy who has been swimming in the North and South Pole waters before so at least he’ll be used to the cold. He plans to kayak for 10 hours a day in which he hopes he will cover 100km a day. When he reaches the most Northerly point possible he plans to raise the flags of 192 nations to show that everyone has an effect on the melting ice caps. Check out his own personal website here and the expedition website to keep up to date with latest news.

Lewis on his Website:

On the 27 August I will attempt to become the first person to kayak all the way to the North Pole. I will start on the Island of Svalbard (just north of Norway) and paddle 1,200km across the Arctic Ocean, into the ice packs, and along cracks in the ice, till I get to the North Pole.

I am undertaking this expedition to show the dramatic loss of sea ice in the Arctic Ocean.  It shouldn’t be possible to kayak all the way to the North Pole.  It should be frozen over.  But a number of scientists are predicting that this year will be the first year the North Pole will be ice-free.  I hope they are wrong, and I do not get all the way there!

-Eoinod-

What’s involved in the race:

In December 2008 international teams will race over 400 miles to the Geographic South Pole. Almost 100 years after Scott and Amundsens historic race, in the Amundsen Omega 3 South Pole Race of the new century teams of 3 will ski pulling 200lb pulks over the same route, with the same equipment, starting from the same start line.

-Aisling-

Image and qoute from SimplyDecide.
Earlier TGU story here.

A total of 50k of rugged Cooley Mountain terrain involving a 16k run, taking in the peak runs of both the Fox’s Rock and Slieve Foy, 26k MTB section, 6k sea kayak relay paddle, finishing with a 2k run around St. Johns Castle and through the village to the finish line at the Sailing Club.

The early morning sun greeted the teams as they arrived from all over Ireland, and shone on the many tents that pitched the night before. After the race briefing the athletes gathered behind the Carlingford Piped Band providing a fantastic atmosphere for the now traditional parade through the village to the start line. At 10.15am Johnny McCabe blew the whistle for the start of a long day, for the 48 three person teams entered.

Looks like an exciting race ensued and I know Paul and co. are very pleased with a great win in a strong field. Lots of names you might recognise from Irish mountain running on this finish list. Congrats! I wonder how many of you lot are gearing up for the Beast of Ballyhoura?

Results:-
1st Paul Mahon; Beth Mc Cluskey; Gery Lawlor (Mixed) 4 hours 59 mins
2nd Eoin Keith; Bob Boles, Chris Caughfield (Male) 5 hours 04 mins
3rd David McKeown; Ray O=92Shaughnessy; Seamus Byrne (Male) 5 hours 18 =
mins
4th Kevin Lynch; Cathel McCreevey; Paul McArthur (Male) 5 hours 28 mins

1st Female Team - Fiona Barrett; Jackie Howard; Pauline Brady 6 hours 35
mins
2nd Una May; Mary O=92Connell; Zoe Melling 6 hours 58 mins

2nd Mixed Team Melanie Earwaker; Niall Donovan; A.N.Other
3rd Greg Byrne; Grainne Connor; Aisling Corkery

-Aisling-

Image from Paul Mahon, qoute from the CLEC race report.

CHICAGO, UNITED STATES (Team Geared Up) - We’ve talked about it for over a year. It was time to just get it moving! In this first episode of the Team Geared Up Podcast I talk with 22 year old Julie McElroy about her trip to the Andes with the BBC documentary Beyond Boundaries (great article in the Times last month).

The series follows a team of physically disabled adventurers as they take on some of the toughest expeditions on the Planet under the guidance of EX SAS Major Ken Hames.

10 physically disabled teenagers cross the Andes, one of the highest mountain ranges in the world. Over a period of four weeks and 400km, these young people will have to fight their way from the edge of the Amazon Basin, climb to over 5000m to reach the snowline on Cotopaxi, the highest active volcano in the world, and then descend to sea level, wading through miles of swamp before reaching the Pacific Ocean.

Julie’s achievements are huge. She motivates people all over the world to overcome their troubles and achieve things for themselves.

Episode 1 - Show Notes
00:00 Julie talks about the Beyond Boundaries trip
01:30 Weather in the Amazon
02:35 A typical day was 8km pushing a wheelchair
03:36 What strengths did different people have?
05:28 Julie continued work with the BBC
06:30 What piece of gear did Julie miss most?
08:32 How did locals react to the Beyond Boundaries group passing through?
09:36 What’s the next challenge?

Click play below, listen to the show in iTunes, or download here.

Julie is looking for her next challenge. Please leave suggestions in the comments :-)

Make sure to subscribe to future episodes in the TGU Podcast in iTunes (or directly).

-Robin

Here’s a description from last year, just to whet your appetite.

The early morning sun greeted the teams as they arrives from all over Ireland, and shone on the many tents that pitched the night before. After the race briefing the athletes gathered behind the Carlingford piped band for the now traditional parade through the village to the start line.

-Aisling-

Photo from CLEC Gallery 2003 and it looks like John McEnri and Paul Mahon.