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Polar Race 2005 News23 April 2022 - Northern Stars finally home
They are, however, a highly disciplined, competitive bunch so we expect them to make a strong showing on the third leg. The only team not yet in is the Ikey Icemen, our steadfast South African team, who at 9pm were 8 miles from the finish of the second leg and still going. They are expecting to arrive at Checkpoint 2 in Cator Harbour at about 3am and are already announcing their intention of going straight into the start of the third leg tomorrow afternoon. Doctor Mike will have the final decision on whether they are up to it, or need a longer rest. After an exhausting second leg, we received the following (printable) quotes from those few competitors not sound asleep.
22 April 2022 - Race for second place produces tight finish Just one minute separated second and third place finishers on the second leg of the Polar Race for the Wedgwood Blue Ice Trophy.
One minute! Yes, only one minute after 130 miles and six and a half days racing in the most extreme environment in the world, separated them from their pursuers in 3rd place; the Cable & Wireless Polar Team of Steve Wright and Simon Elmont. Six hours later, Gentlemen Adventurers, James Laban and Will Morton, finished in 4th place. Late this evening, Northern Stars, David Aston, Charlie Newington-Bridges and Alex Williams, became the 5th team in to Checkpoint 2. All teams on the last day had battled on through whiteout conditions, endorsing once again the quality of training and just how far they have come in mastering the conditions. 21 April 2022 - Victory for Neways
This in no way should take away from the Neways Polar Team as Christina was suffering from flu before the start in Resolute which hindered them in the first leg. They were strong all the way through, employed the right tactics, and thoroughly deserved their win. Both the Cable & Wireless Polar Team and the real revelation on this leg, the mixed team ofPole Position, are expected in late this evening which means that Neways Polar Team will have built a cushion of over 24 hours. Still a long way to go though! 20 April 2022 - Pole Position The surprise package of the second leg is the Pole Position team who are now simply flying along and currently occupy second place in the leg.
Then there is Yorkshire business man, Kevin Dixon, who is a diabetic. Kevin is using a unique insulin pump developed by Roche Diagnostics without which his participation in the race would probably just not be possible. Kevin's performance will give hope to millions and prove that if you have the will, anything is possible. The third member of the team is Irish Australian Helen Lee, a former stuntwoman who gave up her job in Australia to take part in the Polar Race. Like Clare, she is a woman of iron determination. When she gets to the finish she will be the first Australian woman to walk to a Northern "Pole". I sincerely hope the Australian public and press will properly recognise her achievement when she does. Last but by no means least is gentle giant Patrick "Rambo" Keatinge; an Oxford graduate and BP employee. Patrick is one of those very caring souls whom you could trust with anybody and someone who I would always want on my team in any expedition! STOP PRESS: Late this evening Neways Polar Team made it in to Checkpoint 2, to claim first place in Leg 2 of Polar Race 2005. More on this tomorrow. 19 April 2022 - Neways Polar Team
The Neways Polar Team is made up of two old friends, Justin Packshaw and Christina Franco. Born in Malta, Justin is a former soldier and is very much an entrepreneur. He has sailed round the world and was for a time the liaison officer for the Times in the Round the World Clipper Challenge. He is very, very fit, and a honorable, nice, man. The phrase "an officer and a gentleman" is one you would readily apply to Justin! Christina is a guide in her native Italy, but in fact spends a lot of her time travelling the world employing her many talents: from photography to writing. Christina has a warm bubbly personality and is a joy to have around. She is writing a book after the race. They are a formidable combination. 18 April 2022 - North of Bathurst A truly beautiful Arctic day for the racers — no wind and bright sunshine as high pressure pushed its way into the region.
Tomorrow we feature our current leg leaders, Neways Polar Team. 17 April 2022 - Polar Bear Encounter Sadly, the Cable & Wireless Polar Team of Steve Wright and Simon Elmont had to shoot a polar bear as it clawed its way into their tent last night. All contestants are made fully aware that we are the intruders into the bears' environment and given extremely thorough training in the many ways of scaring a bear away. Despite all this, very occasionally the worst happens. The two Channel Islands contestants were put into an impossible situation and had no other choice. In the unnerving circumstances they reacted coolly and shot the bear despite having to struggle out of their sleeping bags. They informed Polar Race Base Camp immediately and the proper authorities were informed. They were subsequently advised to move away from the area. This they did, through the night, and have spent the rest of the day recovering from the ordeal and repairing their split tent. As both are still recovering from flu it was an exhausting experience. Both Steve and Simon are well, and are continuing in the race.
16 April 2022 - Another Whiteout After several days of blissful sunshine, the weather turned again today, with whiteout conditions slowing down all our competitors on their way north from Little Cornwallis Island to Polar Bear Pass. The good news is that there is an area of high pressure building to the west of the competitors which should mean better weather by Monday. The competitors are still on relatively flat new sea ice but they will shortly move into older sea ice which means more rubble and slower going.
Finally, our quartermaster Simon Marshall flew back home today. He left us with a short story about race organiser Jock Wishart's cooking prowess! Read it here. 15 April 2022 - Checkpoints Leg 2 of Polar Race 2005 started today at 2pm sharp, from Checkpoint 1, with five of the teams setting off on their way to Checkpoint 2, north of Bathurst Island some 130 miles away — the longest and hardest leg of the race. The South African Ikey Icemen team decided to take advantage of their permitted rest period of 24 hours rather than start with the other teams, and will resume racing early tomorrow morning. As they have picked up pace recently this could well be a good tactical ploy. We have been asked by a number of people what we mean by "checkpoints" and how they apply to the Polar Race. When the Polar Race was originally conceived it was decided that it would be too much to ask contestants who were, in the main, Polar novices to undertake the whole race unsupported and hence they would have to be resupplied. At the same time we needed to put in safety cover for the contestants and to some extent influence the route they would take (to make it as safe as possible and avoid known danger areas) as well as making sure they were properly rested. Hence, the idea of manned checkpoints was born. In the Polar Race there are three checkpoints between the Start in Resolute Bay and the Finish at the 1996 certified position of the North Magnetic Pole. This was the position of the Magnetic Pole certified and measured by David Hempleman-Adams and Jock Wishart for the Canadian authorities in their Ultimate Challenge expedition of 1996 when the first group of polar novices was taken to a pole.
As the race is about accumulated time between checkpoints, time spent at checkpoints is not included in the race time and where possible the contestants are restarted enmasse at the end of the rest period. The first, CP1, is near the site of the old Polaris mine. This is about 60 miles from Resolute and is normally on new ice and therefore quite flat and is considered a good introduction to the race. The second, CP2, is just North of Bathurst island and is the longest leg but easily navigable over the island. It also marks the start of the most difficult leg to navigate, where the contestants are completely out of sight of land. The third, CP3, is at King Christian Island, the only landmark between Bathurst Island and Ellef Ringnes Island. In each case the exact location of the checkpoint is where the Twin Otter plane containing the re-supply team can find sea ice flat enough to put down. The contestants are then informed of the exact co-ordinates where they then navigate to. The plane drops off the Checkpoint Support Crew, re-supply kit and personal messages for the teams before the first racers arrive. Then, after the racers have left the checkpoint, another plane comes in from Polar Race Base Camp to transport the Support Crew and a new set of re-supply kit and messages to the next checkpoint. Continue to Later News ItemsContinue to Earlier News Items
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