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Polar Race News: 9-15 April 2003 (Leg 1)15 April 2022 - ViP3 and Extreme Steps did the remaining 15 miles to reach the Polaris Mine (Checkpoint 1) by 1600 hrs
ViP3 and Extreme Steps set off at 0730 this morning (14 April) to cover
the final gruelling miles and reach the first Checkpoint at the Polaris
Mine. In very cold temperatures they did extremely well and arrived in
great spirits with Extreme Steps getting to the Checkpoint 1 finishing
line 52 seconds before ViP3.
All four teams will start the second stage of the Polar Race at 12 noon
tomorrow (15 April).
14 April 2022 - Bad weather stops progress for Extreme Steps and ViP3 teams out on the ice during the first leg of the Polar Race A high wind, a wind chill of minus 46 degrees centigrade and blinding, swirling snow meant for the two teams out on the ice, conditions were too bad to travel and wisely both Extreme Steps and ViP3 stayed in their tents, resting and waiting for the worst of the weather to blow over.
Mike Krimholtz of Extreme Steps
made contact with the Control Team (Jock and Gary) in Resolute Bay and
informed us that they were not moving but would move if the weather
improved. When Casper of ViP3 and Mike rang in at their scheduled call
time in the evening, they confirmed they had not started to move as the
weather did not improve as quickly as expected. 13 April 2022 - Polar Team recuperate after their tremendous effort and ViP3 and Extreme Steps continue to make excellent progress
A tired Tony Martin of Zycko Polar Team still managed a smile for
cameraman Tony Woodford from the depths of his sleeping bag on being
congratulated on their excellent second place in the first leg of the
Polar Race for the Wedgwood Blue Ice trophy. Oblivious to this his
teammate, former champion jockey Richard Dunwoody, slept on. They had a
few minor ailments but still seemed in remarkably good order after their
gruelling journey, again done at remarkable speed, in the Arctic
conditions. 12 April 2022 - First two teams in at the Polaris Checkpoint in record time and all teams making good progress The Initial Style Explorers were the first team home in the opening leg of the Polar Race from Resolute to the first Checkpoint at Polaris in an astounding one and three quarter days! The picture taken from the air is of the Initial Style Explorers approaching the finish line of the first leg of the race. Only 7 hours behind were the Polar Team of Richard Dunwoody and Tony Martin. Both teams had employed a "cat and mouse strategy" throughout the first leg with the Initial Style Explorers team of Chris McLeod, Phil Ashby and Manley Hopkinson having slightly the better of the opening encounter.
Not yet home but still making excellent progress are ViP3 and Extreme
Steps both of whom managed just under 15 miles which should see them
both into the first checkpoint on Sunday if they keep up that speed. 11 April 2022 - Initial Style Explorers blast first leg of Polar Race 2003! The Initial Style Explorers team of Chris McLeod (Portsmouth), Manley Hopkinson (Twickenham) and Phil Ashby (Cirencester) brought a new meaning to the words "speed of travel" in winning the first leg of the Polar Race 2003 for the Wedgwood Blue Ice Trophy.
They covered the first leg of the race from Resolute Bay in Nunavut,
Canada to the Polaris Mine, a distance of 65 nautical miles in a
fraction under 1.75 days on foot and skis, pulling sledges with all
their supplies onboard. This was achieved in snow, ice and temperatures as
low as -40 degrees centigrade, proving just how fast highly motivated
people can push themselves in even the most severe conditions. 10 April 2022 - All four teams made great progress on the first day with Initial Style Explorers and Polar Team ahead of ViP3 and Extreme Steps...
We have a schedule for daily calls and the teams rang in last night to
Gary with their first set of positions. All had had an excellent day
and were in great spirits. See the
Current Positions page
for details of distances covered, which we will update on a daily basis.
During the race, all distances given will be "as the crows" flies albeit
the route the teams take each day will be dictated by the geography and
their strategy. They had had a super first day and were in good shape. The Initial Style Explorers and Polar Team are ahead of ViP3 and Extreme Steps. The organisers spent the day getting things ready for going to the first checkpoint.
The organisers have a daily 1000 hrs meeting to keep on top of the issues for the coming 24 hours and to revisit the plans for the next few days and the rest of the race. Liz McOwat, the Finance Director of Initial Style Conferences who are sponsoring the Initial Style Explorers Team and is with us in Resolute Bay, went out today with some local hunters on a skidoo expedition and came back with this photo of a real live polar bear! 9 April 2022 - The Polar Race 2003 "probably the world's toughest race" started today in Resolute Bay in the Canadian Arctic The pre-race final briefing took place at around 11:00 hours and included the latest weather information, a repeat of the importance of safety, the conditions of the ice along the route, and the last opportunity to ask questions of the assembled experts. The racers and organisers then moved to the Co-op where the start line, suitably dressed in flags, had been set up. Steve East of the Extreme Steps team was adorned with appropriate flags. Sharp at 12:30 hours (18:30 BST) the first ever Polar Race for the Wedgwood Blue Ice Trophy started from outside the Co-op restaurant, in Resolute Bay, Canada and headed towards the finish line some 350 miles north on Ellef Ringnes Island. The racers were cheered on by a crowd of children from the school and local townspeople, all curious to see what the British were up to this time. The race was started by the local mayor Aziz Kheraj and explorer David Hempleman-Adams, freshly back from becoming the first person to walk solo and unsupported to the North Geomagnetic pole. The Deputy Major of Resolute Bay, Tabitha, fired the gun and the four teams surged across the start line and headed towards the only passing mark on the course, the largest telegraph pole in Resolute Bay, a mere 100 metres away.
The competitors were under strict instructions by organiser Jock
Wishart not to wipe themselves out on the telegraph pole or to cause it
serious damage! Other News Items
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Still out on the ice on their way to Polaris are the 3rd and 4th placed
teams, ViP3 and Extreme Steps. The ViP3 team includes the only woman in
the race, former Pan's People star Babs Powell. Both teams are running
head to head and are in sight of each other even in the swirling snow
conditions, which are prevalent today. Both ViP3 and Extreme Steps are
hoping to reach the first checkpoint at Polaris tomorrow, weather and
conditions permitting, so it should make for an interesting race for the
line.