Wed, Oct 31, 2012
English athletic daredevil Ben Fogle prepares for Augusta, Western Australia's Anaconda adventure race, arguably the world's toughest, totaling 34 kilometer in rugged terrain, training for each leg in a site fit for that discipline, with a specialist trainer. First he swims ashore from San Fracisco's Alcatraz Island Then he and a chef friend run their home city's London rat race, mainly cycling, resorting to tricks for the site search question. Kayak is trained at West Wales's Pembrokeshire coastal 'Bitches'. The Australian terrain, including rocky coast boulders, and competitors make it all that much harder, yet multiple novice Ben finishes honorably.
Thu, Nov 1, 2012
English adventurer Ben Fogle resolves to the extreme cure for his acrophobia: climbing the steep Dolomites (Italian-Austrian border Alps) by way of the via ferrata, steel cables laid there during World war I. First he learns climbing trees, in Californian sequoias no less. Then he joins a friend's Icelandic glacier expedition, climbing and abseiling into macabre deep crevasses and diving in the tectonic rift between the Eurasian and North American plates. Finally he even enjoys the Italian mountaineering.
Mon, Nov 5, 2012
English adventurer Ben Fogle resolves to partake in another adventure race, Western Australia's Gascoyne Dash outback car rally, starting at Carnarvon. His no less spectacular preparations start in the Czech former Warshaw pact air base of Pilsen, where he gets a unique crash course in fighter-induced g-force endurance. In Leicestershire, he learns to pilot a hovercraft.
Wed, Nov 7, 2012
English adventurer Ben Fogle resolves to extreme climbing, on Utah desert's Castleton Tower peek. That first requires conquering his acrophobia: skydiving in Western Australia with a British Para veteran and paragliding over the steep Dolomites (Italian-Austrian border Alps) with twice world champion Parcher. His instructor and climbing mate in Utah come along first in canyons. The climb proves daunting and exhausting, yet succeeds despite worrisome weather.