Twins plan epic adventure at the bottom of the world

As Felix Baumgartner plummeted toward the earth to achieve his astronomical feat, Kiwi twins, Zac and Josh Lyon began the countdown to launch their own stellar adventure to the South Pole.

Inspired by others before them, the twenty one year old twins aim to become the first twins, first New Zealanders and youngest pair ever to complete the round trip from the Antarctic coast to the South Pole. They will also race against the clock, taking part in ‘the world’s most extreme time trial’. The boys will pit themselves against history’s greatest polar travellers in a live leader board scenario, racing to set the record for the fastest return journey in less than 69 days.

The journey will begin in November 2013, when they will begin skiing, hauling over 100kgs in a fully self-sufficient effort to reach the pole. Arriving at their destination they will turn around and kite ski back to the beginning; a journey nearly one and a half times the length of New Zealand.

The twins are no stranger to adventure. Earlier this year the boys launched a helium balloon with a photographic payload into near space. They captured amazing images of the North Island from 32km into the atmosphere.

“Josh and I have wanted to take on an adventure of this scale since our early teenage years. We were inspired by the likes of Sir Edmund Hillary, Sir Peter Blake and other world class explorers,” says Zac.

“Reading about the harrowing and courageous journeys of polar greats Amundsen, Shackleton, and Scott has provided us with a curiosity to experience some of the hardship and elation they surely would have felt,” says Josh.

The reasoning behind such an ambitious plan is a common question for Zac and Josh.

“Well, it seemed like a good idea at the time! But jokes aside, we really want to show the younger generation of NZ and the world, that anything is possible with a lot of hard work, commitment and motivation. We want to ‘be the change’ that we want to see in the world and hope this inspire others. In addition, along the way we hope to raise the awareness of the issues and future challenges that the fragile continent of Antarctica faces,” says Zac.

The first step in their master plan is to secure the finances needed to see them off to a training course in Norway and Greenland. This course will cover all aspects of polar travel. They have paired up with a local start-up crowd funding platform, ThrillPledge, in order to raise the money needed for their training.

“ThrillPledge will be a wonderful aid to people with a dream and the passion to follow it. It is all about helping the ‘little guys’ achieve their dream by providing them with a fundraising platform and networking opportunities. Think of it as Facebook, but with the ability to galvanise support and raise funds from your followers. In return for people pledging funds to support our expedition we offer neat rewards like post cards from the pole and exclusive access to events where they get to feel like they are part of the expedition. We aim to meet our funding target of $40,000k on Dec 14, the same day that Amundsen reached the pole in 1911. We have formed a great relationship and look forward to working with them in their success,” says Josh.

The campaign launches tomorrow, which will also coincide with the launch of the ThrillPledge website www.thrillpledge.com.

In order to achieve this feat, the twins will be working closely with their team director and mentor, Rob Hamill. Rob is an Olympic Rower, winner of a Trans-Atlantic rowing race and documentary film maker. Rob had this to say, “Zac and Josh are amazingly ambitious individuals. This expedition, a world first, epitomizes the very values of daring, adventure and courage instilled in New Zealand’s history by the likes of Sir Edmund Hillary and Sir Peter Blake. Hard work, preparation and world class training will see the boys in good stead to accomplish this amazing feat of endurance.”

Zac and Josh are looking forward to having the NZ public on board in sharing this amazing journey. They will be posting regular updates on their Facebook site, blog and website so the public can become part of the adventure from the comfort of their warm couch.

The Cold Facts:
Start position/Finish position: Hercules Inlet 80°00’00”S,85°00’00”W
Total Distance: 1410 miles, 2260 km
Start date: Start November 2013
Duration: 70+ days (45 there/25 back)
Sledge weight: 100+ kg
Temperature: -15 to -40°C
Environmental conditions: Blizzards, whiteouts, crevasses
Communication: Iridium satellite phone, emergency beacon
Nutrition: Josh and Zac will eat a high calorie diet, burning the equivalent of a marathon worth each day.

Zac and Josh are 20 year old students studying at the University of Waikato. They are both in their final year of study and will graduate at the end of 2012 with a Bachelor of Science. Zac is double majoring in physics and earth science, and Josh is majoring in earth sciences. The twins are keen outdoor enthusiasts enjoying trail running, mountain biking and tramping when they can get away. Zac is also studying towards a black belt in karate. Josh enjoys volunteering his time as a watch assistant on board the Spirit of New Zealand for 10 day youth development voyages. Both boys also share a passion for cooking and baking. Hopefully that will help them with their high calorie Antarctic diet!

http://www.facebook.com/Twins2thePole

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