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Stage 5 Report

28.11.2007

Approximately one year ago, we were standing on Deception Island in shorts with no wind to be felt. Today, we were wearing every article of clothing we could find and were battling a 40 knot wind. Competitors awoke at 3 am for today's stage which would be the last. An eight-hour race was planned, however, we were called to the Passenger's Bridge to be told that there was a sheet of soft ice covering a part of the shore where we had originally planned the event. Therefore, at the spur of the moment we had to relocate the course to another part of Deception Island and cut the planned stage in half.

We saw a lone penguin on the shore as well as a few birds. Setting the course, the Course Director Alasdair Morrison saw two seals on shore. Snow was waist deep and Alasdair Morrison and his team decided to place most of the course along the shore.

The event started with fierce winds and frigid temperatures. Competitors quickly formed a line to draft one another and stayed in that line the entire stage. The course was run along the shore and on the edge of a hill. Deception Island is the location for an active volcano, and although we swam in the thermal waters last year, this year it was just too cold to even consider taking a piece of clothing off.

All the competitors were in good spirits and ready to complete The Last Desert. No one complained and just kept going throughout the stage. American Joe Holland held on to the lead to win The Last Desert (Antarctica) 2007 followed closely by Italian Francesco Galanzino. Others looked strong, including Alex Bellingham of the United Kingdom, who seemed to look particularly strong. Dane Thomas Roende was battling a cold, but otherwise all were in great shape.

The Last Desert (Antarctica ) 2007 concluded with the ship's expedition leader, Julio, putting the medal around the neck of each competitor. There wasn't much celebrating on shore, as a massive blizzard was raging. We all quickly boarded the zodiacs for the ship's warm quarters.

Congratulations to all the competitors – they become one of twenty seven in the world to have completed the 4 Deserts. The Last Desert (Antarctica ) 2007 will be shown on NBC Television on 12 January 2008, on the Jeep World of Adventure Sports. Stay tuned for more details.

Note: Competitors are ranked according to the number of kilometers (miles) they were able to accumulate – the competitors with the most kilometers (miles) are ranked highest. Bad weather, deep snow, ice, rough seas and an unexpected sinking of a fellow passenger ship have resulted in a shorter course and a more challenging schedule.

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