Press Release: Race to the South Pole - 12/1/06

FOR INTERVIEWS CONTACT:
John Huston
218-349-2066
This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it  Additional photos available upon request.

December 1, 2006

RACE TO THE SOUTH POLE, 95 YEARS LATER, SAME FOOD, GEAR & CLOTHING

Local Polar Explorer Joins A Historic 1400-Mile Re-Running Of The Race To The South Pole

 

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Courtesy of Hans-Christian Florian
Greenland - John Huston, a polar explorer age 30, originally from Chicago, IL and now living in Ely, MN, has jumped right into the past. He recently joined a Norwegian Team of polar explorers to re-run the 1911 race for the South Pole between Roald Amundsen of Norway and Robert Falcon Scott of Britain. This adventure will premiere in a unique 4-hour program entitled Race to the South Pole on The History Channel on Saturday, December 2 at 8:00 PM CST. Part 2 of the series will premiere on Saturday, December 9 at 7:00 PM CST. The series will show in its 4-hour entirety on Sunday, December 17 at 12:00 PM CST. 

 

 

Huston was the only North American to participate in this unprecedented expedition. The project pitted a British team against Norwegian team in an actual race (no role playing or acting) in which the teams used replicas of the equipment, clothing and food used by the original 1911 expeditions. No plastic, no Gore-Tex, no high-tech foods; only cotton, wool, reindeer fur, and raw seal blubber.

In the Antarctic spring of 1911 Amundsen and Scott set out for the South Pole. Amundsen's journey on dogsled and cross-country skis ended in triumph. Scott and his men, who primarily hauled their own equipment, tragically died on their way back from the pole.

Since 1912, this episode in polar exploration history has been steeped in controversy. Debates surrounding the efficacy of man hauling versus dogsledding and skiing, choice of equipment and clothing, leadership styles, and even the national temperaments of Norway and England still go on today.

Join Huston and the other modern expedition participants on The History Channel on December 2 at 8:00 PM CST as they experience the 1911 race for the South Pole in full, right down to the 8-foot hickory skis, reindeer fur sleeping bags and dinners of pemmican stew and seal meat.

During winter of 2006/07 Huston will manage logistics for the Global Warming 101 Expedition led by Will Steger (www.globalwarming101.com). These responsibilities will take him to Baffin Island, Nunavut, Canada. In early March of 2009, John Huston and his expedition partner Tyler Fish will attempt to become the first Americans to ski unsupported to the North Pole, an expedition without outside assistance or supply drops (www.forwardexpeditions.com).

FOR INTERVIEWS: John Huston, 218-349-2066,  This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

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