Mr. Bernd Ade

Bernd Ade was the founder of Youth Sports Foundation in 1997. From successful business ventures, Bernd sponsored many athletes to travel around the world in order to achieve their goal of obtaining specialised and elite personal training. Some athletes were financially assisted to participate in the 2000 Olympic Games in Sydney.

Bernd also ventured into the production of documentaries of extreme sporting events like the Simpson Desert Race in Australia in 2002.

http://www.impactimages.com.au/ simpsondesert/race.htm

Bernd started his adventures by walking around Corsica and Sardinia in 1968, travelled across to the USA in 1970 and explored the most northern part of Europe in 1973 and to many other places, too many to mention. In March 2004, Bernd travelled north across Alaska in extreme winter conditions (- 40 degrees Celsius) and spent 4 days in the mountains of Alaska to experience the cold he might encounter in the Antarctic.

Read More

Mrs. Linda Beilharz

Linda is the first Australian woman to ski from the edge of the Antarctic to the South Pole. During her epic 56-day quest, Linda endured treacherous conditions, including blinding snowstorms and minus 50 degree temperatures.

Linda's extraordinary triumph is testament not only to her physical strength and courage, but also to her determination that pushed her, inch by inch, across that vast and dangerous landscape.

Linda is also a fascinating and engaging public speaker. Linda eloquently paints a picture of the drive, resilience and courage it takes to face any of life's challenges. Linda is a recognized leader in her professional career, speaking regularly about the creation of healthy and safe communities. In addition to public speaking Linda conducts one or two day training workshops in "Building Communities of Hope", a workshop aimed at community leaders and community workers.

Mr. John Dunn

John Dunn is an outstanding and well-experienced NSW fire fighter with a strong drive to succeed in business and in his personal ventures.
John is sharp, ambitious, determined, and persistent with a lot of will power and has a strong personality. No is not an answer for John. John is also well experienced in many aspects of business:

• Logistic Management
• Administration Management
• Planning & Budgeting
• Risk Analysis
• Risk Management
• Hazardous Material Control
• Supervising Teams

John also has a vast list of qualifications such as:

• Australian Army Lieutenant (regular)
• Australian Army (Reserve) Rank: Captain Commander
• Bachelor of Social Science
• Private Pilots License (Aerobatic Endorsement)
• Anti-Discrimination & Harassment Contact Officer
• Occupational Health & Safety Committee Member
and many others…..

In June 2005 John attempted to cross the Great Victorian Desert unassisted. His long training and experience was cut short due to heavy rain in the area. John still managed to walk 300 km through a very muddy, wet, dangerous and unforgiving area of Australia. It needs skill, experience and incredible fitness to attempt such a crossing.

Ralf Dujmovits

Ralf is the director of "Amical alpine" and lives with his partner Gerlinde Kaltenbrunner based in the Black Forrest in Germany. Whenever there is a possibility for another adventure Ralf and Gerlinde will take part. Ralf climbed the highest mountains in the world in the vicinity of 8000m. The public eventually recognised Ralf due to his 33-hour life telecast climbing the Eiger Nordwand. Ralf has over 40 expeditions and trekking behind him including the Himalaya and their Antarctic, the Andes and Karakorum. Ralf is one of only a handful of experienced mountaineers. Ralf's expertise will add extra comfort and security to the Antarctic Expedition 2009 - 2011.

Ralf reached the summit of Everest on Oct 4th 1992 by the South East Ridge. One of a very few men in the world to have reached the Summits of Everest and K2. German, climber, 40-year-old bachelor, mountain guide, director since 1989 of 'Amicalalpin' (an Expedition and Trekking Agency), technical adviser. Multiple ascents in the Alps, including most of the classic itineraries. UIAGM Mountain- & Ski guide

Gerlinde Kaltenbrunner

To be fair to our European readers I would like to use at this occasion the German language. Not everyone speaks English and it is important that some German readers also have the opportunity to identify that we are a highly experienced team.

Gerlinde Kaltenbrunner is also Ralf Dujmovits partner! (See above)

-----------------------------------------------------------------
Gerlinde Kaltenbrunner - (Team Member 6)

Geb. 13.12.1970
Wohnhaft Schwarzwald (D)
Beruf Profibergsteigerin

Das Interesse von Gerlinde Kaltenbrunner für das Bergsteigen wurde schon in jungen Jahren geboren und gepflegt. Den markanten Einstieg in die Welt der Berge bewirkte der Leiter der Jugendgruppe ihrer oberösterreichischen Heimatgemeinde Spital am Pyhrn - der Gemeindepfarrer Dr. Erich Tischler. Er nahm Gerlinde Kaltenbrunner nach der sonntäglichen Messe auf zahlreiche Bergtouren mit - zunächst auf die heimischen Berge rund um die Heimatgemeinde. Im Alter von 13 Jahren, während ihrer Ausbildung in der Schihauptschule Windischgarsten, unternahm Gerlinde Kaltenbrunner erste leichte Klettertouren am heimischen "Sturzhahn", die auch ihre Kletterbegeisterung weckten und den Weg zum Alpinismus ebneten.

Read More

Vern Tejas

C.V. to follow

This is the story of Vern Tejas. One of the leading mountaineers in the world and one of the best. Vern and his experience will be a huge asset to all of us.

Lucie Orsulova

* Born 1975 in the Czech Republic
* Attorney at law
* Mountaineering and ski-mountaineering instructor officially approved in Austria
* Member of the Czech national ski-mountaineering team, the Czech ski-mountaineering champion
* April-June 2005 - Mt. Everest, North Face through the Superculoir, broken off after many days working in the wall at approx. 7200 due to unsuitable weather conditions, especially extremely strong jet winds
* Number of ascents including some classical ones and ski-descents in the European Alps

More details will follow soon

www.skimountaineering.cz

Josef Woodward

Josef is 37 years of age and a former Senior Director of an international property recruitment company. Josef now currently lives half the year in London and the other half in Switzerland.

Josef is passionate about his outdoor pursuits and is at his happiest out in the wilderness. Joe has extensive expedition experience gained from expeditions around the world but first started getting a taste for the cold on expeditions in northern Norway and Sweden, where he would ski with a pulk or dog sled with a team of huskies through the mountain plateau regions.

After this, Josef then moved onto further developing his skills in the methods of Polar travel by training with the legendary Matty McNair in northern Canada. (This is where John Dunn and Josef met).

Josef's most recent expedition was on the Greenland Icecap and is currently training to become a guide in Switzerland. His approach to any challenge is one of bold determination to succeed; He commits himself 100% to a project ensuring he knows exactly what is required of him and his team.

Josef does have the experience and knowledge to lead, together with John Dunn, one of the teams to the South Pole. Extra training and experience will benefit the Antarctic Challenge Project.

Veikka Gustafsson

Veikka Gustafsson is a 41-year-old professional mountain climber. Veikka lives in Kirkkonummi, Finland. Veikka (pronounced "Vey-ka") began his climbing career in 1986 by climbing Europe's tallest mountain, Mont Blanc in France. Since then his adventures have taken him to all fourteen 8,000-meter peak summits without supplemental oxygen. He is the ninth person in the world to do this. Veikka has also conquered the world's tallest mountain, Mount Everest, three times.

Finland's and Lapland's winter seasons are close to the conditions of the Antarctica. Veikka has done a lot of different outdoor activities around mountain climbing guiding, fishing and hunting in Finland and abroad but mainly in Russia and in the neighboring countries of Finland. Veikka has on many occasions acted as an expedition leader on different expeditions around the globe, both in hot and cold climates but mainly in the colder environment.

Veikka is also well known publically in Finland and is used to working behind and in front of cameras. Veikka has had his own travelling show on Finish television several years ago so we welcome Veikka as a "semi professional" in filming and taking photographs.
Veikka has been involved with Cannon in Finland since 1994 when he climbed K2 with Ralf Dujmovits.

Sarah McNair-Landry

Sarah McNair-Landry

I would like to introduce to you one of our most experienced expedition leaders, Sarah McNair-Landry. Sarah will be a vital team member and based on her experience, will give everyone lots of advice especially to the young adventurers.

Before I dribble on explaining the success of Sarah and her experiences, you will find below some Sarah’s achievements. I would like to mention that Sarah was the expedition leader on the walk to the North Pole with Linda and Rob which started in February 2010 and finished in April 2010. This was an outstanding effort by all of them and not many expeditioners have ever achieved this.

Sarah McNair-Landry comes from a family of Arctic enthusiasts, born and raised on Canada's Baffin Island. At age 18, she became the youngest person ever to ski to the South Pole (with her brother, Eric, then 20). She and her mother, Matty, are the first Canadian women to reach the South Pole by ski. Since then, she's trekked across the Arctic Ocean and 1,430 miles of the Greenland Ice Cap (equivalent to the distance from Boston to Miami), among other expeditions. Now 22 and a National Geographic Young Explorers grantee, McNair-Landry spoke as part of Will Steger's Ellesmere Island team's presentation during National Geographic Live's "Heirs to the Arctic"