British cyclist to attempt new round-the-world speed record

by Kraig Becker on

Beginning tomorrow, British professional cyclist Alan Bate will set of on a round the world bike ride that he hopes will not only set a new speed record, but actually smash the old one. Bate has set his sights quite high, with a schedule that will see him covering the 18,000 mile route in just 99 days, if he can maintain the brutal pace.

The route, which can be viewed by clicking here, will begin, and eventually end, in Bangkok, Thailand, but will follow a circuitous path from there. Bate will ride on five continents, heading first to Australia and New Zealand, followed by North and South America, then on to Europe and across Asia, back to where he started.

In order to keep his punishing pace, and break the 100 day mark for an around the world cycling trip, Bate will need to average roughly 182 miles per day, through all kinds of conditions and across a variety of terrain. That will be tough on good, well maintained, and paved roads, but will be especially challenging in more remote countries. That is also a lot of miles to grind through, day in and day out for more than three months.

The current record is held by Julian Emre Sayarer, who completed the journey this past December in just 165 days, although that mark is yet to be certified by Guinness. Previous to Sayarer’s record, fellow Brit James Bowthorpe circumnavigated the globe on his bike in 174 days back in September.

Circling the globe with zero emissions

by Kraig Becker on

Sustainable travel has been a focus for many over the past decade, with travelers searching for ways to reduce their carbon footprint while still feeding their wanderlust. 23-year old Brit Kevin Shannon seems to have discovered a way to see the world, while still protecting the planet’s environments. On Wednesday of this past week, the adventurous traveler set out to circumnavigate the globe, using only human and natural power.

Kevin has dubbed his zero emissions journey as the Because It Is There Expedition in honor of his his hero George Mallory, who was once asked why he would want to climb Mt. Everest. The mountain was unclimbed at that time, and Mallory famously responded by giving the most well known quote in mountaineering history, “because it is there”.

Over the course of the next three years, Kevin will be peddling his bike across six continents, covering 40,000 miles in the process, and sailing across both the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans, adding another 10,000 aquatic miles to the trip. The journey began in the U.K., and will extend across Europe and Asia, before turning south to Australia. After hugging the Australian coastline, Shannon will board a ship and sail to South America, where he’ll return to the bike and turn north. The Route will take him through Central America, Mexico, and eventually into the United States, where he’ll ride coast-to-coast, before he boards a ship once again, to sail to North Africa, where he’ll get on his bike one last time, and make the return trip back to the U.K.

While the journey will be its own reward of course, Kevin isn’t making the trip for the adventure alone. He’s also hoping to raise £1 million for the Combat Stress organization, a U.K. based charity group that is working with veterans who have suffered severe traumatic experiences while in the service of their country. A noble effort, and one that is necessary now more than ever it seems.

To follow Kevin’s environmentally responsible journey, check out his Twitter feed at @Kev_Shannon. He’s just getting underway, and the adventure is just beginning.

New round-the-world sailing record set

by Kraig Becker on

Last Saturday, the 105-foot long, tri-hulled sailing vessel Groupama 3, captained by French skipper Franck Cammas, completed an around the world cruise that resulted in a new speed record for circumnavigating the globe. The journey took 48 days, 7 hours, 44 minutes and 52 seconds to complete, beating the old record, set in 2005, by more than two days.

Cammas and his nine man crew set out from Brest, France back on January 31st. Their route took them south around the capes of Good Hope, Leeuwin and Horn, covering more than 28,523 miles along the way. The high tech, specially designed ship averaged 24.6 knots per hour over the length of the voyage, or nearly 30 mphs.

Despite the impressive time for the circumnavigation, Captain Cammas believes the new record can be bested. He blamed foul weather at certain stages of the journey for slowing the Groupama 3 down, but calmer conditions would have allowed the crew to shave even more time off the existing record.

By completing the circumnavigation in record time, Cammas and his men have won the Jules Verne Trophy, a prize given to a yacht of any size and crew that earns a speed record for circling the globe. The award was initially given to the first ship to make that journey in less than 80 days. That was first accomplished in 1994 and now, 15 years later, we’re on the verge of cutting that time in half.

Congratulations to the crew of the Groupama 3 on a job well done.

Another teenager sets sail on a solo circumnavigation attempt

by Kraig Becker on

16-year old Abby Sunderland set sail last weekend on an attempt to sail solo around the world, and in the process, become the youngest person to accomplish that feat. She launched her 40-foot long boat, the Wild Eyes, from Marina del Rey, California, following a delay of several days due to the heavy storms that have plagued that area recently. If all goes according to plan, Abby will be at sea for roughly 5-6 months, making the journey non-stop without ever pulling into port.

Abby won’t just be battling the ocean waves and unpredictable weather while out on the high seas, she also faces a little competition for the crown of “youngest around”. Australian teenager Jessica Watson, who we told you about here, is in the middle of her own circumnavigation attempt, having just cleared Cape Horn, at the southern end of South America. Jessica is now making her way across the Atlantic towards Africa. And lest we forget, 14-year old Laura Dekker is hoping to make the same journey later this year, provided Dutch officials allow her to set sail.

For Abby, sailing runs in the family. Her brother Zac temporarily held the record for youngest solo circumnavigation last year when he completed the voyage at the age of 17. His record was bested by British teen Mike Perham a few months later. Perham is also 17, but is a few months younger than Zac.

It use to be that teenagers simply asked their parents for the keys to the car, but in the case of these adventurous young men and women, they’re hitting the high seas and spending months alone out on the water. The questions remain however; Should we be encouraging these activities and how young is too young?

Sailor spends 1000 days at sea

by Kraig Becker on

Back on April 21st, 2007, American sailor Reid Stowe set sail from New York City on a unique, and challenging voyage. Dubbed the Mars Ocean Odyssey, the plan was for Stowe, along with his companion Soanya Ahmad, to head out onto the open ocean, and spend 1000 straight days there, without stopping for resupply or ever setting foot on land. The voyage was meant to demonstrate the feasibility of a prolonged spaceflight, such as a journey to Mars, and today marks Stowe’s 1000th day at sea.

The voyage has not been without its hardships. Just a few days after setting out, Stowe’s ship, a schooner named Anne, strayed into a U.S. Navy missile test range off the New Jersey Coast and a few weeks after that, the vessel collided with a cargo ship, and suffered damage to its bowsprit. But perhaps the biggest setback was when Ahmad was forced to leave the expedition off the coast of Australia 305 days in. At the time, it was reported that she had “debilitating sea sickness”, but It was later revealed that she was pregnant. She has since given birth to the couple’s first child, a boy named Darshen, who was conceived at sea.

Stowe continued the voyage alone, blogging his experiences at sea, and chasing his dream of proving that prolonged space travel is possible. In the process, he also set a record for the longest solo sea expedition ever, and as of today, he has achieved his other goal of spending 1000 days at sea, without resupply. An impressive feat to say the least.

You would think that after a thousand days at sea, the sailor would be eager to get home and meet his son. But Stowe has elected to stay out on the ocean for a few more months. High winds and poor weather conditions make a return to New Your City a challenging prospect at the moment, so instead, he’ll wait until June, when calmer weather will allow him to return much more safely.

After all those months at sea, what’s another six?