180 Degrees - Pole to Pole Manpowered 2007

Two teenagers will attempt to travel from the north pole to the south pole using only human and natural power - the first time this has been done.

James Hooper and Rob Gauntlett from Sussex, both 19 and former pupils of Christ's Hospital at Horsham in West Sussex, already scored a first earlier this year - on May 17 - when they became the youngest Britons to set foot on the summit of Mount Everest.

Their challenge, called 180 Degrees - Pole to Pole Manpowered, will begin in March 2007 at the Northern most point on earth where Rob and James will start skiing towards the edge of the ice pack.

Here they will meet an Ice Breaker Yacht and embark on their voyage to Newfoundland.



Arriving on land, the next section of the trip involves cycling the entire length of the Americas, taking in 14 countries before arriving in the port of Punta Arenas in Chile.

This epic cycle tour will only be broken by sailing around the perilous Darien Gap of Panama, where roads do not yet exist. Having reached the tip of South America, they will board another yacht, sail across the Southern Ocean and onto the Wedell sea area of Antarctica. From here they will again ski, utilising power kites, this time to the South Pole.

The groundbreaking adventure will cover 17,000 miles over 3 continents and is projected to take ten months to complete.

There is a video here. Link goes to wmv file.