Carl Byington, an experienced entrepreneur and the current owner of PHM Design LLC in Ellijay GA, is one of only about 500 people in the world to run marathons on all seven continents. In this latest installment, he shares some of his experience on traveling down to Union Glacier in Antarctica to complete his sixth continent marathon after recovering from a rock climbing fall in 2003.
We walked off the plane in to a balmy 0 degrees F but with 20-39 mph wind gusts. was calm so not too bad at all. Running in the dry snow though was fairly gruelling, and the second half of the marathon a little difficult with cramping and dehydration. Here are a few pics – Enjoy! Here is some more distiller from my friend Nick’s account of the days: The marathon was run at Union Glacier, Antarctica, about 650 miles (latitude 80 degrees) from the South Pole on a 2,000 ft deep glacier. Union Glacier is a basin where several glaciers flow into through gaps in mountains, then opens up into a glacial sea of ice as far as the eye can see. The average temperature is 0 degrees F and there are 24 hours of sunlight this time of year.
The wind chill temperature dropped as low as -35F while we were there. We arrived on a Monday aboard a Russian Ilyushin-76 cargo plane. Most of the cargo was part of a U.K. research project at Lake Ellsworth where they are drilling 3-miles through ice to take samples from water hidden for years. We landed on the part of Union Glacier that is a windswept blue-ice runway. The crew is Russian and they looked hardened. We appreciated their flying skills as we arrived safely to a stiff wind and -35F. Apprehension set in as the plane doors opened. We were finally here in Antarctica. We learned immediately that the cold changes quickly, and the sun is bright enough to cause snow blindness within a few hours. Sunscreen and glasses are mandatory.
Snow reflects sunlight, which was a problem. The hole in the ozone layer above us meant there was a lot of UV light coming in. Antarctica Logistics Expeditions (ALE) is a top-notch company that built a temporary camp on the leeward side (downwind) of a mountain to ensure near zero winds. They loaded us into three monster trucks and transported us to camp, which was bright and warm compared to the runway. Our “luxurious” accommodation was a tent with no heat and just a sleeping bag on a cot. The view is stunning. Another thing we learned is the loss of perspective that comes with this geography. Distance and height are impossible to know. The mountain behind our tent is 3-miles away, even though it seemed just yards away. The afternoon tent temperature was typically about 50 F.
The marathon course, 2 laps of a 13.1 mile triangular loop.
Like most people, I wore a thermal wicking base layer, wind proof pants, a mid layer on my upper body that I could put on or take off, and a top wind proof layer. Really the key is to dress in layers and try not to sweat while exercising. Les Stroud has a famous line from Survivorman TV series about surviving in extreme cold conditions. As he says, “You sweat, you die.” I tried not to sweat. That is difficult when you are running.
The coldest part of the day is about 3:00 a.m. when the temperature fell as low as 18 F in the tent as the sun low and behind the mountain for a few hours. The marathon was delayed for one day due to high winds. This gave us an opportunity to check the course and our clothing. The course itself was flat with breathtaking views. We spent Tuesday playing in the snow and getting to know fellow runners. The marathon began on Wednesday at camp with a start temp of -3 F temp and -18 F wind chill. The marathon course was a 13.1 mile loop run twice. There were 2 aid stations out on the course and a third setup at the Start/Finish line by the camp. The video report is here. That is me chatting at the start about 7 minutes into it. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FBHh9kAjfEY