Learning The Polar Exploration Business
Published on 09.04.2010 - General Info
Rodolphe Journoud, 28, French and budding polar explorer
© Rodolphe Journoud
Explorapoles has met a young Frenchman who's dreaming about becoming a polar explorer. We seldom speak about the changing of the guard, even though Etienne, Ousland, Horn, Hubert, Weber and company are no longer in their first flush of youth. How does this young Frenchman envisage the business and how is he preparing for it? On the eve of his first departure for the North Pole, we asked him a few questions.
Explorapoles : Rodolphe Journoud, where has your love of the Polar Regions come from?
Journoud : From reading. I've read all the books that Borge Ousland has written, and those by Mike Horn. I've closely followed the polar feats of all the greats, Laurence de la Ferrière a few years ago, Jean-Louis Etienne more recently of course, Weber, Fiennes and all the rest. Since my earliest years, I've been truly passionate about extreme sports; and I do other extreme sports, such as speleological diving, for example, in caves and former quarries. I'm also into skiing, hang-gliding and any sport that involves mountains -rambling, mountaineering, and so on and so forth.
Explorapoles : What's your background? Are you working at the moment?
Journoud : I'm 28 years old, I was born in Lyons, my father is the head of a company while my mother is a housewife. I have some management training under my belt and I began my career in a merchant bank, where I worked for three years in mergers and acquisitions. I'm a financial and entrepreneurial graduate. I'm not working at the moment because for more than eight months now I've been devoting most of my time to doing professionally what I'll be doing tomorrow.
Explorapoles : You've decided to attempt the last degree adventure with Borge Ousland as your training guide.
Journoud : That's right. Above all, I want to learn the business. Before launching off into any great project, I reckon that I have to learn, and to learn from the greats. And for me, Borge is the greatest. So I got in touch with him to ask if I could accompany him in the group that he was intending to guide to the North Pole from the Russian Barneo station. He said yes; there are four of us with him. And we're going to have to do approximately 130 kilometres on skis. In fact, I had two possibilities before me: either to finance the project myself (this little expedition costs nevertheless a trifling 25,000), or to try to make this first polar adventure as professional as possible by doing what the others do, i.e. trying to find sponsors. I chose the second way; which means that I developed a file that was as professional as possible (Editor's note: his expedition presentation file is extremely well put together), I created a website, I organised a media plan and I was going to present all that to companies in an attempt to persuade, and so on - the usual approach, which I'm also learning. That's how I managed to interest twenty or so firms, which was a good start.
Explorapoles : You seem to be on top physical form, but does a youngster like you have to train for attempting the last degree?
Journoud : Of course. You don't go on to the Arctic pack ice without training, even if it's ONLY a question of the last degree. This year, as you know, the pack ice is extremely treacherous and fragmented, and the greatest caution is required even when you're too not far from the Pole. I've therefore done a lot of cardio, a lot of jogging, mountaineering, body-building of the back and thighs and, of course, those traditional long tyre-pulling sessions, as all self-respecting polar adventurers do.
Explorapoles : You've said that you're at a learning stage. For how long now?
Journoud: It's now for one year that I've been specifically preparing for this adventure (it's especially the search for financial support that is the longest and the most arduous work) but I've been doing extreme sports for 15 years now, and most of the time as a recluse because I like to be on my own.
Explorapoles : Why?
Journoud : That comes in fact from speleo diving, which I often do on my own. As soon as I tackle a particular kind of environment, there are two solutions (as above), solo or team adventure. The advantage of a team it is that one can obviously count on other people's assistance, the disadvantage is that you have to concern yourself with others all the time, you obviously can't be concerned just with yourself. However in extreme environments, there has to be a fair amount of concentration on yourself, self-monitoring and self-preservation. I prefer solo, which doesn't mean that you don't have a whole team behind you that helps with the preparation of the project.
Explorapoles : When do you envisage mounting your first large professional project?
Journoud : In 2012. I've furthermore set myself a whole series of extreme objectives to be achieved in the world before launching myself into a professional career, such as crossing Greenland, for example. I believe that a good apprenticeship is essential for a career as a polar explorer or adventurer. But I don't yet want to divulge the future projects that I already have in mind. The only information that I can give you it is that my first great polar expedition will take place on the Antarctic Continent.
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Rodolphe Journoud's Brief CV.
A financial and entrepreneurial graduate, Rodolphe began his career as a mergers and acquisitions adviser. At the age of 28, he changed his life and decided to devote his time to accomplishing extreme environment expeditions. Rodolphe has been into speleo diving, hang-gliding, skiing, sailing and rugby football for several years and decided, in July 2009, to launch a series of expeditions in difficult environments, around the world. Eterneight is a juxtaposition of eternity and eight, the symbol of infinity. The extreme environment expedition represents the most complete expression of alternative sport; meticulous preparation, cutting-edge equipment, long-term performance, surpassing yourself, plus physical and psychological endurance. Eterneight conveys the values of team spirit, commitment, self-confidence and respect for the planet.
