The office on a bike
Published on 28.11.2011 - Climate Neutral Pole 2 Pole
Since a few days, Ernest J. Nilson is beating around the bush about the next unfolding of his expedition. He is still in Columbia whereas he should reach the South Pole before end of January. Impossible...
On 23 November, after having spoken many times about the big changes occuring in Antarctica, Nilson focuses on a huge crack which has just been discovered by the Nasa somewhere in Antarctica ; a major iceberg breakup is in progress, a floating tongue of ice reaches out 38 miles long, etc. After 15 lines on this matter, he writes that this breakup "is a major problem for us since we will have to rearrange our earlier plans, nut no problem without a solution... But of course he does not say why. What does a breakup and a new iceberg have to do with someone who tries to reach south pole skiing ?
Two days after, he writes : "... Normally it is complicated to deal with problems from an office, planning an expedition. Now I’m on a bike and everyday I have to think about down jackets, kites and snow. It is a really strange situation to have the office on a bike. I have no time to both bike and work so I have been trying to do them both. It looks like Antarctica is closing up…..this is going to be a looooong expedition ..."
The same day, he explains that when you plan an expedition like his, the hardest must be to try calculate with everyting that can happen during the year. On 26 November, he does not hesitate to compare his adventure with the ones of Nansen and Amundsen ! "... When Amundsen and Nansen were trying to reach their goals, he writes, they had to turn around many times, try again and even wait for years until they reached it. I have learned a lot from all these “mistakes” or “knowledge” as I call it. Everyday I have to fight with new barriers to cross and obstacles to climb over. Now we have to find new ways to do Pole2Pole and we are turning the Impossible into Possible by thinking different and to come with new solutions. More information will come tomorrow.The only limits we have are the limits we set up ourselves... "
And yet, the reality is so simple : being still byking in Columbia, Nilson will never be able to reach the Antarctic in time. And his "Climate Neural Pole2Pole Expedition", although the travel he has done so far is a tremendous proof of courage, won't be a success because he will never reach South Pole this year. As simple as that.
