Cracknell’s Going Down Under

NEWS

Cracknell’s Going Down Under

James Cracknell and Ben Fogle will be setting off on another daring adventure as they tackle the Australian environment

After winning two Olympic gold medals, rowing across the Atlantic and racing to the South Pole, MTC's James Cracknell's quest to push the boundaries of human strength to the limit will see him walking 4000 miles across Australia in the height of summer. After water and ice, this is the one environment that he and Fogle haven't tested as a pair.

In Autumn 2010, Cracknell and Fogle will follow in the footsteps of Irishman Robert Burke and Englishman William Wills, who in August 1860, set out to cross from Melbourne to the Gulf of Carpentaria. They explored the interior expecting to find an inland sea, instead they found desert, mountains and swamps. Burke and Willis headed an entourage that comprised 19 men, 23 horses, 26 camels and 12 tons of equipment across the 2000 mile south-north leg of the trip known as the "ghastly blank" without too much trouble. However, on the return leg, the pair tragically perished

During the challenge James and Ben will face discomforts such as dehydration, hunger, blisters and flies, as well as the reality that they will be facing an uncompromising environment where temperatures can soar above 100ºF and residents include nine of the world's ten most poisonous snakes, venomous spiders and dingoes.

Since 1860, others have also crossed from Melbourne to the Gulf of Carpentaria but no one has ever raced across and as if the task awaiting Cracknell and Fogle was not daunting enough, the courageous couple plan to finish the epic journey in just 9 weeks, which would see the record time of 5 months to cross this terrain smashed.

For further information including media and commercial opportunities contact Jonathan Marks at MTC jonathan@mtc-uk.com 0207 935 8000