In 1995 he led the first Belgium team across the Greenland Icecap using
mountain bikes, parasails, and sleds. He holds a patent on studs for mountain
bikes.
Dirk is attempting the first non supported (no supplies by air drops)
expedition to cross Antartica. The team left the former King Baudouin base
on November 9th. They will attempt to travel more than 2,500 miles in four
months. They
each pull a sled loaded with 200 kilos of supplies. They are on skis, and will
also use parasails developed by NASA.
You can follow the expedition on
http://www.antarctica.org/southpole/antarctica.html
The report from November 14th. Heavy blizzards. The team was still blocked
by heavy winds, more than 60km/h. No progress. White out. In addition to
that,
sometimes, when the sky clears off for a short period of time, the Sor
Rondane and blue skies above the polar plateau come into sight.
Daily progress reports are issued on the expedition homepage. I've talked to
several classes about the expedition, and being able to follow the expedition
on a day by day basis is exciting.
Tom Trail
Dr. Tom Trail
International Trails
2039 Mt. View Rd.
Moscow, Id. 83843
Tel: (208) 882-6077
Fax: (208) 882-0896
e mail ttrail@moscow.com