We are on the way!!
 
Well after a 26 hour delay the boys from Team Trifecta\Mountain Hardwear are well and truly on the way to the Antarctic.
So far so good in terms of sea sickness although some people on the boat look like that have a bad chinese buffett meal.
Our guys are faring okay,the boat is great and food is plentiful. It is a long trip down there,55 hours was the time we were given
and so far we cut that in half and should arrive at approx 2am tomorrow morning.Then the fun and games will begin,the 5 of us are
so excited to be able to get off the boat and get running.
 
Today was a magic day however,at approx 11am we came across several large Humpback whales making their trip home. The captain was bribed
into stopping and inch by inch 2 of the bigger whales made their way closer to our ship. It was one of the most incredible experiences,for a good 50 minutes
the whales swam endlessly back and forth under our boat,so close that you could almost reach out and touch them. I am convinced they knew we were
there. Their massive bodies slowly coming out of the water and splashing water all over the place only to disappear and then resurface on the other side
of the boat.
 
There is not much to do on the ship,it is just a slow push forward towards our destination. No icebergs as yet but we have been told that late this afternoon
or night they will start to appear.This is when we will realise where we are! Finally we will be able to take a break from sleeping and get moving!
 
There is not much to report at the moment,i am saving my typing skills for once the race begins early tomorrow morning!
Again hello to everyone back home.
Chelsea,Bromwyn and Lani,we are all thinking about you. Love from the 3 of us!
 
Peter.
 
Team Trifecta/Mountain Hardwear.

Well it is safe to say that all of us have arrived safely in Ushuaia.

After a couple of days of travel Michael and myself and our trusty sideman Big Eazy arrived first.That afternoon the boss of Team Trifecta/Mountain Hardwear (Frank Fumich) arrived to put things in order. We have not even unpacked and talk begins of what is next in stall for this team of mates. Frank insists on buying a calender so that he knows just where the hell he is of to next! :)

We ventured around our new surroundings and Ushuaia is one of thoes places that not many people will ever venture to in their lifetime,it is cold and windswept and dotted in one street with all types of shopping and food. It is nice to get in and start to think about what is up next but at the same time the 4 of us do a good job of taking our minds of it!

I think next week is still the big unknown,we are all fit and ready to go but how many of us have actually ran that far in the snow. This is why these races attract us guys and gals,because we like to test the unknown,we like to see what our bodies can do! Bring it on. If anything it makes us realise why we are all such great mates yet live far apart! Distances never stop us from realising how much we mean to each other!

Good friend Peter B has arrived today and it is like a family re-union of sorts,you never realise until you are home and back to your normal life how much these guys mean to you and to each other. What started as a one-race affair has now turned into something bigger than we could ever imagine,did any of us ever think back in June 2007 that 16 months later we would be here in Ushuaia getting ready for the race of our lives. Add James Elson to the pack and the 5 of us are back together.

I could sit and type all day about how cold it will be down in Antarctica or how miserable it will be,but i think we can all recognise that. We all know what we are in for !! Bring it on says Team Trifecta/Mountain Hardwear! We love this craziness,lets go!

Hang tight and we will fill you in on what is next for us loonies!

Before i finish i should send out a thank you to the people who we rely on so much in our lives.

Frank´s wife Chelsea,Michael´s wife Bronwyn and my fiancee Lani.

You girls probably enjoy not having us there but we miss you girls.

See you all soon,stay put for the next update from the boat!

Team Trifecta/Mountain Hardwear!

 

 

 

 

 

 

Hey guys and welcome to the first edition of Team Trifecta vs the world.

Ever since i got back from Chile people have always asked me the same question. How did you guys get on so well and what is the best balance for a team!

There are many ways to put into perspective the bond that we had as a team! Let it be known however for anyone attempting their first race that the most important people out there are your tent mates. We have been so fortunate in both Gobi and Chile that the base of our tent mates were the best bloke one could ever meet. James Elson is the guy that everyone wishes they could run like uin the desert and then at the same time have the spirit and heart to be one of the funniest guys on the planet. Yes,these races are serious business and it is a week of hell but James can easily put everything into perspective. Then you have a guy like Peter Bocquest whose before race ritual is beer ,beer and more beer. Pete does these things on his ear,it may not be fast but one day at a time and it gets done. The best thing that one can take out of people like Pete is at the presentation we all receive the same medal.

Then it comes down to the people i spend 90% of my days with . Frank Fumich and Michael Hull. Firstly lets talk about Michael Hull. I first me Michael Hull a few months before the Gobi March. Our first contact was over an email and a few hello's over the phone. I finally caught up with Michael for a coffee a few weekes late and from the first few minutes you knew a brotherhood was formed. Training went by and before we knew we were going through each other's backpacks working out if we had the right food and whether or not we had enough or too much. Anyways there was nothing we could about it know. We were been shopped off to the desert so deal with it was our last thoughts. When it came down to afriendship we always knew from day one that out there we were not going to leave each others side. Even on days when one said to the other "you go ahead" that was never put into practice and we finished each day side by side! What we started togethor we finished togethor.

Now people always ask me how Frank came to be a part of this Team Trifecta. Frank is the type of guy endurance athletes want to be! He has climbed more mountains and ran more ultras than most of us would dare to dream off,but at the end of the day Frank Fumich is Frank Fumich and does not once give himself the credos he deserves. Now Frank came into this as the guy who along with his good mate Alex would jog up to us each day in the Gobi Desert. Would Frank and Alex jog straight past Hully and myself,no-way! Frank and Alex would slow to our pace and chat and get to know these 2 Aussies who had no idea of pacing these ultra-events. Frank is an absolute genius at pacing and without him we would not be the team that won the Atacama crossing!

So we returned home and the tent continued to stay in touch and joked about all of us doing Atacama. I mentioned to Hully that we should ask Frank about doing it in a team with us. We emailed Frank and he went for it without even flinching.From that moment Team Trifecta was born.

Please stay tuned for the next update on Team Trifecta!!!

 

Pete

 

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