Italian ultradistance bike owner Omar di Felice is 5 days into an estimated 2 months to cross Antarctica on his personal by fats bike, preventing among the harshest situations on the planet. It’s an bold journey challenge aiming to attract consideration to the problem of local weather change. And he is aware of how tough it is going to be, having to be evacuated on his first try final December.
However he’s again, and making headway. Driving an aluminum prototype fats bike constructed for him by Wilier, and pulling a sled with all of the meals, gas, shelter, and excessive climate gear to outlive the windswept frozen panorama…
Antarctica Limitless: A solo crossing of Antarctica by fats bike
Beginning at sea stage from Hercules Inlet, Omar di Felice plans to experience roughly 1100km climbing as much as the South Pole, then will descend all the way down to the Leverett Glacier, earlier than finally climbing again as much as the pole for a complete 1600km distance. We will all simply grasp that the acute climate will likely be windy, chilly, and with white-out situations possible. It’s Antarctica in any case. However we simply overlook the elevation acquire, whereas hauling all the mandatory gear.
Instantly, leaving base camp at Hercules Inlet, Omar climbed 800m within the first 30km, whereas in fact driving a heavy fats bike loaded with gear AND pulling a sled / ski pulk laden with the whole lot he may need for a few months alone. Then, he confronted the identical elevation to climb once more, as an alternative skirting the mountains for an additional forty kilometers, earlier than persevering with the ascent to the South Pole which sits at 2835m above the place he began.
Sudden impediment crossing Antarctica by fats bike
As soon as chilly, wind & elevation are overcome, the subsequent main impediment could be very a lot psychological. As a result of it undoubtedly isn’t all the time sunny.
The bodily effort is one thing you possibly can prepare for. As is the solo self-supported facet. Omar di Felice did win the 6800km Trans America Bike Race this summer time in any case.
However in December in Antarctica, the solar doesn’t set. Caught in a storm, it’s possible you’ll spend days sheltered inside your tent with no seen passage of time. That occurred final 12 months for 3 days of whiteout situations, that actually broke Omar mentally, leaving him alone sleep-deprived along with his ideas in endless daylight. Previous trauma returned, in what may most likely be described as a strolling nightmare.
In the end, he realized that he couldn’t safely proceed, even after the storm subsided. So the help staff evacuated Omar, early into the try. However he vowed to return again once more.
So what has modified, with Omar and his prototype Wilier fats bike setup?
Clearly, now Omar Di Felice is aware of extra what he was stepping into. Past the psychical prep, he’s extra prepared for the distinctive psychological check as effectively.
As for his bike, not that a lot has modified actually.
We final had caught up along with his uncooked aluminum prototype fats bike, produced as a one-off challenge from sponsor Wilier.
However even for final 12 months’s expedition, they’d customized painted the bike and its matching alloy fork within the “Warming Stripes” graphic of local weather scientist Ed Hawkins from the #ShowYourStripes marketing campaign.
Every of the blue & pink barcode stripes represents a 12 months of deviation from the local weather common for the final 160 years, with the pink warming of the previous 22 years fairly apparent.
Antarctic Expedition hauling
On the customized bike Omar suits a set of customized made Miss Grape baggage, together with a customized full body bag and a brand new lengthy Massive Node toptube bag for extra prepared entry storage. Plus, a few Trunk 6 Waterproof baggage on every fork leg.
The vast majority of Omar’s 90kg of substances although, is packed inside a brand new custom-made Norwegian sled, the Fjellpulken Xplorer expedition pulk. However the on-bike baggage from Miss Grape present faster entry. Get to key gear to cope with quick altering climate, to take care of correct diet. And to set camp as rapidly as doable as soon as he stops driving.
Tech Particulars & Bike Setup
A Garmin InReach system handles navigation. And he mounts it to a Miss Grape Ilcoso mixture extension bar and bar bag holder, off of his handlebar. He’s additionally newly utilizing a Iridium Go Exec modem and photo voltaic panel recharging. That brings higher communications with basecamp, and the flexibility to ship dwell pictures like these we now have from the present expedition.
Drivetrain is improve to XT. Nevertheless it’s nonetheless the uniquely sturdy thicker Shimano XT LinkGlide 11-speed system (in 12sp spacing) with a large 11-50T cassette.
And he tops it off with a brand new ti-railed Selle San Marco Aspide Quick Supercomfort saddle. As a result of he’s going to spend so much of time sitting on this factor going sluggish for the subsequent a number of weeks. Plus, ESI Chunky grips.
Formally, Continental tires and Mavic wheels sponsor Omar. However since neither make fatbike equipment, he’s rolling on stealthily blacked-out equipment. DT Swiss BR 2250 wheels and 27.5 x 4.0″ 45NRTH Dillinger 4 studded tires.
Observe alongside dwell, now
And now we simply need to cross out fingers, follow-along, and wait.
Observe Omar di Felice’s dwell place through ENDUlive. It’s comparatively slow-going within the ultra-distance dotwatching scheme of issues. However we’re enthralled.
