Charlie Wittmack of Des Moines, Iowa will be embarking on an unprecedented 11 month triathlon adventure called The World Tri this week. It's quite possibly the most difficult and insane human endurance challenge ever conceived. Wittmak's eleven month adventure will take him from the frigid waters of The River Thames in England all the way to the summit of Mt Everest in Nepal.
Over eleven months, The World Tri will cross 12 countries while encountering the most treacherous conditions imaginable. The expedition begins with a 350-mile swim down the River Thames in England to the icy North Atlantic Sea and across the English Channel to France. From France, the expedition continues with a 9000-mile bicycle ride across Europe and Asia, passing over many of the world's most rugged and remote mountain ranges, and crossing hundreds of miles of barren sand desert, before climbing over the Himalaya to the Indian Ocean and Calcutta. The triathlon concludes with a super-ultra 950-mile run from sea level at the Bay of Bengal, up into the Himalaya, to the top of the world and the summit of Mount Everest.
Why? The World Tri is a globe spanning educational endeavor aimed at inspiring student from around the globe to take on the world's toughest environmental and global health challenges and develop the practical skills and tools they need to change the world.
Charlie begins the 350 miles swim leg of The World Triathlon on July 1, 2010. You can follow the expedition via: Website, Facebook or Twitter
Q. Charlie, what's the matter with you?
A. I recognize that this sounds completely crazy. But I've been developing this project for more than 15 years while working through the details of each leg of the expedition. I began with cycling, participating in numerous bicycle tours (including a 1995 ride across the United States), and spent two seasons racing mountain bikes in the northeast NORBA circuit. Next, I spent seven years training for Mount Everest, completing climbs of some of the most difficult and dangerous peaks in the world, before finally reaching the summit of Everest in 2003 during some of the worst weather in the recorded history of the mountain. Finally, I completed numerous marathon swims, including a first place finish in the 12.5 mile Swim Around Key West, and a 2008 attempt on the English Channel.
About Charlie Wittmack:
Charlie is an American explorer and adventurer who has been training and preparing for this expedition for more than 15 years. Wittmack will be supported during the expedition by his wife Cate, who will be leading an educational initiative throughout the expedition and a global health program in Nepal. The Wittmacks will be travelling with their young son James, and award-winning journalists Andy Stoll and Brian Triplett.
