Ben Saunders: To the South Pole and back — the hardest 105 days of my life
بن ساوندرز: الذهاب إلى القطب الجنوبي والعودة منه - أصعب 150 يوما في حياتي
In 2004, Ben Saunders became the youngest person ever to ski solo to the North Pole. In 2013, he set out on another record-breaking expedition, this time to retrace Captain Scott’s ill-fated journey to the South Pole on foot. Full bio
Double-click the English transcript below to play the video.
intelligentsia that is TED,
stuff around cold places.
حول الأماكن الباردة.
for most of my adult life,
Tarka L'Herpiniere and I
أنا وزميلي "تاركا لوربينير"
expedition I've ever attempted.
transported straight here
نُقلت إلى هنا مباشرة
straight to the TED stage.
مباشرة إلى منصّة TED.
that hasn't been entirely seamless.
انتقالاً بعيدًا تمامًا عن السّلاسة.
memory is entirely shot.
in the next 17 minutes.
خلال الدقائق17 الآتية.
about this expedition,
حول هذه البعثة،
or building space telescopes,
أو بناء تلسكوبات فضائية،
we had to achieve something
بكل ما في وسعنا لتحقيق شيء
find some food for thought.
ربما ما يستحق التأمل.
expedition in Antarctica,
إلى أنتركتيكا
highest altitude continent on Earth.
وأكثرها جفافًا وريحًا وارتفاعًا.
It's a huge place.
as China and India put together.
in the last few days,
الأيام القليلة الماضية
may get at TED in a few years' time,
عنها في TED خلال السنوات القليلة القادمة؛
with Lindblad for our anniversary."
رفقة "ليندبلاد" بمناسبة ذكرى زواجنا."
for the marathon?"
للمشاركة في سباق المارثون؟"
69 marathons back to back
الواحد تلو الآخر دون توقف
on foot from the coast of Antarctica
الأقدام من ساحل أنترتيكا
journey in history by more than 400 miles.
بأكثر من 400 ميل.
منطقة "خليج سان فرنسسكوا"،
here to San Francisco,
من هنا إلى سان فرنسسكو،
and walking back again.
فهذه تعدُّ الأطول
most succinctly here
of Business Insider Malaysia.
"Business Insider Malaysia"
That Killed Everyone The Last Time It Was Attempted"]
قتلت كل من حاول القيام بها من قبل]
and indeed the odds of survival.
أو بالأحرى حظوظ البقاء على قيد الحياة.
attempted this journey before us,
حاولوا أن يقوموا بهذه الرحلة قبلنا،
إلى القطب ثم العودة،
to attempt this expedition.
the first to reach the South Pole,
حول من يصلُ إلى القطب الجنوبي أولاً ،
the interior of Antarctica,
في ذلك الوقت،
the moon through telescopes.
عبرالتلسكوب
a century ago, uncharted.
قبل قرن من الزمان، مجهولاً.
Terra Nova Expedition in 1910,
تيرا نوفا في عام 1910
siege-style approach.
depots of food and fuel
الوقود والطعام في أماكن محددة مسبقا
would travel to the Pole,
المكون من خمسة أفراد السفر الى القطب
back to the coast again on foot.
in January 1912
في شهر يناير من العام 1912
by a Norwegian team led by Roald Amundsen,
فريق نرويجي يقوده رولد امندسن
this journey has remained unfinished.
ظلت هذه الرحلة غير منتهية
on the return journey.
ماتوا في رحلة الرجوع
the high-water mark?
of human endurance,
human athletic achievement
والانجاز الرياضي البشري
predictable combination of curiosity,
مزيج غريب ومتوقع من الفضول
to try to finish the job.
أكون الرجل الذي سيحاول إنهاء هذه المهمة
there were just two of us,
كنا اثنين فقط
of Antarctica in October last year,
في أكتوبر من العام الماضي
here to San Francisco and back,
إلى سان فرانسيسكو والعودة مجددا
something that weighs a shade more
شيء يزن أكثر قليلا
of Scott's ponies pulled.
مُهور سكوت
attempted this journey until now,
بمحاولة القيام بهذه الرحلة إلى الآن،
stupid enough to try.
sense of the word —
or mapping any uncharted valleys —
أو نخطط ودياناً غير مخططة --
territory in a human sense.
بالمعنى التام
there is an area of the human brain
وجود منطقة في العقل
spends 90 percent of their time indoors.
يقضي %90 من وقته داخل المباني.
for nearly four months.
three times in 105 days
30 square feet on the canvas.
that Scott could never have imagined.
التقنيات التي لايمكن لسكوت أن يتخيلها.
from the tent via a laptop
من الخيمة باستعمال حاسوب محمول
panel over the tent.
literature of adventure and exploration,
المغامرات والاستكشاف،
here this week
the power of storytelling.
challenges that Scott faced
واجهها سكوت
what Scott called glide,
the sledges and the snow.
we experienced was in the -70s,
بها 70- درجة
what's called white-out,
مايسمى بالضباب القطبي
in the world, the Beardmore glacier.
والتي تسمى بيردمور
is what's called blue ice.
مكون مما يسمى بالثلج الأزرق
shimmering steel-hard blue surface
الأزرق الصلب
and thousands of crevasses,
up to 200 feet deep.
200 قدم
chance of being rescued.
ضئيلة
after 61 days on foot,
نتيجة للمناخ السيء،
something of an anticlimax.
كان محبطاً بعض الشيء
at the South Pole.
في القطب الجنوبي.
they have a canteen,
as a movie theater.
365 days of the year
and movie theaters,
a lot of empty cardboard boxes.
صناديق فارغة
this photograph,
from the South Pole.
than anyone in history.
يسحبه شخص في التاريخ
and flown home,
the eminently sensible thing to do,
فعله في هذا الموقف
the right tools, the right technology,
والأدوات والتقنية المناسبة
and enough determination,
very cold, very dry, we were exhausted.
وباردة و كنا مرهقين.
that didn't exist for Scott,
limits as human beings.
of starvation day after day
يوماً بعد يوم
full of food.
in sponsorship proposals
في مقترحات دعم
of human endurance,
a very frightening place to be indeed.
مكاناً مخيفاً بالنسبة لنا فعلاً
headwind, which slowed us down.
التي أبطأت مسيرنا
of eating half rations.
نصف ما يفترض أن نأكله
in the sledges to make this journey,
the calories we should have been eating.
لكل منا الى النصف
increasingly hypoglycemic —
على نحو متزايد
levels day after day —
to the extreme cold.
تجاه البرد القارس
with hypothermia.
بسبب هبوط حرارتي
something I hadn't experienced before,
الحرارة، شيء لم أمر به من قبل
like to think, as I do,
of person who doesn't quit,
to lie down and quit.
to be debilitated to that degree.
قطع 46 ميلاً
for our return journey —
could melt snow to get water —
وجمع الماء-
to call for a resupply flight,
طلب رحلة تموين،
to tide us over that gap.
يكفي ثمانية أيام تلك الفجوة.
from the other side of Antarctica.
من الجانب الآخر من قارة أنتارتيكا
the toughest decisions of my life.
أصعب القرارات في حياتي.
standing here now with a sort of belly.
وأنا أقف هنا الآن بهذا البطن.
in the last three weeks.
في الأسابيع الثلاثة الماضية.
an interesting mental scar,
every hotel buffet that I can find.
أجده،
and in quite a bad way.
for that plane for a second,
لتلك الطائرة ولو لثانية،
telling this story.
was never part of the plan,
لم يكن جزءا من الخطة
is still struggling with.
the spikes on our boots
over this blue ice on the glacier —
الأزرق للجبل-
الأزرق الصلب.
of the Beardmore Glacier.
in the gap on the horizon.
في تلك الفجوة الموجودة في الأفق.
Mount Hope and Mount Kiffin.
as I did in Antarctica.
شعرت في القارة القطبية الجنوبية.
to the mouth of the glacier,
مصب النهر الجليدي،
the dozens of deep crevasses.
عددا من الصدوع العميقة.
crossing this sort of terrain
عبوره لهذا النوع من التضاريس
of a railway station.
من محطة للسكك الحديدية.
than I can remember,
or a boot through the snow.
أو حذاء طويل للمشي بين الثلج.
the way up to our armpits,
after 105 days,
بعد مائة وخمسة أيام،
inauspicious finish line,
on the New Zealand side of Antarctica.
نيوزيلندا من القارة القطبية الجنوبية.
ski trail of nearly 1,800 miles.
لمسافة 1.800ميل تقريبا
polar journey on foot,
مشيا على الأقدام
of doing for a decade.
much thought to what happens
لما قد يحدث
most of your adult life to,
still figuring that bit out.
superficial signs that I've been away.
الظاهرة التي لم أكن على علم بها،
covered in makeup now, frostbite scars.
each cheek, from where the goggles are,
بسبب النظارات،
different person indeed.
and humbled me so deeply
بشكل عميق
to put it into words.
together my thoughts.
telling this story
accomplish great things,
hard enough, as Sting said,
مثل ماقال ستينق،
saying, you know what,
هل تعرفون،
more important than the destination?
من الوجهة؟
that the biggest lesson
might be teaching me
قد تعلمني
a finish line,
us seem to dream of
here, today, now, on our journeys
الآن،خلال رحلاتنا
that we all inhabit,
the half-finished to-do lists,
قائمات نصف منجزة بالأشياء التي يجب فعلها
and in front of hotel buffets.
ووجودي في مطاعم الفنادق.
of character to fight it. (Laughter)
(ضحك)
ABOUT THE SPEAKER
Ben Saunders - Polar explorerIn 2004, Ben Saunders became the youngest person ever to ski solo to the North Pole. In 2013, he set out on another record-breaking expedition, this time to retrace Captain Scott’s ill-fated journey to the South Pole on foot.
Why you should listen
Although most of the planet's surface was mapped long ago, there's still a place for explorers in the modern world. And Ben Saunders' stories of arctic exploration -- as impressive for their technical ingenuity as their derring-do -- are decidedly modern. In 2004, at age 26, he skied solo to the North Pole, updating his blog each day of the trip. Humble and self-effacing, Saunders is an explorer of limits, whether it's how far a human can be pushed physically and psychologically, or how technology works hundreds of miles from civilization. His message is one of inspiration, empowerment and boundless potential.
He urges audiences to consider carefully how to spend the “tiny amount of time we each have on this planet.” Saunders is also a powerful advocate for the natural world. He's seen first-hand the effects of climate change, and his expeditions are raising awareness for sustainable solutions.
Being the youngest person to ski solo to the North Pole did not satiate Saunders' urge to explore and push the boundaries. In 2008, he attempted to break the speed record for a solo walk to the North Pole; however, his journey was ended abruptly both then and again in 2010 due to equipment failure. From October 2013 to February 2014, he led a two-man team to retrace Captain Robert Falcon Scott’s ill-fated 1,800-mile expedition to the South Pole on foot. He calls this journey the hardest 105 days of his life.
Ben Saunders | Speaker | TED.com