Ben Saunders: To the South Pole and back — the hardest 105 days of my life
Bens Saunderss: Uz Dienvidpolu un atpakaļ – 105 manas dzīves grūtākās dienas
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.
pa aukstām vietām.
lielākoties vadu polārās ekspedīcijas,
for most of my adult life,
Tarka L'Herpiniere and I
mans komandas biedrs Tarka Lepinjē
expedition I've ever attempted.
kādā jebkad biju devies.
ka esmu nogādāts
transported straight here
būšanas nekurienes vidū,
straight to the TED stage.
that hasn't been entirely seamless.
šādas pārmaiņas nav bez sekām.
memory is entirely shot.
in the next 17 minutes.
no pārmērīgas burkšķēšanas un lamāšanās.
about this expedition,
kurā stāstu par šo ekspedīciju,
or building space telescopes,
un nebūvējām kosmosa teleskopus,
we had to achieve something
kas mums bija, lai paveiktu ko tādu,
find some food for thought.
kādu vielu pārdomām.
expedition in Antarctica,
un augstākajā kontinentā uz Zemes.
highest altitude continent on Earth.
It's a huge place.
as China and India put together.
kā Ķīna un Indija kopā.
esmu piedzīvojis interesantu fenomenu,
in the last few days,
droši vien dzirdēs Kriss Hedfīlds,
may get at TED in a few years' time,
ar Lindblad atzīmēt kāzu gadadienu."
with Lindblad for our anniversary."
turp uz maratonu?"
for the marathon?"
69 marathons back to back
kā 69 maratoni viens pēc otra
on foot from the coast of Antarctica
turp un atpakaļ no Antarktīdas piekrastes
640 kilometriem pārspējām
journey in history by more than 400 miles.
ko cilvēki veikuši tikai pašu spēkiem.
iet uz Sanfrancisko,
here to San Francisco,
and walking back again.
most succinctly here
of Business Insider Malaysia.
That Killed Everyone The Last Time It Was Attempted"]
kura līdz šim visiem beigusies ar nāvi"]
un, jā, arī par izdzīvošanas varbūtību.
and indeed the odds of survival.
attempted this journey before us,
īstenot šo ceļojumu pirms mums,
tikt līdz polam un atpakaļ,
šīs ekspedīcijas mēģinājumu.
to attempt this expedition.
Sers Ernests Šekltons,
par pirmajiem, kas sasniedz Dienvidpolu,
the first to reach the South Pole,
the interior of Antarctica,
the moon through telescopes.
a century ago, uncharted.
lielākoties bija neizpētīta.
Terra Nova Expedition in 1910,
Terra Nova 1910. gadā
ekspedīcijas tipa gājiens.
siege-style approach.
depots of food and fuel
un degvielas depozīta punkti,
would travel to the Pole,
ceļotu uz Dienvidpolu,
back to the coast again on foot.
un slēpotu atpakaļ uz piekrasti.
in January 1912
by a Norwegian team led by Roald Amundsen,
norvēģu komanda Roalda Amundsena vadībā,
this journey has remained unfinished.
šis ceļojums nebija pabeigts.
on the return journey.
gāja bojā atpakaļceļā.
the high-water mark?
palicis tik nesasniedzams?
2500 kilometru.
neviens nebija ticis.
of human endurance,
human athletic achievement
un sportiskajiem sasniegumiem,
klimatiskajos apstākļos.
predictable combination of curiosity,
pārliekas pašpārliecinātības kombinācija
to try to finish the job.
kurš šo darbiņu paveiktu.
mēs bijām divatā
there were just two of us,
of Antarctica in October last year,
no Antarktīdas piekrastes,
uz Sanfrancisko un atpakaļ,
here to San Francisco and back,
something that weighs a shade more
tāda smaguma vilkšana,
smagāko NFL spēlētāju.
of Scott's ponies pulled.
ko vilka Skota vājākais ponijs.
800 metrus stundā.
attempted this journey until now,
neviens nemēģināja veikt šo ceļojumu,
stupid enough to try.
lai ko tādu mēģinātu.
sense of the word —
or mapping any uncharted valleys —
un kartē neatzīmējām jaunas ielejas –,
territory in a human sense.
cilvēka apziņas neizpētītās teritorijās.
there is an area of the human brain
ka cilvēka smadzenēs ir daļa,
nolād pats sevi,
spends 90 percent of their time indoors.
90% laika pavada telpās.
for nearly four months.
gandrīz četru mēnešu garumā.
three times in 105 days
nomainīju apakšveļu,
30 square feet on the canvas.
nepilnu trīs kvadrātmetru liela telts.
that Scott could never have imagined.
kādas Skots pat iedomāties nespētu.
from the tent via a laptop
un pielāgotu satelīta raidītāju,
fotoelektriskais panelis.
panel over the tent.
literature of adventure and exploration,
un pētniecības literatūras
here this week
visi esam pieredzējuši
the power of storytelling.
challenges that Scott faced
what Scott called glide,
un tam, ko Skots sauca par slīdēšanu –
the sledges and the snow.
we experienced was in the -70s,
bija ap mīnus 70 grādiem,
pilnīgi neko nevarēja redzēt.
what's called white-out,
pa vienu no pasaules lielākajiem
in the world, the Beardmore glacier.
Bīrdmora ledāju.
is what's called blue ice.
lielākoties klāts ar tā saukto zilo ledu.
shimmering steel-hard blue surface
mirguļojoša, tēraudcieta, zila virsma,
and thousands of crevasses,
up to 200 feet deep.
ir pat līdz 60 metru dziļas.
bijām pakļauti tieši tad,
chance of being rescued.
tehniski bija visniecīgākās.
after 61 days on foot,
atpūšoties tikai vienu dienu,
something of an anticlimax.
ka tā savā ziņā bija vilšanās.
at the South Pole.
stacija Dienvidpolā.
they have a canteen,
as a movie theater.
kas pārmaiņus mēdz būt kinoteātris.
365 days of the year
and movie theaters,
karstas dušas un kinoteātri,
a lot of empty cardboard boxes.
this photograph,
from the South Pole.
kājām, pašu spēkiem,
nekā kāds jebkad vilcis.
than anyone in history.
un devušies mājup,
and flown home,
the eminently sensible thing to do,
the right tools, the right technology,
pareizie rīki un tehnoloģijas,
and enough determination,
un pietiekama apņēmība,
3000 metru augstumā,
very cold, very dry, we were exhausted.
un mēs bijām pārguruši.
that didn't exist for Scott,
kādu Skota laikā nebija,
limits as human beings.
cilvēka absolūto spēju robežām.
spīdzināšanas veids –
of starvation day after day
full of food.
in sponsorship proposals
finansējuma pieprasījumos
of human endurance,
a very frightening place to be indeed.
headwind, which slowed us down.
bija pretvējš, kas mūs bremzēja.
of eating half rations.
in the sledges to make this journey,
bija ierobežots pārtikas daudzums,
the calories we should have been eating.
no uzņemamā kaloriju daudzuma.
increasingly hypoglycemic —
pastiprinājās hipoglikēmija,
levels day after day —
zems cukura līmenis asinīs,
to the extreme cold.
pret milzīgo aukstumu.
with hypothermia.
biju gandrīz atslēdzies.
something I hadn't experienced before,
lēkmes, ko iepriekš nebiju piedzīvojis,
like to think, as I do,
of person who doesn't quit,
tikai apgulties un padoties.
to lie down and quit.
to be debilitated to that degree.
ka esmu tā notrulināts.
nākamās depozīta stacijas,
for our return journey —
un degvielu atpakaļceļam.
could melt snow to get water —
lai varētu kausēt sniegu un iegūt ūdeni.
izsaukt krājumu papildināšanas reisu,
to call for a resupply flight,
to tide us over that gap.
lai mēs spētu pārvarēt šo posmu.
from the other side of Antarctica.
bija nepieciešamas 12 stundas.
the toughest decisions of my life.
no dzīves grūtākajiem lēmumiem.
standing here now with a sort of belly.
stāvot jūsu priekšā ar vēderiņu.
pieņēmies svarā par 13 kilogramiem.
in the last three weeks.
an interesting mental scar,
interesantu psihisku traumu –
every hotel buffet that I can find.
kad vien tādu atrodu.
and in quite a bad way.
un diezgan drūmā stāvoklī.
for that plane for a second,
lēmumu izsaukt lidmašīnu,
daloties ar šo stāstu.
telling this story.
was never part of the plan,
nebija paredzēta,
is still struggling with.
the spikes on our boots
zilā ledāja šķērsošanai –
over this blue ice on the glacier —
of the Beardmore Glacier.
uz Bīrdmora ledāja pamatni.
in the gap on the horizon.
iespējams ietilpināt visu Manhetenu.
Mount Hope and Mount Kiffin.
as I did in Antarctica.
nebiju juties vēl nekad.
to the mouth of the glacier,
the dozens of deep crevasses.
ko pārklājusi svaiga sniega sega.
crossing this sort of terrain
šāda reljefa šķērsošanu aprakstīja
of a railway station.
virs dzelzceļa stacijas.
than I can remember,
nekā spēju atcerēties,
or a boot through the snow.
izduroties caur sniegu.
the way up to our armpits,
after 105 days,
pēc 105 dienu ilga ceļa,
inauspicious finish line,
nožēlojamo finiša līniju,
on the New Zealand side of Antarctica.
Antarktīdas Jaunzēlandes daļā.
ski trail of nearly 1,800 miles.
gandrīz nepārtrauktu slēpju sliežu.
garāko polāro ekspedīciju,
polar journey on foot,
of doing for a decade.
desmit gadu garumā.
much thought to what happens
par to, kas notiek,
kas prasījis visu,
most of your adult life to,
savu pieauguša cilvēka dzīvi,
still figuring that bit out.
superficial signs that I've been away.
kas liecina par manu prombūtni.
covered in makeup now, frostbite scars.
kas tagad droši vien klātas ar grimu.
each cheek, from where the goggles are,
kur bija aizsargbrilles,
esmu pavisam cits cilvēks.
different person indeed.
and humbled me so deeply
un padarīja tik pazemīgu,
to put it into words.
to vārdos izteikt.
together my thoughts.
telling this story
accomplish great things,
varam paveikt lielas lietas –
hard enough, as Sting said,
kā teicis Stings,
saying, you know what,
ka ceļojums ir svarīgāks par galamērķi?
more important than the destination?
akmeņainajam Rosa salas krastam,
that the biggest lesson
might be teaching me
man, iespējams, iemācījis, ir,
a finish line,
us seem to dream of
here, today, now, on our journeys
šodien, tagad savā ceļā,
that we all inhabit,
kurā visi dzīvojam,
the half-finished to-do lists,
puspabeigto darbu sarakstos,
and in front of hotel buffets.
un tikt pie viesnīcu bufetēm.
of character to fight it. (Laughter)
rakstura, lai to pārvarētu."
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