No specific finish-line
Published on 12.01.2012 - Acciona Windpower Antarctica 90°S
Ramón Larramendi does not know how far his expedition will travel. On 10 January, they had 2.400 kil behind and still 1.000 kil in front of them. Because this expedition needs favorable winds to move forward, its result is only in Eole's hands.
Larramendi and his team are back on tracks. Since they left the Pole (although the way out of the SP buildings area had been quite difficult because of the bad direction od the winds), they have been quite lucky: 98 kil done on 10 January and the same distance the next day.
There is one major problem though. The terrain, which is not very flat : "We’ve hit rough ground again and it’s stretching the sled to its limits as it’s forced to overcome seemingly impossible obstacles: row after row of sastrugis the size of giant sharks standing one-meter tall and as menacing as a hired gunman; and endless small dunes and embankments that, surprisingly, the sled takes in its stride comfortably and skillfully. We use the 300-meter line and the 80m2 kite first before changing to the 30m2 one. The pace is slow, barely 7km/h, and the man at the helm has his work cut out: the sled is slowed down continuously by umpteen obstacles and the demands on arms and shoulders to control the kite are considerable. The bumps and jolts, the noise…there’s a constant worry that something is going to give. In the space of half an hour the strength of the wind changes all the time which is unsettling: one moment the kite is too small, the next moment we’re hurtling along at a dangerous speed. At least the terrain has been good for shooting some great pictures and getting decent footage. ..."
