Strath man takes on elements in Siberia
AN AVIEMORE survival expert braved temperatures as low as -40°C, blizzards and winds of 100kph to take part in one of the toughest races on Earth.
Neil Foote (29) skied 379 miles from the Angara River, just south of Lake Baikal, across the lake to the city of Sevrobaykalsk in the first Siberian Black Ice Race in Russia.
Extreme World Races, the organisation behind the race, knew of his exploits in mountain marathons and invited him to compete in the race.
Lake Baikal is the world’s oldest and deepest ice lake and has an eerily spooky covering of black tormented ice.
The competition involved teams crossing the lake in any way possible as long as it is not by mechanical means. As well as skiers, runners, cyclists and even kiters took part.
Mr Foote and his Swedish skiing partner, Caspar Ordqvirst, pulled pulks (small toboggans) weighing 35-40kg together over the ice, some of which is highly unstable.
They and their rival competitors also had to deal with hypothermia, broken bones and sheer exhaustion, with one team even accidentally burning down their tent.
Mr Foote said: "The temperatures dropped to between -30 and -40 degrees Centigrade, and there were blizzards, whiteouts and 100kph winds. One of the German competitors lost two fingers due to frostbite.
"It was really tough going and it became even more difficult when Caspar had to pull out at the halfway checkpoint because he had trench foot.
"It was hard psychologically to carry on after that, but I just had to continue the race and finish it."
He completed the race in 12 days and one hour, finishing a highly creditable seventh out of 30 teams from as far afield as Germany, Spain and the USA as well as Russia.
Mr Foote said: "I got a badge to say I had finished the race, which was enough reward for me as I got a tremendous sense of achievement from doing it.
"The worst part about the trip was when I returned to my hotel near the start of the race, where I had left some belongings, and discovered that my mobile phone and shoes had been stolen!"
