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Published:
February 28, 2008
Arctic
explorers continue training with Burnham hovercraft team
Two
Arctic explorers who hope to be the first to travel to the North
Pole in a hovercraft have been back in Burnham-On-Sea this week,
training with the town's rescue hovercraft crew.
Simon
Marshall, from Wembdon near Bridgwater, and London-based friend
Alex Henney will next year attempt a 500-mile expedition to the
pole in a custom-made hovercraft similar to Burnham's life-saving
Light Of Elizabeth craft.
 The
duo began training alongside BARB crewmembers last month in preparation
for their Arctic expedition, which is scheduled to go ahead in
May 2009.
In
return, the pair will donate the proceeds of the sponsorship of
their trip to BARB to help the organisation meet its £30,000
annual running costs.
"Simon
and Alex took part in a full training session as passengers onboard
the Light Of Elizabeth hovercraft this week, learning about the
craft's controls and getting familiar with how hovercrafts operate,"
said a BARB spokesman.
Both
Simon and Alex have a great deal of experience in trekking across
the Arctic. Mr Marshall has over ten years' experience, having
been the base camp manager during the 1996 Ultimate Challenge
expedition, which gave novices the opportunity to experience polar
travel, and he has taken part in many treks across the ice. And
Mr Henney was a member of Team Polar Horizon, which took part
in the 2007 Polar Race, a 350-mile race to the Magnetic North
Pole.
Hovercraft explorers begin training with Burnham crew
Burnham-On-Sea Hovercraft Web site
Hovercraft To The Pole Web site
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