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20.12.09
How are the schools getting on?
Before leaving their respective countries, the girls threw down the gauntlet to schools throughout the Commonwealth and the rest of the world, to race them to the Pole. Who would be faster - a team of trained expeditioners, dedicating all their time to a single objective? A group of enthusiastic youngsters working together in less harsh environs?
Children of the Commonwealth, school kids of the world... Now is the time to speak up.
The girls are only 130 miles from the Pole so where are you? Let us know through the Ask us a Question page and the girls will know whether to rest on their laurels or put pedal to metal until they reach 09-degrees.
Felicity (UK)'s PodCast:
Link to Podcast
Felicity's PodCast in writing:
"Hello this is Felicity giving you an update for day 28.
Gosh, 28. Some days it feels like its been absolute months and months that we have been at this then other days I can't believe we're on day 28 . It seems to be speeding past.
Well, looking at the map it seems we are almost at the South Pole but we're still actually 130 miles away which is a long way by anybody's standards to go. So we still have quite a way to go and we're all beginning to feel how far we have come. There are a few aching muscles in the mornings and we have all lost a bit of weight but we have all just had a tough couple of days.
We have climbed almost 4,000 feet since leaving Thiels where we had our re-supply. Gosh, what was that: about 10 days ago? It feels like we have climbed most of that in the last 3 or 4 days. Yesterday and today we have also had the added difficulty of the really big Sastrugi which has slowed our progress a little bit where you're constantly climbing up one side of the Sastrugi an d sliding down the other side with our pulks sort of bumping and jamming along the way.
To cheer us along we had some more spectacular sun and halos around the sun and lots of really fine snow that looks sort of like diamond dust falling from the sky. So it's been really beautiful but very, very hard work the last couple of days.
As we're sort of finishing our last 130 miles to the pole we were wondering how the schools have done. If any schools have taken up Aurora's challenge to beat us to the South Pole. How are you all getting on? If you are taking part in the challenge, let us know who you are and how you're doing it and how you're doing by the website. Are you keeping up with us? Have you overtaken us? Has anyone reached the pole yet? It would be great if you could let us know. It would be great motivation for us to keep up the mileage and stay ahead of you.
Well that's it from me. Ill speak to you again next week. Love to everyone at home. Bye "
Photo by Robert Hollingworth