Mark will face his latest challenge at Loch Tay in Scotland
This week ultra endurance sportsman Mark Beaumont has been awarded an honorary degree from Dundee University. This is a reflection of the extraordinary feats the Scotsman has achieved. Between 2007-2008, he broke the record for cycling around the world. In 194 days he travelled 18,296 miles!
Speaking in 2008 after his round the world adventure, he explained his motivations to take on such a challenge:
‘I love the mental challenge of ultra endurance sports and wanted to push my comfort zones’
Although Mark brought home some once-in-a-lifetime experiences from the trip, it wasn’t all plain sailing. Like any Man of Action, he had his high points and low points.
‘When it got tough, you set a target as short as you need to keep going’
This is what The Wild Geese did. Even when they had come close to loosing everything, they maintained their target – to ultimately keep going and fight on. People like Mark are a testament to this outlook.
But this degree does not signal the end of his days of expeditions. On July 14th, he Mark will join Brian Atkinson, a Mercy Corps worker, to tackle one of Scotland’s toughest one-day endurance events – the Artemis Great Kindrochit Quadrathlon.
The pair will run 15 miles across seven Munros, kayak 7 miles and cycle 34 miles before swimming across Loch Tay. Although the swim is in the shortest part of the endurance test at 0.8 miles, Mark feels has great trepidation about it.
But Mark is persistent and will keep going. In challenging times, The Wild Geese also turned to one another. A camaraderie helped them to keep going. Mark and Brian will also be depending on this.
Mark and Brian’s endurance challenge will raise money for child soldiers in Columbia. We wish them the best of luck!
