Icebreaker - Pure Merino

I was lucky enough to have dinner last week with the inspiring Robert Swan OBE, the first man in history to walk to both the South and North Poles.  Robert is doing amazing work internationally raising awareness around the issues of environmental responsibility and global warming.  He is heading back to the South Pole in 2012, and will be testing our Icebreaker gear over the next wee while to find the best garments to wear on his journey.

Robert was very inspiring, a real leader who has shown that individuals have the power to overcome obstacles and achieve their goals through perseverance, determination and commitment.  He told us tales from his travels, about his adventures in the North Pole and how it was much more treacherous than the South (as the ice was full of holes and he had to be very wary of the Polar Bears).

We discussed how the effect of the North Pole melting would not raise sea water levels (as it is floating ice and therefore already displaced).  And that the real threat was the South Pole, which could raise levels catastrophically – hence the reason for his 2012 trip.

Over the course of dinner we found out that Robert studied ancient history, so we decided it would only be fair to drink some whilst we were dining.  Our host environmentalist expert and wine buff Rob Morrison, produced a 1947 Chateau Latour, which wine buffs will know was a very good year from one of the leading cellars in Bordeaux.  I’ve never drunk anything older than myself, and it was quite an experience… one which I can’t quite afford to repeat just yet, so it’s back to selling more merino for me.

We’re proud that Robert will be wearing Icebreaker on his expedition back to the South Pole and will keep you all posted on his journey.

Jeremy Moon, CEO & Founder – Icebreaker

About a month ago, a man named Weeks Heist emailed us to say it was essential to his survival that he have new supplies of Icebreaker before he was relocated for his government job.  Naturally, we were curious – was Weeks a super-spy heading off on a covert mission?  Was he planning to carry out a hit while wearing one of our tops?  As it happens, Weeks has a very cool job – literally!

In the following email, Weeks explains where he’ll be taking his Icebreaker.

The pictures were taken at the Geographical South Pole, about 100 yards outside of our station.  It was taken on a day when then temps were fairly mild.  Ambient temp of -64F with a windchill of -94F.  The folks in the pic are (from left to right) Bill Stiner (Carpenter), Weeks Heist (Facilities Engineer), unnamed Hamster (wearing an Icebreaker sock), Lance Roth (Senior Meteorological Officer), Michele Gentille (Sous Chef), Emily Wampler (Materials), and Jude Gregan (Physician’s Assistant).  The photograph was taken by Nathan Greenland (Project Engineer).

So, a little bit about what we do down here.  This winter we’re 43 strong (the smallest Winterover crew since 1999) and we are all here to support science.  The South Pole provides an atmosphere that is very rare in the world that allows incredible studies of the heavens and more.  The extreme cold temps in addition to the high altitude (we live at over 9,000 feet) provide for a very stable atmosphere through which to view the heavens so, that’s one of the sciences that we study.  The South Pole Telescope (SPT) is currently looking for Cosmic Background Radiation which will help to determine the age of the universe.  Another project that we have here is called Ice Cube.  It’s a giant array of detectors that have been lowered into the ice (sometimes almost all the way down to the bedrock) that are searching to neutrinos.  Neutrinos are tiny (and I mean tiny) particles that are so small they can pass through the entire earth without hitting any molecules.  These detectors are actually looking for neutrinos that have already passed through the Earth (so it’s looking out the North Pole) and, hopefully, will have one strike every now and again.  The strike actually emits a blueish light that the detectors can pick up and triangulate the location from where the particle came.  Using that information, they are determining the origins of the universe.

There’s a lot more science going on down here like the study of auroras (we normally get several a week), the study of the atmosphere, ozone depletion, seismic activity, and much much more.  This e-mail is getting rather lengthy though, so I’ll leave the science part at that.  So, there are a few scientists down here to run their experiments.  The bulk of us, however, are here to support those scientists.  We have cooks, carpenters, engineers, IT, doctors, electricians, plumbers, maintenance specialists and more.  It’s a small army of folks to keep the station running through the 9 months that were essentially cut off from the outside world.  It’s an interesting experience, that’s for sure!

To find out more about Amundsen-Scott South Pole Station click here.

To find out more about Weeks and his team click here.