Troys Iditarod race

Friends often say to me "Troy, I like to live vicariously through your adventures".

Through my blog and Facebook page, I try to tell the stories of some of my extraordinary adventures. Along the way I learn stuff - I also try to share this knowledge - to help others get the most out of their hobbies; their adventures; their lives.

My lifelong passion for bicycles and the outdoors has led me to my greatest adventure yet - a start in the Iditarod Trail Invitational in Alaska.

But financially I can't do it alone. I need to call in some favours. Over the years I've inspired and helped thousands of people worldwide through my blog, online message forums, various social media channels and physically with their bike in a stand and a tool in my hand.

So if this applies to you, or you want to live vicariously through my adventures, this is your opportunity to support me with my cause.

I'll explain in a moment how your donation will help me achieve this goal, but as part of the deal I'd also like YOU to set a challenging goal - no matter how small - for yourself to achieve. I want you to draw inspiration from my adventures - it would be awesome to have the tables turned, for me contributing to YOUR own MyCause! Back yourself, believe in YOU and fulfill your own potential.



How the raised funds will be spent:

Food - no Maccas out on the course, however my body will need a continual stream of high calorie, compact, performance foods.
Equipment - I had a well refined setup for my training camp, but there were a few equipment weaknesses that appeared, and these specific arctic items can only be special ordered from overseas.



Let me explain the event.

The Iditarod Trail Invitational (ITI) has been listed for many years, as one of the top ten human powered, ultra-endurance races in an extreme environment. Alaska in the middle of winter can serve up weather extremes from 20 deg C, to -60 deg C, rain, sleet, heavy snowfalls, ice, high wind, avalanches and blizzards. There are no roads, just snowmachine trails over frozen lakes, along rivers through wild backcountry and over high mountain passes. Very few towns exist along the route and may only comprise of a hunting lodge or a few vacant cabins. The landscape is remote and beautiful, but deadly. The start date for the 2015 ITI is 1st March, 2:00pm at Knik Lake, Alaska. The time cutoff for the 350 mile race is 10 days, 23 hours, 59 minutes and 59 seconds.

To qualify and receive your invitation to enter, you must submit a resume of your experience in a sub-arctic environment, or successfully complete one of the organised ITI training camps, or qualify through completion of a few selected long distance winter races. The training camps are a way for race organisers to asses your skill, knowledge, competency and mental capacity for the race. Only 50 racers are selected to enter. There is no prize money, completing the event is the achievement - more people have climbed Everest than completed the ITI.

Full information on the event can be found on the website:

http://iditarodtrailinvitational.com/index.php


I have written a concise article on my blog, about my race:

http://troyszczurkowski.blogspot.com.au/2014/07/me-myself-and-iditarod.html


Below I have summarised some key points from the article:

Everything you need for survival is carried on your bike. There is no support or sweep vehicle. Food, shelter, food prep kit, clothing, bike and gear spares - you carry it all in purpose made bags on the bike.

You bivvy out under the stars, directly on the snow, with a thin foam mat to insulate your body and sleeping bag from the snow. For water you melt snow, store it in insulated bottles and (hopefully) consume it before it freezes. Calories must be consumed in the thousands, to keep up with metabolic demands of exercise, thermal and basal requirements. You constantly adjust your clothing layers and vent heat to keep perspiration minimised - wet clothes transfer more heat to the surrounding air - so you remain slightly cold to keep your layers dry.

Key motivators.


The ITI just clicks with me. It encompasses my passions and drills down to my core beliefs of self reliance, competency and draws upon my skills learnt and honed over decades of adventuring. Humans need to be challenged - our modern lives have made us forget about challenging ourselves, stepping outside of our comfort zone - our bodies and minds need stress to maintain an equilibrium, a balanced perspective.

Also I'm about motivating others - I do this because I can and I'm able bodied. Too many people wait until a critical, life changing event wakes them up, shakes them by the shoulders and screams at them to do something with their physical and mental abilities as a human - but sometimes it's too late and their ship full of physical capacity has sailed a long time ago. I've not had a life changing event, I just want to maximise my potential and achieve as much as possible while I'm able bodied. I hope that those who watch me from the sidelines may be tempted to step into a game of their own and achieve their full potential too.

I'm no adrenaline junkie. This race will however force me to take calculated risks under very adverse conditions, in a cold, hungry, solo and sleep deprived state... and I will love every single second of it.

Our daughter is only 9, I hope she will aspire to dream big and achieve big in her life, find inspiration from my adventures, be a star pupil at my school of experience and grow confident in her abilities.

There is another vital motivator, that I discovered after I had committed to the race and payed my fees - NO Australian racer has EVER completed the full length of the event. That means when I finish under the burled arch in McGrath, Alaska, I will be the first Aussie to complete what many others have tried, but due to mechanical, bodily or mental failures, could not achieve. No pressure, of course... :)

Achieving big.

'Use only as directed'. This kind of adventure does not come with instructions on the box. Specialist equipment and knowledge are required for enjoyment, goal attainment, and most importantly - survival. I choose my equipment and plan out my trips in meticulous detail, researching and field testing as much as possible, prior to trip.

My physical training comes in many forms. I have an intrinsic understanding of training my body to suit different athletic pursuits from decades of ultra-distance cycling, kayaking and gym training. Other sporadic pursuits such as rock climbing, trail running and adventure racing add variety to my regime. This event won't purely be riding a bike - there are too many variables with weather - there will also be plenty of walking, pushing and carrying the bike through what could be thigh deep snow. 14-16 hours a day, that will challenge me physically and mentally.

Being a lifetime athlete, I understand how my body works, how to train it and how to rebuild it during recovery. A lifetime of solo sports and adventures has refined my thinking to not relying on a safety net, instead making calculated decisions for success. As a seasoned outdoors person, my experience and honed skillset will allow me to utilise my equipment and knowledge to maximum potential. I am a fully qualified bicycle technician - and having built the bike I'll be using from the ground up - I know precisely how to repair and maintain a bike during this event. I feel these 4 strong key attributes will enable success in this event.


I hope the above tome explains a lot about the event and why I want to do it.



Disclosure:

1. There are no charities attached to this campaign - this is purely a personal goal. I acknowledge charities do benefit individuals and groups the world over, but in this case I want my campaign to represent the potential of human performance and goal setting.
2. There is no special interest group attached or hidden ulterior motive. What you see is what you get.
3. This campaign is religion free. You would be donating to a personal cause, for a person who believes in himself. The human mind and body are amazing things when challenged - capable of incredible things - we just need to trust them.
4. My wife and daughter had planned to surprise me in McGrath at the end of the race - for this she is funding this completely out of her pocket, no raised funds will be used for their purpose.
5. I don't drink, so your funds won't be going towards alcohol. I probably just lost many of you right there :)