From the inspiring to the tragic, ‘This Week in Adventure’ presents a wrap-up of top news in the world of exploration and adventure.
IRONMAN: Double-Amputee Athlete in World Championships. Roderick Sewell, a member of the U.S. Paralympic swim team, didn’t run until age 9.
Now, he’s got a slot in the upcoming Ironman Championship, one of the toughest endurance races in the world. Ironman will host this year’s race on Kona island in Hawaii. The feat consists of 140.6 miles of swimming, biking, and running.
APPALACHIAN TRAIL: 6-Year-Old Breaks Record. The youngest female hiker to complete the AT, Sabina “Sister Bunny” Malone just finished a 6-month thru-hike with her parents and three sisters.
Sabina Malone, who had her sixth birthday on the trail, is now the youngest girl to have hiked the 2,000-mile trail. In 2013, 5-year-old Christian “Buddy Backpacker” Thomas hiked the full length of the Appalachian Trail, becoming the youngest person ever to complete the AT.
‘TRUMP WALL’ CLIMBING: Engineer and Climber to Host Competition. AMGA-certified rock climber Rick Weber lives in the middle of the Red River Gorge in Kentucky, a popular climbing destination.
This October, he will host a contest meant to challenge President Trump’s claims that the latest slat-style border wall design can’t be climbed. The border wall competition aligns with Rocktoberfest. You can read more about climbing the replica wall here.
FALSE ALARM: Hiker Sets Off Search-and-Rescue. On Quandary Peak in Colorado, a friendly Canadian accidentally triggered a massive rescue mission after waving to people on the peak.
Other hikers thought his group was in distress and called search-and-rescue. Turns out, the two men were just waving and being friendly. All parties made it safely down the mountain.
RUGBY BIKE MISSION: Riding from London to Tokyo in 230 days. That was the plan for two friends, Ron Rutland and James Owens, who decided to cycle 12,485 miles (20,093 km) from London to Tokyo to watch the opening game of this year’s Rugby World Cup. That meant cycling in freezing temperatures and spending up to 7 hours a day on their saddles.
The duo, who did the trip to support ChildFund Pass It Back, the official charity of the World Cup, finished in Tokyo last week.
