In March 2009 I decided that in the years to come I would stop saying no when people asked me to join in on things. I was spending too much time at school and when I came home at night I would just sit in my couch and watch TV until I went to bed. This was no life worth living and it had to stop. A couple of days after my decision a colleague of mine came up to me and asked me if I would join in on Oslo Marathon 2009 in September, and of course I had to say yes! And from there the race was on.
I have always been interested in outdoor activities and started skiing at the age of six.This season I have been skiing a lot. Travelling as much as I can on my student budget to find the best conditions possible. In the last few months, all that has been on my mind is checking the weather a couple times a day and if the forecast looks good, I’ll pack my skis as fast as possible and jump on the first train and go powder hunting.
My family and I moved from Bergen to Voss when I was 5 years old and settled down right next to the ski resort. So it was quite natural that I would spend my spare time in the mountains. But my interest in camping in the outdoors would not rise to the surface until the year of 2004. I bought at tent and a sleeping bag and headed for the mountains in my hometown. The feeling of living primitively and waking up in the morning feeling a bit cold certainly felt like my game. This I want to do more!
In the years to come I started to invest in more equipment and preparing my self for one of my biggest desires, sleeping outside in the wintertime. It was after watching Lars Monsen crossing Canada on the TV in 2005 this idea would surface. Watching him battling with very cold and extreme conditions certainly made me want to do the same thing. And that’s what I did. The feeling of conquering the cold, snowy and windy conditions in the mountains made me feel alive and good about my self. And I knew from there on that this is what I would keep on doing for the rest of my life.
In late 2006 I moved to Oslo to start my student life. I’m currently studying Law at the University in Oslo. My thoughts all along were that as a student I would have all the time in the world to fulfil my main goal. Spending as much time in the outdoors so that I would gain the experience I needed for my growing plans on going on a real expedition. After reading countless books about the North- and South Pole, Ed Viesturs 8000m peak endeavour and most of Lars Monsen’s books I knew that this is what I want to do. I certainly did get the time to spend in the mountains but I lacked the physical stamina that I would need to fulfil my dreams on going on longer expeditions. I have always been an on and off trainer when it comes to spending time at the gym and running. I would train intensively for three or four months only to fall back in old tracks just spending time in my couch in front of the TV. I think the main reason for this is that I didn’t have a specific goal that I was training for. Just a vague thought of going to an arctic environment in the future. This would all change in the year of 2009. With barely any physical stamina at all I set out to run Oslo Half Marathon 21 kilometres in the streets of Oslo. For the first time in my life I felt scared of failing and knew that I had to be well prepared to pull this one of and not fail. So I started training four to five times a week both running and cycling. This has resulted in running becoming a passion of mine. This year I will be running at least two half marathons, one in Chamonix and one in Oslo. But my favourite running discipline is uphill running in the mountains, so my plan is to participate in a couple of those during this year.
In 2008 I started working at Sportsnett. I saw this as a great opportunity to infiltrate the expedition community and meeting people with the right experience on both expeditions and equipment. I must admit that working close with Sjur Mørdre and hearing him talk about his 11 crossings of Greenland and his trips to both North and South Pole didn’t make me less interested in doing this my self. So when I met up with Christian Eide in late 2009 and he asked me if I would join him on an expedition to Greenland in August 2010, I just couldn’t say no. After all, I had promised my self earlier that year that from know on I wouldn’t do just that. This is also the reason why it took hardly any convincing at all from Terje to make me join this expedition to Greenland. And two crossings of the icecap in one year will certainly give me much wanted experience for my future projects.
It’s no secret that my main goals are reaching both Poles unsupported and perhaps solo. I will most definitely try to reach the South Pole solo, but I’m uncertain if I have what it takes to reach the North Pole solo. And if I cope well with altitude I will most certainly try to climb some 8000m peaks. These projects will definitely demand a lot physically, mentally and financially, but I strongly believe that everything you set your mind to can and will be done. I have always said, “If you have the right qualifications you could throw a rock to the moon” So with the right mindset and preparations I strongly believe that these project will become a reality. I’m already in the process of connecting with sponsors and many of my role models have agreed to help me along the way. People like Cecilie Skog, Børge Ousland and Jarle Trå. The Race is most definitely on!
But for now I’m just looking forward to train with Terje in the mountains of Norway and contributing with my skills and knowledge to make our quest on the Greenland icecap a success.
-Christian
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