THERE’S no such thing as failure, according to the title of Wiltshire adventurer David Hempleman-Adams’ latest book.
The book, released this month, answers some of the most common questions the explorer has been asked over the years, including what drives him, why risk frostbite to pull a sledge to the North Pole or why experience the Death Zone on Everest.
All answers can be found in the book, plus much more about David and his adventures.
“I’ve had a truly wonderful life (so far!),” he says in the book, published by Constable.
“I consider myself incredibly fortunate in having had the opportunity to try and do all the things I wanted to attempt and achieve. I hope I’ve managed to explain a little about the influences that led my passions to develop in the direction they have, a constant search for adventure and new challenges, but I wouldn’t pretend that things have happened in a way that followed any sort of organised plan.
“I’m certainly not a person, like some politicians maybe, who when young tried to sketch out their whole future career on the back of an envelope for instance. Everything that has happened to me really just seems to have been taking the logical next step that presented itself at the time. Completing the Seven Summits wasn’t initially my plan, but once it was pointed out to me that it was within my grasp I pursued it with all the obsessive commitment I have.
“Being the first person to achieve the explorers’ Grand Slam was really just the result of knowing I couldn’t truly say I had proved myself until I’d made it to the North Pole.”
David, who was born in Swindon in 1956 weighing just 2lbs, was the first person to reach the highest peaks on all seven continents and journey fully to the North and South Geographic and Magnetic Poles. He has also broken 47 Federation Aeronautique Internationale ballooning records.
The dad-of-three said of his hometown back in 2012: “I’m very proud of Swindon and my roots. One of the things that I love most is the people, but we’ve also got some of the most beautiful, outstanding countryside in the world. If you go up on to the Ridgeway, it’s magnificent.”
No Such Thing As Failure: The Extraordinary Life of A Great British Adventurer is now available to buy online and in stores, priced at £20.
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