Day 40

With the welcome arrival of a rest day after the prior 10 days of hard work, the team had a long lie in (well…most did, save for those bothered in the early morning by their bladders). The mid-point research data capture was top of the priority list today. With reveille at 1000 the first task of the day was to strip down to base layers for the weigh in; despite it being significantly warmer than sunrise, everyone still found the Greenland cold to be a cruel mistress. The 24-hour urine calculation was ongoing, and early morning pee samples were also required for one measure of the study. Everyone then had to collect their blood samples; harder than it should have been with cold fingers and the lack of circulation! More ‘special’ water ingestion followed, before we were allowed to embark on breakfast.

The remainder of the day was spent chilling, catching up on ‘laundry’, sorting out kit, and some even embarked on dealing with a bit of real-life admin via the starlink; a double-edged sword!

Tony had a video call Q&A session with his son’s school ably aided by the guest appearance of ‘Nansen’ and a ten-foot-tall polar bear! There were a host of intelligent and interesting questions and it was nice to be able to take the time to engage directly with 10 and 11year olds back home from the top of the icecap.

The research measurements continued throughout the day, with body composition measurements being undertaken mid-afternoon. Once all complete, Tony sprung a cricket bat and tennis ball upon us for a morale boost! The group split into two, and we embarked upon a two-innings test series, with Tony’s team comprehensively beating Josh’s team. Everyone enjoyed it so much we then followed on with a quick 20-20 match, where Josh’s team got their revenge! The competitive spirit really rose to the fore with the prospect of a competition like this, and fortunately any serious injuries were avoided, not for a lack of trying by some team members!

The weather has been settled all day, which has been pretty pleasant, allowing us to physically and emotionally recharge, ahead of the next phase; pushing on to the western side of the ice-cap.
Normal service will resume tomorrow; 0600 hrs reveille, bone chilling temperature, frozen toes and fingers until 1000hrs, and lots of kilometers in a westerly direction!