Two and a Half Men: North Pole 2012
[about]
The members of Team Two and a Half Men, all met each other at the 2007 150-mile stage race, the Gobi March. Along with some additional desert tent mates, they developed a fast and strong bond, forged by heat and sweat in the desert, and went on to complete the three additional desert races together. Since then, they keep in regular contact via emails and Skype calls and continue to plan adventures together, where they meet at the far corners of the globe for more once-in-a-lifetime experiences. Most people would be thrilled to get in one of these trips during a lifetime, but these guys make a habit of it, and believe that life is for living now, and not put it off for the unknown future, and they live by the motto “If it were easy, everybody would be doing it.” Many of their families have met, and now their strong friendship transcends simple sport. All three friends have been avid readers, and lifelong admirers of the famous polar exploration stories of both poles. This North Pole Expedition is a lifelong dream of all three members, and they are thrilled to be able to do it together, and will keep their other adventure buddies who weren’t able to make it, in their thoughts during the long ski. After this successful expedition, it leaves only two more for the “triple crown”…the South Pole and the summit of Mt. Everest!! Doug Stoup is honored to guide these three athletes to successfully achieve their polar dreams.
[team]
Doug Stoup
Veteran explorer Doug Stoup is honored to be leading the Two and a Half Men Expedition over the frozen Arctic terrain to the North Pole.
Frank Fumich
Frank Fumich from Arlington,Virginia is a husband, and father of two-year-old twin girls, and owns an airline catering company that operates out of four US east coast cities and caters about 800 flights a day. He has completed a number of Half Ironman triathlons, full Ironmans including Hawaii, and a Triple Ironman where he was the first person to ever swap the 7.2 mile swim for a 17 mile stand up paddle. He’s also run over 40 marathons is 25 different states and numerous ultra-marathons including Badwater, Leadville, and UTMB. He’s completed the famous, self supported Marathon des Sables in Morocco and the 4 Desert series (winning all 3 he entered as a team) consisting of the Gobi March (China), Atacama Crossing (Chile), the Sahara Race (Egypt), the Last Desert (Antarctica), and also the Namibia race. He’s climbed three of the Seven Summits so far, finished one of the toughest cycling races in the world–the Furnace Creek 508, finished the back to back, up and down years of Comrades in South Africa, and finished the notorious Death Race in Vermont. He will be doing this expedition in support of the Wounded Warriors Charity.
Michael Hull
With over 20 years of completing in Ironman Triathlons and Ultra Marathons , a skiing trip to the North Pole seemed like the next logical challenge. No doubt a journey to the South Pole is also in the planning. Michael acknowledges that none of this would be possible without the support of his family and friends, for which he is eternally grateful.
Peter Bocquet
Peter is perhaps the least naturally-athletic member of Team Two and a Half Men. Definitely on the heavier side of the scales for an endurance athlete Peter makes up for his girth with mirth, and typically smiles his way through the challenges that ultra events inevitably create. With modest goals (such as “get to the Pole – and home again – in one piece”) he will be the slow-but-steady member of the team, abiding by famed polar explorer Ernest Shackleton’s family motto “Fortitudine Vincimus”…”by endurance we conquer”. This approach has seen Peter previously complete The Four Deserts series with Frank and Michael, as well as multiple Ironman events and ultra-marathons around the world.
Peter has previously leveraged his own small sufferings in endurance events to raise funds and awareness for the John Maclean Foundation (www.jmf.com.au) , and this will once again be the case with The Last Degree trek. If so inclined, you could support/donate to the cause at http://www.everydayhero.com.au/peter_bocquet_1.