vita bandet – Ultralight and Comfortable

Today, we’re thrilled to introduce you to Gina Johansen, a remarkable Swedish explorer embarking on a journey that pushes the boundaries of human endurance. Join us as we delve into Gina’s extraordinary quest for the South Pole speed record.

Gina’s journey is a testament to the indomitable spirit of adventure that drives us all. From her humble beginnings in the world of horseback riding to her daring expeditions across frozen landscapes, Gina’s story is one of resilience, determination, and unwavering passion for exploration.

Now, Gina sets her sights on the ultimate challenge: skiing 1130 km alone across the icy expanse of Antarctica to claim the female speed record. Facing treacherous conditions, biting winds, and unforgiving terrain, Gina’s preparation and courage shine through as she prepares to tackle this monumental feat. Additionally, Gina reached out to us at Backpackinglight seeking support to make her expedition even lighter and faster.

Join us as we follow Gina’s journey every step of the way, from her meticulous preparation to the exhilarating moments on the ice. Together, let’s champion the spirit of exploration and celebrate the extraordinary achievements of adventurers like Gina Johansen.

“My goal is to ski under 31 days to set the new women’s speed record”

Tell us about yourself, who are you?

-I’m Gina, a 32-year-old Swedish adrenaline junkie with a lifelong passion for pushing boundaries. My journey began amidst the thundering hooves of horses, but it was at 19 when I traded the stables for the sunny shores of Sydney, immersing myself in the world of thoroughbred horse racing. Over eight exhilarating years, my love for the outdoors blossomed, leading me to discover the thrill of trail running and embark on a 2700 km cycling odyssey along Australia’s rugged east coast.

In 2018, I embarked on an adventure that would forever alter the course of my life. Skiing solo from Nordkapp to Jäckvik in Sweden, a grueling journey spanning 60 days and roughly 1000 km, I found myself thrust into a world of icy challenges and breathtaking vistas. Before that fateful expedition, I had never strapped on a pair of skis, slept in a winter tent, or ventured north of Stockholm. Since then, I’ve traded the bustling streets of Sydney for the tranquility of Honningsvåg, Finnmark, a quaint village nestled just 30 km south of Nordkapp.

From traversing the length of Norway to braving the frigid waters of Lake Baikal alone in the heart of winter, covering 700 km in a bone-chilling 15 days, my thirst for adventure knows no bounds.

*Gina makes her own insulated insoles to make the shoes warmer.*

You have a challenge ahead of you, tell us about it?

Fast forward to today, and I find myself on the precipice of my most audacious adventure yet: a solo and unsupported expedition to the South Pole. My mission? To reclaim the female speed record by traversing the icy expanse of Antarctica, a daunting 1130 km journey across the planet’s most inhospitable continent.

Facing uphill battles every step of the way, the South Pole sits at a dizzying altitude of 2835 meters, with temperatures plummeting to a bone-chilling -35°C, and winds whipping up to a staggering -70°C. With a daily caloric intake ranging between 4500 to 6100 calories, I’ll burn through an astonishing 7000 to 10,000 calories each day. Antarctica offers little respite for the weary traveler – it’s a stark white desert devoid of landmarks, where the only guide is the compass needle and the only scenery a vast expanse of snow and sky.

So, what drives me to undertake such an extraordinary challenge? It’s the thrill of testing my limits, the satisfaction of pushing past what’s considered impossible. I want to inspire others to chase their dreams, to step outside the confines of the ordinary and embrace the unknown.

How are you preparing?

Preparation is key. Alongside rigorous training regimens encompassing strength training, endurance sessions on the skierg, skiing, and trail running, I’ve devoted countless hours to securing partnerships to finance the expedition. With the journey to Antarctica alone costing approximately US $85,000, every detail must be meticulously planned. From obtaining permits for a solo expedition to Antarctica to ensuring I have the requisite experience, the road to the South Pole is paved with challenges, but I’m ready to tackle them head-on.

Would you like to share details about your equipment, packing lists, etc.? Any items you consider particularly important?

With a speed record in my sights, every gram counts. While a typical sled load weighs around 100 kg, my goal is to pare it down to a lean 60 kg, including provisions for the entire journey. Opting for Nnn bindings over traditional BC to save weight, my gear lineup includes shell clothing, a face mask for protection against the biting cold, a satellite phone, and an inreach for communication with the outside world. Every piece of equipment is carefully selected for its lightweight design and durability, with products from Nitecore leading the charge.

Given Antarctica’s arid conditions, down insulation is a must for its lightweight warmth, while a power bank and solar panel provide a lifeline of energy under the midnight sun, ensuring I stay powered up throughout the expedition.

To sustain her power needs, Gina relies on a Nitecore Summit 20000, one of the market’s lightest power banks with a built-in heating system that ensures the battery continues to deliver power even in extreme cold temperatures.

-And that’s just a glimpse into the world of preparation and anticipation as I gear up for the journey of a lifetime.

Some tips you want to give to our readers on how to handle the cold if it’s really chilly?

Sure- here are some tips on how to handle the cold: Avoid sweating by ensuring proper ventilation and adapting accordingly. One can quickly become overheated, especially when pulling a sled. Wearing netting against the body to wick moisture away from the skin is also a very helpful tip. In the tent, having a Nalgene bottle with hot water is very useful to have in the sleeping bag to warm up a bit or to warm hands while cooking. However, it’s important to be mindful not to let water leak into the sleeping bag. Remember that clothes should not be too tight-fitting, and the same goes for ski boots. If they’re too tight, it will be cold, so you often need to go up one or two sizes, the same applies to outerwear.

We’re thrilled that Gina reached out to us, and we’re excited to see her bring the record home to Sweden. We’ll continue to keep you updated on her adventures.

Feel free to support the expedition via WOMEN SPEED RECORD TO THE SOUTH POLE – SPONSOR.ME or Sponsor a kilometer | Gina Johansen . All support is invaluable.

You can follow Gina on social media, where she shares her adventures and preparations:

Website: https://www.ginajohansen.com/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ginajohansen91/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ginajohansen91/

Paolo Peralta skiing the White ribbon- 2021.

Tell us about you? Who is Paolo Peralta?

-I’m 26 and grew up in the concrete jungle of New York City. Having a Swedish mom, being a Swedish citizen and speaking the language got me to move here 6 years ago for college. Always loved nature but wasn’t great at camping/hiking, signed up to Fjäll & Vildmarksledarlinjen at Malungs Folkhögskola not even knowing what a Fjäll was. After 2 years there I worked 4 season at STF Ritsem where I got my equipment dialed in I grew my skills and got used to being alone in the mountains. Came for school, stayed for the Fjäll!

You completed the White Ribbon 2021. How did you come up with that?

–I fell in love with Nordic Ski Touring on my first ever winter trip in 2016 and knew this is what I wanted to focus my outdoors career on. Met a lot of people doing Vita and Gröna bandet in Ritsem over the years including best trip-mate Paul Loss. Vita Bandet always seemed like a safe starting point for getting experience for real expeditions, I’d like to ski to the South Pole some day and every bit of experience with equipment and my own body I can get before then will help.

Photo: Paolo Peralta

Tell us about the The White Ribbon. How was the adventure?

What an AWFUL winter 2021 was, barely even counts as winter. Weather is always a huge factor, but even more so last year. After 2 weeks of cold I had rain, sleet and temperatures rarely below -5C for the next 6 weeks which made for wet clothes, slow progress, low morale and negated many of my equipment choices.

I had a day where I fought for 8 hours and only gained 8km because the snow was so bad, stuck to the sled and skis like cement, needed to be scraped off every 500m. And my boots were full of water that day to top it off, I had sunk to the thighs in slush while crossing a marsh, took 4 days to dry out the boot liners which is why I carry a spare set of liners now.

But it wasn’t always awful, with the warm temperatures and being a person who runs very hot I think I hold the record for most time spent shirtless on Vita Bandet. The highpoint of the the 89 days my Vita Band lasted was when I had 5 days from Kvikkjokk to Ritsem on an abbreviated Padjelantaled. Didn’t see a single cloud or feel a gust of wind the whole time, it was mid April with long days and I skied in my underwear until I ran out of sunscreen. And I didn’t use a tent for those 5 days, slept in the open every night, would just take off my boots, crawl into my sleeping bag and eat dinner looking at the evening sky fade into stars

In front: A lighter Paris pulk with a Rab pulk bag in the bottom. In the back Pablos pulk with a Rab polar bedding on top. Photo: Paolo Peralta

Any gear you want to put a spotlight on?

One thing that worked amazingly was my kitchen set up, I have 0 complaints about it and the only changes I’m making to it are swapping out the plywood I used for a base with a sheet of carbon fiber for weight savings and changing the aluminum windscreen to .2mm titanium foil for durability. Also, my down booties, will never go on a winter trip without them again.

On a long trip like this an Arctic bedding bag is a game changer, you save 20-30 minutes a day and it’s wonderful not having to fiddle with straps, stuffing a sleeping bag into a stuff sack and inflating/deflating pads. But commercially available ones are not waterproof and not even wet snow proof. I had a nightmare of a time when the rain was at its worst, sleeping in a damp down bag for 3 days isn’t fun at all. I’m hoping to have finished some prototypes of an improved bedding bag that will keep out a modern Scandinavian winter out for testing next winter.

Hands: I used 3 gloves this trip: Thick Hestra mittens for -15C or colder, GWS fleece gloves for -10C to +10C and synthetic liner gloves for when I was in camp and needed to handle small items. But this system didn’t work well for the slushy snow and rain. Since then I have started using Showa 282 gloves for wet weather and they are fantastic. Carrying 4 pairs of gloves might seem like overkill, depending on the weather changing daily over the course of a few months, it might actually not be variety enough.

If you where about to skii the White Ribbon again, what would you do different?

Beeline through Jämtland until Hotagsfjällen. Helags was great but going via Storlien cost me 2 weeks of struggling through forests with deep snow and seldom a snow mobile track to ease the going.

I’d want to make things more interesting, start on New Years Day at Treriksröset or something like that, get to see some more aurora, enjoy the cold and dark hopefully.

And bring a frying pan for January/February, there’s so much time spent in the tent then that you might as well spend it cooking real food; pancakes, hashbrowns, quesadillas and meatballs would have been a treat.

Pablos tips fore future White Ribbonears?

You don’t need as much fuel as you think.

You don’t need as much food as you think but you can never have enough diversity in snacks.
Bring the comfort items along at the start, you’ll have lots of tent time and will enjoy the chair/book/kindle and you can always send them home when they days grow long and you spend less time awake in camp.

Other than extra socks don’t bring more clothes than you can wear all at once.

Good prescription glacier glasses are worth the money, lived in my Julbo sunglasses the last month of the trip except when going indoors. Invest in a dehydrator, make your own meals and try them all before you head out.

While weight isn’t as critical as in summer, you will feel the difference between 20kg and 40kg when going uphill, try to save weight where you can.

Ease of access to stuff you know you’ll need during the day is huge, make it so you don’t have to dig through your sled to find stuff you use every day.

Packing list

Starting set up:

Base Weight 28kg

https://lighterpack.com/r/169rsn

Finish Line set up:

Base Weight 20kg

https://lighterpack.com/r/lqy88x

Instagram

https://www.instagram.com/expat_vagabond_adventures/

Gear Video