W. L. Gore & Associates - makers of the world famous GORE-TEX® and WINDSTOPPER® Fabrics – joined our team of sponsors for this expedition in 2005, and signed up again in 2008 in a big way! A vibrant company with limitless enthusiasm, they are responsible for some of the world’s best outdoor gear.
To us, GORE-TEX® Products symbolise the pursuit of perfection, continually working at the leading edge of what’s possible from fabrics – just as those that wear Gore-Tex® products are pushing back the boundaries of what is possible from themselves. When working perfectly together, the impossible can come within reach.
We have had a lot of experience with various types of GORE-TEX®’s waterproof, windproof and breathable fabrics – we are both members of ‘The GORE-TEX® Test Team’, and it truly is a fantastic product. We can still remember when we used to wear plastic rainjackets when hiking, wondering if we were perhaps getting more wet from our own perspiration than we would standing in the rain. Hiking is supposed to be fun, and GORE-TEX® products - be they jackets, pants, lined boots etc – allow us to get the maximum enjoyment from our outdoor experiences by keeping us dry and feeling ventilated no matter what the weather dishes out.
Gore's revolutionary patented membrane technology, proven for 26 years, forever changed the standard of performance outerwear when it was introduced, and the world has never looked back. We am thrilled to have them supporting this expedition.
In July 2005, two young Aussies Chris Bray and Clark Carter plunged inside the Arctic Circle to travel unsupported across Victoria Island, the world's ninth largest and largely unexplored island. After 58 days of hauling, paddling and dragging 250kgs of gear behind them in their home-made aluminium kayaks with fold-down wheels, they were only 1/3 the way across! It was such an incredible adventure though - including wolves, polar bears, artefacts, blizzards and unseen landscapes - that they vowed to return. After two years of prep, The iiNet 1000 Hour Day Expedition set of in 2008, and finished what they started.
