Ben Fogle / Anaconda Adventure

British Adventurer and TV presenter Ben Fogle has landed in Australia to take part in the Augusta edition of the Anaconda Adventure Race National Series (6 November) as part of a challenge for his new TV series, A Year of Adventure.

Fogle is well known for his many dangerous adventures across the globe, most of which have ended up as BBC television series. In 2005 he rowed the Atlantic with Olympic Gold Medallist James Cracknell, the five part series, Through Hell and High Water, documenting their efforts. In 2009 Ben teamed up with Cracknell once again to race 500 miles on foot across Antarctica to the South Pole, the adventures played out in the series On Thin Ice.

Ben's passion for adventure also culminated in three series of the BBC hit, Ben Fogle's Extreme Dreams, in which he leads ordinary people on extraordinary journeys around the world from the jungles of Papua New Guinea to the desert of Libya.

A Year of Adventure is based on the Lonely Planet book of the same name. The BBC team and Ben chose the Anaconda Adventure Race National Series, and in particular the Augusta leg, to feature as the focus of an entire episode as it is the biggest adventure race by participation in the world.

"The Augusta Anaconda will be a huge challenge,” said Ben from the United States, where he has just finished riding the Moab 24 Hour mountain bike race, also to be featured in the series. “I’m really looking forward to taking part in such a big race.” The Augusta round of the Anaconda Adventure Race National Series attracts more than 1700 competitors, making it the biggest adventure race by participation in the world. Popular with weekend warriors and first timers to adventure racing, it also attracts a strong crowd of elite athletes, including professional adventure racers, Ironmen and women, triathletes and multisport world champions. Ben will be coached locally by Anaconda Top Flight athlete, Australian Jarad Kohlar, who will give him tips on kayaking and technical mountain biking in the days leading up to the race. No doubt Ben’s experiences filming for the television program to date will be valuable: in addition to riding the Moab 24HR mountain bike race, he has swum in a mile and a half from the island prison Alcatraz through the icy waters and strong tides of San Francisco Bay, something that will benefit him in the 1.9km swim tackled as the first leg of the Anaconda Adventure Race next week. A film crew will follow Ben as he prepares and then follow his progress throughout the race.

The Anaconda Adventure Race National Series is the only national adventure race format of its kind in Australia and attracts both elite and weekend warrior athletes who tackle a 50 kilometre off road course encompassing swim, kayak, trail run and mountain bike legs. Races one and two in the National Series have already taken place in Forester, NSW, and on the Gold Coast, Qld, with Augusta (WA, 6 November) and Lorne (Victoria, 4 December) the remaining rounds on the race calendar.

A Year of Adventure - including the Anaconda Adventure Race episode - will air on international feeds of BBC Knowledge, BBC HD and BBC Entertainment from January 2012.

For more information see http://www.anacondaadventurerace.com/

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Source: Rapidascent