Adrian Hayes (adventurer)

Adrian Hayes is a British record-breaking polar explorer & adventurer, best known for reaching the three extreme points of the Earth—the Three Poles Challenge—which involved walking all the way to the North Pole, South Pole and summiting Mt. Everest, all in the shortest period of time (1 year, 217 days - his first Guinness World record).

Along with Canadians Devon McDiarmid and Derek Crowe, he set a second Guinness World record in 2009 for the longest unsupported snowkiting journey in Arctic history, the vertical crossing of the Greenland ice cap.

In 2011 he completed a crossing of the Arabian Desert by foot and camel in a documentary filmed expedition in the footsteps of 1940s British Explorer Wilfred Thesiger.

Aside from his adventurous exploits, Hayes is also a keynote speaker and business coach, specializing in leadership and team coaching. He has also become an ambassador for the issues of economic, social and environmental sustainability.

Biography

The middle of three sons, Adrian Hayes grew up in his family run hotel in New Forest, Hampshire, and was educated at St Mary’s College in Southampton. Leaving school at 16, he spent six years in numerous outdoor jobs including bricklaying and farming in the UK, Norway and New Zealand; as a singer/guitarist in a rock band; and travelling the World in between on mountaineering and other adventures & expeditions.

Following two years British Army service as a sabre squadron trooper in 21 SAS, he attended the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst and served for eight years as an officer in the Brigade of Gurkhas in Hong Kong, Brunei and Oman, the latter a two year secondment to the Royal Army of Oman in Salalah. After leaving the Army, he studied for an MBA at the University of Nottingham and worked in various international sales and marketing managerial positions before joining Airbus as a Regional Sales Director Middle East and West Asia from 2000–2006, based in Toulouse, France followed by Dubai, UAE. He set up his own company in 2007 becoming a full time adventurer, speaker and business coach.

Recent Major Expeditions

Mt Everest 2006

Hayes summited Mt Everest on 25 May 2006 by the South East ridge/South Col route from Nepal on his first attempt, as part of the 10 man Ice8000 2006 Everest summit expedition, led by Henry Todd.

North Pole 2007

On 25 April 2007 Hayes reached the Geographic North Pole after a 50 day expedition covering (straight line) across the Arctic Ocean from Ward Hunt Island, Canada as part of a three man team led by Canadian Polar Explorer Richard Weber.

South Pole 2007

Hayes reached the Geographic South Pole on 28 December 2007 after a 47 day expedition covering from Hercules Inlet on the Ronne Ice Shelf of the Antarctic coastline as part of a five man international team. In doing so he became the 15th person ever to conquer the three extremes of latitude and altitude on Earth – the Three Poles Challenge - and set a record, recognized by Guinness World Records in 2008, for completing all three in the then shortest period of time in history, 19 months and three days.

Greenland 2009

In 2009, along with Canadian team mates Devon McDiarmid and Derek Crowe, Hayes set out to complete an unsupported vertical crossing of the Greenland ice Cap from Narsaq on the Atlantic Ocean to JP Kocks Fjord in Peary Land on the Arctic Ocean and then onto Qaanaaq on the Baffin Sea in North-West Greenland. The trio completed the never before undertaken journey in 67 days, covering (point to point) and achieving the longest unsupported snow-kiting expedition in the Arctic to date. Guinness World Records also recognized the journey in 2010. The film of the expedition, the Emirates NBD Greenland Quest featured in a documentary broadcast on National Geographic channel.

Empty Quarter 2011

Between October–December 2011 Hayes led an expedition re-enacting the travels of British Explorer Wilfred Thesiger across the Arabian Desert, otherwise known as the Rub Al Khali or “Empty Quarter”. Travelling with two Beduin team members, Hayes, an Arabic speaker, journeyed by camel and foot from Salalah, Oman to Abu Dhabi, UAE in 44 days, covering . The expedition, titled "Footsteps of Thesiger", was filmed for a television documentary charting the modern day expedition, the travels of Thesiger and the culture, heritage and changing lives of the Bedu of Oman and the UAE. A book of the same title, written by Hayes, will be published in 2012.

Sustainability

A lifetime follower of politics and international affairs and working alongside or promoting the concepts of such organizations as the New Economics Foundation (NEF), Population Matters, Action for Happiness, and BioRegional, Hayes is an ambassador, leader and speaker on economic, social and environmental sustainability.

See also

• Sir Wilfred Thesiger, British adventurer

External links

• Adrian Hayes Website
• Adrian Hayes youtube
• Professional Sports Group
• Greenland Quest website
• Footsteps of Thesiger website
• ExploraPoles website
• Briton Adrian Hayes in Three Poles Record
• Diary Extracts from Explorer Adrian Hayes
• Britain’s Pole Star
• Explorer in Record Books
• In the Footsteps of Wilfred Thesiger
• Ironman Live
• Three Kites on the Ice in Vela Magazine