Neck pain forces Strathspey's solo South Pole skier to call for 'medical resupply'
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Strathspey's solo South Pole hero Ben Weber has completed 16 astonishing days on his lonely ski trip to the southernmost point of the planet.
And already behind him are 115 miles of the arduous 700-mile journey.
His latest blog states: "Stormy rest day and advent calendar!"
In a message home to Carrbridge he explains: "The strong winds from yesterday increased over night.The clear blue skies were replaced by dense cloud and heavy snow.
"Not nice conditions so with the neck problem. I decided to stay put today."
He has been struggling with an aching neck injury caused by hauling his sled over difficult terrain in the earliest days of his epic trip, which he is undergoing to raise funding for Cancer Research UK following the tragic death of his mother, Marian.
He writes: "Doing exercises, trying to massage it, using the hot Nalgene bottles on the muscles, and reviewing medical stocks…."
Reluctantly, he has had to contact the back-up team at base station to call for a medical resupply.
It was a momentous decision, he reports, but unavoidable,
"I wanted to do this journey without being resupplied, but I didn’t anticipate this injury and it taking so long to recover," he writes.
"While yes, you get shoulder pains from the harness, it is unusual for such issues to continue for so long.
"It’s a shame, but it’s much better than any of the alternatives. They have confirmed that it is possible, so it’s just a matter of working out the logistics of it all."
Mr Weber confessed: "I was starting to feel a bit down, thinking about going through this journey with that constant pain. So, making it even harder than it already is.
"The idea that I can get more meds is a definite positive. That in turn has reinforced the belief that I will be able to make it to the Pole."
But meantime, he has the best medicine of all to get him through the night – a chocolate liqueur advent calendar!
"It's December! So, one of the perks to help with the journey, out came my advent calendar!
"I got a chocolate liqueur calendar and the first day was Famous Grouse… nice!
"Almost Christmas!"
You can support Ben’s chosen charity
And you hear his latest audio diary entry
