Extreme expeditions are like a microbe in our body that makes us want to maximize our improvement and get better and more competitive. Extreme tours demand endurance, inner and out strength, commitment, isolation, patience, self-discipline, mental balance, and the ability to continue when our body demands that we stop.
Dr. Ardavanis challenges himself to add his name to a list of handfuls of achievers. He believes that the ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands in moments of comfort and convenience but where he stands at times of challenge and controversy. He believes we must use our brains and hands to sail into new horizons and reach new dimensions. Every time we reach new heights or cross a finish line, we must feel special and unique, and we should thank God for giving us the strength and the opportunity to experience what most people cannot even imagine. The pleasure of risk is in control and needed to ride it with assurance so that, what appears dangerous to the outsider, is to the participant simply a matter of intelligence, skill, intuition, and coordination in a word, experience.
Participating in extreme adventures and challenges is a paradoxically intellectual pastime, but with this difference, “you have to think with your body.” We must work out every move as playing chess with our bodies. If an athlete makes a mistake, the consequences are immediate, obvious, embarrassing, and possibly very painful. However, in that beautiful silent world of mountains and oceans, it seems to the participants that they are worth these dangerous risks.
The conquest of a tall mountain or ocean or finishing an ultra-marathon or ultra-cycling event brings moments of ecstasy and bliss. In modern times’ monotonous, materialistic existence, nothing else can approach us. Therefore this is what extreme adventure athletes are looking for. It is not the goal of an extreme adventure to face only peril, but it is one of the tests one must undergo to deserve the joy of rising for an instant above the monotonous routine life. Extreme athletes live hours of fraternal, warm, and exalting nobility on these proud and beautiful tall mountains, oceans, and deserts. During specific periods, the extreme adventurists stop being enslaved and are transformed into vital and resilient men. Fear is not going to shrink them from their challenges. At that moment, they don’t want to be mediocre. Instead, they want to be bigger than life.
Dr. Ardavanis believes that everything in life that is worth doing has to be self-driven. If it is not self-driven, no one will push you to succeed. Commitment is the only way, the best way, to become better. If we truly commit to something, even if people laugh at us or say we are unqualified for the mission, we will wake up one day realizing that we have changed not only our personal lives, but also the lives of our families and millions of people all over the world.
Greenland Ice Cap crossing (539 km expedition)
Vasaloppet ski race (90 km ultra-marathon cross-country ski race)
1) Extreme sailing expedition from Cape Horn to Cape Town and Exploration of the Antarctic peninsula
(Extreme sailing of the South Atlantic Ocean stretching for 5000 miles or 8046 km)
2) Hellathlon Madness
(1800 km endurance race – ultra cycling, climbing, coastal rowing, ultrarunning)
3) Climbing back-to-back five Himalayan peaks
East Lobuche – 6119 m, Imja Tse – 6165 m, Mera peak – 6476 m, Cholatse West Face – 6440 m, Pokalde – 5806 m
Drakia International Challenge (90 km endurance race – 50 km cycling, 18 km coastal rowing, 22 km running)
1) Cycle across North America (7000 km from Seattle to Boston through the Rockies and Canada)
2) Berlin Marathon
3) Paris Marathon
4) Rome Marathon
Rowing across the Atlantic Ocean (6000 km from Portugal/Europe to French Guiana/South America)
Hellathon (760 km, 8725 vertical m – bicycle, climbing, running)
1) Chicago Marathon
2) Toronto Marathon
3) Goodlife Toronto Marathon
1) Abu Dhabi International Triathlon
2) Toronto Triathlon
3) Toronto Marathon
Athens Classic Marathon
1) Marathon des Sables (241 km Sahara Desert)
2) Trinidad & Tobago International Marathon
1) Mt. Aconcagua (6961 m, Argentina)
2) Trinidad & Tobago UWI International Half Marathon
Mt. Kilimanjaro (5895 m, Tanzania)
Mt. Elbrus (5642 m, Russia)
Mt. Ama Dablam (6812 m, Himalayas)
Expeditions, challenges and extreme adventures are celebrations of life. An opportunity for friends and acquaintances from all over the world to stay connected as athletes share the wonderful events and experiences in their lives. During these journeys the athletes are blessed to meet and develop bonds with extraordinary people and places from all over the world.
Dr. Ardavanis challenges himself to add his name to a list of handfuls of achievers. He believes that the ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands in moments of comfort and convenience, but where he stands at times of challenge and controversy. He believes that our brains and hands must be used to sail into new horizons and reach new dimensions. Every time that we reach new heights or cross a finish line, we must feel special and unique, and we should thank God and the people who are next to us and give us the strength and the opportunity to experience what most people cannot even imagine. The pleasure of risk is in the control needed to ride it with assurance, so that, what appears dangerous to the outsider, is to the participant simply a matter of intelligence, skill, intuition and coordination in a word, experience.
Participating in extreme adventures and challenges is a paradoxically intellectual pastime, but with this difference “you have to think with your body”. Every move must be worked out in terms of playing chess with your body. If an athlete makes a mistake the consequences are immediate, obvious, embarrassing, and possibly very painful. However, in that beautiful silent world of mountains and oceans it seems to the athlete worth the risk.
The conquest of a tall mountain or ocean, or finishing an ultra-marathon, or ultra-cycling event bring moments of exultation and bliss, which in the monotonous, materialistic existence of modern times nothing else can approach, then this is what extreme adventure athletes are looking for. It is not the goal of an extreme adventure to face peril, but it is one of the tests one must undergo to deserve the joy of rising for an instant above the boring routine life. On this proud and beautiful tall mountains, oceans and deserts extreme athletes live hours of fraternal, warm and exalting nobility. Here for few days the adventurists have ceased to be slave and have really been man. Fear is not going to shrink us from our challenges. We don’t want to be mediocre. Instead, we want to be bigger than life.
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