RSSTribold software expert Jenny Pugh succeeds in historic all-female crossing of Greenland's ice sheet
05 June 2006
London, 5 June, 2006 – A four-strong team of women including Tribold software engineer Jenny Pugh today returned to the UK to celebrate an historic achievement in becoming the first British all-female team to cross Greenland’s ice sheet. The group, called the Arctic Foxes, battled the elements on skis for 650 kilometres in 16 and a half days to reach Ammasillik on the country’s east coast.
Jenny, aged 27, who was born in Birmingham and now lives in London, decided to take up the gruelling challenge along with Felicity Aston, Jo Vellino and Rachel Pearson. She trained for eight months and took two months off from her position at Tribold, the leading telecom product management company. Temperatures dropped as low as -20 degrees as the Arctic Foxes were pushed to their physical limits and had to overcome severe weather conditions, sleep deprivation and equipment breakage on their remarkable journey, which began from Kangerlussuaq on Greenland’s west coast.
Having spent much of her free time over the last seven years climbing and mountaineering, the tough challenge immediately appealed to Jenny’s taste for adventure. She has explored cliffs, canyons and caves across the UK, France, Spain and Egypt, as well as traversing Asia, from Turkey to Hong Kong, climbing in remote regions along the way and taking in large parts of the old Silk Route.
“Jenny’s career in London sees her tackle many innovative technical challenges every day. She develops leading edge software which enables telecoms companies all over the world to better manage the products they sell to their customers,” said Simon Muderack, Tribold’s CEO. “Her pioneering spirit led her to take on the Arctic Foxes challenge and help in raising funds for this valuable cause.”
Tribold also sponsored the Arctic Foxes for the initiative, which raised money for Breakthrough Breast Cancer. For full biographies of the Arctic Foxes, and the latest updates visit www.arcticfoxes.co.uk.
Notes for editors:
1. Greenland is the largest island on earth, covering more than two million square km. It is part of the Kingdom of Denmark, although it was granted self-government in 1979.
2. Norwegian Fridtjof Nansen led the first crossing of Greenland in 1888. The first all-female team to cross the ice cap was led by Norwegian Explorer Liv Arneson in 1992, closely followed by Ann Bancroft and her American team in the same season.
3. Breakthrough Breast Cancer Is the UK’s leading breast cancer charity: its vision is to create a future free from the fear of breast cancer. For more information visit www.breakthrough.org.uk
Media contacts:
Chris Lee/Steve Earl
Rainier PR
+44 20 7494 6578/6574
clee@rainierpr.co.uk or searl@rainierpr.co.uk
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