Do you even tree, bro?
A British strongman is laying claim to the title of the world’s first “treeathlete,” by lugging a giant log around with him while swimming, running and cycling for charitable causes.
Ross Edgley is already more than halfway through a personal quest to swim a total of 100 kilometres in different locations around the world, with a tree strapped to his back the entire time. The fitness expert says he got the idea from friends while searching for a novel way to promote carbon-neutral practices on the island of Nevis. He’s since turned the practice into a means of raising money for various charities.
“I found out I had this weird ability to run very far while carrying very heavy things,” he told CTV’s Your Morning on Tuesday. “It just kind of went from there.”
Edgley uses a different tree in every location he visits, and he always makes sure his log is locally sourced. “It’s specific to that place,” he said.
Edgley will attempt to complete the final 40-kilometre leg of his swimming challenge in November, when he’ll swim from Martinique to St. Lucia.
He says training for the challenge has been intense, with his time split almost evenly between swimming and eating.
“It’s just kind of like an eating competition with a little bit of swimming attached to it,” he joked.
Swimming with a tree trunk might sound difficult, but Edgley says that’s not the hardest part of his ultramarathon challenge.
The real challenge, he says, is navigation.
“I was so bad at swimming in a straight line,” he said.
