Attention! We've departed!

Polar Vision has left for Puntas Arenas, Chile. We start the expedition in a few days. Because we're going to have limited electronic communication capabilities, we can't promise we can take any new Personal Polar Message requests. Thanks to everyone who's donated so far!

Our Story

Polar Vision (www.polar-vision.org) is raising awareness for eyesight related disabilities by setting a world record for the first visually impaired person to trek from the coast of Antarctica at Union Glacier to the South Pole. 

In late 2003 Alan Lock began to suffer from Macular Degeneration, which rapidly destroyed much of his vision and cost him his military career. Despite this, in 2008, Alan set a Guinness World Record and raised over $80,000 for charity when he became the first visually impaired person to row across the Atlantic Ocean. Alan recently finished an MBA at UC Berkeley, and he has completed a range of outdoor challenges including the 151 mile Marathon Des Sables in the Sahara Desert. When he reaches the South Pole in early 2012 he will become the first visually impaired person to ever to complete the full trek from the coast of Antarctica.to the South Pole.

The Polar Vision expedition will coincide with the 100-year anniversary of the Amundsen-Scott race to the South Pole. Over the course of 40-50 days the team will cover a distance of nearly 580 miles (934 km) in one of the worlds harshest environments. Antarctica is both the coldest and windiest place on earth, with the lowest temperature ever recorded of -128.6F (-89.2C) and winds measured at 204 miles per hour (327 kilometers per hour).

The team will each pull a sled, or 'pulk,' loaded with approximately 100 lbs (45 kilos) of food and equipment along the entire route to the Pole. Team members will expend over 7000 calories per day, and meals will primarily consist of high calorie freeze-dried meals, bacon and butter.

The Polar Vision Team has been brought together through the ties of friendship, military service and a uniting passion to reach the South Pole to promote a worthwhile cause.

The Impact

This campaign directly benefits two non-profits. The first is San Rafael, CA based Guide Dogs for the Blind. The charity was founded during World War II and is the largest provider of sight dogs in the nation (as well as the largest provider of sight dogs to returning combat veterans). Guide Dogs has trained over 10,000 teams since its founding in 1942. The second is the UK based Sightsavers International. Sightsavers works on preventable blindness in developing countries. In 2010 Sightsavers gave out medicine which protected 23 million people from river blindness, performed 270,000 cataract operations, and treated over a million people with antibiotics for trachoma. 

What We Need & What You Get

We've met our costs for the trip through a combination of corporate donations, individual giving, and our own funds. Now, we want to raise awareness and funds for Guide Dogs and Sightsavers.

Did you know:

$10 is all it costs for an operation to relieve the pain of trichiasis (a condition caused by parasites where the eyelid curves into the eyball)

$14 can provide two artificial eyes 

$34 is enough for cataract surgery- allowing an adult to regain their eyesight and independence

$38 provides a braille kit for a child to learn to read

and $38 is also enough money to protect a community from river blindness for a year (river blindness an eye condition caused by parasites in unclean water)

$136 funds screening an entire school for eye problems

$320 trains a rehab worker, who can help scores of visually impaired members of their community

$364 gives a child a year's education- the first step towards guaranteeing their life long independence

(Source, Sightsavers International: http://www.giftofsight.co.uk/)

Raising and training a guide dog can cost over $42,000, but Guide Dogs manages to give them to the visually impaired for free. Of course, they can't do this without your support. More information about Guide Dogs is here: http://www.guidedogs.com/site/PageServer?pagename=about_overview_faq.

We have set a fundraising goal of $20,000 for IndieGoGo, but our real goal is to connect people to Alan's quest! If we think we have the physical to carry 500 postcards almost 600 miles to the South Pole, then we want to get them into people's hands.

We will forward all donations to Guide Dogs and Sightsavers, with a reservation to cover the costs of providing these benefits. No members of Polar Vision receive a salary.

Other Ways You Can Help

Please send a link to our webpage to your friends!  Also, please check out Guide Dogs and Sightsavers websites and look at their 'Get Involved' pages.  Finally, if you know someone with visual impairment, help get them outside. They don't have to go to the South Pole or row across the ocean, but there is a joy in the outdoors which cannot be matched.