Daniel Paul Burton (born December 4, 1963) is an American bicycle enthusiast from

Eagle Mountain, Utah Eagle Mountain is a city in Utah County, Utah. It is part of the Provo–Orem metropolitan area. The city is located to the west as well as north of the Lake Mountains, which are west of Utah Lake. It was incorporated in December 1996 and is r ...

, and the first person to complete an expedition from the coast of

Antarctica Antarctica () is Earth's southernmost and least-populated continent. Situated almost entirely south of the Antarctic Circle and surrounded by the Southern Ocean (also known as the Antarctic Ocean), it contains the geographic South Pole. ...

to the

South Pole The South Pole, also known as the Geographic South Pole or Terrestrial South Pole, is the point in the Southern Hemisphere where the Earth's rotation, Earth's axis of rotation meets its surface. It is called the True South Pole to distinguish ...

by bicycle (though not the first to cycle to it).Biking Bis
Utah Man First to Ride to South Pole Burton began his expedition, "The South Pole Epic", on December 2, 2013, at

Hercules Inlet Hercules Inlet is a large, narrow, ice-filled inlet which forms a part of the southwestern margin of the Ronne Ice Shelf. It is bounded on the west by the south-eastern flank of the Heritage Range, and on the north by Skytrain Ice Rise. Hercule ...

and arrived at the South Pole on January 21, 2014.Salt Lake Tribune
Utah man sets a world record biking to the South Pole

Background

Burton was a computer programmer by trade. Twenty-three years into his career and out of shape in his 40s, Burton went to get his blood checked. His cholesterol levels were poor, his blood pressure was high and he was a bit overweight. He started to mountain bike and in 2008 established a bike shop in

Saratoga Springs, Utah Saratoga Springs is a city in Utah County, Utah, United States. The elevation is 4,505 feet. It is part of the Provo– Orem, Utah Metropolitan Statistical Area. The city is a relatively new development along the northwestern shores of Ut ...

, called Epic Biking. He finished the LOTOJA Classic six times and wanted to do more. He decided to set out on his Antarctic ride to inspire people and to encourage donations to the

American Diabetes Association The American Diabetes Association (ADA) is a United States-based nonprofit that seeks to educate the public about diabetes and to help those affected by it through funding research to manage, cure and prevent diabetes, including type 1 diabetes ...

. He also wanted to ride in honor of his mother, whose high cholesterol contributed to her death on November 30, 2012.

South Pole

Burton began riding

fatbike A fatbike (also called fat bike, fat tire, fat-tire bike, or snow bike) is an off-road bicycle built to accommodate oversized tyres, typically or larger and rims or wider, designed for low ground pressure to allow riding on soft, unstable terra ...

s, which are fortified bikes with wide tires that are intended for sand, ice and snow. He became interested in Eric Larsen's attempt to travel to the bottom of the world in 2012. Larsen made it a quarter of the way before turning around. Training for a year, Burton set off on his expedition December 2, 2013. He started at Hercules Inlet and rode on a

Borealis Yampa fatbike Borealis (Latin for ''northern'' or ''of the north'') may refer to: Astronomy * Borealis Basin or North Polar Basin, a basin on the planet Mars * Borealis quadrangle, an area on the planet Mercury ** Borealis Planitia, a basin within the quadra ...

Borealis Yampa
/ref> until he reached the

Geographic South Pole The South Pole, also known as the Geographic South Pole or Terrestrial South Pole, is the point in the Southern Hemisphere where the Earth's axis of rotation meets its surface. It is called the True South Pole to distinguish from the south ...

References

External links

South Pole Epic Blog

Official Page, Everyday Epic

TEDx talk at Hill AFB
2014
Story Untold podcast interview
, 2019 {{DEFAULTSORT:Burton, Daniel Paul 1963 births Living people 21st-century American explorers American motivational speakers Sportspeople from Corvallis, Oregon American explorers of Antarctica American male cyclists People from Eagle Mountain, Utah People from Saratoga Springs, Utah 20th-century American sportsmen

Background

South Pole

See also

References

External links