Interview with Eirik Sønneland
Norway's Troll Base, on the coast of Queen Maud Land, was named by a popular vote of Norwegian schoolchildren. Historically a summer base, no one had wintered at Troll until 2000, when four men became the first Norwegians to winter on the continent in forty years. Over the long winter, they studied the effects of UVB radiation on the immune system, they were the subjects in a psychology study with Martian implications, and they tested a new system for processing shit at Antarctic bases. After eleven months, after a dark winter on a frigid coast at the end of the world, two of these deranged mutations then skied across the continent, claiming the longest (3800km) unsupported trek in Antarctic history. Not only did Eirik Sønneland and Rolf Bae seem to snag their prize with a shrug, but they did so after an Antarctic winter, an unnerving event that alone drives the typical American to New Zealand gasping for sushi and whores. The goals for their Trans-Antarctic trek were to set a world record, remain friends, and stay alive. They achieved their goals quietly and modestly, so their expedition was largely ignored by all but Norwegian media. Big Dead Place approached Eirik Sønneland and conducted this interview via email.
You worked for the Norwegian Polar Institute?
[During the Antarctic summer] we worked officially with the NP on NARE 99/00 [Norwegian Antarctic Research Expedition]. During the winter we were on our own (we had our own insurance) with a contract that we could use the station. We did a lot of work for NP during the long winter.
Can I rent Troll Base for a winter?
No. We had a special agreement with the Norwegian Polar Institute that said we needed to do several tasks for them during our stay.
Were they aware that you were going to ski the continent after your winter? Did you have to get a license from them, or ask their permission?
We had permission to walk to the Pole, and proper insurance for the total crossing and wintering. We left a written statement for the NARE expedition leader about our traverse to McMurdo (including way points). We had to do this because we borrowed their emergency beacon and they needed to know where it would be used. People in the NP system knew that we would continue after the Pole, but our mistake was that the right application form did not reach the right people in NP. We had a written letter about our route, but it was placed on the wrong desk. As simple as that.
Let me know if any of this background information is incorrect: You and Rolf Bae spent the winter at Troll Base, then left on 20 October 2000. You made it to Pole about two months later. When you got to Pole, you decided to continue your expedition...
Well, this is where some people have misunderstood us. When we left for Antarctica in 1999, we brought with us equipment and plans for crossing the whole continent to make the world's longest unsupported ski trek. But we didn't say anything to the media...only a few people knew about the plan. Reasons: we didn't want to seem too ambitious, already saying that we would do the first Norwegian winter in Antarctica in forty years, and THEN walking to the South Pole. Also, nobody knew how the four of us would handle eleven months alone at Troll base. How would our motivation be? Would Rolf and I have issues that would make it impossible to set this world record? Would we still want to do it? By telling the world that we would walk only to the South Pole, no people or sponsors would be disappointed if we didn't walk all the way.
 Pole
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How long did you spend planning your expedition?
We spent about four years planning the expedition, five years if you include preparation during the winter.