Some of Tarka L'Herpiniere's friends have been quoted saying they first realised that he wasnt 'Normal' when he turned up on foot to a holiday gathering in the South of France, having run there from the UK because he couldnt afford the plane fair.

In 1997 at the age of 16, Tarka took two bicycles out of a skip, put them back together and began a journey that has led him to attempt and accomplish some of the most astonishing expeditions.

In 2004 he became the second person in history to attempt to trek to both the North and South Poles consecutively. Sadly the expedition ran into financial difficulties before the poles could be reached and a year later, as part of the longest climb on earth expedition he also set out to join an elite group and summit the highest mountain on earth without oxygen.

Tarka's journey has not exactly been a shinning example of uncompromising success. In fact failure became his driving force for a number of years and on several occasions he has almost left his life behind. During his Everest expedition, at more than 7km above sea level on the highest and most inhospitable mountain on earth he developed High Altitude Cerebral Edema (HACE). He was evacuated off the mountain with the potentially fatal condition only to find himself in Kathmandu during a civil war with a dead body next to him.

In 2007 Tarka headed an expedition and became the first known and recognised person to complete a unique 4500km trek along the entire length of the 4th wonder of the world, the Great Wall of China. An epic six month voyage that started at 40C deep in the heart of the Gobi desert and snaked its way through the snow caped mountains of Northern China were temperatures dropped to -35C.

Tarka and his partner Katie will be working on the Catlin Arctic Survey led by Pen Hadow from February until April 2009. This is an international collaboration between polar explorers and some of the foremost scientific bodies to resolve key environmental issues in the bleak landscape of the North Pole. Katie and Tarka will be living in a tent in temperatures of around -50C. A tadge cold.

Speak Out are taking bookings for Tarka from May 09 onwards. For European clients, please note that Tarka is fluent in French.

In February 2010 he sets out on possibly the greatest journey mankind has undertaken. ONE WORLD is a 30,000km voyage around the earths circumpolar axis from the Geographic North Pole to the South Pole, using ONLY manpower. Five of the eight legs have never been attempted and yet Tarka, joined by some of his fellow world class athletes have made it possible and are setting out to write a new chapter in history.

Tarka is an inspiring and captivating speaker and at 26, he is one of the youngest and freshest speakers on the circuit. His enthusiasm for life is overwhelmingly apparent when he speaks and he is rapidly becoming one of the countries most outstanding motivational speakers.

TESTIMONIALS
''I would like to thank you for the absolutely fantastic talk that you gave. Everyone I spoke to after the event found your story captivating and very inspirational. People have been talking about it ever since.''
Admiral Group