On April 2, Gaskell will start the journey of a lifetime when, as part of an eight-man team, he will attempt to walk unsupported to the North Pole for charity.
His aim is to raise £100,000 for the Glan Clwyd Hospital, Denbighshire, which is part of a European network of specialist facilities working together to fight cancer. The cause is very close to Kevin's heart, having lost his 44-year-old sister Jayne to leukaemia last April.
Gaskell, polar explorer Chambers MBE, Vendee Globe sailor Goss MBE and the other team members will have to haul 80kg sledges in temperatures as low as -50 degrees centigrade for up to three weeks to achieve their goal. Throughout the expedition they will be exposed to the risk of attack from polar bears, violent storms, falling through holes in the ice and frostbite.
Gaskell (46) celebrated his 40th birthday by climbing on Mount Everest. He began training for his latest challenge six months ago and now spends his weekends hauling van tyres across Dartmoor in order to prepare himself for pulling his sledge and its vital supplies.
"It will be a tough trip for sure, but our belief that the lives of future cancer patients will be saved by the money we raise will keep us going," says Gaskell.
"£100,000 would buy a new centre for Glan Clwyd that could treat up to 10,000 patients a year and also serve as a base for developing better ways to fight this destructive disease. Had the wonderful of staff of Glan Clwyd had such facilities last year, my sister might well have won through."
Any sized contributions to the fund known as 'Jayne's Gift' will be most gratefully received. For companies offering £5,000 plus, there is the unique incentive of having their company flag planted on the top of the world and they will receive a signed, framed photograph for their boardroom in return.
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