Hours of journey: 8h45 - Accumulative: 98h15m
Km./Day: 15.5 - Accumulative: 173.6 Km.
Days of progress: 13 (9 Solo) - Inactive Days: 15 (0 Solo) - Total Days: 28

Today was the second day of good weather... sunny and just a slight breeze. It would have been a perfect day if it wasn't for the ski fixation.

Two days ago I had problems taking the boot out of the ski fixation. Yesterday it was hard to take it out. Today it was just impossible. I put on the ski this morning and I couldn't take it out during the whole day. Normally I take them out when I stop to eat and drink, so I can sit on the sledge and I relax for a moment.

At the end of the stage, I tried my best to take it out, but it wasn't possible. I didn't want to push it too hard because there was the risk of breaking the fixation or the boot. I have a spare pair of fixations, but if I break the boot, the Pole South adventure would be over right there.

I tried to dismount the fixation out of the tent and having it on didn't let me see well enough what I was doing, so I decided to install the tent and I kept working with the ski on it.

Once everything was set up, I took out the boot and I got inside the tent. There was me and the ski and the boot still on it. After all, I succeeded on dismounting the boot from it. When I looked at it, there was nothing wrong compared to the spare. So, I cleaned it up and put it back again. And the most curious thing is that after that, it worked perfectly, as if nothing had happened!

So, after all, it was an emergency that ended up being just a stomach ache. Now the patient is out recovering and I hope that tomorrow it will feel better and ready to swallow some more kilometers.

This fear at least helped for two things:

1) Now I know that even if thought mounting the tent was complicated, I saw that I can even do it with one foot attached to the ski. If there is ever an International Championship of installing tents with a ski on it, I will take part of it, because I know I can do well.
2) To confirm what we said two days ago: Everything is relative. While I was suffering for the fixation, I wouldn't feel that I was hurting my right ankle.

I DEDICATE THIS DAY TO:

My mother, to whom I was able to talk yesterday evening. That was the prize I chose to finish my second group of four days goal.

Really, if it wasn't for her I would not be here (in this world), and if it was for her I wouldn't be here (in the Antarctic). It is not fair that a hard working woman as she is had an "animal" son like me. Since I was little, she was always worried that I could come home with a broken head. Then, as a teenager on a bike, I was always playing the fool and she thought that might stop at the moment I was in college, but no. Then, she thought I would be more calm at the moment I had a serious job, but it didn't happen either. She was sure I was going to change once I would get married, but nothing. Then, she thought I was going to settle down at the moment I had kids... but she failed again. Each time I look for bigger challenges and I guess she doesn't lose faith that I will stop one day.

It's fine mom. I am thinking to quit this kind of things in 45 or 50 years from now. For the moment I know I make you suffer, but please know that wherever I am, I love you and I think of you!