The Team
Armin Wirth
Born in Reutlingen, Germany, 36 years young, has felt an attraction towards the colder regions of this planet. Working many years as a guide in Greenland, he crossed the inland ice on skis. Together with Markus Lanz, a well known German TV host, Armin guided and coordinated a small television team to the North Pole. He also explored and led expeditions in the Arctic around Spitsbergen, Canada and Norway. Armin holds an MBA in business and is the owner and CEO of a medium sized business in Reutlingen.
Dieter Staudinger
Born in Graz, Austria, 32 years young, has lived in Ontario, Canada with his wife Katie for the last 8 years. During his time in the Austrian Military in 2001 with the Alpine "Jaeger" unit, Dieter taught a wealth of Wilderness Survival and Tracking skills to his and other units. This knowledge was primarily learned from the world renowned Survival expert, Tom Brown Jr. through many years of courses and training. Dieter has won many regional and provincial championships in Gymnastics, Vaulting and Baseball. Currently Dieter runs his own practice as a psychotherapist and is an innovative coach for personal development as well as assisting other professionals in shaping their Visions.
Thomas Kommer
Born in Reutlingen, Germany, 30 years young is the Expedition Manager and is responsible for keeping in constant contact with Armin and Dieter during the expedition. As a lawyer and accountant he is also overseeing all the legal and logistical aspects of the expedition and represents the team while they are in Antarctica. In case of emergency, he is coordinating all necessary rescue efforts and communication between various organisations, family members, etc. His most noted commentary to Armin and Dieter during their preparation for this expedition. "You guys are crazy!"
Lars Bastian
Born in Marburg, Germany, 46 years young and proud father of twins, Lars currently lives and works in Düsseldorf. He is the founder of the TV and Multimedia Production company, ‘Public Vision’. Lars studied in Oslo, Norway and developed a deep love and passion for the Nordic and Arctic regions. He filmed and produced a number of documentaries, ranging from Greenland, to the Russian Barents region. One of his professional highlights was filming and producing a sking expedition to the North Pole, led by Armin Wirth and Markus Lanz. Lars is very excited to accompany Armin and Dieter all the way to Antarctica and be part of yet another polar adventure.
Our Weathermen
Weather and especially wind are such vital components to the success of this expedition. For this reason two Belgian meteorologists, Marc de Keyser and Tom Elgert are part of our team. They will be sending Armin and Dieter daily forecasts and trends via satellite phone. Marc will be located in Antarctica and Tom is in Belgium and has access to comprehensive resources there.
