Adrift in a life without risk or surprise & with a burning desire to make some sense of his place in the world, Alastair Vere Nicoll dived into the unknown. Leaving the security of friends, work & a wife, he joined a team of young men to harness the katabatic winds & haul & kite-surf across Antarctica: the coldest, windiest, most violent continent on earth. For Alastair, Antarctica was a land of legend & mystery, the ultimate test of strength, endurance & bravery; a place where he might feed his restlessness & find meaning in the emptiness. Not since Shackleton had nearly perished attempting the same thing in his Endurance expedition had such a crossing been attempted. This is the story of the first West to East traverse of the continent of Antarctica & of a race against time as Alastair fought to get home for the birth of his first child. Told with honesty & wisdom & adorned with some bewitching descriptions of Antarctica, ” Riding the Ice Wind” is a compelling & subtly important book for our times.