Carey & David Barlow
Both now in their early 50's, they first learnt to rock climb and explore caves in the mid 1970's. This passion led them to join Sydney Speleological Society in 1978. The aim was simple; gain the skills, experience and teamwork to explore the deepest caves in the world. An apprenticeship followed for several years that consisted of carrying packs of rope into god forsaken parts of Australia for some of the most experienced cave explorers in the world. They gained their first break when invited to join a team exploring the deep, wet and cold caves of S.W. Tasmania in 1980. During this period they explored most of the canyon systems in the Blue Mountains of NSW as well as becoming competent backcountry Ski Tourers.
Climbing, Caving, Mountain Biking, Skiing, Trail Running, White Water and Ocean Paddling are some of the activities they routinely participate in today - some 35 years after first donning a pair of climbing shoes.
The following is a brief chronological account of their outdoor experiences:
- 1980: Traditional approach march to Everest Base Camp - 25 days - Eastern Nepal.
- 1980: Expedition to explore the deepest caves in Australia - bottomed the deepest - Kazad Dum at -320m in Tasmania.
- 1981: Western Nepal - Annapurna region trekking & Northern India - Darjeeling to Kanchenjunga region.
- 1981: Expedition to survey and explore the caves of S.W. Tasmania. First descent of Big Tree Pot - at the time, the single longest underground pitch, 120m - in the country. Discovered and explored Serendipity Cave - considered to be one of the harder vertical caves in Australia.
- 1982: Members of the successful Australasian Speleological Expedition to the Muller Range of PNG. One month spent living in the remote western jungles. Discovered, explored and surveyed the deepest and longest cave in the Southern Hemisphere - Mamo Kananda at -550m and 28 km in length.
- 1984: Tasmanian Easter Expedition - 3 of the deepest and hardest caves in Australia - bottomed and ascended in a marathon 55 hr trip.
- 1985: New Zealand Expedition: lightweight alpine descents of the hardest caves in the country. Most notable - Greenlink and Harwoods Hole - an awe inspiring 178m abseil.
- 1985: Members of an Australian Expeditionary Team to explore the remote high mountains of Southern Mexico in search of the deepest cave in the world. Descended Li Nita cave to the sump at - 1020m in 34hrs. Descended the world's third deepest cave - Sistema Huautla. Three months were spent in the field.
- 1985: Yosemite Valley - California - 4 weeks climbing and hiking.
- 1985: Members of the successful British Speleological Expedition to the Picos de Europa in Northern Spain. Explored and surveyed the desperately hard cave, Dossers Delight to - 780m. One month in the field.
- 1985: Members of the second Australian Caving Team to descend the iconic Gouffre Berger to -1200m in the Vercors - France.
- 1986: Members of the second Australian Expeditionary Team to Southern Mexico. 4500 vertical metres of cave found, explored and surveyed. Most notable find: a first descent of a very technical 320m single pitch in Nita Xonga to a depth of -734m.
- 1986: Northern Alaska - a trip to the remote Brooks Range on the North Shelf and Bering Sea.
- 1988, 1989, 1990, 1991: Mountain Bike racing at NSW and National Levels.
- 1990: Members of the successful Australian Expedition to Southern Mexico to discover, explore and survey the elusive first "Australian" 1000m deep cave. La Cueva de Perro Muerto bottomed at -1070m!
- 1994: Mountain Bike touring - South Island NZ - 1000km - 12 days.
- 1997: Member of the Australasian Speleological Expedition to North Vietnam. Objective: to explore, survey and document caves for the North Vietnamese Government. One month spent in the remote North Western Provinces.
- 1998: Sea Kayak trip - Nth QLD - Cape Tribulation to Cooktown - 7 days.
- 2002 - 2011: White Water paddling to class 4+, descents of classic Australian rivers. New Zealand West Coast helicopter assisted remote boat descents. USA - Colorado River and classics of South Carolina - class 3&4 paddling.
- 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011: Woodford to Glenbrook Classic
- 2009: GeoQuest, Max 24, Mount Wilson - Bilpin Mountain run.
- 2010: GeoQuest, 6ft Track Ultra Marathon, The North Face 100.
- 2011: 6ft Track Ultra Marathon, The North Face 100, GeoQuest, XPD Tasmania
- 2012: GeoQuest, Max 24hr, Hells Bells 24hr, Fitz Challenge 205
- 2013: Alpine Classic 250, 3 Peaks, Paddy Pallin 6hr, Bungonia 12hr Rogaine, New Zealand - altitude training in Wanaka, GeoQuest, NSW 12 hr Rogaine, XPD - Flinders Ranges SA, NSW Rogaining Championships - 24 hr, Fitz Challenge
Dean Grasselli
- 1991: Stroll up Mount Toubkhal (Atlas Mountains, Morocco)
- 1993: Completed solo perambulation around Iceland – Highway 1
- 1992: Overland Track + Mt Ossa
- 1998: Solo trek Kokoda DNF
- 2001-13 White water paddling (Class 3,4 - Rivers paddled in Australia, Laos, Italy, France, Switzerland & Slovenia), Sea Kayaking (Italy & NZ), Cross country running 10-21km distances.
Emma Lefroy
- 1999: Slalom Kayaking - Junior NZ Team Member
- 2000: Slalom Kayaking - Australian Junior Team, Junior World Championships and Junior World Cup Races
- 2001: Slalom Kayaking - Senior Australian Team Member - World Cup Circuit
- 2003 - 2005: Slalom Kayaking - Under 22s Australian Team
- 2005 - 2013: Whitewater Kayaking - numerous rivers to class 4/5
- 2008: Lea River Extreme Race - whitewater kayaking - womens winner
- 2008: Oxfam Trailwalker
- 2009: Whitewater Kayaking NZ, Oxfam Trailwalker
- 2010: Whitewater Kayaking NZ
- 2011: Annapurna Sanctuary Trek, Nepal, Oxfam Trailwalker, Whitewater Paddling Nepal
- 2012: The North Face 100
- 2013: The North Face 100, Paddy Pallin 50th 6 hr Rogaine
