Karen Drake

Karen was a keen runner and mountaineer before becoming paralysed in a rock-climbing accident on Aberdeen sea cliffs. She has since pursued alternative way to access to outdoors – canoeing, skiing, and hand-cycling. She has hand-cycled in various corners of the globe, including Central Asia over the Himalaya and the length of the Japanese archipelago, and co-organised expeditions sea kayaking along the coastlines of British Columbia and Alaska, and most recently (2006) skiing across the Greenland icecap in a sit-ski, propelled only by her arms.

Karen founded Interventure (www.interventure.org.uk) , a charity to develop opportunities for disabled people to access the outdoors. She competes for Britain as a member of the Trail Orienteering team and is involved in the development of “inclusive” expeditions and outdoor sport. She runs her own company, Inspire + Impact, www.inspireandimpact.com delivering motivational speaking, coaching and personal and team development. Karen shares inspiring stories of her journeys, with learning related to teamwork, leadership and overcoming challenge. Her first book “If You Fall” was published by O-books in October 2006.

More at www.karendarke.com