Peter Treseder?

[kanangra]

What has become of him? I haven't heard a thing for the last 10 years or so when questions were first raised. Personally I always found some of his claims very hard to accept.

K.

[Jaala]

He no longer has an article on Wikipedia. One way to limit the wrong kind of attention I guess.

[johnrs]

I would imagine he is busy bringing up a family.
John

[photohiker]

Some info here: http://www.coolrunning.com.au/ultra/treseder.shtml

His book came out in 2000 and is still available, apparently he already had kids by then, he was 42, so about 56 now.

Probably running up some mountains in Alaska and arm wrestling polar bears.

[kanangra]

Sad really because there is no doubt he is a very able and athletic outdoor adventurer. For some reason he felt that wasn't enough?

K

[FatCanyoner]

Yes, I think his absence from high profile adventures over the past decade is an admission that some or all of his solo trips were exaggerated or worse. The Inside Sport article, from 2001, seems the best summary: http://www.coolrunning.com.au/ultra/treseder1.shtml

Interestingly, I've heard a story of someone deliberately giving him some false information on a pass -- telling him a route would go when in fact he would have been faced with a 100m cliff. At some time after this route Treseder claimed to have followed the route with no troubles -- solo of course -- which confirmed that he had not in fact done it.

This is what happens when our aims are self aggrandisement or external praise. Perhaps even when the focus is on "man versus wild". But for those of us who go bush for the simple pleasure it brings, there's no need for records or accolades.

[michael_p]

...when questions were first raised...

I think your question answers itself.

I remember reading somewhere he claimed to have run from Katoomba to Mittagong in 14hrs. Seriously, 14 hours! Here you go, I found the article whilst writing my post: http://www.coolrunning.com.au/ultra/treseder.shtml

EDIT: What a goose I am. I just noticed the link above has already been posted by photohiker.

[photohiker]

EDIT: What a goose I am. I just noticed the link above has already been posted by photohiker.

All Treseder roads seem to lead to coolrunning

You'd only be a goose if you did it twice

[Allchin09]

I've read his book and at the back there is a list of achievements and firsts which is a solid 10 or so pages long! Some of them are just completely insane! I'd just be interested to know which bits were in fact the truth, because to exaggerate the whole lot and the publisher or writer not question it is quite odd.

[Allchin09]

He's also featured on this "Meaningful Success Project" webpage - http://rachelcollis.com.au/MeaningfulSuccess/

[puredingo]

Who is this bloke, the chopper read of outdoor adventure?

[mikethepike]

I recall occasionally lying at school - but to save my life, not to build myself up in other people's eyes - (I didn't need to! ) and one thing I learnt was that, if the situation is desperate and the scaffold is looming, then the more fantastic the lie, the more likely the lie (or 'story' as I prefer to think of them) will be believed! I think Peter may have applied the same system eg why be satisfied with being bitten on the ankle where some place more sensational can fill the role. He's a bit like Lance Armstrong, both have used their fame for doing a great deal of public good but only one has fessed up. And I think it was Patrick Jonker talking about Lance, and how the sad thing is that, without drugs, Armstrong would very probably have one at least 3 TdeFs anyway - Jonker had never seen anyone train harder than Armstrong. Perhaps that applies to Peter T though he has not raced in endurance competitions as far as I know. That is where, drugs aside, there is no room for avoiding the truth. And this brings up the worse aspect of Peter's stories, it may have given a false expression of just what the human body can do.

[Jaala]

why be satisfied with being bitten on the ankle where some place more sensational can fill the role.

I'd like to have seen the results of infection from being fanged on such an appendage. I wonder where exactly it nipped him, along the ridge or on the summit?

As for Lance... a lot of good he did but a cheat is a cheat. His pic of lounging on the couch beneath his yellow jerseys after the news broke was a low act.

[SteveJ]

Malcolm Douglas, Harry Butler, the Leyland Brothers, Alby Mangles, Steve Irwin .... I see them in the same light as they all produced highly fabricated situations. Treseder told his stories in a different medium but at the end of the day they all produce fact and fiction blurred entertainment media, the fiction part goes with the business, as it needs to be 'engaging' to get noticed, has anything changed in the media??

[mikethepike]

Malcolm Douglas, Harry Butler, the Leyland Brothers, Alby Mangles, Steve Irwin .... I see them in the same light as they all produced highly fabricated situations. Treseder told his stories in a different medium but at the end of the day they all produce fact and fiction blurred entertainment media, the fiction part goes with the business, as it needs to be 'engaging' to get noticed, has anything changed in the media??

There is a huge difference between telling completely false stories where your credibility is based on your good name and reputation and setting up scenes to get good film or video footage. A film will often give the false appearance of spontaneity but with a film crew involved, that is just to make the project manageable, come within budget and achieve the best result and it's easy to think of many instances of this. Eg, climbing sequences done over several days but made to look like a single day but where the extra time is required for filming logistics. For the good laugh it gave audiences, the Leylands even filmed a spoof sequence showing the difference between the real life version and the 'film' version of one of their adventure travel sequences. There is a big difference between that and fabrication.

One true thing about lying (and I speak from personnel experience ) is that, if you get away with it, it encourages boldness and the stories start getting wilder and wilder. In the end I think it can become a game - just what nonsense can I dish up that people are still prepared to believe? I think you would be laughing at the gullibility of people. It's risky of course because the wilder the stories, the more risk you take of eventually getting sprung, but you're having too much fun with your little game to be too concerned about that. The opposite situation but a similar psychology is the bank robber who keeps deliberately leaving clues for the police - it becomes a daring and exciting game but as rich as the guy is getting from his ill gotten gains, it's not enough. He want fame or infamy because a wealthy anonymity is not enough by itself. He wants to get caught! But that's enough philosophy from me for the day! With regards to Steve Irwin, he was a showman but that occupied 1% of his time. He had very deep convictions about nature and wildlife and backed that up by spending most of the other 99% of his time doing the work of two people.

[davidf]

Are you questioning if Alby did Belinda Green?

[puredingo]

Are you questioning if Alby did Belinda Green?

Now if Alby shot a spoof sequence with Belinda Green, well, that's something I can believe in......

[neil_fahey]

I wonder where exactly it nipped him, along the ridge or on the summit?

Bahahaha Bravo, good sir. Bravo.

[SteveJ]

There is a huge difference between telling completely false stories where your credibility is based on your good name and reputation and setting up scenes to get good film or video footage.

If you say so The way I see it, neither are truthful representations.

[Jaala]

I agree that neither are truthful representations but having said that I have to agree there is a difference. I wonder what it was about his real achievements that made him think it wasn't enough. Perhaps there's a correlation between waning interest in him and his making these claims, I don't know. But for whatever the reason he did it the problem certainly lies in his own head.

[slparker]

Treseder misrepresented his exploits to suggest that he was faster than other athletes. that's called cheating. mangels, grylls et al are in the entertainment business.

[Taurë-rana]

So do you know he lied about things or just that you can't believe what he claims to have done? There seems to be little doubt that he has an extraordinary ability to push his body, plan things properly and has a huge amount of knowledge about the bush.

[Jaala]

So do you know he lied about things or just that you can't believe what he claims to have done? There seems to be little doubt that he has an extraordinary ability to push his body, plan things properly and has a huge amount of knowledge about the bush.

I don't think anyone doubts his ability. But when one makes claims thought by peers to be physically impossible and/or chains of events are so unlikely, and none of it documented, observers must form educated opinions.

[slparker]

So do you know he lied about things or just that you can't believe what he claims to have done? There seems to be little doubt that he has an extraordinary ability to push his body, plan things properly and has a huge amount of knowledge about the bush.

I'm confident that he is a BS artist who misrepresented a fair number of his claims. This is particularly egregious as his claims are about athletic prowess which diminishes the accomplishments of athletes who have not fabricated their achievements.

This doesn't mean that he is not a gifted athlete with considerable accomplishments nor does it take away from his genuinely recorded athletic activities. It just means that I don't believe a word that comes out of his mouth.

[DaveNoble]

What has become of him? I haven't heard a thing for the last 10 years or so when questions were first raised. Personally I always found some of his claims very hard to accept.

K.

I think Peter has moved on to other pursuits. I think he now lives in Brisbane.

I don't have his book - but I did borrow a copy and read it, and was amused to see a "quote" from me in that I did not make. If I did have the book - I would place it in the fiction section of my library. I did know Peter when he lived in Sydney. But the only experience of him as a bushwalker I have first hand was on a Colo search. On that occasion, he made a navigational error and took his search team into an area that the team I was in was supposed to be searching. When we found fresh footprints down a creek - it did cause some confusion!

I personally would strongly doubt any of his solo trip claims.

Dave

[clarence]

I personally would strongly doubt any of his solo trip claims.

Dave

+1

[Grabeach]

I had a little bit to do with Peter when I was my club S&R contact. I also took him and several of his mates on a walk a few decades back. He wanted to know where Orang Utan was, so we were going to combine that with an ascent of the Gordon Smith Chimney. He was a quiet unassuming guy to walk with. Didn't seem the type to promote himself. Unfortunately he was feeling unwell and went back up Perrys, so I didn't have a chance to judge his technical ability in the GSC.

In those days, I had heard second hand that he had done some remarkable things, but nothing that seemed unbelievable, though it is a bit hard to know if you weren't familiar with that particular area. I had some doubts on hearing of his down the Grose (without using the Engineers Track) trip time. I'd done virtually all the track in sections with a day pack, so had a pretty good idea what the terrain was like. Back then, if there were any other doubters, they hadn't gone public. I got involved with other things (family) after that, so didn't hear about him again. Can’t remember why, but a few years back I Googled his name and found the Cool Running stuff. All things considered, it was a bit of a surprise.

For what it’s worth, I wonder if he started out with good intentions of using his exploits to achieve something worthwhile, but his personality wasn’t able to cope with the pressure of being in the public eye. Maybe a bit of a stress related breakdown?

[OldGuy]

Peter Treseder - did he really exist? You only hear about him from friends of a friend like an urban myth. The Baron Munchausen of the Blue Mountains or may be a time traveller?

[Raymondo]

He was actually awarded the order of Australia for his work/commitment to bushwalking a few years ago. Then he left his basic banking job, got on a few Boards and is now the CEO of the Royal Brisbane and Women's Foundation - a fund raising body for research into medical health. He was my "hero" for a long time there (though I take things a lot slower)but it seems likely that many of his exploits-especially the later ones-were somewhat exagerated.

[Empty]

If you are interested in a bit more of an insight into PT you still may be able to pick up a copy of a book by Tim Jarvis called "The Unforgiving Minute". It is the story of his crossing of Antarctica in company with Treseder and it is an interesting read.

I read it about 13 years ago and not long after PT came to a 4WD club of which I was a member as the guest speaker. His portrayal of that antarctic crossing was somewhat at odds with the tale told by Jarvis and it was interesting for me to hear it from the horses mouth.

I would have been one of the only (if not the only) people in the club who had heard of PT and certainly the only one who had read Jarvis's book so I kept my thoughts to myself so as not to dispel the myth!