Bear Grylls Biography aka Man vs. Wild
Bear Grylls, as he is known, was born Edward Michael Grylls in 1974. He is most known and recognized for his role as the host of Man Vs. Wild, but television host is not his only title. Bear is also an author, an adventurer and outdoorsman, a mountaineer, and a motivational speaker. He currently lives with his wife Shara and his two boys, Jesse and Marmaduke. They all live on a boat in the Thames in London.
The most-talked about, and the most impressive, accomplishment on Bear Grylls’ resume is his climb to the top of Mount Everest. There are only approximately 30 people who have ever successfully done so and return alive. Bear Grylls is not only one of them, but by doing so at the young age of 23, he set the world record (it is recorded in Guiness) for being the youngest to ever do so.
While this is one of his most notable accomplishments, it is not the only one that is noteworthy. Bear has had an interesting life full of adventure, success and setbacks. He became a Karate Black Belt and served in the UK Special Forces as a Sabre Soldier. During this time, he was trained in desert and winter warfare, parachuting, signals, and more. Then he spent three years working in the British Special Air Services (often referred to as the 21 SAS). He was actively deployed to North Africa twice, and it was during a parachuting free-fall in Africa that he broke his back in three places. While it took him many months of rehabilitation to recover completely and be able to climb mountains again, he did accomplish his goal of maintaining his love of mountain climbing.
In 1997, he became the youngest Briton to climb Mount Ama Dablam in the Himalayas, which has a peak of 22,500 feet and had previously been described as “unclimbable.” A year later, he was climbing Mount Everest, enduring 90 days of extreme weather and nearly being killed when the ice cracked beneath him at 19,000 feet. His teammate saved him from plummeting to his death, and he didn’t let this near death experience stop him.
In 2000, Bear led a team of people in circling the UK on a personal watercraft, in an effort to raise charitable moneys for the Royal National Lifeboat Institution. In 2003, he was successful in leading a team across the North Atlantic Arctic Ocean in an inflatable boat. This took weeks, and they filmed this experience to sell documentaries as a means of raising charitable funds to be given to the Prince’s Trust charity. They also turned it into a book titled Facing the Frozen Ocean, which was named Sports Book of the Year after its release. This was yet another record breaking expedition by Bear, and earned him the Honorary Lieutenant Commander position in the Royal Navy Reserve for it. in 2007, Bear flew a petrol-powered paraglider over the Himalayas, even higher than Mount Everest, in which over a million dollars was raised for the charity Global Angels. His depiction of the experience was filmed for Discovery and Channel 4 in the UK. This was claimed to have been a world record, but has been challenged by many. Although this record-breaking attempt didn’t garner him the title of world record holder, another feat did. With David Hempleman-Adams, Bear Grylls did create another world record, in which they held the highest ever open air formal dinner party. At 25,000 feet in the air, they were dressed to the hilt, including masks to provide breathable air, and they earned charitable funds for the Duke of Edinburgh Awards Charity.
Not only is Bear Grylls a thrill-seeker and adventurer, but he is also known for his books and television appearances, as well as motivational speaking. The first book Bear wrote was titled Facing Up, and it went on to be on the top-10 best seller list in the UK. It was then released in the United States under the title The Kid Who Climbed Everest. His book titled Born Survivor: Bear Grylls (which is the same name as the television show in the UK), quickly reached the Sunday Times Top 10 Best-Seller list. In his books and his motivational speaking, he uses his experiences as examples, and shows how they can help in the corporate world and in everyday life.
Along with the well known show Man Vs. Wild, there are many other shows Bear has also been involved with. Escape to the Legion was the first major TV experience for Bear, and it was a show in which Bear went through simulated basic training in North Africa for the French Foreign Legion. This show was filmed for Channel 4 in the UK, and was quickly backed up with an offer to film Man Vs. Wild for Discover Channel Worldwide. This show is also shown on Channel 4 in the UK and is shown under the title Bear Grylls: Born Survivor.
Bear is in the process of filming for the third season of Man Vs. Wild, in which he is dropped into remote areas all across the world, and has to use only natural resources for survival, showing viewers how to survive if they are ever stranded in the wild. There has been much controversy surrounding Bear Grylls and the show, which has led to changes in the way the show is broadcast, including disclaimers.
Not only does Bear undertake some adventurous expeditions to raise money for charity, but he is also vice president for The JoLt Trust, a charity that allows disabled children to experience a month-long wilderness expedition. Bear always repeats that it is not about pushing limits, and that it is instead about overcoming challenges and living your dreams.
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