Human Alchemy

This week we welcome Ash Dykes back to basecamp for his latest update on Project 6.

His first trip, down the Congo Basin, took the world by storm. Over a billion online views sparked plenty of discussion, both positive and negative, about his trip. In this conversation, we tackle those questions head-on and find out what Ash really thought about his journey down the Sangha River.

We also get to discuss where he is heading next in this mammoth project: the wilderness of Kyrgyzstan.

Enjoy!

James Ketchell has done a lot. 

Here's his list of achievements:

2008 – Serious motorcycle accident, sustaining major leg and ankle injuries.

2010 – Rowed solo across the Atlantic Ocean in 110 days.

2010 – Sailed across the Atlantic from Antigua to the Azores.

2010 – Climbed Island Peak in Nepal and trekked to Everest Base Camp.

2011 – Successfully summited Mount Everest.

2012 – Cycled approximately 3,000 miles across America, from San Diego to Miami.

2012 – Attempted to climb Ama Dablam in Nepal but abandoned the climb due to illness.

2013 – Cycled 18,000 miles around the world, solo and unsupported, through 20 countries.

2013 – Became the first person to complete the Ultimate Triathlon: rowing the Atlantic, climbing Everest and cycling around the world.

2015 – Kayaked the length of the River Thames.

2015 – Attempted to row across the Indian Ocean from Australia to Mauritius but was rescued at sea.

2016 – Cycled approximately 3,000 miles around the coast of Great Britain.

2016 – Attempted to cross the Atlantic in a pedal-powered boat but was rescued after his expedition partner became ill.

2016 – Attempted to row solo around Great Britain but abandoned the expedition due to illness.

2019 – Became the first person to complete an officially ratified circumnavigation of the world in a gyrocopter, flying approximately 24,000 nautical miles.

2022 – Skied approximately 400 miles across Greenland's ice cap.

2024 – Attempted to sail around the world but was forced to abandon the voyage due to gearbox failure.

2025–2026 – Sailed approximately 30,000 nautical miles around the world, completing the voyage in June 2026.

2026 – Became the first person to circumnavigate the world separately by land (bicycle), air (gyrocopter) and sea (sailing boat).

Date unconfirmed – Undertook an expedition in the Amazon rainforest.

If you've read all of that you'll likely be impressed but James doesn't believe what he has done is particularly 'difficult', a lot of his success, in his own words comes down to 'wanting to be there' and that's it. 

James has a lovely view of life and it was a real pleasure to speak with him.

Enjoy the episode!

After a while of waiting, we are back with a Ross Examination and this is one I have wanted to do for a long time! Performing under pressure is at the centre of everything I teach day to day.

Where does pressure come from? What types of pressure are there? How do different people respond to it? How can you control it?

These are all questions we can understand a lot better and the point of this episode is to break it down for you.

I'll analyse real-life situations, dive into the theory behind them and explain how you can take them into your everyday life.

Hope you enjoy!

In this episode with Adam Gemili we discuss a lot of different topics.

Adam lost out on an Olympic medal by 0.003 seconds and had to deal with that disappointment but he certainly doesn't seem bitter. Adam has a very positive mindset and has worked very hard on the mental side of things. 

We discussed what it was like racing against the great Usain Bolt, how certain runners would try to intimidate you, the mechanics of executing a 100m race, the psychology of performance, how sprinting transfers to other sports and much much more. 

I hope you enjoy the episode!

Ash Dykes joins us again for a very new and exciting project. 

Ash will be going on 6 expeditions over the next 12 months each one lasting around 30 days. In between each mission, Ash will be joining me to debrief the last mission and preview the next one. 

In this episode we look ahead at Project 6 and go through why Ash is taking on such a big logistical challenge and preview his first expedition into the Congo basin. 

Enjoy!

Join me for this episode of Human Alchemy with Joe Pietersen.

Joe played professional rugby for 20 years in South Africa, England, France, Japan and the United States so his exposure to performance across different cultures is very unique. 

During his career he started building a charity called Nkombe Rhino dedicated to protecting Rhinos across the Kruger national park. 

Joe may have dehorned more Rhinos than anyone else in the world and for clarity, they are dehorned as it is one of the fastest way to protect a species that is being poached an alarmingly increasing rate.

Joe has also taken on a huge concession on the edge of the Kruger that had fallen into disrepair and he is clearing it of snares, repairing fences, working with the community and building roads in order to create a reserve for animals to return to and visitors to enjoy. 

He has already lived a fascinating life and gives us a glimpse into that in this episode.

Enjoy!

Daniel Eggington is an adventurer, who in November, will attempt to become the first recorded person to ever walk the length of the Congo river. It’s a mission that will take no less than a year and pose threats to his life and health. 

He has already traversed the infamous Darien Gap, traveled the Rio Negro and endured many tough challenges but this will trump them all. 

The Congo is a mission described as impossible and with warring factions, deadly animals, tropical diseases loneliness and harsh terrain, it’s hard to argue. 

I today’s episode we breakdown the mission, the threats and the unknowns. 

Enjoy!

Colin fisher is an expert is organisational behaviour and team dynamics having studied at Harvard and worked with some amazing teams and conducted important research. 

In this episode we covered a lot of topics so I'll list out a few of the key points below:

• Incentives
• Is diversity actually good for teams?
• Are Psychometrics any use (They're not)?
• How do you build effective teams?
• Is structure or coaching more important?
• How conformity fits into teams
• Polarisation
• Which teams solve problems more effectively

This episode is for the team performance purists, so I hope you enjoy!

On this episode of Human Alchemy, I sat down with Simon Brodkin. 

Simon has a great CV of performance under pressure having worked initially as a junior doctor before entering the world of TV where he sprung to prominence with characters like Lee Nelson and Jason Bent. 

Simon became world famous with high profile stunts where he took on people like Donald Trump, Theresa May, Kanye West and ex-FIFA president Sepp Blatter. 

He has also excelled in the stand-up comedy world where he has performed on Live at the Apollo, The Royal Variety and Edinburgh Fringe.

Simon and I mainly focused on one topic; Performance Under Pressure, and Simon has had to deal with a lot of pressure. 

Enjoy the episode!

Ash Dykes is a Welsh explorer and world record holder, and we have the pleasure of hearing about his remarkable journey from chip shop worker to world-leading adventurer.

Ash is known for taking on solo expeditions in remote and dangerous locations, including crossing the ridiculously treacherous Madagascar, being the first to follow the full length of the Yangtze River and undertaking the first solo and unsupported journey across the Gobi Desert. Over these journeys, he has had to make life or death decisions and maintain physical and mental focus that some of us could only dream of.

The episode breaks down what his experiences can tell us about staying effective under pressure, what makes him different and how the hell he got to the desert in the first place. Pushing himself to the absolute limit.

Enjoy.