Garrison man, Thomas Maguire, has ran his way onto the pages of one of the most illustrious publications of the year, and of every year for that matter. The long distance runner is included in the Guiness Book of Records of 2008 for his exploits in the North Pole Marathon in 2007.
"Mad altogether," Is how he described the news that he had made it into the famous book.
"I think my mum has about six copies in the house," he said with a laugh.
And while he is obviously delighted that his achievments at the North Pole have been recognised he is also able to have a little fun with the news;
"I have taken my place alongside some quirky record holders such as the woman with the worlds longest beard."
Whatever about women with beards Thomas certainly deserved his place alongside other record holder.
He set a new record time in the North Pole marathon in 2007. Running it in 3:36:10 Thomas is now officially the fastest man to ever run the North Pole marathon.
And with the ice and snow now seemingly conquered he is turning the heat up as he prepares to run one of the most gruelling races known to man, the Atacama Crossing in Chile.
The entire race will be held at least one mile (1600m) above sea level and will cover a distance of 250 KM on a horizontal crossing of the country of Chile.
When asked the simple question; Why? Thomas replied, in typical enigmatic nature ; 'Aye, sure it's fierce sensible craic to be at."
Some of the oldest mummies found on earth come from the Atacama, dating as far back as 9000 years
The day time temperatures expected are 32 Celsius (100 Fahrenheit) while night time temperatures may be below freezing.
The Atacama Desert has the most lunar-like landscape on Earth and is frequently used by NASA to test its Mars rover vehicles.
All in all it is not the most hospitible place in the world with some areas of the desert never being recorded as experienceing a single drop of rain.
The Atacama Crossing is a six-stage, 250-kilometer footrace.
The six stages will range from 20-80 kilometers (10-50 miles) over the seven days. The stages are arranged to cover the most spectacular and varied parts of the Atacama Desert, including salt basins, canyons and village oases under a spectacular backdrop of the Andes, the largest mountain chain in South America.
Each stage will consist of several checkpoints that competitors must pass through to collect water and where medical assistance is available.
The longest stage, stage 5, will be approximately 80 kilometers (50 miles) long and competitors will have 48 hours to complete it, meaning most will run or walk this stage through the darkness of night.
All competitors must carry all their own food, gear and clothing while navigating approximately 25 checkpoints (CPs).
