Tahoe-based adaptive athlete Grant Korgan is attempting to become the first adaptive athlete in history to reach the South Pole. On Saturday, January 14th, Gallery Keoki and Chase International are hosting “Chase the Push”, a fund and awareness-raising event for the expedition and its affiliate non-profit foundation, High Fives.

The program, to be held at Gallery Keoki in Palisades Tahoe and hosted by the PUSH team’s film director Steven Siig, will include a live satellite phone call from the expedition team in Antarctica just days before they reach to the South Pole. In addition, still images and video from the expedition as well as previews of the upcoming full-length documentary film will be screened.

Aboard a custom-designed sit-ski, Korgan, who will propel himself solely with arm strokes, estimates it will take 250,000 'pushes' to reach the pole. The Push organizers are selling $10 “push” donations, with the mission to reach 250,000 supported pushes. Online donations are available via the widget below, or at southpolepush.com.

After taking his first sit-ski push on frozen Antarctic ground on January 7th, Korgan and his team plan to reach the Pole to commemorate the 100-year anniversary of Captain Robert Falcon Scott’s Terra Nova Expedition.

“For me, each stroke is a full-on exhausting muscle recruitment and utilization. I can propel myself approximately 2 feet per stroke.  To go 100 miles to reach the Pole, I am going to need to do 250,000 total push. I’ll be pushing 10 hours a day, for 10 straight days,” Korgan said.

The event runs from 6 - 8:30 p.m., with the satellite call expected at around 7:00 p.m. RSVP's are required and a minimum $10 donation (for a single push) is required for admission. Food and drinks will be served. To attend the “Chase the Push” event, please RSVP to info@gallerykeoki.com.

“The Push” is in support of the High Fives Foundation, a California-based 501c3 non-profit organization whose mission is to help winter athletes suffering life-altering injuries get back on their feet, and ideally, back to their sport. Learn more at www.HighFivesFoundation.org.

“One in 50 people will experience paralysis in their lifetime,” said Roy Tuscany, founder of High Fives Foundation. “The key to recovery is a combination of positive support, activity-based rehab, and research. ‘The Push’ is a demonstration of this recovery process.”

“The Push” is also in support of The Reeve – Irvine Research Center, a science research facility at University of California, Irvine devoted to the study of repair, regeneration and recovery of function after spinal cord injury. Learn more at www.reeve.uci.edu.

To learn about sponsorship opportunities and follow “The Push” journey visit www.southpolepush.com.