Tony and Elaine Teasdale, from North Yorkshire, won the first series of the BBC's Race Across the World in 2019 and have since been on a number of adventures and are happy to "rough it"
A married couple who won Race Across the World are spending their retirement completing a "gap decade" - and now "rough it" while travelling thanks to the show.
Tony Teasdale, 67, and his wife, Elaine, also 67, won season one of Race Across the World in 2019. The show saw them travel across 21 countries on a shoestring budget of £1,329 for the whole journey and beat eight competitors to be the first to reach the Marina Bay Sands hotel in Singapore - and bag £20k.
The former PE teachers surprised themselves by winning the competition as the oldest duo on the show and say it gave them the confidence to travel at their age. The 50-day race spanned 12,000 miles from Greenwich, London, to Singapore, and was the couple's first retirement adventure - having left their jobs five years before.
While their home is in Beadlam, North Yorkshire, since Race Across the World, they have visited Antarctica, South Africa, Brazil, Chile, Patagonia, and New Zealand. Tony - who is currently skiing in Les Arcs, France, with the family - said: "We always said we would have a gap decade once we retired, and we're trying to do that.
"Because we had just nicely retired when we went on Race Across the World we hadn't really settled into any pattern. Since the show, the new places we have visited have been Antarctic, South America, New Zealand, and South Africa. If there is any place you want to go on this planet go to Antarctica it was just something else.
"We were able to go out onto the peninsula, the wildlife and the glaciers were unbelievable. Because of Race Across the World we rough it, we stay in youth hostels, we don't do it plush. If we go somewhere, we go for two or three months and indulge ourselves in the culture, which we couldn't really do when we were racing across the world.
"You can lose confidence the older you get, but because of our experience and realising how wonderful and generous people are, you feel as if you can go anywhere." Tony says the key to winning the show was a combination of trust and luck. He said: "I think the travel gods were on our side on the last two legs.
Who’s your favourite Race Across The World winner? Vote in our poll HERE to have your say.
"We were really fortunate to have some really good connections after we left China. I think because we had done a fair bit of travelling in Asia, we were able to do well there. We also saved a lot of money for the end." Tony and Elaine have been married for 43 years and Tony believes their strong relationship was a huge asset during the race.
"If you're married, you know each other so well, there's a lot of telepathy, which is a big plus. You're on the same wavelength," he said. "We both had the same reaction to most of the countries. We had a really bad time in Northern China because the people were very unhappy, it was hard to see how they were treating each other. We found China really hard, which is why we were two days behind at one point.
"But we loved Uzbekistan because the people were so lovely. When we were stranded there was a guy who emptied his entire truck with all his gear in it in the middle of the Red Desert and drove us for 200 miles. We sang Beatles songs all the way, and when we couldn't get on a train, he paid for a taxi to take us to the next city."
The main advice Tony has for the upcoming cast is to 'trust people'. He said: "You've got to be yourself and be prepared for one hell of a rollercoaster. Trust in people is also key. It was really hard to think any further than a day ahead because you didn't have a clue what was in store - you never knew what was in front of you."
After winning, the couple used some of the prize money to buy themselves electric bikes to drive around the dirt tracks near their home in North Yorkshire. "Obviously, winning was great, but what you remember are the people you meet and the journey you went on - that's everything," Tony said. "It's really hard, and none of us would have done what we did if it hadn't been for the kindness of strangers."
While the journey was difficult, both Tony and Elaine would race again in a heartbeat. Tony said: "We are hoping that once they've had five or six races, there will be a shoot out with all the winners."
