Crazy Coast To Coast Guy Steve Gurney To Speak At Driving Property Forward Conference
Well known as "That Crazy Coast to Coast Guy", Steve Gurney, who has won the Coast to Coast race a record 9 times,
invented a bike with wings, been poisoned by bat dung while racing in Borneo jungles, nearly died, then fought back to
win races again, will be an inspirational key note speaker at the upcoming New Zealand Property Institute's conference
being held at the Hyatt Hotel, Auckland, on Thursday 3rd and Friday 4th July 2003, with the theme of "Driving Property
Forward".
Steve, the "King" of endurance races, has traversed jungles, swamps, rivers, seas, deserts and mountains and navigated
through the course by foot, horse, raft, kayak, bike, and sometimes camel. Recognised as a bit of a "Gyro Gearloose",
Steve also has a long history of racing innovations, some sensible and some wacky.
Infected by bat dung as he raced through the Mulu caves, Steve suffered circulatory collapse, pulmonary oedema followed
by renal failure. This saw Steve dragged through intensive care wards in Malaysia and Singapore, coming very close to
death. He fought back to winning form in just 2 years.
Steve has an Engineering background, having worked as a professional engineer for 4 years before pursuing his sport as a
professional athlete. Steve graduated from Canterbury University in 1986 with a mechanical engineering degree. He
currently runs a small engineering design company (Gurney Winnovation) in conjunction with his sporting pursuits. So he
is no stranger to the challenges of the business world.
Steve also writes. He has written regular columns for the NZ Adventure magazine, NZ Triathlete magazine, Total Control
magazine, and is currently writing a book on preparing for the Coast to Coast race.
Steve speaks passionately on themes from his sporting experience and draws parallels with business and personal
development. Apart from his comments about determination and his race winning formula, Steve's speaking is embellished
with anecdotes from adventure, horror stories of creepy creatures, and some of the humour found in his travels. Team
Adventure Racing in extenuating circumstances has given Steve interesting insights to share on team dynamics and other
interesting issues.
New Zealand Property Institute CEO, Conor English said today, "Simply put, Steve will be another fantastic speaker. Be
there!"