The Mongol Derby 1000 km horse race across Mongolia thundered out onto the Steppe on Saturday August 7 and the dramatic horseback adventure has already seen rider injuries, withdrawals, extreme fatigue and intense competition for first place.

Now just over halfway into the race, the leading riders have travelled well over 500 km and reached horse station 16 out of a total of 25 along the route. There are two groups of seven riders still racing, camped overnight just one horse station apart, so as they sleep only 40 kilometres separates the whole field after 5 days of racing. The race will restart at dawn in Mongolia.

In the movie Up In The Air, George Clooney’s main concern is earning enough frequent flyer miles. The reality is that working in remote areas of the globe comes with certain risks. Are corporations doing enough to protect the business travellers they send out to the four corners of the world? A new study says they’re not, especially those venturing into high-risk areas.

Ripley’s Fertility Statues: Touch At Your Own Risk
If Mother Nature isn’t moving quite as quickly as you’d like her to, maybe a visit to Ripley’s Believe It Or Not Niagara Falls is in order. From September 4th through 26th, this location will play host to two 5-foot tall African fertility statues that many women believe have played a role in their becoming pregnant, even when doctors told them they couldn’t. The statues were purchased by the Ripley owners in the early 1990s as decorative pieces for the company’s headquarters in Orlando. But within a short time, 13 staff members or visitors became pregnant, all of who claimed to have touch the statues. The Wall Street Journal did a story on the fertility phenomenon, which resulted in international demand for what could be the world’s least expensive fertility treatment. The statues hit the road, and within a few years Ripley’s had received over 2,000 letters from women reporting that they became pregnant shortly after touching the wooden sculptures. Now, after wrapping up the European leg of a three-year world tour, the statues are back in North America and taking up residence in Niagara Falls this month. Touching the statues is free of charge – they’ll be located in the lobby of the Odditorium, where anyone who dares is invited to give them a rub. And don’t worry guys, you’ll still play a role – there’s no mention of the conception being immaculate.