Simon Vincent Donato (born 1976) is a Canadian geologist, ultra-endurance athlete, and entrepreneur. He produced and co-starred in the TV show ''

Boundless Boundless may refer to: * ''Boundless'' (album), a 2001 album by Rajaton * Boundless (company), an American textbook company * ''Boundless'' (video game), a video game * ''Boundless'' (Canadian TV series), a reality TV series * ''Boundless'' (S ...

'', and is the founder of Adventure Science and co-founder of Stoked Oats.

Early life and education

Donato was born in

Winnipeg Winnipeg () is the capital and largest city of the province of Manitoba in Canada. It is centred on the confluence of the Red and Assiniboine rivers, near the longitudinal centre of North America. , Winnipeg had a city population of 749, ...

Manitoba , image_map = Manitoba in Canada 2.svg , map_alt = Map showing Manitoba's location in the centre of Southern Canada , Label_map = yes , coordinates = , capital = Winn ...

, and grew up in

London, Ontario London (pronounced ) is a city in southwestern Ontario, Canada, along the Quebec City–Windsor Corridor. The city had a population of 422,324 according to the 2021 Canadian census. London is at the confluence of the Thames River, approximate ...

, where he attended

Oakridge Secondary School Oakridge Secondary School is one of the government-operated high schools (as opposed to collegiate institutes) in the neighbourhood of Oakridge in London, Ontario, Canada. This school is well-known for being 1 out of 2 schools in London Ontario wi ...

and earned a bachelor's degree in anthropology and a master's degree in geology from the

University of Western Ontario The University of Western Ontario (UWO), also known as Western University or Western, is a public research university in London, Ontario, Canada. The main campus is located on of land, surrounded by residential neighbourhoods and the Thames R ...

; he also studied paleontology and wildlife biology.Jason Winders, "Knows No Bounds: Simon Donato Summons a Spirit of Adventure", ''Western Alumni Gazette''
Spring 2013
pp. 26–27. In 2008 he completed a PhD in geology at

McMaster University McMaster University (McMaster or Mac) is a public research university in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. The main McMaster campus is on of land near the residential neighbourhoods of Ainslie Wood and Westdale, adjacent to the Royal Botanical Ga ...

.Joe Belanger
"Pair continues to push boundaries of human endurance"
''

The London Free Press ''The London Free Press'' is a daily newspaper based in London, Ontario, Canada. It has the largest circulation of any newspaper in Southwestern Ontario. History ''The London Free Press'' began as the ''Canadian Free Press'', founded by Willi ...

'', February 14, 2013, retrieved August 20, 2021. In high school, he opened a mountain biking center behind his house in London, and after working as a carpenter, he started a bike courier business in 1990.Jamie Lisanti
"'Boundless' Stars Paul Trebilcock & Simon Donato on Endurance Races"
''

Sports Illustrated ''Sports Illustrated'' (''SI'') is an American sports magazine first published in August 1954. Founded by Stuart Scheftel, it was the first magazine with circulation over one million to win the National Magazine Award for General Excellence twi ...

'', July 1, 2014. In university he became an ultra-marathoner and founded the Canadian Adventure Racing Association.Our Team
Adventure Science, retrieved August 20, 2021.

Career

After graduation Donato began work as a geologist for Imperial Oil in Calgary, where he worked until summer 2012. In 2008, he founded Adventure Science. The first project was a week-long foot search by a team of extreme athletes in July 2008 on the California–Nevada border for

Steve Fossett James Stephen Fossett (April 22, 1944 – September 3, 2007) was an American businessman and a record-setting aviator, sailor, and adventurer. He was the first person to fly solo nonstop around the world in a balloon and in a fixed-wing aircraf ...

, who had gone missing on a solo flight on September 3, 2007. Subsequent projects have included studying the relationship between ultra-running and muscle damage, searching for undiscovered archaeological ruins in the Middle East, and

anti-poaching Anti-poaching is the organised act to counter the poaching of wildlife. However, it is generally used to describe an overall effort against the illegal wildlife trade. The act of anti-poaching is normally carried out by national parks on public ...

projects in

Kenya ) , national_anthem = " Ee Mungu Nguvu Yetu"() , image_map = , map_caption = , image_map2 = , capital = Nairobi , coordinates = , largest_city = Nairobi ...

. Donato contracted with

Josh Josh is a masculine given name, frequently a diminutive (hypocorism) of the given names Joshua or Joseph, though since the 1970s, it has increasingly become a full name on its own. It may refer to: People A–J * "Josh", an early pseudonym of S ...

and Jordan Eady of Eady Brothers Productions, whom he knew from Western Ontario, to produce the documentary ''Go Death Racer'' about his participation with Paul Trebilcock (whom he knew from McMaster) in the 2010

Canadian Death Race The Canadian Death Race is a 125 kilometre foot race through the Canadian rocky mountains in Grande Cache, Alberta. It includes three mountain summits, one major river crossing, and 17,000 feet of elevation change. The race has been held annual ...

.Allan Maki
"Death Race 2013: Ultramarathon gives Alberta town a fresh start"
''

The Globe and Mail ''The Globe and Mail'' is a Canadian newspaper printed in five cities in western and central Canada. With a weekly readership of approximately 2 million in 2015, it is Canada's most widely read newspaper on weekdays and Saturdays, although it ...

'', August 1, 2013. Based on this and with the same team, he launched the television series ''Boundless'', which followed Donato and Trebilcock as they traveled the globe competing in ultra-endurance races, ranging from stand-up paddle boarding to running across the

Sahara desert , photo = Sahara real color.jpg , photo_caption = The Sahara taken by Apollo 17 astronauts, 1972 , map = , map_image = , location = , country = , country1 = , ...

. The show ran for three seasons from February 2013. In 2017, Donato published ''The Boundless Life: 13 Lessons Learned the Hard Way''.Sabrina Doyle
"Adventure athlete Simon Donato on lessons learned in the backcountry"
''Canadian Geographic'', March 30, 2017. In 2011, he co-founded Stoked Oats Ltd., which makes high-protein gluten-free oatmeal.Patrick Janukavicius
"Simon Donato Tries ITU Winter Triathlon"
''Triathlon magazine Canada'', March 24, 2014. With his wife, Donato runs Think Like a Mountain, a conservation non-profit.Chris Welner
"Mountain Men"
''Impact magazine'', May/June 2017. He is a Fellow International of the

Explorers Club The Explorers Club is an American-based international multidisciplinary professional society with the goal of promoting scientific exploration and field study. The club was founded in New York City in 1904, and has served as a meeting point fo ...

and a member of the College of Fellows of the

Royal Canadian Geographical Society The Royal Canadian Geographical Society (RCGS; French: ''Société géographique royale du Canada'') is a Canadian nonprofit educational organization dedicated to imparting a broader knowledge and deeper appreciation of Canada—its people a ...

Results

2012: 1st place and set a course record in the Iron-Legs 50 miler and relay (2-man team); 2nd place in the 250 km Sahara Race; 1st place in the Fire and Ice Ultra marathon in Iceland; 6th place in the Ancient Khmer Path Ultra stage race, 230 km; 12th place in the 6 Hours of Frog Hollow MTB Enduro bike race. 2011: 1st place in the K-100 relay (coed); 1st place in the Wild Hare 50 miler; 2nd place in the Iron-Legs 50 miler. 2010: 43rd (first ultra) in the Copper Canyon 50 miler; 2nd in men's and 4th overall in the Canadian Death Race; 1st place in the Cactus Rose 50 miler; 3rd place in the 25 km Rocky Racoon race.

Personal life

Donato is married to Chanelle Mayer.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Donato, Simon 1976 births Living people Date of birth missing (living people) Sportspeople from London, Ontario Sportspeople from Winnipeg McMaster University alumni Canadian male long-distance runners Canadian ultramarathon runners Male ultramarathon runners Canadian television hosts