Layton woman to compete in Eco-Challenge 2008

Layton -- Aly Fronk, 29, of Layton, has been selected to compete in the Eco-Challenge 2008. She was chosen as one of eight competitors out of an estimated 3,500 applicants worldwide.

The Eco-Challenge 2008 is a 204 mile bicycle and kayak race from Government Camp on Mount Hood to the shoreline of Astoria, Ore. The six-day event will take place April 14-19 and will be filmed for television. Director Mo Martinez said the show will likely air this fall on the National Geographic Channel. Applicants for the race submitted a resume and photos to be considered for the race.

Martinez previously worked for the original Eco-Challenge adventure race started by reality show creator Mark Burnett, creator of "Survivor." The original series started in 1995 in the Utah desert and ended in 2002 in Fiji. The races were non-stop, 24-hours a day over a 300-mile course with trekking, whitewater canoeing, horseback riding, seas kayaking, scuba diving, mountaineering and mountain biking.

This new, spinoff event with a slight name change will focus more on "eco awareness," according to Martinez. The group of fitness model competitors will wear wireless microphones to talk about environmental issues as they bike and kayak. The actual racing will not take six days to complete, but more time was needed to set up for filming the event according to Martinez. The women will be split into two teams of four to compete against each other.

Fronk grew up in North Ogden and graduated from Weber State University with a communications degree. She currently works as a fitness model, spokesmodel and stock trader.

In September, Fronk was the winner of the 2007 Freestyle Fitness competition, a mix between fitness events and swimsuit modeling. In 2004 she was named Ujena Model of the Year and took first place in the Ujena Fitness Challenge and Talent Challenge. Fronk was the first model ever to win all three events. Photographs of Fronk have been on the covers and pages of several fitness and bodybuilding magazines nationally as well as advertisements for Nordic Track and Reebok.

Fronk said she's never been in a kayak before but is an experienced bike rider.

"My background is I've always done anything athletic," Fronk said. "As far as doing strenuous activity, I'm fine."

Fronk is excited to let people know there are simple and small things they can do to help the ecosystem. She decided to compete in the challenge for the opportunity to give back to the environment and to get television exposure for her modeling career.

"I think the fact that there are really pretty models will bring in a lot of male viewers," Fronk said.