Fat and shy, Ben Saunders was the last kid in his class picked for any sports team. “Football, tennis, cricket - anything with a round ball, I was useless,” he says now with a laugh. But back then he was the one always made fun of in school gym classes in Devonshire, England.
It was a mountain bike he received for his 15th birthday that changed him. At first he went biking alone in a nearby forest. Then he began to ride the bike along with a runner friend. Gradually, Saunders set up his mind on building up his body, increasing his speed and strength. At the age of 18, he ran his first marathon.
The following year he met John Ridgway and started to work as an instructor at Ridgway’s school of adventure（冒险） in Scotland, where he learnt about Ridgway’s cold-water exploits. Greatly interested, Saunders read all he could about North Pole explorers and adventures, he decided that this would be his future.
In 2001, after becoming a skillful skier, Saunders started his first long-distance expedition （探险）towards the North Pole. It took unbelievable energy. He suffered frostbite（冻伤）, ran into a polar bear and pushed his body to the limit, pulling his sled up and over the rocky mountains.
Saunders has since become the youngest person to ski alone to the North Pole, and he’s skied more of the North Pole by himself than any other British man. His old playmates would not believe the change.
1. What changed Saunders according to Paragraph 2?
A. A friend’s words. B. A mountain bike.
C. His 18th birthday gift. D. His first marathon.
2.What did Saunders do in 2001?
A. He decided to build up his body.
B. He met John Ridgway in Scotland.
C. He worked as an instructor at school.
D. He took an adventure to the North Pole.
3.What does the story mainly tell us about Saunders?
A. He is a success in sports. B. He is the youngest British skier.
C. He is Ridgway’s best student. D. He is a good instructor at school.
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Stuck on a desert island（被困荒岛）？ |
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http://www.TalkingPoints.com/ Started on 23rd April by Steve |
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Post 1 Steve USA |
Hi, everyone. What would you miss most if you were stuck on a desert island? For me, I’d probably miss the rain. What about you? |
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Post 2 Tomas Germany |
Good question. Steve, I think I’d miss different types of bread, and shopping at the supermarket. I’d miss the food most. |
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Post 3 Miko Japan |
It would have to be music. I couldn’t live without my music. I wouldn’t miss going to school at all! |
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Past 4 Jayne UK |
Why hasn’t anyone mentioned their family? I’d be lost without my husband and two kids. They’re the most important for me. |
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Post 5 Jaime Mexico |
Hi, I would miss the Internet and Japanese food, like sushi. I’d also miss TV shows and shopping for clothes. |
1. Who would miss his or her family most?
A. Steve. B. Tomas. C. Jayne D. Jaime.
2.Miko would feel bad if there was no ______.
A. rain B. food C. family D. music
3. How many of them mentioned that they would miss food?
A. One. B. Two. C. Three. D. Four.
Some people bring out the best in you in a way that you might never have fully realized on your own. My mom was one of those people.
My father died when I was nine months old, making my mom a single mother at the age of eighteen. While I was growing up, we lived a very 36 life. We had little money, but my mom gave me a lot of love. Each night, she sat me on her lap and spoke the words that would 37 my life, “Kemmons, you are certain to be a great man and you can do anything in life if you work hard enough to get it.”
At fourteen, I was hit by a car and the doctors said I would never 38 again. Every day, my mother spoke to me in her gentle, loving voice, telling me that no matter what those doctors said, I could walk again if I didn’t want to be bad enough. She 39 that message so deep into my heart that I finally believed her. A year later, I returned to school-walking on my own!
When the Great Depression（大萧条） 40 , my mom lost her job. Then I left school to support（支撑） both of us. At that moment, I decided never to be 41 again.
Over the years, I experienced various levels of business success. But the real 42 point happened on a vacation I took with my wife and five kids in 1916. I was dissatisfied with the second-class hotels for families and was angry that they charged（收费）an extra $2 for each child. That was too 43 for most American families. I told my wife that I was going to open a hotel for families that would never charge extra for 44 . There were plenty of doubters at that time.
Not 45 , mom was one of my strongest supporters. She worked behind the desk and even designed the room style. As in any business, we experienced a lot of hard time. But with my mother’s words deeply rooted in my heart, I 46 doubted we would succeed. Fifteen years later, we had the largest hotel system in the world - Holiday Inn. In 1979 my company had 1,759 inns in more than fifty countries with an income of $1 billion a year.
You may not have started out life in the best situations. But if you can find a 47 in life worth working for and believe in yourself, nothing can stop you.
1.A. quiet B. boring C. hard D. strange
2.A. accept B. change C. disturb D. check
3. A. study B. speak C. listen D. walk
4.A. drove B. expected C. explained D. covered
5.A. did B. hit C. cut D. fit
6.A. excited B. brave C. patient D. poor
7.A. leading B. breaking C. turning D. celebrating
8. A. expensive B. fantastic C. different D. special
9.A. husband B. parents C. children D. wife
10.A. successfully B. surprisingly C. interestingly D. importantly
11.A. always B. sometimes C. almost D. never
12.A. task B. hotel C. company D. wor
— Do you know ______ yesterday afternoon?
— Sorry, I’ve no idea.
A. where was Tom B. where Tom was
C. where is Tom D. where Tom is
A talk on pop music ______ in the school hall next Sunday.
A. will give B. gives C. be given D. will be given
I will call you as soon as I ______ to Japan.
A. get B. got C. will get D. have got
