Tag: 2022

Last short and very explosive training sessions with my assistant Roger Grau. Climbing Puigsagordi a small but technical mountain !

With 15 days to go until the start of the X-Pyr 2022, training in the Western Pyrenees, in the Northern League competition. Magnificent views of these beautiful mountains.

The Gruyere Fly was a 3 day Hike&Fly race in switzerland what we master well. Now we can`t wait to leave our home to travel to Hondaribia for a next big adventure. see you soon!

Ramon, Chrigel, Sarah

Two weeks to go until the official race start and here comes our first blog post! Our team is currently still in Austria (and Italy) and is preparing for the trip to Hondarribia. This week it’s all about packing suitcases, checking equipment, ticking off checklists so we can leave next Thursday! X-Pyr 2022, here we come!

With two participations in this year’s Bordairrace we are already in the final training preparations since April. Hike, Fly, Sleep, Repeat – that’s how our days currently look like … well, and a bit of work if time allows 😉 Fortunately, a few injuries couldn’t keep us from participating and so Patrick continues to train diligently for the upcoming X-Pyr. Flying, flying, flying as much as possible, in between some running or hiking. Rest-Day? Rather not … 😉 

Our plan is to arrive in the Pyrenees in the middle of next week, explore the route and get a feel for the terrain again. We’re glad we’ve already been able to get to know and explore quite a bit in 2018, but getting to know the route in advance as much as possible is most definitely a good idea. 

In the next post, we can finally take you on a trip towards Spain. We are looking forward to the adventure, the competition and – of course – the other teams. It will certainly be a breathtaking journey with many surprises … !

Videos:

The first trip to Pyrenees we did in April, during Easters. The plan was to see and explore as much terrain as possible within 4 days. The conditions weren’t ideal with strong winds in the region, but it would be naive to expect anything better for the competition. It was a very productive trip, and we came back with several conclusions:

• Pyrenees do feel more remote than the Alps, GSM coverage is more often an issue, barely any hikers
• many paths exist only on the map, or don’t really match
• roads are actually really good here
• in the south can be HOT and I can hardly imagine what is it in July, also water is scarce
• the airspaces are going to cause some major pain
• the way wind works in some of the places is just mind blowing
• where are all the paragliders, HELLO?! I was flying alone the whole time.

Now we’re in Pyrenees again, but this time exploring the beginning of the route and it is quite different here… More soon!

With five more weeks until the X-Pyr I am grasping and gasping for air.  Not just air time, which has been hard to come by in a stable Southern California spell, but actual air.  Over 5,000m above my favorite place to fly, the Owens Valley. My teammate Honza Rejmanek and I packed our gear for a 3 day Vol Biv, starting from Walts Point to do an out and back. Landing as high as we can often just after peak heating in strong conditions.

I’m here not just because I absolutely love this stuff but a layer deeper in the intention of mental and skills training for the Pyrenees.  When I asked a past X-Pyr competitor for his advice, all he had was “It’s the only place I have thrown my reserve.” I replied “Perfect, sounds like a great adventure.” 

The Owens is notorious for the massive rotor and wave created off of the Sierra Nevada mountains, Honza has been here before to study wave and early in that first day we can already feel the West wind coming in.  A roller coaster of flushing and climbing and just after three hours of flying this intense huge landscape we finally find ourselves both established above the crest and pushing a strong headwind.  At risk of losing it all once again and possibly landing 3,000m lower in the valley we decide to cross the crest of the Sierra, deeper into the wilderness.  Landing above the trees with the frozen lakes.

We hike across the basin to find a camp but there is still light, with endless energy, our legs need to move.  Back to the crest we trudge, the altitude slows our words until they stop completely.  Trying not to sweat too much, it’s getting cold below freezing, and going to get colder.  

Our tents are made below, we only brought the basics for what we hoped would be a quick soaring session.  X-Pyr on my mind as we set up for our last flight.  We fly, we laugh, we land as the sun disappears.  Steaks over the fire for dinner, need that protein, this is only day one.  Tomorrow more training, starting with a steep hike to steep snowy couloir, our only launch option.  These X-Pyr skills coupled with many months of training are the best we can hope for from the other side of the globe.