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Kilian Jornet Interview: About His New Foundation, His Own Environmental Impact, and How He Wants To Help Athletes and The Outdoor Industry To Protect Nature

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This is not a reality of today because we can produce high performance gear with much cleaner technologies. This demands the use of other sources and treatments… but it is totally possible today.

We all love to play in the mountains and many of us see them as extensions of our souls. They are bigger and more powerful than us, yet we don’t always realize how fragile they are.

After interviewing Pascal Egli about fast melting mountain glaciers, we reached out to Kilian Jornet to ask him about some projects that he has initiated recently with the goal of protecting mountains and our natural environment.

On one hand, these initiatives can be seen as hypocritical on Kilian’s part as he has traveled around the world extensively for competitions and for adventures. On the other hand, it is important to have someone with great influence in the mountain community to be leading such efforts.

» Kilian’s projects: Kilian Jornet Foundation and Outdoor Friendly Pledge

» Instagram for Kilian’s Foundation: @kilianjornetfoundation

Q: Kilian, we all know you as a competitor and a mountain athlete first, but we also know that you have a deeper relationship with mountains and nature. What draws you outside every day?

For me it is quite simple, outside is where I belong. When I am in the mountains I feel at home, I feel happy and that I am where I should be. This feeling never happens when I am in a city, inside walls or on flat land.

Q: As someone that has traveled around the world to compete and for adventures extensively, when did you realize that you were perhaps greatly adding to the problem of climate change?

Since I was a child I had an environmental knowledge. My parents showed me and my sister the connection we have with all of nature’s elements. They made me realize that we as people are part of an ecosystem and that it is important to preserve it, so the ecosystem continues to work.

I think I had tried to keep my lifestyle in general as sustainable as possible – being vegetarian, living in low energy ways, trying not to have many material things – but I had lied to myself by saying that the traveling was part of my job. It is something I had taken for granted as a pro athlete.

I had the opportunity to travel a lot and I did not think too much about it. I did it because it was possible and “normal”. But you realize quickly that the biggest part of my footprint comes from the travels.

Over the last 3 years, I have been consciously reducing my travels. First, by changing travels to be an exception and not the norm. I cut travels that were not that meaningful – to training camps, to do a talk, to do a race that was not my big goal, etc.

I love traveling and there are places I want to go, but I think for me now, it is important to only travel when it is a special occasion, maybe once a year. For anything else, it is probably possible to do close to my home.

Q: In September, you announced the creation of Kilian Jornet Foundation. Tell us more about its goals and what it means for you?

Over the last years, I have been increasingly concerned about the environmental footprint I have been making personally and we as a society.

Perhaps, when my daughter was born it was an acceleration of this concern. With her, it became easier to imagine how mountains and nature might look like when the next generation will be our age. It also became clearer what we should do so they can enjoy nature as we are able to.

I used my channels (social media and press) to talk about it, but I thought I should do more. I was collaborating with some associations and environmental projects, and I came to a realization that the best way I could use my voice and to develop projects was by creating a foundation.

The foundation’s mission is to preserve mountain environments. Right now, that means “fighting” climate change, preserving biodiversity, reducing pollution, but also thinking of new models for mountain areas – more sustainability, the role of tourism, etc.

Q: What are the main actions the foundation is taking?

We work in 3 different pillars:

We support research, because I believe that scientific studies will tell us what the best tools are to achieve the goals and to monitor the progress.

Secondly, we are raising awareness and education, and to bring the conversation about environmentalism to a larger audience and give them tools to be more sustainable.

The third pillar is direct actions. These are actions directly in a specific environment or area to solve a local or a temporary issue. This can be planting trees, cleaning a mountain area, or building a more sustainable infrastructure, etc.

Q: One of the projects you launched through the foundation is Outdoor Friendly Pledge. What is the project about? Why is it important?

The Outdoor Friendly Pledge are 10 environmental commitments for each of the outdoor sports players:

  • Athletes
  • Event organizers
  • Brands and manufacturers
  • Federations

Those commitments are related to the Paris agreement and the UN SDGs, but the pledge is much more than to sign and forget.

The Pledge is a platform with practical resources, tools, and ideas on how to achieve different goals. Also, it is a place to monitor and check that the ones taking the pledge are doing the transition necessary to achieve the goals.

I think it is important to see all the players in the same place, because sustainability is not only a brands’ or athletes’ problem. Each of us have a different role and most of them are linked, so we need to collaborate to make outdoor sports more friendly for the environment.

For me, it is also important that the Pledge is not a place for shaming – to show what you are doing better than others – but rather a place to provide ideas and tools for others, so we can all help and inspire each other.

Q: Can you give us examples of less obvious actions that athletes, or mountain lovers in general, can take to help protect the mountains?

Of course, the important actions are related to traveling, but then also it is about our gear and how we act when we go to natural areas.

As an example, the goal 8 in the Pledge, we all have in mind the 5R – refuse, reduce, reuse, repair, recycle – but when it comes to the practical it is not that obvious. We have this waterproof jacket and we don’t know how or where we can repair it, or how we can repurpose it. So, in the toolkit, there is a directory with information to find those ideas and repair places.

Another topic is our impact on biodiversity, the goal 7. We likely know the things we can or cannot do in our home mountains, but because every ecosystem is different our impact will change as we visit a different area.

For example, to take a bath in many lakes where amphibians are living – frogs, lizards, etc. – it puts them in danger, because of our bacteria and the creams we use (sun cream, deodorant).

Also, some regions have erosion or other problems, but it is difficult to find the information regarding each area. You need to spend a full day navigating on the internet to find this infos, so we wanted to make a directory to share all this easily.

Q: What role do you think outdoor gear manufacturers can play? Also, should they try to sell less gear instead of more?

They play a big role, because they produce the gear we use. So, if they reduce their footprint then each user will reduce theirs.

They have an important role in the waste management – from the leftovers of the cutting patterns (from fabric, rubber…) to the packaging and the circulation of the products.

Today, most of the products are a craft-to-grave model but the products should have a circularity in its lifecycle. This comes from the production model (using recycling materials and being recyclable let’s say), but also in the circular economy model by promoting durability, 2nd hand, renting, unseasonal collections, etc.

Also, the use of chemicals and microplastics is substantial in the outdoor industry, because our gear are often high performance products that use materials that deliver the great performance, but they are not very sustainable – such as PVC, PFC, or using hazardous chemical treatments.

But this is not a reality of today, because we can produce high performance gear with much cleaner technologies. This demands the use of other sources and treatments which require some changes in the production, but it is totally possible today.

Another example is, when it comes to pollution and carbon footprint, the 90% of a company’s carbon footprint does not come from its own operations, but from its supply chain – suppliers’ own emissions, logistics emissions, material sourcing, etc. – so it is important to focus there as well.

Another important issue is what marketing and communication of the brands is promoting because they certainly have a key role in raising awareness and helping to shape consumer behaviour.

When it comes to the question of “selling more or less”, there is the link between the user and the brand, and the brands listen to what consumers asks for. So, if consumers buy more durable materials or ask constantly about reducing the environmental footprint of their equipment then brands will accelerate that transition – this is also our role as sponsored athletes, to push them every day!

Also, brands have the role of providing repair facilities or not making seasonal collections but rather making unique collections with updates only when there are significant improvements.

Q: As a final question, what other projects are you dreaming about – personal, athletic, or with the foundation?

As an athlete, I want to keep seeking performance but probably by doing more different activities.

What makes me dream right now is climbing and alpinism than doing trail or skimo races. For sure, I will do a few races every year but more as a complement of the alpine activities instead of racing being the main goal.

For the foundation, I have a lot of ideas and projects I would like to do. We are a very small foundation, but I love to put my energy and time into it – to develop projects and to cooperate with other people and institutions that have the same interests. I think that through such collaborations that these projects can be done.

How Fast Are Glaciers Really Melting? How Will This Affect Your Mountain Adventures? Interview with Pascal Egli

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I really had to pause when I read that there is a glacier in the Swiss Alps that has been receding by about 40m a year and also melting in thickness by around 6m a year. Such rapid glacier retreat is difficult to even imagine!

To understand effects of this fast melting on mountain adventures, and people living in the mountains, we reached out to our friend in Switzerland who studies glaciers and is a ski mountaineer himself.

Pascal Egli is a Swiss mountain runner, ski mountaineer and climber. He is the winner of the 2018 Sky Classic World Series and the Winner of The Rut Skyrun in Montana, USA in 2018.

Pascal is also an environmental engineer and an aspiring scientist, currently working on his PhD degree in glaciology and geomorphology at University of Lausanne, Switzerland.

Our interview is divided into two sections – the first one is about Pascal, and the second one and much longer talks about melting mountain glaciers.

About Pascal Egli

Q: Pascal, you have been in the mountains since young age. What do you like about being outside?

I like the fresh air, the sounds of nature and the feeling of freedom. Also, if you train your body, it can take you to amazing places in just a couple of minutes or hours.

Q: Where is your home and which mountains do you regularly visit?

I live in Leysin in the western Swiss Alps, between Lake Geneva and the Valais region.

Here, I can run up to 2400 m from my doorsteps, and of course, I also love to visit the 4000 m peaks of the Valais, about 2.5-3h away by train.

Pascal on his way to winning The Rut Skyrun 2018 in Montana, USA as part of the Skyrunner World Series. Photo by Ian Corless.

Q: You have been competing in mountain running for a long time. What kind of races do you enjoy?

I love two types of races. Those that are very wild, technical and in remote places that feel like an adventure, such as Tromsö Skyrace, Zermatt Ultraks Extreme Skyrace or Mount Elbrus race.

Then I love races with a wonderful atmosphere and with a high elite level, such as Zegama Aizkorri Marathon, Sierre-Zinal or Dolomyths Run.

» Pascal on Instagram

Some of Pascal best race results are:

  • 3rd at Zermatt Ultraks Extreme, Switzerland (2020)
  • Winner of Madrisa Trail 23k, Klosters/Switzerland (2020)
  • Winner of the Sky Classic World Series 2018
  • Winner of the Transvulcania VK, Spain (2018)
  • Winner of The Rut Skyrun, Skyrunner World Series, Montana/USA (2018)
  • 2nd at Giir di Mont 2017 (World Longdistance Mountainrunning Championships, Premana/Italy)
  • 3rd at Mount Elbrus Skyrace, Russia (2016)
  • 3rd at Dolomites Skyrace 2015
  • Junior Swiss Champion in Mountainrunning (2007)

Interview about Melting Glaciers

Q: As a mountain athlete and an environmental engineer, you observe the impact of climate change in high mountains almost daily. Give us an idea of what you see and research.

Yes, I observe the impact of climate change on glaciers in three ways:

  • Visually, observing conditions when I practice my sport.
  • Through my work and measurements on glacier we have been studying here in Switzerland.
  • When I read scientific publications about glacier recession in the Alps and worldwide.

For example, our measurements and observations of the Otemma Glacier, located in the southwestern Swiss Alps, show that it has been receding in length by approximately 40 m / year, and it has been melting in thickness by around 6 m / year.

This glacier has retreated by 2.5 km in length since the 1960’s! We know this from historical aerial imagery. It was 9.5 km long in 1963 and now it is just about 7 km long. The projections say that the Otemma Glacier will be completely gone by 2070!

Athabasca Glacier, located in Canadian Rocky Mountains, is one of the most famous North American glaciers.

Q: What exactly do you focus on for your PhD research?

For my PhD, I am studying the geometry and dynamics of subglacial channels to better understand where and how the water flows underneath alpine glaciers, and how it can transport sediments.

This is important for understanding the hydrology (water cycle), ice dynamics of the glacier and sediment dynamics of alpine streams. Sediment content impacts hydropower lakes and dams, alpine streams ecology as well as natural hazards such as debris flows.

Q: Which other glaciers in the Alps are melting rapidly?

Here in Switzerland, the Morteratsch Glacier, the Aletsch Glacier, or the Gorner Glacier have all been receding at about 30-40 m in length per year.

Aletsch Glacier in September 2010.
Aletsch Glacier in August 2018, compare with the above photo and yellow lines.

But volume is the best indicator, so for example, the volume of the Morteratsch Glacier in 2000 was 1.1 cubic km and now in 2020 it is only about 0.75 cubic km3 – this is a loss of more than 30% in only 20 years! (Source: https://doc.rero.ch/record/324674 )

Morteratsch Glacier photo from June 2003.

Q: What is the situation around the world? Or are there glaciers that are growing?

There are areas where glaciers are disappearing even faster than in the Alps, for example, the Peruvian Andes.

Glacier retreat in the Himalayas is similar to the Alps in general, but there are certain factors slowing down the retreat in some areas.

Here are two examples from the Himalayas:

Rapid melting – I went to do fieldwork at Yala Glacier a couple of years ago. It is a small glacier at ‘lower’ altitude, reaching down to nearly 5000 m, in the Langtang Valley in Nepal. Between October 2016 and October 2020 it has retreated by dozens of meters, as it can be seen below from two satellite images in a tweet by Prof. W. Immmerzeel from Utrecht University.

Yaya Glacier in 2016 on the left and in 2020 on the right.

Slow melting – Many glacier tongues in the Himalayas are covered by debris, which is rocks and sediment of up to 2 m in thickness. This debris cover acts as an insulation, therefore, slows down the melting process.

More information on debris covered glaciers worldwide can be found in this recent article by my friend Sam Herreid: https://samherreid.org/publication/global_featured/ ).

“Growing” glaciers:

Then some glaciers in southern Patagonia or in the Karakoram have been receiving larger amounts of precipitations in the last few decades. This has led to important snow accumulation in the upper part of the glaciers.

Despite rapid melt of the glacier tongues (in warm temperatures), the snow transformed into ‘new’ ice and it has been flowing down and partly compensated for the melt.

But even these glaciers are prone to recede because their glacier tongues are melting faster than the accumulation in the upper part is able to compensate for the melt.

Ice shields:

Another story are the great ice shields such as in Antarctica and Greenland where the melting has been very rapid. The speed of sea level rise is happening mainly depending on how fast these ice shields are melting.

Q: Due to melting glaciers, what are some of the new challenges for skiers and mountaineers?

Indeed, there are some really big challenges for skiers and mountaineers. Already now, some previously ‘classical’ alpine climbing routes are not doable anymore. There is an interesting paper about that – read here.

Another example of big impact of melting in the Alps is the famous gondola that goes from Chamonix to the spire Aguile du Midi. The permafrost and glaciers around its top station at 3,7777m are melting and it is highly likely that there will be negative consequences unless the rock the station stands will be somehow supported.

Gondola climbing towards Aguile du Midi station at 3,777m.

Then in the winter, the conditions for avalanches may change. For example, there is likely to be heavier snowfall due to a higher relative humidity in the atmosphere (a warmer atmosphere can take up more humidity), followed by sudden warming and consequently large wet snow avalanches.

But the main things we observe are:

  • More difficult access onto glaciers due to steep & unstable moraines,
  • larger crevasses with bad snow bridges (especially in late summer),
  • larger bergschrunds that are sometimes impassable,
  • collapse of entire rock pillars and of entire climbing routes,
  • rockfall due to melting permafrost such as on Matterhorn, where in 2019 a guide and a client were killed because they were anchored on a block that detached and fell off with them.

Personally, I was shocked during our crossing of the famous ‘Haute Route’ from Chamonix to Zermatt in August 2017 to see how previously ‘easy’ glacier passages have become quite dangerous and difficult to pass, even for a rope team of three with considerable experience.

Q: How do fast melting mountain glaciers impact the lives of local people?

There are two or three factors to this story…

First, glaciers such as in the Alps since the 1950s have been melting rapidly and they have been contributing large amounts of water flowing into the hydropower lakes. This water is available mainly in spring and summer for electricity production, for public water needs downstream, for irrigation (farming!), for industry, and most importantly, for the alpine ecosystems.

The period (several years) of strongest melt when glaciers still have a considerable volume and melt rapidly is called ‘peak water’, and this period is already over for certain smaller glaciers in the Alps!

Even for the larger glaciers the ‘peak water’ period is soon ending.

After ‘peak water’ follows a period with declining water input during the summer months, because there is less ice left to melt – despite the higher summer temperatures we are now experiencing.

Now, with vanishing glaciers, the seasonality in water flow starts to increase. Most water is available just in the spring when snow melts. During summer, there is rainwater and a little ice melt. If there are longer drought periods this may be a serious threat to farming, industry and even public water supply (and partially also to hydropower).

Then, there are natural hazards as rapidly melting glaciers can cause glacier lake outburst floods, debris flows or serac/ice avalanches.

This regularly happens in the Himalayas where the glaciers are still bigger and people are less protected from floods and debris flows because there are no proper risk maps, insufficient emergency planning and very few civil engineering works (such as avalanche diversion dams) designed to protect people.

In the Alps, we can experience similar events, but it’s much easier as most valleys have hazard maps, safety concepts, continuous monitoring of the glaciers as well as protective measures such as avalanche retention/diversion dams.

Q: As a last question, in your opinion, how can we help the most to slow down the melting of glaciers in the mountains?

Most importantly, stay positive and tell people what they can improve (also to improve their own life quality!) instead of blaming them for something they are doing.

We cannot help the glaciers much right in the place where we live. Of course, some ski resorts put white blankets over the glaciers to reduce the reflectivity, therefore, make slowing down the melt in the summer. This works to some extent, but it is only temporary.

However, we can definitely do our part in many other ways. Here is a list of things we can change to affect climate change, therefore, also glacier retreat:

The big one, change your lifestyle to a less carbon and methane intensive one! For example, methane is a greenhouse gas 21 times more potent than CO2, and it is produced by activities such as cow and pig farming. Strive to eat much less meat and animal products in general. Eat organic and seasonal and local.

Buy less products in general and use public transport or a bike more often.

If your travel a lot as an athlete, mountaineer, or adventurer then for sure check out Outdoor Friendly Pledge by the Kilian Jornet Foundation. Its main goal is to target the pollution and greenhouse gases generated through outdoor sports.

One of the biggest impacts you can have as a person is to fly less. The Outdoor Friendly Pledge I already mentioned will help you how to do it more responsibly.

Besides that, I am also compensating my air travel by offsetting CO2-emissions. There are different options for this, ranging from cheap (and not always quite perfect, e.g. https://www.myclimate.org/ ) to expensive (and perfect, e.g. https://climeworks.com/ )

When you need to buy a new car (if your old one still works, then keep using it.), buy an electric instead of a gasoline car. The additional energy needed to produce an electric car and its battery is off set after a short time of driving this car.

If you own a home or even a house, a very effective measure to reduce your emissions is to insulate your home better and to invest in a heat pump for heating/cooling, to replace a pre-existing gas/petrol heating system.

Support modern and sustainable companies that are ready to change and to develop towards a low-carbon economy.

And last, but not least: advocate. Talk to your friends and family about it, without blaming anyone. Take political action, VOTE and/or try to influence politicians with letters and e-mails. Because to reduce our individual impact to a minimum, there will always remain considerable CO2-emissions due to the way our current economy works.

Sources

Modelling the retreat of Aletsch Glacier :

Jouvet, G., Huss, M., Funk, M., & Blatter, H. (2011). Modelling the retreat of Grosser Aletschgletscher, Switzerland, in a changing climate. Journal of Glaciology, 57(206), 1033-1045. https://doi.org/10.3189/002214311798843359

Modelling the retreat of Rhonegletscher :

Jouvet, G., Huss, M., Blatter, H., Picasso, M., & Rappaz, J. (2009). Numerical simulation of Rhonegletscher from 1874 to 2100. Journal of Computational Physics, 228(17), 6426-6439. http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S002199910900285X

High Mountain Asia glacier mass balances :

Brun, F., Berthier, E., Wagnon, P. et al. A spatially resolved estimate of High Mountain Asia glacier mass balances from 2000 to 2016. Nature Geosci 10, 668–673 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1038/ngeo2999

State of the world’s debris covered glaciers :

Herreid, S., Pellicciotti, F. The state of rock debris covering Earth’s glaciers. Nat. Geosci. 13, 621–627 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41561-020-0615-0

Asian water towers:

Immerzeel, W. W., Van Beek, L. P., & Bierkens, M. F. (2010). Climate change will affect the Asian water towers. Science, 328(5984), 1382-1385. https://science.sciencemag.org/content/328/5984/1382

Effect of climate change on water resources globally

Immerzeel, W. W., Lutz, A. F., Andrade, M., Bahl, A., Biemans, H., Bolch, T., … & Emmer, A. (2020). Importance and vulnerability of the world’s water towers. Nature, 577(7790), 364-369. https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-019-1822-y

Sediment export and landscape change due to climate warming:

Lane, S. N., Bakker, M., Gabbud, C., Micheletti, N., & Saugy, J. N. (2017). Sediment export, transient landscape response and catchment-scale connectivity following rapid climate warming and Alpine glacier recession. Geomorphology, 277, 210-227. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0169555X16300514

Effects on the alpine trail network:

Ritter, F., Fiebig, M., & Muhar, A. (2012). Impacts of global warming on mountaineering: A classification of phenomena affecting the alpine trail network. Mountain Research and Development, 32(1), 4-15. https://doi.org/10.1659/MRD-JOURNAL-D-11-00036.1

Effects on mountaineering routes :

Mourey, J., Marcuzzi, M., Ravanel, L., & Pallandre, F. (2019). Effects of climate change on high Alpine mountain environments: Evolution of mountaineering routes in the Mont Blanc massif (Western Alps) over half a century. Arctic, Antarctic, and Alpine Research, 51(1), 176-189. https://doi.org/10.1080/15230430.2019.1612216

Book Review – Art of Freedom: The Life and Climbs of Voytek Kurtyka

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In the age of social media and instant news, it is fascinating to read a life story of one of the best alpinists in history yet who rejected many invitations to famous events throughout his life.

Thanks for your invitation au jury du Piolets d’Or [the Oscar of the mountaineering world]. I am sorry I can’t take part in it…

I understand the world is suspended on a monstrous structure of wild competition and, consequently, of awards and distinction. But this structure is an enemy of true art…

I sincerely believe that climbing can elevate the climber to physical and mental well-being and to wisdom, but awards and distinction elevate the climber to vanity and egocentricity…”

The 70s and 80s were the golden era of conquests in the Himalayas. A pioneering Reinhold Messner was arguably the main protagonist and the famous figure.

Risking his life often yet never loosing a climbing partner, Voytek Kurtyka, a Polish alpinist, consistently chose style over fame or altitude of a mountain in a period that was marked by summit hunting.

Smuggling goods from India back to his home communist country was highly dangerous but it was a way that Kurtyka embraced to pay for his addiction to Himalayan expeditions.

So how do you write a biography of someone that is so private?

How do you connect deeply enough to portrait them accurately?

The book Art Of Freedom is a brilliant read that was penned by a Canadian author, Bernadette McDonald. McDonald has written previous books about the Eastern European climbers from communist era and so have built a trusting relationship with the elusive Polish climber.

This biography can be repetitive, with detailed descriptions of climbs, and perhaps too technical for those that don’t climb at all. However, I feel like this was the only way to reveal Kurtyka’s personality, philosophy and life.

Kurtyka and his compatriots came from a poor country with very small mountains yet they were able to innovate on the Himalayan scene by applying their hardness to crazy winter and first ascents. In fact, some of Kurtyka’s first ascents are still to be repeated.

The book also talks a lot about Jerzy Kukuczka, who was racing Messner to become the first person to climb all fourteen 8000m peaks, as he joined forces with Kurtyka for numerous amazing climbs. The two Polish climbers had contrasting philosophies and this allows the reader to go inside Kurtyka’s mind in depth.

Now, I won’t say anything more because I don’t want to rob you of an enriching experience this book can bring you.

Forest Skis: Innovative, Custom Build, For Backcountry Skiing and Freeride

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There are skis that will almost do the turn for you and then there are skis that you have to ride. Neither of them is better than the other, it just all depends on the kind of experience you want.

Forest Skis is a small innovative ski brand from Slovakia that you have probably never heard of, yet they are slowly becoming known for custom building skis for those that want really to shred.

One of Forest Skis’ highly prized features is asymmetric ski design, or a “variable effective edge”, that provides the skier with two different riding experience in the same pair of skis.

Just swap the skis from one foot to the other and you switch their performance from aggressive freeride and steep descents to more playful and easier to cruise mode.

To understand better what Forest Skis are about, we talked to the founder, engineer and the main designer, Viktor Devečka.

Q: How did Forest Skis get noticed by the world?

We are not a mass production brand, our growth is slow but sustainable.

The world knows about us thanks to the design awards we won, one of them is the prestigious Red Dot Award for Product Design in Germany. We were at ISPO in Munich a few times and our skis were always one of the highlights.

We are also known thanks to our riders and ambassadors like Ryan Oakden from Canada, a former Freeride World Champion.

Q: What makes your skis special and unique? Everyone says that.

While we have the know-how and we custom build skis, and tailor them to your riding style, I think that the main thing that makes our skis different is that we are both skiers and engineers in one person. There is no loss of information between the skier and the ski designer and builder.

I know the result and experience which I want from my skis, so I design them that way and create the construction.

Also, we make no compromise in designing our skis so they will turn easily for any level of skier. Simply, you either love them or you hate them.

We are not trying to please everyone.

Q: For whom are your skis made?

Our skis perform downhill, so they won’t be as light as Dynafit but they will drive. However, thanks to our customizations, we also make skis very close in weight to the ski touring brands in the 100 to 120mm range without compromising the riding experience.

Now, we have three lines of skis: Full Carbon, Asymmetrical and Indigo Dyed skis.

FullCarbon skis:

The signature mark is a carbon tree on the tail of the ski. Those are for experienced riders, who know what they expect from skis – no compromise and full power which no other skis can offer.

Asymmetrical skis:

Simply by switching left and right ski, you can adjust your skis to the snow conditions or to your ski style and needs. The skis in this line are softer and more forgiving than the FullCarbon.

This is our crazy idea of skis based on different shapes of an effective edge (on the sides of the ski), and the other ski in the pair is made as a mirror. You have the same radius but the shape of one side of the ski is more playful, and on the other side of the same ski is designed to be more stable.

Indigo Dyed skis:

This is our newest line. The skis feature flax linen top sheet, dyed by an old unique technique known as Blaudruck (Indigo dyed) that is a part of UNESCO Heritage.

This line is for more suitable for intermediate skiers. Thanks to the flax linen top sheet that creates amazing dampening, these skis are really forgiving and stable. Combined with the extraordinary graphic design you cannot find a similar ski on the market.

Q: How do you customize skis for someone when many likely don’t know how to ask for specific features?

Over the years, we have come up with a set of unique questions that help us to define what is best for each and every customer.

For example, for our wooden skis, you can choose the shape of the tail. This customization exists because we found that different characteristics of riding can be reached on the same skis with simply different tail shapes.

Q: Can you explain some of the most important features a rider can customize on their skis?

Basically, we can customize almost every aspect of the ski to create the look and riding experience you desire.

In our FullCarbon line, one of the most visible customizations is the colour of the wood for the top sheet. You have to like what you ride!

As I mentioned before, we offer different tail shapes and also different kinds of construction. The most advanced in the FullCarbon line is the ultralight construction. With that, we can achieve 300g less weight per ski.

In the Asymmetrical line, you can have standard fiberglass construction with carbon stripes, or lighter FullCarbon construction.

We can also fully customize your skis using our shapes as a base, but you can customize the stiffness, design, weight, etc.

We also love to experiment and play with innovations.

Q: Can clients customize the graphic design? Your skis are beautiful, who designs them?

Yes, we can fully customize the graphic designs on classic ICP foil.

The graphic designer of the whole brand is my colleague and my beloved girlfriend in one person, her name is Bronya.

Q: What makes your skis so durable? Also, what materials and technologies are your specialties?

Durability is a sensitive topic but our skis are built to last. We use hard bases, snowboard edges, strong wood cores.

Also, we use the Dyneema fiber which is four times stronger to break or tear than Kevlar (we use Kevlar as well), and it protects the carbon construction from the impact from sharp rocks.

It is difficult and expensive to work with the Dyneema fiber but the benefits it provides are amazing.

Q: Where can people test or see your skis?

Most of our skis are here in Slovakia. But we have a test centrum also in Fiss in Austria and in Lanzerheide-Arrosa in Switzerland where there is a telemark test center.

We also make a lot of public ski test in the Alps, Slovakia and Czech Republic during the winter season. Then we do occasional pop-ups like for example in Lululemon store in Whistler this last season, or as part of film festivals.

Q: What does the (higher) price for your skis provide your customer with?

With our skis, you are getting not only a product but also an extensive customer service.

In comparison to other brands – on the surface similar to our brand with design or technology, and the amount of production – we are still about 30% cheaper.

Q: How long does it take to make and deliver the skis after someone places an order?

The best time for ordering our skis is summer. We offer a better price during this period, plus you can split the payments and you can choose what you want (custom).

We have an order form on our website that you have to fill and you will get your skis in the autumn.

In the winter time, you can choose from the skis in our stock. Custom skis can take up to 1.5 months to make during the winter as we are busy with many things.

Q: Which notable athletes ride on your skis? What do they love about them?

All our athletes ride our skis because they are built with no compromise – simply for pure and powerful riding.

I already mentioned Ryan Oakden from Whistler in Canada. Then we have some of the best skiers from Slovakia, Martin Labuda and Marian Treger, that also live in Canada.

Knut Skinnes is a great telemark skier and en environmentalist from Norway. Then Monika Tatarkova who is a head judge in FWQ races.

We also have a small team of riders and photographers in France, for example also a pro skydiver Roman Dusky or paralyzed sit-ski freerider Marian Ligda, a former excellent Freeride competitor (we met with Marian after his injury and we developed special ski for him).

Q: Do you hand-make the skis personally? How do you oversee the quality of each pair?

Yes we do, and we collaborate with LTB-snowboards in production. The factory is already 34 years on the market and lots of experience with building skis and snowboards.

Thanks to this smooth work arrangement, I can focus on the development and get the perfect quality for our products.

All of the skis are going through my hands, I check them and finish them. Also, I make all the special custom skis. I am adjusting the machines and coordinating every step of this hand-made production. We are always improving.

John Baldwin Interview: Multi-Week Ski Traverses, Exploring Canada’s Coast Mountains, Creating Ski Maps and Guidebooks, Modern Navigation…

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John Baldwin is arguably one of the greatest pure North American explorers. He has chosen to do most of his travels on skis and has authored several books and maps so others can experience the great Canadian wilderness with a bit of guidance.

Over the years, I have had the great pleasure of skiing and hiking with John Baldwin and Linda Bily, John’s wife, on several occasions and we always had plenty of fun.

John and Linda are probably best described by their own quote from their book Soul of Wilderness:

Ours are not heart-stopping tales of conquest and hardship…. The purpose of our trips is simply to see as many of these special places as we can.

Note: All images are copyrighted by John Baldwin and Linda Bily, and were used with their permission.

John Baldwin’s Guidebooks and Maps

John on one of his earlier ski traverses on Lillooet Icefield.

John has authored several books, including ski guide books and maps, that focus on his beloved Coast Mountains and western British Columbia.

People’s most popular publication of his has been the Exploring the Coast Mountains on Skis that is a superb guide to ski mountaineering in the Coast Mountains of western British Columbia from the Washington border to the Alaska panhandle.

For a full list of John’s books, maps and online purchase visit his website JohnBaldwin.ca.

Interview with John Baldwin

Q: Whether it is a multi-week ski traverse or just a day trip, what is most important to have a remarkable mountain experience?

There is a term called forest bathing that has become more popular recently. I think this is a big component of ski touring – you might call it mountain bathing or snow bathing.

I think moving through the mountains on skis is a great way to connect with nature and the outdoors. I feel that a sense of wonder and gratitude for the mountains are part of this.

Q: I remember when we met for the first time… both of us skiing solo in the mountains above Vancouver. I was new to Canada but already studying your ski guidebook. You quickly became my inspiration for exploring. Who were the people that inspired you and in which ways?

There are many levels to answer that question…

There were the people that helped me to learn how to go into the mountains – my leaders in Scouts, my high school French Teacher Hans Fenz.

Then there are people who inspired me by their mountain activities – Don and Phyllis Munday, Dick Culbert and Glenn Woodsworth, John Clarke, Chic Scott, Galen Rowell. All of these people had an idea that grabbed them and they followed that idea with passion.

It’s good to be curious about life – that is something I learned from my father and it’s good to appreciate the beauty in life – that is something I learned from my mother.

The most important lesson is to follow your heart.

Q: You have created and published your books and maps with little outside help. You self-thought most of the skills you needed. Is this an obvious extension of your wilderness adventures? Do you like to be self-reliant in all aspects of life?

That is partly true, I like a hands on approach when I do things. I enjoy the learning and exposure to all kinds of things that comes from that. At the same time, I did rely on others with some of the technical aspects of publishing and using complicated mapping and graphic design software.

Also, when you are doing something for the first time – either in the mountains or writing for example – you have to follow your own vision because there is no else to follow.

Skiing over the wast Juneau Icefield that crosses the Canadian boarder with Alaska and extends 140 km north to south and 75 km east to west.

Q: You have dedicated your life to exploring Canadian Coast Mountains which line the west coast of British Columbia for hundreds if kilometres. What lured you specifically to them for so long?

The simple answer is that I grew up in Vancouver staring at the southern end of the Coast Mountains and became curious about what lay up there.

I fell in love with the magnificent land that lay hidden in the clouds. And it has taken most of my life to just get to some of their most amazing places.

I didn’t consciously ignore other places or activities, I just did what I wanted to do most at each step of the way.

John at a camp on Homathko Icefield with Mount Waddington, the highest mountain in British Columbia behind by LB

Q: During all your long remote expeditions, your groups have never had a major accident. How did you manage that? You survived a massive fall in your twenties, was that an early wake-up call?

Many of my trips were before satellite phones, and Spot or InReach devices. It was essential to plan each trip carefully.

The mountains are very powerful. It is important to be respectful and appreciate that when you are in them. Yes, I suppose in a way, falling off the mountain helped me appreciate that. One wrong step and you can fall 500m!

You don’t need to be afraid and fearful when you are in the mountains but you do need to be aware of what you are doing and where you are.

Q: You have an incredible sense for reading terrain and interpreting a map. Is this something you have always had, or it has naturally developed within you over the years?

I am an engineer and I have always been good at map reading and visualizing things in three dimensions. Staring at maps and using them to constantly navigate through new terrain has also helped immensely.

I think we also have an innate sense of terrain in all of us. We have been travelling over the earth for millions of years and we are meant to do that.

Q: Do you use Google Earth or other modern applications?
I use it a lot for inspiration and researching new ideas. Once outside, I prefer to read terrain and look at a paper map or phone map occasionally, mostly without compass or GPS. You could say, I am trying to be romantic about it…

Absolutely, Google Earth is amazing! To be able to see the landscape in such detail is incredible… But there are limitations – it often doesn’t show crevasses very well and like a map you still need experience to really be able to read the terrain well.

I strictly use Google Earth for planning and it’s fun to look at for new areas. It has also been invaluable for making my ski touring maps. I also use caltopo.com and hillmap.com, which are really useful online mapping tools that can translate from a map to a satellite image.

Q: Do you think that those who rely a lot on modern navigational tools – phone apps with GPS, or simply following a downloaded GPS track – are robing themselves of a more profound experience? Aren’t these modern tools making us a bit dumber perhaps?

There are no rules, use whatever works for you. I do agree with you that overusing modern navigational tools will not help you learn how to interpret terrain.

My advice is to always try and estimate where you are before you use a GPS and see how well you did. That way you will learn.

Most ski traverses in Canada start and end with long walks in the wild forests or valleys.

When GPS devices first came out I used to race a friend and his GPS to see who could estimate our location faster. I often would win (and back then when the GPS signals were weaker, I was often more accurate).

Ski routes are not hiking trails and their GPS tracks cannot be followed like a video game. You need to be constantly looking around and assessing avalanche conditions, crevasses, changing micro terrain, rocks etc.

With practice you should be able to look at a map in the morning and know where you are for most of the day and only need to refer to the map when there are very specific spots that you need to navigate through.

Q: I know that you prepare most of your expedition food at home. Do you use any sports bars or store freeze-dry food?

I sometimes use nutrition bars on day trips but I don’t like most of them.

For longer trips, I usually make up my own snacks. For meals, I will use some freeze dried ingredients but never freeze dried meals in a bag.

Q: How much food in weight do you bring per person on a week-long ski traverse? What is most important to you about the food you bring?

The old rule was about 900g (2lbs) per person per day.

It’s important to bring healthy nutritious food that you like. You can make your own simple meals that cook relatively quickly. I have never lost weight on any three week trip.

Backpacks for only even a week-long ski traverse easily weigh 20-25kg (50lbs) as one needs to carry, on top of the food, also a sleeping bag, pad, tent, cooking stove… For more technical traverses, add glacier and mountaineering gear, and soon you are at 30kg (65lbs).

Q: You have managed to organize your life to have plenty of time for adventuring. Despite living close to Vancouver’s downtown, you live simply. Have you ever thought about living in a small town?

First off, I grew up in Vancouver, so that is my home and that is a big part of why I live here. I also love living near the ocean – I feel it is like the base for the Coast Mountains.

I have thought about living in a small town but I was never able to find work there so it never happened. I also find that when I am in the city that I only live in a small part of it, and can ride my bike and do most errands locally so that it feels a lot like a small town.

Q: When you are stuck on a big glacier in a storm, how do you spend the time? Do you read books?

People pay big money to go on meditation retreats. Just think of a storm day as a free retreat 🙂
It’s good for you to have time to just daydream and rest.

I often bring a book for storm days. I enjoy books about the true stories about people and parts of BC. I would trade books with others in the tent too.

John digging out the tent once again during 5 day storm on Juneau Icefield.

Q: What projects are currently occupying you? Any new trips or books in the plans?

In the summer, I was busy going through all my old photos for Chic Scott who wrote a biography about me for the Alpine Club of Canada Summit Series. The pdf is available free online or you can order a printed copy.

Now, I am reprinting some maps right now with some small updates. I am also doing another printing of my guidebook.

Then I am always planning trips and looking at maps and Google Earth. And I have been sewing a new ski touring day pack as I love making things.

Sisters of Skimo: Interview With Sierra Anderson, US Skimo Team member, About Life And Her New Movie

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Growing up on a fishing boat in Alaska, Sierra Anderson’s road to World Cup level ski mountaineering racing is an adventurous one, and she still operates her own fishing business in the summers.

Her love for mountains and skiing was always there but falling in love with skimo only a few years ago helped her to find a true passion. Today, she is a strong member of the USA Ski Mountaineering Team and has become involved in the sport beyond what most athletes do.

Her movie “Sisters of Skimo” premiers on November 6 in Frisco, Colorado and dives deep into her personality and value she stands for. You can RSVP for this event on this Facebook page.

Q: Where exactly were you born in Alaska? How was growing up there?

I was born in Anchorage, Alaska but originated from Seward, Alaska. Most people know it for the famous Mt. Marathon running race.

I grew up commercial fishing in a little village called Chignik, population less than 100. We can only get there by a 42 hour boat journey out of Seward, or a little 3.5h bush plane ride.

From the age of diapers, most of my summers were spent on the boat for 3 months at a time. I began working at around the ripe age of 8, and when I was 14 I started running the skiff for my dad, a little 22 foot boat that tows the net in the opposite direction of the big boat.

This business is what some people might call family bonding on steroids! It wasn’t always easy, but fishing was always an adventure, and being immersed in wildlife was invigorating at a young age. Everything from octopuses to sea lions, birds, whales, porpoises, sharks…you name it. I called these “my pets”.

On the rare occasion I did get land time, I would typically find myself running in circles on the quarter mile dirt airstrip in the middle of the village. It wasn’t just the bears I’d have to watch out for. Every now and again I would have to dodge into the trees to avoid a landing plane running over me. I couldn’t always hear them from behind and have had some near misses.

In 1996, my family moved to Breckenridge Colorado and so began my 8 year journey into alpine ski racing.

Q: How did you discover skimo racing? What hooked you and keeps you in?

Sierra with her Team US sisters at 2019 World Championships.

The first skimo race I ever witnessed was at Copper Mountain in Colorado when I was babysitting for my supermom friend, Kate Zander, so that she could race.

I was impressed by her discipline and dedication to still pursue what she loved while nursing a child on the side of the race course.

She introduced me to some new things in the sport… like ski crampons for example. I am proud to call her my friend and teammate now because she never wavered and was always patient.

She could have kept me at a distance knowing I would one day be her competitor, but she didn’t. I think we had “sisterhood” dialed early on.

Skimo is honestly the coolest sport I have ever known. It is an adventure, and it is extremely rewarding to look back on the peaks you scaled and say “Wow I really did that!”. I never really knew what I was capable of until I started skimo racing.

I see mountains in an entirely different way now, I see possibilities.

Q: How is skimo different for you from other sports you have been competing in?

Skimo is so different, but with a lot of parallels to my sport history.

The first time I tried the lightweight equipment though, I was terrified, as if I forgot how to ski! Now it’s literally all I know.

Racing in China during an international training camp.

I downhill ski raced in high school, then ran cross country. Running helped me afford college, and I was fortunate to be offered a full ride to run at a D1 University.

Neither sports held much longevity for me as I quit racing right out of college to go back in the family business. Both sports were far too one dimensional for me, and I got bored. I think I was made to do something more dynamic.

Skimo was the perfect blend of endurance, mental stamina, downhill skiing (aka speed), technical skills, risk, reward, and real adventure.

Q: Why do you think more women are not taking up skimo? How could this change and what do you want to do about it?

This sport is fairly new in America and less common for women. Naturally, there is an element of the unknown, and an inherent insecurity that comes with it. We are testing ourselves and are not sure of the possibilities or success.

I love seeing more women joining this sport. We are social creatures and find acceptance more easily when there is a group.

The women’s North American team at 2019 Mezzalama Trophy in Italy. Sierra on the left, Jessie Young top-right, and Canadian Kylee Toth.

I believe sisterhood is a real thing that transcends fear, and supersedes the limitations we might naturally feel when entering a new sport like skimo. When I was running in college, it felt like a sisterhood, and because of that it was easier and more desirable for women to walk on or get into the sport.

I also think that as women we naturally have a little more of a “delicate” spirit than men and self preservation is higher on the priority list. Yes, skimo is more intense than most sports…but it doesn’t have to be seen as just that. I have gal friend I know in skimo who shows up to races in tutus. The beauty of skimo is you make it what it is… but it is always an adventure…

Ultimately, I just believe that women need women.

We need to be in community with each other in order to thrive. This starts by eliminating the “cliques.” We can support each other to do our very best and encourage other women to join us as this strong group of driven, inspiring intense athletes.

I am excited for the growth that is happening in skimo. I wish I had the opportunity to start skimo younger, but I am learning to embrace the chapter I am in, and help foster relationships with women and young girls in the sport. This is how I believe we grow the sport.

If we as skimo women in the community can develop a more inclusive culture in the sport that is inviting and attractive to outsiders, we can grow it. There’s more to this sport than the podium.

Also of course, we need better uphill access in North America. I hope more resorts get on board with opening their mountains for people to travel uphill.

Q: Would you want skimo to be in the Olympics? Whether yes or no, why?

Oh absolutely! It needs to be in the Olympics. If curling is in the Olympics, skimo should have been in it yesterday.

Skimo is exciting, daring, adventurous, risky…all the ingredients for creating intrigue among spectators. This sport is the ultimate test of endurance, speed, technical skill, uphill, downhill, and everything in between.

Q: What are your future skimo goals and plans? Do you have plans away from racing – such as expeditions, traverses, trips?

My short term plans include going to Europe to live and race the entire World Cup Circuit for 2020, as well as some Grand Courses. I want to completely immerse myself into the mother-ship of ski mountaineering so that I can grow and bring back what I learn.

One of our juniors, Grace Staberg will be joining me for those 5 months. We leave the first week of December!

Long term goals are evolving but hard to say because opportunities are trickling in now that I never would have foreseen a year ago. I want to be open.

I have been fortunate to see a lot of the world. But racing in these other countries is very new and exciting to me. Traveling by skis is an awesome thing.

Meeting new sisters during a training camp in China.

I met some folks from India at the race in China, and it was really cool talking to them and hearing them share about wanting to start a skimo club in their country. They came to China to get acquainted with the sport and learn.

China rallied people from all parts of the world for the Mt. Gangshika masters race and that was truly awesome.

I would love to help facilitate growing the sport not only in the USA but around the world.

Q: If you were to die in 10 years, how would you want to live them? What would you like to do, “complete”, or “accomplish”?

I think in whatever I do, I want to somehow serve people in it and impact hearts in a positive way.

So many people have helped me in my life to get to where I am. I would love to give back. I don’t know what that is supposed to look like. I don’t have a particular bucket list item that I have to conquer.

As I continue to grow in skimo I begin to realize new ambitions and goals, but they aren’t the end-all-be-all for me. I love exploring exotic foreign places on skis and meeting new people along the way.

But if 10 years is all I get, I think I would want to try and focus on what I was leaving behind, since after all I can’t take anything with me when my time is up. I think that to have a family and leave a legacy that serves to impact culture in a positive way would be a pretty great accomplishment.

Kilian Jornet Interview: On Taking Risks, Skimo in Olympics, New Motivation and Future

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Copyright Kilian Jornet.

Known for his performances in the mountains and race tracks, Kilian Jornet can be probably best described as an adventurous “chameleon” – blending various skills that were gained over long time and putting them in use for marvelous feats that are often a result of a simple human curiosity.

We were curious as well, mainly to dig deeper into his thoughts after one can hardly imagine what is next for this extraordinary athlete…

Q: Congratulations Kilian! How does it feel to be a father?

Thanks, it is not an easy feeling to describe. I am so much grateful and fulfilled, and at the same time there is scariness of the responsibility for this little one.

Q: This spring, you skied a long steep line on Troll Wall in Norway – the highest vertical rock face in Europe. The whole descent looked very extreme in your video. Do you feel like this descent pushed you to your limits as a skier?

Not my technical limits. The descent has 3 different sections. The first one is very technical, one abseil, some very steep skiing, another abseil and a very steep section to the couloir. That last section is about 400m, and the steepness is like Sjøboltind diagonal, a bit more than Cordier at Verte, but more exposed.

After that the couloir is OK, maybe a 55 degrees average, and after a short climb the last section of 800m is less steep maybe 45 degrees with some short very steep and icy sections.

Troll Wall, Norway. Courtesy of Kilian Jornet.

So in general, in terms of technical, I would say it is like an Autrichiens without abseiling followed by a Cordier, and a last section more like exposed easier skiing with some ice ski down-climbing.

The difficulty is about finding good conditions all the way and the exposure and concentration for such a long time.

» For a full story about Kilian’s Troll Wall ski descent visit his blog.

» For a video of this descent see the end of the interview.

Q: Now that you are a father, do you see yourself continuing to ski more steep lines, or do you think you will reconsider adventures that require such a high concentration?

I’m not a fearless person, I have never been, but the opposite. When I do something it is because I feel I have under control all the things I can have under control. When I go it is because the equation of skills, difficulties and conditions is positive, so I don’t think it will change.

Of course, going to the mountains every day means more time to be exposed to danger and risk, but being in the mountains is also what defines me and makes me a happy person.

Photo by Kilian Jornet.

Q: You didn’t race much over the last year or so. Will we see you on top of the skimo and running again in the future? Do you have any specific racing goals in the next 1-2 years or you will take it freely?

This winter I have not race a lot, only in Norway. I wanted to be home for the baby coming.

Also, after 15 seasons doing the world cup and seeing where this sport is going in terms of races I was not motivated at all, and so I preferred to do more training and climbing around home.

When we race a lot we are never home and we are more resting than training.

This summer, I want to do some races, not like the last 10 years doing 10-15 per season, but doing some great races and doing some mountain projects.

Q: In February, you set a new world record for the most vertical skied and climbed on skis in 24 hours – you up the bar to amazing 23,486 metres! In fact, you conquered Lars Erik Skjervheim record from 2018 by a massive 2500 metres!
When did you start thinking about trying it one day? Did you do any specific preparation or you just trained by doing long days in the mountains?

Firstly, we can’t say a record. A record is something done in specific conditions and with equal rules for everybody. In athletics, a record is done in a stadium with a wind limitation for instance, in the mountains everybody does things in their own way, style, assistance and conditions.

In the 24 hour effort, even if we can compare some things, the places are different – steepness, length of slopes… so talking about record is incorrect.

Kilian during his 24 hour attempt. Photo by Matti Bernitz/Lymbus.

With that said, I think that since 2011, when Florent Perrier did 18,255 m, I was interested to try it myself.

The 24-hour is interesting from different points – how to pace, how to manage energy (eating, drinking…), etc. As this year I wasn’t racing the World Cup I decided it could be a good moment to try it.

Preparation was as always and with no racing it was more consistent. Usually, my general training block (weeks of more than 20,000 m) normally stops at middle of December but now I could do it for longer, so I had many days of more than 5,000 m.

» For a full story about Kilian’s 24 hour effort visit his blog.

Q: You have done many wild and fast adventures. What is your next one? Or is it something else that is inspiring you right now?

I like being a number of things and combining skills.

In the expedition to Everest, I learned a lot about altitude and acclimatization and I would like to do more things in altitude. Adventures like I did around my home last June (a ridge loop of 160 km) are very interesting – combining climbing where you can solo for long distances.

Q: How do you see skimo racing evolving if it becomes an Olympic sport?
For sure, the sport would benefit massively with more money coming in, but do you feel like the sport might suffer by becoming less “adventurous” as the courses might need to become more “filming friendly” for easier TV broadcasting?

When I started skimo in 2000, and people were already talking about it becoming in the Olympics, I thought it would be great! Who wouldn’t want to imagine and be excited to be an Olympic champion?

But for different reasons now, I think the opposite.

Firstly, for where this Olympic dream is taking the sport. It is no longer an endurance and a mountain sport. Races are shorter, on piste… it is making for an uninteresting sport for the non-elite athletes.

When somebody thinks about ski mountaineering they imagines climbing a summit, or several, with wild tracks, steep descents… and when the amateurs (usual ski mountaineers and ski tourers) go for a tour they go to do that.

The image of Pierra Menta, Mezzalama or some short races as a recent one in Madona di Campiglio are just that – what anybody would call “that was a great day out in the mountains”.

I don’t see any benefit or like to imagine doing a 50 m loop that takes 2 minutes on ski runs with many transitions and then going home. It is alienating the sport between amateurs and professionals.

Also, Olympics were a model of the last century – the nationalism, the big budgets, the corruption… we see that there are not many cities that want to hold Olympic Games anymore because it is very expensive, and it is not clear whether the Olympic values are just a fake slogan.

For many countries it is not attractive anymore. We see that it is more like a washing machine for non-transparent countries that want to hide their problems by putting the focus on Olympics.

I think Olympics need to rebuild their foundation.

Q: How much were you involved in designing of both Salomon X-Alp and Minim skis? They seem very different one from the other.

Yes, they are very different. One is for racing, to go down fast and straight while the other is designed to provide easy skiing in all conditions in the mountains.

It is great that how close is the relation between athletes and designers for gear development within Salomon. It starts from the absolute beginning – from the idea to the test of many prototypes, until the final testing and changes.

Kilian atop the Troll Wall on Salomon X-Alp skis (113-79-99).

Q: Have you been thinking what you might like to do after your athletic career?
Perhaps, do you see yourself working for some outdoor company or even start your own? For example, gear design and development, or something completely different?

I have no idea, I like to keep doors open.

I like gear, also photography and also physiology and training. It is some of the things I can see myself doing, but for the moment I want to focus on racing and adventures.

Q: How did your values and priorities shaped over time in regards to mountain sports and life?
You always went after your long-term athletic goals but perhaps the way you approached or executed them was different from when you planned them years before?

Since being a teenager I have been looking for performance. It is a long way and to build up you need to be in a bubble of training hard and taking anything else away for a decade or two to have a correct base.

Since then of course the goals have been changing. One reason was that the results arrived faster than I expected. If I wouldn’t achieved the results I had, I would probably still be 100% focus on racing.

Kilian atop Matterhorn during his remarkable ascent-descent record. Photo courtesy Summits of My Life.

Perhaps, the influence of my coaches – Jordi Canals and Maite Hernandez – was big as they were preparing me to compete with the fastest but both are alpinists (Maite has several expeditions to Everest and Shisha Pangma in all women teams) and Jordi was in many first Catalan Himalayan expeditions (Everest north and west ridge in the 80’s) so I was also inspired by that.

Then one of my idols, Stephane Brosse (one of the legends of ski mountaineering racing), did a lot of steep skiing and fast mountaineering when he retired from competition in 2006. He introduce me to steep skiing and after that the roles of Vivian Bruchez, Seb Montaz, or people like Marino Giacometti, Bruno Brunod showed me the way on how to use my racing skills in the mountains.

But I would say that until 2012 my vision was more like taking the racing to the mountains. Then Jordi Tosas and Jordi Corominas took me to the Himalayas in February with skis. We went very light and we climbed and went very far with not much, and since then mostly the style has been much more important to me than the performance, even if I want to perform the best I can.

Now racing is still interesting in the way that it is a good way to keep motivated for hard training. It is also the best way to test my shape but the excitement I had from my first Zeggama or Pierra Menta victories I will never feel again. Probably, my excitement today comes more from having ideas in the mountains and thinking if they are possible.

Q: How is life in Norway? Will that be your base with Emily and your baby?

It is a great place. There are a lot of mountains, not very high but technical. The winters are long and there are not many people. It’s perfect for us.

Q: Can you summarize for us your recently published book “Res és impossible”? What is the message you hope to pass onto the readers?

Well it is a book about the feelings of an expedition – why do I climb and on my approach to risk and preparation.

I also wrote about what is training for me, the geek I am, and what I have been learning from all the races and experiences in the mountains. The great moments but also the dark ones.

Probably, it is a book where I am opening myself the most about my feelings and regards. I hope the English version will be out very soon!

Q: As the last question, I want to ask you what books do you think everyone should read?

I love Alessandro Barico’s “Silk” and “Oceano Mare”.

The books of Milan Kundera, Camus and Saramago are great about human personality.

Sampedro and Mishima are great to understand different views. Kafka and Agota Kristof are great to look inside us.

From mountain books, I love reading a lot, to understand the personalities – the how and why people do what they do…

Video: Troll Wall Ski Descent by Kilian Jornet

Caroline Gleich Interview: On Climbing Everest, Skimo Racing, Future Projects and Social Media

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Growing up on the flats, Caroline Gleich had a lot to learn about mountaineering and skiing steep descents once she discovered her calling.

Facing this challenge with great passion and determination, she worked her way up not only mountains but also to become a sponsored adventurer, environmental and social rights activist, and a social media celebrity. While many people followed her path with support there were also some very negative voices who’s egos couldn’t handle someone else fulfilling their dreams.

To talk about it all, we contacted Caroline for an interview and she happily agreed to do it. For regular updates, you can follow Caroline on her Instagram.

(All images in this interview were published with permission from Caroline’s archives and social media.)

Q: You grew up in Minnesota, on the flats, and now you live in Utah at the foot of the Wasatch mountains. How and when did you start climbing and ski mountaineering? What inspired you?

I dabbled in climbing when I was growing up, but I didn’t have a lot of places to go climb or mountaineer in the Midwest. A few times a year, my family would take a trip out West to Utah and other places, to ski in the winter and spring and backpack in the summer. I fell in love with the alpine on those backpacking trips we took to iconic places such as the Sawtooths, San Juans and Wind River Ranges.

I was always inspired to push myself while immersing myself in nature. I grew up in a family of four children (three brothers), with three half-siblings as well, and there was always a good amount of family competition. I always wanted to be the best skier in the family. I also was also inspired to defy people’s expectations of me.

Q: What does keep you going to the mountains and on adventures now?

Mental health. Being in the mountains and going on an adventure is imperative to my mental and physical well-being. It is less expensive than therapy, and more fun.

It is a way for me to process my emotions and work through difficulties in my life. It is also a way for me to connect with other people, and I love the community that I share my adventures with. I’m also inspired by a deep love of nature and the natural environment.

Q: You have recently climbed Everest. When did this became your dream? What lessons did this experience leave you with?

I never really thought Everest would be a goal of mine until I saw it when I was on the way to climb and ski Cho Oyu, the sixth highest peak in the world.

Once I saw it, the mountain spoke to me in a big way, and I started dreaming about climbing the Northeast ridge from Tibet. It is a beautiful ridge climb, in an incredible position, like nothing else on earth. I loved the experience of being on an expedition for 30+ days on Cho Oyu, and I was hungry to go back to the Himalayas.

Like many people, I had my own preconceived notions about Everest. That it was overcrowded, that it was an easy walk-up, and that people paid their way to the top. After being there, I can say it is a huge challenge. It is not a walk-up. And you can’t pay your way to the top. Attempting an 8000m peak without outside assistance would be nearly impossible.

I loved working with the Sherpas staff, meeting the local Tibetans, and coming together with people from all over the world for a short period of time when the weather allows people safe passage. There is so much more I could say about Everest, but I will hold off for now.

The lessons I learned will stick with me forever. I learned how to deal with intense discomfort. I learned that I can have a splitting headache, a torn ACL, a pulled rib cage muscle, be in so much pain and still perform athletically.

I learned that I don’t need to shower that often, and I learned that I can live happily without too many things. Of course, I love my outdoor gear. But other stuff in life, I don’t need a nice car or super expensive dishes or clothes. It reaffirmed my love of shared experiences over materialistic items.

And I also learned that I can fundraise and that I am capable and worthy of raising that kind of capital. I learned how important partnership is, and how much I love my family!

Q: Few years ago, you managed to ski all 90 steep lines that are in the book “The Chuting Gallery” – a steep skiing guidebook to the Wasatch by Andrew McLean. Was this project a steep learning curve experience?

The Chuting Gallery took me 5 years to complete. When I first started skiing the lines in the book, I never thought I’d finish the entire book (or that I even wanted to). But as I kept progressing, I started to see that project completion was going to be an option for me. I loved how it pushed me to learn how to lead ice and rock and to become a better alpinist and ski mountaineer.

It was a very emotional project because it required me to ski one of the lines where my half-brother had died in an avalanche when I was 15. I took the progression slowly to be sure I felt very confident before I skied each line.

Q: You are a passionate advocate for social and environmental equality. Why are these issues so dear to you? How can others take even small action if they want to help?

I believe we all have a duty to speak up and be engaged, informed citizens to make our government and our country work.

Being out in nature is a huge gift and it gives me so much. For everything we receive from nature, we have a duty to give back and speak up for the wild places we love so much that don’t have a voice of their own.

I would urge everyone to get involved in a local level by becoming informed voters. Read the newspaper, pay attention, do research on candidates and issues. You don’t have to buy an electric car or put solar on your roof. Advocate for your energy provider to give you those options. And vote!

Q: You are sometimes in the centre of “negative” attention on social media. Why do you think this is? How do you deal with it publicly and personally?

I think there are two reasons.

One is I have strong opinions and I’m not afraid to voice them. That is going to draw up some controversy and dissent.

The second is that I am a woman, and I believe some of the negativity comes from internalized misogyny, from both men and women. We still have a long way to go in our culture towards gender equality.

I am continuing to learn how to deal with the negativity. I try not to let it silence me, but I have to admit, that sometimes I get a lot of anxiety about posting my opinions on Instagram. I feel like I’m more guarded now. I’m working to let down my guard and be myself. But it’s a constant battle and work in progress.

Q: Now, let’s talk a little about skimo racing. You have done some local Utah races as well as the famous classic Patrouille des Glaciers in Switzerland in 2018. How do you like the sport? What was your experience at PdD?

I LOVE SKIMO racing!

My first race was one of the local, citizen races at Brighton, UT. And then I competed at the Powderkeg in 2017, which also happened to be US nationals for skimo. I did all 3 events, sprint, individual and the teams race, and my friend and I won the female team national championship title.

Then I did the PDG with a team from Switzerland and France. The PDG was an incredible experience. The mountains there are insanely huge! The race organization is superb, and the fan engagement is unreal. To see all those people lining the mountain passes cheering for us brought me to tears!

What I love about skimo racing is it’s a chance to push myself and go as fast as I can. I don’t have to wait for a photographer or videographer, it’s just me, my breath, and the racing beat of my heart.

I hope skimo continues to grow in the US and that more resorts start allowing uphill access. That’s going to be a key to the success of the sport in the US.

Q: As a busy adventurer, do you plan to have family at some point? If yes, how would you like to raise your children?

Awwwh that is a loaded question!

First, I must preface this by saying, make sure you ask male athletes this too. Bearing and raising children is not only a woman’s job. I do think I see myself as a mother, although I go back and forth. Before Everest, I would have said for sure, I’m having kids. But I love the experience of being in the Himalayas on an expedition so much, I don’t want to lose myself and my identity as a mountaineer in my relationship with my children.

It is such an emotional question. I think if I become a mother, it will be on my own terms, and I will have to make sure I stay true to myself. I want to continue being a ski mountaineer and adventure athlete and I plan to do this stuff for as long as possible.

Q: What are your future adventure plans? Where would you like to go and why there?

I would love to go to Antarctica and ski there.

I really want to ski Ben Nevis in the U.K.!

I have dreams in the Alps, the Canadian Rockies, and in my own backyard, the Wasatch and the rest of the American West. It’s important to let the mountains speak to me, and let my projects happen organically.

Interview with Caroline and her partner Rob Lea after returning home from Everest:

Interview with Giorgio Daidola – Italian Adventurer and Author: On Skiing, Sailing and Not Planning Trips Too Much

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Once upon a time in Libanon.

Giorgio Daidola, “the last romantic skier”, is in constant pursuit of adventure and refuses to be defined into a narrow existence. Professor of business economics, book author, journalist, and the father of telemark skiing in Italy are only a few labels that describe him.

While telemark skiing and sailing are Giorgio’s dear passions his way of life expands the meaning of the word “adventure”. Little known in North America, he is an important figure in European mountain culture and one that all of us can learn from.

Giorgio Daidola has skied on all seven continents, including the first telemark descent of an 8,000 metre peak, the Shishapangma in 1988. He has also completed many ski adventures and traverses in Canada and in the US. Beyond skiing, he did a lot of vagabond sailing in the Mediterranean and in the Atlantic to experience local cultures and to ski mountains right from his small boat.

Today, Giorgio lives on a small farm in the wild Lagorai Mountains, not far from his university in the historic city of Trento in northern Italy. From there, he is getting ready for his next adventure – to sail across the Atlantic Ocean with his trusted boat.

His books have been published only in Italian but might be translated into English and other languages in the next couple of years – Ski Spirit (Gambrinus prize 2016), Sciatori di Montagna, Viaggio in Mediterraneo, Dal Mediterraneo alle Azzorre.

Now, let’s dive into an inspiring discussion with Giorgio on everything from skiing, to work, to his life’s greatest lessons.

Q: Your adventures are diverse – skiing in the mountains and sailing a boat on the sea seem very contrasting. What is it that makes you love both?

Sailing and skiing for me are not contrasting. Sailing is sliding on water, skiing is sliding on snow, that is water too. I try to do both by fair means…

Sea and mountains are very similar in offering emotions and vertigos of freedom to people that love them deeply.

The best adventure for me is sailing with my ski equipment on the boat, searching for mountains to ski from the sea! There are a lot!

Entering the port in Ayvalik, Turkey.

Q: You are considered “the father” of telemark in Italy as you reintroduced it in 1982. When were you introduced to telemark?

I skied since I was 2.5 years old. My parents taught me to ski before walking, it was winter and spring 1945/46. Then I became alpine ski instructor in 1971. I did ski mountaineering almost all my life until 1982, with alpine equipment. After that, for the last 37 years, I have been skiing with telemark equipment.

I discovered telemark looking at the photos of my father and at the photos and books of Pat Morrow, John Falkiner, Paul Parker, Morten Aass. They all became very good friends of mine, we did a lot of ski trips together. All of us were consultants for Scarpa, helping the passage from leather to plastic… this was maybe a mistake.

Telemark allowed me to discover a new dimension of skiing, a new mental attitude, a way of skiing without rigid rules, ideal for travelling.

I think telemark is more elegant than alpine, less mechanical and repetitive. As my friend Luca Gasparini, telemark ski instructor in Livigno wrote, “telemark is not just free heel skiing, is free body skiing”. To appreciate this, not to have rules, just to believe in the magic of your knee, just to be aerial like a bird, just to discover the pleasure of slowness in turning.

Giorgio descending Vinson Massif in Antarctic.

True telemark is the contrary of agressive, fast modern skiing. Fast telemark, piste telemark made with heavy boots, bindings and skis, has no future, it will be the end of telemark, because it is more and more similar to alpine.

To continue in this direction, as first of all Americans are doing, will be a suicide for a way of skiing that must remain different – less efficient than alpine but strongly tied up with the history and the spirit of mountaineering skiing.

For me, telemark has been the right tool to discover the “ski spirit” – a way of living – skiing not just as a sport. And I said “for me”, nobody is obliged to ski telemark in order to discover the ski spirit!

Q: What inspires your next adventure? Seeing a photograph, reading an article, talking to friends…?

I mainly took inspiration from the greatest mountaineering skiers of the past. We have nothing to invent.

Writing the book “Sciatori di Montagna” allowed me to discover the best “ski spirit”, from Nansen to Parmentier, going through Paulcke, Kurz, Lunn, Zwingelstein and other great skiers.

I think the most mature way of skiing are long traverses. There are still a lot of marvelous ski traverses to do, just look at the maps, at the old books, and then dream to do them!

Traversing the Karakorum mountains in Pakistan.

Q: What kind of experiences are you looking for on your adventures – exploration, people, culture, thrill…?

The best ski trips allow to put together all these experiences or at least the majority of them.

To reach this goal it is important not to plan the ski trips too much but to organize them “on the road”, trying to be flexible as much as possible.

Giorgio carving long telemark turns on Shishapangma, the last climbed of the 8,000m peaks. It is also the mountain where a legendary American mountaineer, Alex Lowe, lost his life in 1999.

Q: Among all your travels around the world, which are your favourite places?

I have no favourite places, I have a great remembrance of all my ski trips…

A marvelous ski trip is like to fall in love for a marvelous girl.

To compare romantic adventures is not possible, it is not elegant. Each adventure is peculiar, is unique, it is a piece of true life.

Q: Which adventures would you recommend in Italy for foreigners? And which ones would you recommend for Italians that have already explored the usual places by skiing, hiking or sailing?

First of all, I would recommend to do the traverse of the Alps from end to end, better from east to west, following the tracks of Bruno Detassis, or the Odier brothers (just read their beautifull book!), or Leon Zwingelstein, or Paolo Rabbia… Consider doing this traverse without using any mechanical help, as Paolo did alone 9 years ago!

Wild adventures can be everywhere in the Alps and in the Apennines, it is not necessary to go to Antarctic or Himalaya. True adventures depend on the way and on the spirit.

At the beginning of the crossing of the Hielo Norte in Patagonia, the Northern Patagonian Ice Field.

Q: Your professional career as a professor of economics and a financial analyst seems to be in contrast to your adventurous spirit. Do they balance each other or do you struggle between the two sometimes?

All my activities are complementary side to consider life. I am not just a professor and a traveller, I am also a journalist.

For many years, I have been the editor of the leading italian magazine “Rivista della Montagna” and of 17 issues of the yearbook “Dimensione Sci”.

The challenge is to enjoy all activities. This will avoid to find them boring!

I do not like to consider myself a professional in some field, even as a professor, because passion and professionalization hardly match…

There is a movie made by my friend Alberto Sciamplicotti, video maker and telly skier, about my philosophy of life. The title is “Il diritto e il rovescio” (“The Wrong Side and the Right Side”), paraphrasing the famous book of Albert Camus. In this movie, made during a ski trip together in Armenia, five years ago, I try to explain that life has two opposing sides, to see just one is not enough…

Q: Currently, you are preparing for an expedition to sail across the Atlantic Ocean. What does preparation for such a big trip involve? When would you like to depart? Where do you want to start and finish?

A crossing of Atlantic is not at all a big expedition, many people can do it. For me, it is something important because I never did it before and because both my boat and myself we are quite old.

I think that the slow ocean traverse that I plan to do next winter will be above all an important adventure for the spirit. It will not be a race, it will be the discovery of slowness. It will be like to traverse Greenland with skis, in 30 days, on the tracks of Nansen.

This time I will follow the path of Christopher Columbus, starting like him from La Gomera, an island in Spain’s Canary Island chain, in January 2020.

I do not know when an where exactly this sailing trip will end, I will decide while doing it, according to the wind.

Q: Can Giorgio Daidola be summarized in one word or a simple sentence?

For an article for Powder Magazine, in February 1997, David Goodman, after our ski trip to Etna, he chose the title:

“The last romantic skier”

I think this sentence still summarizes myself perfectly!

Enjoying remoteness of the Antarctic.

Q: What would you like to tell the new generation of adventurers? What would be your message for them?

First of all, I think everybody should find their way, after having read a good number of books of the great explorers of the past.

Secondly, I do not like to make sermons like a priest, I just would like that young adventurers will take the time to read, among the others, my books “Ski Spirit” and “Sciatori di montagna” (unfortunately at the moment only in Italian), and then they will decide what they want to do…

Sciatori di Montagna: 12 stories of those who made the history of ski mountaineering

Valmalenco Ultra Trail – 90 km and 6,000 m: Interview With the 2018 Winner and Why You Should Run It

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I learned about Valmalenco Ultra Trail race in northern Italy, also known as VUT, from friends and I had an opportunity to hike part of the route with them last year.

The Valmalenco valley is a spectacular hidden gem in a region called Valtellina. It is located on the south side of Piz Bernina, the most eastern 4,000m peak in the Alps, while the famous town of Saint Moritz in Switzerland sits below Bernina’s northern slopes.

The full VUT course is 90km with 6,000m of elevation gain and travelling through very stunning terrain with views of steep peaks, dramatic glaciers, mountain lakes and lush alpine meadows.

» For all details visit VUT website and VUT on Facebook

As I didn’t run VUT yet but I love the area, I went on to interview the winner of the 2018 edition Saverio Monti and my friend Alessandro Piani who finished in 20th place last year and started running only one year before.

Both athletes run for Team Valtellina which is a selection of the best runners in the region. Alessandro also runs for and manages a local club Polisportiva Albosaggia – former home club of Michele Boscacci, the 2019 Trofeo Mezzalama winner and the 2018 Pierra Menta champion. Albosaggia is a small village where Boscacci comes from.

Interview with Saverio Monti and Alessandro Piani

Due to severe weather, the 2018 course was shortened to 74km and 4,200m. Saverio won in 9h 35min while Alessandro ran the VUT in 12h 53min.

Saverio Monti – Instagram, Facebook
Alessandro Piani – Instagram, Facebook
Team Valtellina – Facebook
Polisportiva Albosaggia – Instagram, Facebook

Q: The VUT was born in 2017. As someone living in the area, are you excited to have such a big race in your backyard?

Saverio:

Yes, I’m very excited! Valtellina is very beautiful and now the VUT race is an amazing addition to the landscape. And there is fantastic energy and enthusiasm from locals!

Saverio Monti

Alessandro:

Having an ultra trail race in my home mountains pushes and helps me give everything!

When I first heard about VUT two years ago, before the first edition, the idea of becoming an ultra trail runner did not even touch me. I “guided” two friends on the VUT course because I know the area since I was a little boy. We ran 60km and that amazing day caused a big change. 🙂

Alessandro Piani

Q: What makes this race special?

Saverio:

The course is on spectacular alpine route! You can see a very unique alpine landscape and different types of forests, valleys, rocks, rivers and lakes.

In addition to the landscape, the locals are very welcoming and friendly!

Alessandro:

VUT is a new race but I think it will become an important one in the ultra trail community. And as Saverio said, the beauty of these mountains and the warmth of local people make it very special!

Q: The 2nd edition of VUT in 2018 was shortened due to severe weather. What were the conditions?

Saverio:

There was a big storm, lots of rain and lightning! The course was shorter but still 74.3 km with 4,175 m of elevation gain. The start was at mid-night.

Sometimes the water and mud was above ankles. Once the rain stopped it became windy and I was very cold… I ran as fast I could to keep warm! 🙂

The organizers did a fantastic job even during the race to change the course again as there was a landslide.

Alessandro:

Yes, due to the strong storm the organizers were forced to eliminate some parts of the route, mainly the fascinating passages at high altitude. Despite all the difficulties it was a great event!

Q: How did your 2018 race go? What is your future goal for this race?

Saverio:

My race went great and bad! 🙂

Great because I won and I felt a lot of big emotions during the race. Bad because I was freezing a lot and sometimes I no longer felt my hands, and I was not even able to drink or eat. It was hard to stay concentrated but my legs were great!

For 2019, I hope for good weather so we can do the original route as I am curious of what I can do.

Alessandro:

The warm cheering of friends and people of Valmalenco helped me to finish the race in the best way and with a nice party! I finished 20th and I was also freezing like Saverio 🙂

I am running VUT again in 2019 and hope for the full course.

Q: What shoes and other gear did you use for VUT?

Alessandro:

I used La Sportiva Mutant shoes and Scott Trail Pack 8 with all the required equipment.

Saverio:

Shoes: Salomon Sense pro Max
Backpack: SalomonS/LAB Sense Ultra5
Poles: Camp Xenon Trek
Shorts: Salomon Fast Wing
Tops: Samonn Fast Wing Hz
Socks: Maglianera
Jacket: Salomon Bonatti Wp
Gps: Suunto 9 Baro