Posts Tagged ‘xAlps’
How is the training coming along? This is pretty much a question I get asked at least once a day.
Training is coming along very well. We have been super busy with www.ColumbiaRiverKayakCanoe.com, paragliding lessons, www.Appointment.com and family life.
From the training perspective, I feel better then I ever have been. I think it is more so because I am listening more to Penny’s advice and simply make sure not to over-train.
Otherwise I have a pretty good routine which involves spin-classes and the Yoga sessions at the www.shapeupinvermere.com/,and the training program and coaching from Penny which includes the daily hikes around Mt. Swansea, the Lakeview Meadows stairs and the gym.
This seams to be working very well as I feel strong and fit.
Overall we had a pretty good spring and I also got a fair share of flying in strong Rocky Mountain spring conditions which increased my confidence level quite a bit for this season. Another reason my confidence level is boosted is that I am very happy and excited to fly the new Mentor 3 light this year. The Mentor 3 is not new to me as I flew a prototype during the Nova SIV course last October at Achensee and really loved it. Further, it shows that the Mentor 3 will be a good pick as there will be a total of 4 xAlps pilots using the Mentor 3 in this years xAlps race.
Currently I am still flying the Mentor 2 and my new Mentor 3 light is just about ready and I should get it when I am in Germany next week.
Besides the daily hikes around Mt. Swansea and the “grunts” on the Lakeview Meadows stairs, working out in the gym and flying in the Rockies, I give Google Earth a good workout to find the best xAlps route. To know the route and to explore the route before the race is critical. Our biggest disadvantage is that we do not know the area as well as the locals do. This year I am heading to Europe early (tomorrow) and my plan is to walk and fly the whole route before the race starts.
I will keep you updated once I start with scouting out the route and will have my Spot running so you can follow me.
coming from Canmore to bbq for everyone. Love you all!
1031 km, as the crow flies, is the distance of the 2013 route of the xAlps. This is a lot of terrain to cover and hard to navigate by foot. Many people question how would one conquer this task, and how would one complete it. When spectators, such as non paragliding pilots try to answer this question,most of them might think of hiring guides. Some might even think that, given a chance and ability, it might be easier to paraglide across the high mountain passes rather than hike them. This might be correct if you are at the right place at the right time to take advantage of good weather conditions and flying possibilities. These variables and the present physical/mental condition of the athletes, make the xAlps such a popular and interesting race for anyone to follow, whether you are a participant/athlete in the race, a paraglider pilot or only a spectator. Every athlete has a live tracking device with them and the athletes can be followed throughout the race live at www.RedBullxAlps.com. In 2011 the race had over 2 million visitors on the website following it. It is very interesting understanding the perspective of the performer/athlete and also the perspective of the viewer/observer. The observer is entertained by watching the tactics of the athletes and tries to figure out the decision making of these performers. As it often is, the observer seems to know best what the performer should do! We hear it all the time. In sports, competitions, watching a movie or a play, the commentators and spectators feel they know better what the performer should be doing. And quite often the observer might have a better idea of what is going on and see the overall picture, and how to proceed with it. At the same time however, an observer is often surprised by the performers decision as the observer does not always know what is going on in the performers mind, their entire “game plan” and also the physical and mental condition or background knowledge of the performer. To assist an athlete/performer with the overall picture of how the event should be played, we use coaches/leaders. A good coach/leader helps to eliminate or reduce overall difficulties or problems, work on different tactics and is a liaison with feedback from supporters
of what the performer is doing. The use of coaches in the sports industry is very much accepted and they play a huge part in all sports. The equivalent in the business world, would be a mentor. If you think about, a good manager should be the coach/leader, however, we see it all the time, the manager is also performing and can have a hard time seeing the overall picture. Even in our private or family life we could use a coach, who simply can be a couple of friends to talk to. For my preparations in the race, I always try to step out of the current situation I am in, and try to watch my actions from the outside. Sometimes I envision myself sitting in front of a TV, watching the event play itself out, and try to analyze this situation as an observer, coach, commentator or spectator, and in that position think about what the right decision will be for the next step. Trying to evaluate oneself like this, will only work to a certain extent. The xAlps race is not only about the pilot/athlete. It is about a team working together to achieve a common goal – getting the pilot to Monaco. I have to say that I am very fortunate to do the xAlps with my partner Penny, as she is a very good coach and motivator and the best of all is that we both have so much fun while preparing for the xAlps and then racing. In the 2013 xAlps, a team will now be allowed to have 2 supporters, which could, or might, make things much harder, as we know that too many chefs spoil the broth. But if you have the right team players, you quadruple the benefit. Penny and I are very excited that we found the best 2nd supporter/coach we could ask for. Mik Broschart is a long time friend, has a lot of connections, knowledge of the race and the sport, highly motivated, got the time and got the support from his family (thanks again Kristine) to make Team Canada complete.
Steve Nash and myself were holding a xAlps workshop for “Nova Junior Pilots” to give them some insights of the xAlps.
First we planned to head to Chamonix to “hike & fly” from Mont Blanc south towards Monaco, but due the strong winds in this area we stayed in the eastern part of the alps.
The first day was a travel day ending with a one hour flight from the “Hirtzer” (near Meran). The day before it snowed down to 1800 meters and therefore we had to plan to stay lower for the next couple of days.
The 2nd day we “hiked & flew” from the Jaufenpass to Bruneck. This started with a 2 hour hike up to the Jaufenpass where we were able to fly to Sterzing. The interesting part was that we needed to
find a launch site to take off into the west (due the west wind) and then fly to the east. This is typical in the xAlps and puts a different perspective of finding the right launch site then you normally do.
Following the flight, we walked for 6 km along the river and then hiked up to another pass followed with a long glide into the Valles valley. For a XC pilot, the day ends after you landed, but not in the xAlps, so we started to walk for an hour into the night to give them this experience as well.
Overall, it was a great example to display sections of a typical xAlps day, such as hiking to a launch and fly into the lee to get where you need to go, walking in the valley, crossing another pass and keep walking in the dark after a flight.
The next day we headed to the Dolomite’s and wanted to take advantage of the good weather. We started with a hike up to the Belvedere followed with a flight to Canazei and then another hike up to Col Rodella followed with a extended glide into the valley.
For the last day Steve and I set a task to the “Junior Pilots” and we only followed them. The task was from Feltre (south Italy) to our team meeting landing site at Lago (near Belluno). The team choose a save route, starting with a 5 hour hike and then a save glide to the goal. It feels good when you plan a hike & fly route and make it to goal. And even better when a lot of your Nova Team Members are landing with you at the same landing.
The annual Nova Team meet was a huge success with over 50 people coming from all over the world. We had a great time to socialize, party and get the latest news of what Nova is working on.
Thanks again to Robert starting this idea and for Nova to make it all happen and last but not least to the three Junior Nova Team members Moritz, Rico and Robert to make this
such a fun week.
We have been asked several times to talk and do a presentation about our experiences during the 2009 xAlps and how we are preparing for the 2011 xAlps. A week ago we did 2 “motivational” presentations for the Windermere Valley school and are most likely going to do the same for the other schools in the valley. We were also asked to do a presentation for the “Wild Voices” which is part of “Friends of Kootenay National Park” and “Parks Canada”. We love to support this
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project, and this also gives us a great opportunity to, once again, thank all the local businesses who donated services and products for our 2009 fundraiser and all the other companies who supported us with gear and equipment we used in 2009. The Presentation is Tuesday Feb 22nd, 7:30 pm at the David Thompson Secondary School in the theater. See you there, Max & Penny