Meet our ambassadors

Join Suunto ambassador Philipp Reiter and his friend Martin Schidlowski as they retrace a historic journey to the Eiger North Face in their film, Bike2Eiger. Suunto ambassador Philipp Reiter invited his childhood friend and climber Martin Schidlowski on an adventure that combined history with the modern-day challenges of mountaineering. Riding 600 km from their home in Berchtesgadener Land, Germany, to Grindelwald, the base of the Eiger in Switzerland, and attempting to climb its notorious north face was merely the backdrop for something more meaningful and thought-provoking. We caught up with Philipp to discuss his film, Bike2Eiger. The film has been touring mountain film festivals for the past winter and is now released online. Read on – and watch the film below! Philipp Reiter and Martin Schidlowski are friends since childhood.   You were following in the footsteps of some true Alpinist legends. Who were they and what was their story? Anderl Hinterstoisser and Toni Kurz were two alpinists from the Berchtesgadener Land, where Martin and I also grew up. In the 1930s, they wanted to solve the last unclimbed problem of the Alps - the Eiger North Face. As they had no money to travel by train, they went from Bad Reichenhall to Grindelwald by bike. (Read more about them here.) What is your connection with your adventure buddy Martin? Martin Schidlowski is my kindergarten buddy. We have done many alpine adventures together, running, climbing, and mountaineering. Since the beginning, we have had the same mindset and passion for the mountains. He is a super good climber and alpinist, and I am more of the endurance athlete in our team. Not the conditions the duo was hoping for.    The adventure started with three long days in the saddle. How did that go? Haha, not very well! 1.5 hours after we started, we were stuck and had to push the bikes through 30–40 cm of fresh snow. Generally, it was super cold, and we underestimated the weight of the bags. We carried in all our gear – alpinism by fair means. The first night, the police also kicked us out of our little wood cabin as in Austria sleeping somewhere out counts as illegal camping.  Did you start to question why you didn’t simply drive to the mountain? We wanted to experience the same as the two pioneers in the 1930s, which is why we also took the bikes. Studying the route and the weather are part of any adventure.   Do you think Martin will ever again go on a bikepacking trip? No, never! He had never ridden more than 100 km before, and on day one we had to do around 220 km! He did not like it. And what about you…? Well, generally, I like cycling a lot as to me it’s the perfect way to explore new areas at a decent speed. But on this ride, my leg warmers were too tight, and I got an inflammation around the knee, which was super painful. First attempt on the Eiger: too much snow.   The weather conditions and the amount of snow made the first Eiger attempt hard. Is there anything you could have done differently? At one point, there were just too many people with busy schedules involved in the project, and we couldn’t keep shifting the dates all the time. So, we had only a few time slots planned, and basically, only this one was left. That’s why we started in okay conditions, knowing that it might become too tricky to climb the face. And then there was too much snow. Mountaineering has a lot to do with conditions. Usually, you need to be patient and wait for the right conditions. It’s never a good idea to rush it in the mountains.  Before the second attempt, the atmosphere was different. Can you explain a bit about what was happening? When we came back one year later for the second try, we knew that the conditions were very good and that it was just a matter of us making it happen. Also, we didn’t do the bike approach again, which made it easier. When we went up to Eigergletscher to sleep, there was so much positive energy. I remember this situation well. Second try, better conditions – but different route.   Could part of the mood be that you were so sure that with the right timing and team, you could just show up and finish the project? Yes, exactly. It was almost like: We just need to climb it now, and that’s it! Is it possible that the slower approach and early difficulties set you up differently? Martin and I had done some more training together, like the Matterhorn North Face. We felt more ready than the first time and were more relaxed as we did not have heavy legs from three long days of riding. Summit of the Eiger!   Did the adventure teach you something? Most of the time, things come out very differently than we have planned, and we always need to keep the capacity to adapt.   Watch now: Bike to Eiger Watch now: Philipp Reiter and Martin Schidlowski follow the footsteps of their local mountaineering heroes from the 1930s on a multisport adventure to the "Eigernordwand“.

Last weekend Jakob Herrmann, Austrian ski mountaineer and Suunto ambassador broke the 24-hour skimo world record. He ascended 24.242 meters (79.534ft) in 24 hours in Radstadt, Austria. To put that into perspective, Jakob’s average hourly ascent was over 1.000 meters, and the total ascent was more than equal to six laps up to Mont Blanc, the tallest mountain in the Alps, from the valley floor in Chamonix. The previous 24-hour world record was 23.486 meters set by Kilian Jornet. Jakob not only broke the record but was also the first person ever to climb over the 24.000-meter mark. Jakob skied all together 34 laps up and down a ski slope that has 713 meters of ascent. A single lap was 2,55 km and in total he skied more than 170 kilometers. During one of his descents, he hit a max speed of 108 km/h! We caught up with Jakob shortly after his record-breaking ski. Read on to learn more!   Suunto: When did you set the 24-hour record as your target? Jakob: I just love to spend time on my skis for hours! It has always been a dream for me to go on touring skis for 24 hours to see how many meters in altitude I can manage. I just want to know what limits I can reach and how far beyond them I can go. Did you do some specific training for it? In November and December, I did a lot of long and easy sessions on my skis followed by short and hard interval sessions to get the speed and strength. In the last two weeks before my 24h I only did short, easy sessions and some short, but hard ones and one race to get used to the suffering! Have you tried a personal 24h challenge before? No, but I did one session with 10.000m of ascent in 9h30m in the middle of December. I felt super strong although I did it self-supported. I think with more long sessions my head and muscles would have gotten tired and the pace would have gone down. So, I did more split sessions with 5.000m+ in the morning and a second session in the evening.   How did you pace yourself? For 90% I listened to my feelings. When I felt strong, I went faster and when I felt tired, I went a bit slower! My supporters always gave me the lap times. In addition, I observed the vertical speed per hour on my Suunto Race.    How did your pace change through the 24 hours? I did the first loops very fast – my first uphill was in 30’. The first 10 loops were all between 30-36’. After that, I was between 37-40’. My slowest uphill was 42’ on the 24th loop when I had my lowest point. The hardest part for me was the early morning when I felt the freezing cold temperatures of around -8 degrees, especially during the downhills. In the end, I was able to push again, and the last 7 loops were all between 38-40’. The average was 38’20”. So, I think the secret to my success was that I was able to keep the pace constant. Did you have some surprises on the way? I didn’t have any negative surprises – only positive ones! I was surprised that so many friends joined me on my way and so many people followed me on-site or in the live stream. Did you have anyone keeping you company? Yes! I was only 7 hours in total alone: 4 hours during the night and 3 hours during the day. I am super happy I had so many friends on my side, but I enjoyed also the loops when I was alone!   When did you realize that you would make it? From the beginning… No joke! I had a strong day, and after some laps, I knew, that I could do it. After 18h I was 100% sure that I would make a new record, but I wasn’t sure if it would be more than 24.000m. After 21h I was sure I’d do the extra lap to climb more than 24.000 meters. Which Suunto did you use? I had the Suunto Race – and it worked perfectly. The battery lasted unbelievably well; I had more than 40% of the battery left in the end even though I had the GPS on the best settings, the light was always on and I used the SuuntoPlus Loop sport app. What was your nutrition strategy? 100 grams of carbs per hour. I always had 300ml of Maurten Drink Mix320 with me. Every loop I had a Maurten gel and every 4th loop I ate a Moonvalley bar and no gel. After the 8th and 16th loops, I had warm salted potatoes and a warm soup on the top. For the last 6 loops, I stopped with Maurten Drink Mix320 and Moonvalley bars and changed to Red Bull, water, and Pringles!   Did you have a big crew supporting you? I had two supporters in the valley and two on the top. Philipp [Reiter] was everywhere taking pictures and pushing me! Also, my parents were nearly 24 hours on my side to give me a good feeling! How do you feel now, one day after the enormous effort? I feel super good. My energy and legs are strong – only my feet are swollen, and I have some blisters. I am surprised… but I think my nutrition strategy was really good. I never felt completely out of energy.   Check out Jakob’s record-breaking activity in Strava Follow Jakob’s adventures on Instagram All images by Philipp Reiter / The Adventure Bakery

It was late February in Innsbruck. Henna sat at her desk, browsing the map to see what destinations were close by, destinations with great skiing opportunities that could be easily reached by bike. The winter in the Austrian Alps had been the worst in living memory. The usual endless fresh snow had been replaced by grass and mud. Normally, at this time of the year, we were too busy to enjoy the powder days in the snowy resorts to even think about wasting this precious time riding bikes that could do plenty over the summer months. This year was different; it was time to slow things down and finally see if combining two sports, bikepacking and snowboarding, could actually be truly enjoyable. Malva, Sami and Henna. "We're actually doing it!" Malva exclaimed as we hopped on our bikes in Innsbruck. "My bike shakes like crazy, is this normal?" Henna asked, seemingly nervous after the first 500 meters. Sami reassured her that she'll get used to it by the time we reached the Dolomites. Dolomites, a destination with iconic sharp-toothed, sheer-sided mountains that stand enormously tall as the background whether it’s summer or winter. And most importantly, only a couple of hundred kilometers away, making it reachable by bike. The only question was whether our plan of a 5-day cycling and 4-day skiing journey from Innsbruck to Lago di Garda actually was realistic without being only a sufferfest? Snowflakes and sharks “It’s definitely a first, biking up to go ski touring,” Henna gasped as we made our way up to our first skiing spot. This winter, the snow line had been even higher than normal, at around 1000 to 1500 meters. Normally, we would drive up to the snow line and start touring, but not this time. Now, it meant first climbing 600 meters from the village with bikes before changing into skis and tackling the rest of the 750 meters with skis and splitboards. Our bikes were loaded with skis/splitboards, ski/snowboard boots, backpacks, poles, skins, ski clothes, crampons, and sleeping bags, all secured with many, many straps. “At least the body is already warmed up by the time we start touring,” Malva smirked. As we arrived at our accommodation the previous night, the snow had started to fall, giving hope for some fresh lines the next day. The trees and roofs were covered by a thin layer of snow, making the whole town glisten in the morning sun as we hopped on our bikes the next morning, excited for the first ski day. “Watch out for sharks,” Henna shouted as all three of us cruised down a fresh line from Vennspitze. That was the reality; there was still not enough snow to cover all the rocks, but it didn’t stop us from enjoying the first turns of the trip. “Shitty snow but so much fun to be riding!” Malva summed it up as we were riding the last meters down. With smiles or without smiles, the reality was that we still needed to bike another 31 kilometers to our next accommodation. Exhausted, we crossed the border to Italy in the dark, dressed up in all the layers we had, and descended down towards Vipiteno. “I don’t think we can keep on doing this for 7 more days in a row,” Sami said, and we all nodded in silence. Lesson learned - while enjoying a hearty dinner, we decided to split the rest of the days between the two disciplines to make it a smoother and, most importantly, more enjoyable experience. Ice and Dolomiti peaks "No way, is that a ski slope?" Sami shouted after we had just managed to get through a closed trail with hundreds of fallen trees. Route planning on a winter bikepacking trip was a lot different from a normal bikepacking trip. The nice small gravel roads that were usually preferred might be covered by snow or turned into a nordic ski track that had melted into a shiny ice field. Both of these we had to learn the hard way on our trip. “No braking,” Henna screamed as she balanced on the ice field that previously served as a nordic ski track. We survived but decided to reroute the rest of our route to the bigger roads to avoid more such surprises. We pushed our bikes across the ski slope while gazing at the first Dolomiti peak on the horizon. The 90-kilometer journey to Camping Sass Dlacia was a full day mission, but the sheer-sided mountain peaks colored in shades of pink and purple created a warm and unforgettable welcome into the Dolomites. The drumming of the raindrops the next morning not so much. The campsite was located at 1500 meters, but still, it was not enough to turn the rain into snow. “That is usually rideable,” Henna said, pointing out to a peak on our left side as we toured towards Lavarella hut. The lack of snow made it necessary for us to adjust the next day’s plan. There was simply not enough snow to ski the run we had planned to. “The rest of the face is pure ice from here to the top,” Malva said. The snow that had started falling after our arrival at the hut had come with too much wind to stick on the icy slopes. Creativity had been the key this winter, finding a way to make the most out of the current conditions no matter how bad they were. After looking around, we found an interesting-looking small couloir and a snowy-looking bowl that we decided to ski. “Go girls,” Sami wrote on the snow as Malva and Henna hiked up to the couloir. The wind was chilly, but the sun was shining as we rode down. "Not perfect but way better than I expected," Henna said, content for the day. The setting sun colored the sharp-toothed mountains in warm tones, giving the final confirmation for a great day in the mountains. Cheating to maximize the down time “I’m not feeling that good,” Malva said as the highest massif of Dolomites, standing over 3000 meters above sea level, looked down at us. The climb was famous among road cyclists, now tackled by three girls with 40-kilogram bikes loaded with ski gear. “2 kilometers in an hour,” Sami laughed out loud as she looked down at her watch and saw the pace we were moving. “But look at that,” Henna pointed out in awe towards Marmolada as she saw the majestic peaks glowing in the evening light, covered in fresh snow. At that moment, everything made sense, even doing a 9-day ski trip by bike. After seeing the fresh snow on the Dolomiti queen and knowing it was all accessible from the resort’s cable car, we decided to reward ourselves and maximize the time spent skiing down instead of spending it touring up. It was our last day of skiing on this trip after all. “This is why we do it,” Henna screamed out of joy. We found fresh lines between the cliffs, fun turns beside the already tracked ones, good snow and bad snow as we enjoyed the beaming sun and took in the magnificent views overlooking the Dolomites. Smiles bigger than any of the day, we packed the skis on the bike and started a short descent to the next accommodation, only to notice we had booked the wrong one from a village on the other side of Marmolada. Even that, could not ruin our mood that day, we kept riding to the next village and booked a new one from there. The last majestic peaks of Dolomites on our sides and the warmth of the sun growing more intense as we headed towards our last destination, Lago di Garda. Soon the only evidence of the snow and winter was the melting nordic ski tracks. As we passed by the Italian Vineyards, we felt light and relaxed, shed some layers, and chatted with the local cyclists as they passed by us. We knew that we were getting closer to our end destination. Whether it was the tailwind or knowing we could soon pop the champagne bottle gifted to us by our last accommodation, the last kilometers to Riva del Garda flowed in ease. “We actually did it,” Sami shouted as she popped the champagne bottles and sprayed it on Henna and Malva. “And it wasn’t a pure sufferfest,” Henna said, the taste of champagne in her mouth. A 9-day journey combining two of our favorite sports turned out to be a beautiful mix of sweat, laughs, ice, snow, and friendship. Ski to Ride: Watch the entire film here Skiing and bikepacking isn’t something that usually goes hand-in-hand. Henna Palosaari, Malva Björkman and Sami Sauri thought differently. Ride to Ski film takes you through the iconic Dolomites on a 426 kilometer journey full of sweat, laughter, skiing, snowboarding, ice and snow, done solely by bike. Riders - Henna Palosaari, Malva Björkman & Sami Sauri Cinematography & Editing - Mikko-Pekka Karlin Production - Henna Palosaari Photography - Richard Bucher Graphic Design - Henna Palosaari More to watch: Bikepacking the Arctic Post Road