Petter’s season finale was a blast – kulpåvägen! Read my piece for slowtwitch.com

“That almost certainly made the difference!” Simon Börjesson was smiling as he filled his bowl with more fish soup. He and partner Rasmus Regnstrand were the only team that did not use paddles and pull buoys. After a bit more than 2 hours and 46 minutes, team “Addnature Östersjösvimmet“ was the first to reach the finish line, even without help from floating devices during the swims across the cold Baltic Sea. At some point during the pre-race dinner, they even had discussions about not using shoes during the race. Luckily the Swedish duo decided to keep their feet covered, but they did take their shoes off during the longer swims. In the end, their simple approach to SwimRun racing brought them the prestigious win in the inaugural Koster SwimRun. No one had faster transitions between the swims and runs. Börjesson and Regnstrand were speedy in and out of the rough, rocky terrain and used their streamlined approach to gain ground on the competition.

Picture: Nadja Odenhage of odenhage.se

Twenty-six transitions across the southern and northern Koster Islands were on the schedule as Swedish hip-hop legend Petter set up a season closing party that could not have been better. The islets, 10km west of the Swedish harbor city of Strömstad, are home to Petter during the summer. The stunning scenery, dominated by bedrock and evidence of volcanic activity, inspired Petter to create a race across the renowned holiday islands. The rocky coastline is scattered with many sandy beaches and small fjords, making it ideal for the sport of SwimRun. After days of heavy winds and rough waves, Saturday’s weather was sunny and mild as 50 teams took on 7km of swimming and 16km of running.

Picture: Nadja Odenhage of odenhage.se

A relatively high percentage of swim distance combined with many transitions shaped an unusual kind of race. During the pre-race briefing, Petter talked the athletes through the course but added that he hoped that “no one is too worn out after the race. I want to have a proper season closing party here!” The technically challenging course required full concentration and a measure of bravery, as racers had to jump from cliffs into the sea at some points. The day finished in a local hotel with a wonderful post-race dinner and a memorable session at the bar. Petter’s first Koster SwimRun was a great finish to a thrilling season!

Direct link!

It has been a good while since I posted my preferred podcasts. With no TV at home and a lot of time devoted to running, car driving, travelling and cycling I use the time to update and treat me with a diverse choice of podcasts.

The last few months I was listening frequently to the following shows. Feel free to share your favourite stuff in the comments section below.

99% Invisible
Weekly survey of the process and influence of design and architecture – LINK
Reply All
Everything interweb – LINK
Alternativlos
Weekly bizarre shit. German only. Sorry. – LINK
Uptowns Finest
Wicked Hip-Hop show. Every two weeks. Lots of german rap. Deadly – LINK
Audible Treats
Another Hip-Hop Podcast. Featuring up and coming under-the-radar artists. – LINK
TED Radio Hour
Audio journey through fascinating ideas. – LINK
The Big Interview with Graham Hunter
For all you football nerds – LINK
Radio Juicy
Classy Hip Hop stuff – LINK

Before the ÖtillÖ battle some days ago I wasn’t sure if it was a suitable idea. Now, a couple of days after the race, I’m keener then ever. Petter’s SwimRun Invitational Season closing fest will certainly be impressive. The course looks wicked and brings out an altered kind of racing. Now I’m happy to have a proper season ending party in 2 weeks.

It is kind of strange to discover a shoe like the ‘L.I.M Low’ in the Trekking segment of the Haglöfs website. The swedes promote it as a light, accordingly fast, shoe for walking in the mounts. Developed with the assistance of big Japanese colleagues Asics, the idea of the ‘L.I.M Low’ is to hike fast and cater shield against rocks and hard-hitting territory with protective but slim sole as well as robust upper-materials paired with a proper toe guard.

When I first saw the boot I was intruded. I commonly like Haglöfs modest but characteristic chic. I’ve jogged the most recent copies of the ‘Gram’ series the last couple of years (Check THIS & THAT). I treasured the dense style and the overall light and style towards trail footwear. The up-to-date ‘L.I.M Low’ was somewhat new-fangled and diverse. Once I saw the shoe I wasn’t really thinking about hiking. It was more of a light and reckless trail running shoe for my likes.

So when I got the pair and unboxed it I was not really amazed that the quality and the weight (272 g each) was top notch. I was more astonished what the sole had to offer. In anticipation of a rough and forceful off-road sole I came across a relatively modest attitude towards off-road sole design. In general the shoe looked particularly aggressive and fast. But I wasn’t sure in what topography it would execute the best.

The first parts of my local examination circlet is regularly on cemented streets. Straight from the start I valued the flat style and the low cut. The sensation of the shoe while running is excellent. There is a real road-flat sense towards it. Trail shoes typically give me a hard time on the first parts of my test run but this one felt decent and accustomed to paved ground. After a couple of minutes and some strides later I hit the forest highway in the direction of the first single trail unit of my run. Still amused and confident to run the ‘L.I.M Low’ I ask myself why this shoe is destined to be a hiking model. Running in this kicks just feels right.

It is still a bit wet as it has rained the last couple of nights. So this is a virtuous set-up to exam the grip. I hoover towards a stone segment and the sole comes close to sliding. Still a contented feeling in tough and tricky conditions. As the sole design is not widespread and grippy the fairly soft sole material makes up for respectable tug. As I corner around some trees I feel that the mud ducked in and I feel a little bit unsecure. Nothing special as the shoe and traction is back quickly after an encounter with a puddle cleaned the tires.

There is a drizzly grass hill I have to climb for a bit. I’m a bit astounded when the ‘L.I.M Low’ feels like home. No slipping and sliding there. I grin as the shoe is a fun partner for this quicker run. My run takes me past rocky trails and more mud. Still I’m confused why this should be a hiking shoe. For me it would be wasted during a hike.

During the last couple of weeks where I used this shoe for about 180 kilometres the ‘L.I.M Low’ turned out to be a pretty solid all-day running shoe. It is light but the protection and cushion is still there and more than sufficient for my likes. Once more, Haglöfs offers a shoe that has top notch quality and is produced with attention to detail. I’m certainly looking forward to more miles in this shoe. It’s fun to have such a great all-rounder in the arsenal. This shoe could be easily used for speed-hike sessions as well as non-technical hiking but for me it feels right that this shoe is moved faster!

What a day. What a race. It’s pretty hard to put the fascination of this competition in words. A lot of nice things have been written about this year’s encounter through the Stockholm archipelago. All these pieces do have a point and tell the story. The unadulterated splendour is the authentic act. Swimming and Running with your wingman.

Fellow readers, this contest is so hard-hitting. This race involves so many skills. It is so stunning. It is so tough. A very raw but truthful combination. Something that needs to sensed.

For slowtwitch.com I tried to put some words together (CLICK HERE) and describe the gear part of the entire act. A nice collective of articles, pictures and clips can be found on our The German Sparkle Party Team site.

One more of this SwimRun clashes and then its off-season.

Credits: www.odenhage.se

After my most recent TMB post I received some queries concerning the gear I used throughout this four day hike. My friend and I decided to take a pretty minimal tactic on the whole round course. Witnessing the course shape we told ourselves that “less is more”.

So here is a list of the equipment I used during the trek:

Backpack: The core of such a multiday trip is a suitable backpack. I considered some options but decided to go with the latest, and legitimately slight, version of Swiss Brand Mammut – the Creon Tour Modell. The 20 litre type was the one I chose. Using a comparably slender but lengthier form of backpack was a worthy select with my body type. Being a tall and lanky dude this rucksack flawlessly tailored my requirements for the excursion. The simple style and the well-made airing structure on the back is top notch. I like rucksacks without a vast quantity of unimportant partitions. The Creon was just accurately what I needed with a big main compartment, a stretchy small one in the front and two lateral side-parts to place and easy access the two flasks. Very intended packing and unloading made it a great partner. A very good feature is the integrated rain cover on the lowest part that unwraps and stores very fast.

Sleeping bag: We weren’t too sure about our sleeping places. That’s why we choose to bring a sleeping bag to have some options. A couple of years ago I bought a Yeti VIB 400. This was perhaps one of my best investments ever. The VIB 400 protected my life numerous times. Such a light, warm, tough and comfortable sack. As well as being warm and cosy the bag also packs very small. I stowed it in the bottommost of my rucksack without any problem and huge space loss.

Jacket: I used the Norröna Bitihorn dri1 jacket jacket through the early morning sequences, the rainy shares of our trek and in the evenings while hanging around. Above and beyond being ultra-packable and light, the coat is a multi-propose spouse which I surely valued. Rain or breeze is no damage to the up-to-date Norwegian creation. Love the zips on the sides that allow swift and easy ventilation. Solid made and stylish looking.

Shirt: Two tops were sufficient for me. Whereas I washed my top that I was using during the day I constantly had a different, fairly clean, shirt that I was using in the evenings. Merino is just a great material for stuff like this. Hand washing and drying is too easy. I used two “Tech T Lite Short Sleeve” shirts made by Icebreaker. Simple and effective!

Short: The “5″ Essential Run Short” by Brooks was my choice. It is a light and very well cut running short with some well-placed pockets. Very comfortable.

Trousers: The adidas Terrex Multi trouser is a great piece of equipment. Still light and particularly packable it offers certain possibilities on how to wear it. Occasionally I started in the morning with the long trousers. Fortunately the weather was so good that I mostly used it in the evenings.

Shoes: In detail I looked through my arsenal of shoes while packing for the voyage. From running training I saw that the newest Feline model by Dynafit would be the best thinkable mate. While being light it still has the full-bodied but comfy style. The form of the shoe offers plenty of shield on rocks even though it still is forceful throughout a fast hike. Furthermore the top layer that protects the lacing system seemed to be very effective against small rocks and sand that want to enter the shoe. The Feline turned out to be a great all-around speed hiking boot as I never had any tacky encounters with wet or slippy rocks. As well as the rucksack the shoe is probably the most vital part during such a trek. I choose the right one.

Poles: I’m an admirer of Leki’s “Shark Active Strap” System. I also use it with my Nordic skating poles and I think it is a great approach. For the TMB I used Leki’s “Smart Carbon” model which, based on their website, is a Nordic walking pole. The model is not foldable but I use it since a couple of years through sky running competitions and I also used it throughout the Transalpine Run a couple of years ago. Whereas being a bit doubtful towards poles a couples of years ago, I’m a admirer now. Specially for a tour like this it is a great decision and also a fine upper body workout.

I hope this answers some queries on what to use for your next venture.

Grabbed my GoPro for a Taper-twist over my local single tracks. Always impressive!

With the up-to-date style of the Feline SL, it appeared Austro Brand Dynafit just made the right updates to their earlier lightweight Sky Running model (See my review HERE). The newest Feline was my go-to shoe the last few months when it came to rocks, sludge and tricky muck. His latest outing was muffling myself around the Tour de Mont Blanc (Report HERE) a couple of weeks ago. Whilst clambering through the techy shares of the course, crossing rivers and all that, the Feline appeared to be pretty unimpressed.

However the shoe had no bother with the terrain, myself was fighting the vertical but I was able to trust on a light shoe with a sole that is probably on of the best for high mountain rocky trail. Tacky confronts with sharp stones got tackled satisfactorily while mud and puddles were dealt with no harm at all. To be honest, just the last couple of the hours around the course I paid attention to the Feline. I paid attention because I did not need to beforehand. It could be the lightness or the very low and comfortable fitting of the shoe. It could be the lacing systems that I really like or it just could be the efficient front upper of the shoe that keeps out sand and rocks.

While training on my home trails, I made the same check-up. A well-rounded shoe that does not hold back. The traction of the sole paired with (..what Dynafit named) the “Sensitive Fit“ system makes this shoe a trusty partner when it gets tricky and traily out there. This shoe is certainly not made for anything else than running natural paths. Road shouldn’t be used! The rest is easy…

Impressive grip paired with 8mm drop.

Just can’t stress that incredible grip. Dynafit offers a quality and light shoe that stays on course.

Fast and light travelling along technical trails. The Feline SL is a huge help and a great partner.

Easy to use – Quick lacing system!

Dynafit offers a quality shoe with beautiful details.

The soul of the Feline SL – GRIP. A lot of grip!

It was on the itinerary for quite some time. Back in 2003 when I first caught the ‘Ultra-Trail du Mont-Blanc (UTMB)’ by surprise via a piece in the French version of the ‘Runner’s World’ magazine, I was wholly rapt. At the time trail running was not a mass-hype – at least not outside of France. As my French is more less inexistent all the images that I saw, extremely fascinated me. The length of this footrace totally frightened me and the topography of the course appeared to be illusory and vicious all in one. At the time when this article confronted me with running lengthy and running in mountains I assumed it was a foolish thing to do.

 Still, I knew the area of play from skiing but couldn’t image people running from corner to corner of this lovely and gigantic mountain range. Consequently I learnt about the “Tour de Mont Blanc”, a hike through Switzerland, Italy and France. The UTMB race eventually monitors this structure of trails to reach its full length of 170 Kilometres. Since this article I watched the mythical Dawa Sherpa winning the first ever race, read about the wins of the running-myth that is Marco Olmo, shook the head in disbelief while Kilian Jornet won his first outing just under 21 hours and was fascinated when François d’Haene won the UTMB last year in a time of 20:11:44. Every year I’m surprised how many prominent racers drop out of this race. Highly decorated competitors don’t even make the cut offs. UTMB wins. The actual finish is a win in itself.

In the end Nick Clarks blog about his DNF a couple of years ago set an idea in my head. As running the competition was not really in my motivation array, I still desired to witness the course. What Nick stated at the end of his race-report ultimately fixed this idea.

“I think if I ever do get to lap Mont Blanc, it will be alone with my kids and wife. We will decide what we want to carry. We will pick a start time and a route. And then we will stick to it.”

Some of my friends ran the race. They came back with worn out bodies but raved about the magnificence of the area and the variety of the course. Hiking as an alternative to running appeared to be the paramount way appreciate this course and the environment you are passing through.

Three weeks ago my good pal Seb and myself filled our 20 litre rucksacks and marched this legendary route with minimal gear. We left the small Swiss hotel on top of Col de Forclaz early in the morning and made our way west en route for France. We left in damp and unkind conditions. Straight from the start of our excursion the fauna and the scenery drew us away. A couple of hours in, the day turned towards sun and sapphire sky. Flawless conditions for us. We did not touch our rain gear until some parts of the third day. We wandered through magnificent trails and the first ever glimpse of Mont Blanc was something the two of us will undoubtedly always recall. We traversed Col de Balme in nasty storms and beautiful fog. Made our way down in the direction towards Le Tour. The breeze blew away some of the clouds. Like a theatre curtain that opened up for the next act, the Mont Blanc got revealed. Cheerful morning sunshine was the beam. What a start. The conditions and the views continued to be nothing short of breath-taking throughout this journey. Lettering about all the specialities and breathtakingly encounters would fill a book.

We approached our trek as a 4 day outing. We assumed a bit more than 40 kilometres a day would be a genuine target for us (“The race best time is a bit more than 20 hours, we surely can do that in 4 days…” ). We started with a pleasant and steady pace. Not pushing too hard put still being aware of the speed we were wandering. After more than 45 kilometres on the first day we reached Les Houches in the late afternoon. While eating some pizza and downing some beers we decided that we don’t really want to remain with our tactic. Haven’t taken many pictures and haven’t stopped to often didn’t really do the area any justice. As the enormous uphill and downhill shares of the course were sharper and lengthier then we anticipated we needed to alter our plan. The choice was to just walk and agree throughout the day where we are going to stop and stay overnight. Unquestionably this was the best decision and surely is the one I would recommend anyone else that is planning to hike around the Mont Blanc. If you are not around with a huge group I wouldn’t put myself under the stress of reaching any way-point at a definite time. Our four day strategy was very much radical. Still I say that it is a achievable plan if you keep the pace high and might run the long downhill stretches. On the other hand you would miss a lot of distinct details that make this path so exceptional and beautiful.

With the choice of not rushing ourselves it sustained to be an impressive hike. The structure of hotels and Refugio’s we used is superb and even through the peak season we never had any difficulties finding economical and proper accommodation. Some peaks might be a bit crowded but we always found a silent place to rest, relax and soak in the splendour.

After four days of walking we touched down in the Swiss settlement of La Fouly in the early afternoon. Pleased and hyped after all the experiences we bought ourselves some ice-cold cans of coke and relaxed in the warm lunchtime sun. We skipped the latter 20 kilometres of the way but were still cheerful with what we had done in those four days. The TMB, UTMB or whatsoever you want to call it is a true and authentic biggie. It is a path that has its image for a reason.