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Juli 15, 2023 / Keine Kommentare

Impressions: La Isla Bonita

The 708 km2 atoll of La Palma has its moniker for a reason – La isla bonita (English: The Beautiful Island).

In 2016 I spend some weeks on the island and wrote about it on Slowtwitch.

Now I returned to one of my absolute favorite places for a month with my family. In the next few weeks, I will post some of the visual features of this visit. Enjoy!

Juli 13, 2023 / Keine Kommentare

Black Diamond – Distance 4 Hydration Vest

Utah based Black Diamond Equipment might not be the trail running household name. However, the brand is a highly respected producer of climbing and skiing equipment. The step towards trail running comes naturally to complete the mountain-based product line up. I got the chance to test their latest update of the Distance 4 Hydration Vest (Version 2). The 4-liter vest was the latest addition to the Distance collection back in in 2019. The product line features an 8 liter and a 15 lite model. Now it got a proper update. I was using the vest throughout the last couple of weeks on several runs ranging from technical mountain runs to hot runs on the roads.

The first thing that really amazed me was the slender and elastic material. Whilst it was hard in the past to find the right vest, this one felt proper right from the get-go. The light fabric is stretchy but still very secure and comfortable. Even runs without a shirt weren’t a problem and chafing as well as hotspots aren’t an issue. The seaming is pretty thought out and doesn’t cause issues. Something I had been stressed about in the past. Breathability is not an issue, and the vest absorbs water in a efficient way – meaning it doesn’t suck in your fluids and stays light and comfortable throughout the run.

Somewhat of an undisputed highlight – the On-the-go Z-Pole storing. It’s a technique that allows you to gather your running poles outside the vest. There are methods around that can be attached to backpacks but this one is an internal feature developed by Black Diamond. It will only work for poles that can be folded. With the use of two stretch panels, the Z-Pole carry system will let you easily attach the poles and move it over your head to have them fixed on your backside. What sounds difficult isn’t the matter if you take the time to grasp the system. I found it to be a super pleasant trait and you will be able to use it fast and efficient. Even through fast and technically difficult downhills, the poles stayed where they should be.

Here is a picture that shows the stored poles on the backside of the vest. The whole system is quite thought out as the stored poles do not block any of the pockets and allow easy use and accessibility of all features the vest has to over.

The front flask pockets fit two Black Diamond 500mL HydraPak SoftFlasks. Note that only the supplied 500mL flasks are safe to use. I tried some other brands, and they wouldn’t stay. The flasks come with the vest. I also used minor flask and they remained fine and with no problem. Saying that, the provided flasks are super nice, and they comfort the shape of the front pocket which makes it pleasant and easy to run with. I used the vest through faster road runs, and it worked super fine also all the trail running I got in, no problem. Easy access to the flask and a safe storage. These pockets get complimented by a zip up chest pocket, a back zip security pocket and small store pouches that present sufficient storage capacity for essential supplies.

A close-up of the material used throughout the vest.

The update of the Distance 4 Hydration Vest is a proper one. I liked the elementary use and easy access for all provided compartments. The front pocket is well placed and hold more stuff than I was used to in the past. It appears that gels, phone and other stuff falls in the right place and stays safe without moving while you run. I used the vest for work commutes (without PC or iPad) and because of its stretchability it worked wonders when storing clothes and smaller items. Whilst running on trails and on the road the flask stays well and can be used without any problems since they sit at the right height. So, it is not really required to take them out while drinking. The vests center has a large zip-closure section and bladder covering that holds garment and food neatly. I use the pack for daily runs and longer one day explorations. I can not see myself using it for a multi-day outing.

Tune of the day: Big Sproxx – Duality (feat. Planet Asia, The Legend Adam Bomb & DJ Grouch)

Juli 10, 2023 / Keine Kommentare

shoeporn: Saucony – Endorphin Rift

Saucony just dropped some exiting fresh off-road kicks in their Endorphin line. With the aggressive and distinct “Slime” colorway, Saucony wants to assign the success they have with their road supershoe Endorphin Elite from one surface to another. The Waltham, Massachusetts based company has left quite some positive impression with their latest trail models, the Endorphin Trail and the Endorphin Edge. These models have been an amazing addition to the traditional Peregrine and the Xodus Ultra (one of my all-time favorite trail shoes).

The newest unit to the Endorphin trail line – the Saucony Endorphin Rift. This shoe could be placed in a line with the Endorphin Edge. The big difference amongst these high-end trail running shoes is the shortage of the carbon plate in the Rift. The foundation in both shoes is the reactive PWRRUN PB midsole foam that Saucony is using these days. And for a very good reason – it is really good. But there still is some plate build in this shoe. Customarily trail shoes use a shielding rock plate that guards the foot against rocks and everything dangerous that an off-road run might hold. And the Rift is no difference here.

The upper of the Rift is notably robust and notwithstanding me using it extensively across sharp volcano stone trails on La Palma in the recent weeks, it didn’t take too much beating. Its shielding and utmost breathable which I liked during the last hot summer runs. The sock-like inner of the shoe is a great treat and I found it to be very protective and stable during technical downhills.

This picture shows the inside of the Endorphin Rift and the wrap system that is build in to further give shield and steadiness to the shoes performance. It is a nice feeling of the foot locked in and it ensures a secure fit. Nothing that should be underrated in a good trail shoe.

I’m somewhat of a sucker for handy details – and some really nice ones can be found throughout the Rift. Some simple string hangers are attached at the heel and one on top of the tongue. They aid the access of the foot into the sock-like inner. Also, the golden lace cover is quite an eye candy to me.

The outsole of a trail shoe is quite significant and certainly a decision maker when buying such a shoe. The Rift’s lugs come in at 4.5mm plus and that is quite a lot for such a shoe. While I was a bit amazed at first it all made sense while running this shoe in its natural habitation. The lugs work fine and seem to add to the great cushioning of the shoe. Technical trail are no problem but I wouldn’t use it in deep mud or snow.

A closer look at the PWRTRAC Rubber used on the outsole. The 4.5mm Lugs are placed efficiently and I could fully rely on them. They surely work best when it’s a bit dryer.

The PWRRUN PB foam can be seen across the midsole of the Rift. Inside, as mentioned before, is a front woven flexible rock plate. This is the same plate that Saucony uses in the other trail models. I have become a fan of the foam not only in the road running shoes. It works well on the trails as well. It’s a dynamic and light material that overs a lot of ease. The stack height comes in at 32mm to 27mm and with 244 grams this shoe is certainly not a heavy one. This weight with so much cushion – you gotta love the latest foam technology.

Comparting the toebox to other latest Saucony trail shoes, it feels a little bit tighter. The Endorphin Edge would be a bit more spacious in the front part. The material in the front looks a bit like the Xodus Ultra and offers some protection for the toes by using non-stretch material. This is particularly a feature that I really treasure.

The Saucony Endorphin Rift caught me by surprise. I was super pleased with the Edge and I’m still a big fan of Sauconys Xodus, but the newest model gave me so much joy, more then I thought it will. Yes, it doesn’t feature a carbon plate like the Edge but that doesn’t hold back the overall performance. Frankly speaking, I didn’t really feel a huge deviation while on the trails. The Endorphin Rift works fine and stable during uphill, with its inner-sock it is a lot of fun to push up grades. The feeling that your energy is shifted into speed is there and that is very satisfying. Whilst cruising on technical trails, the sense for the ground is noteworthy, despite the cushion, the ground feeling is continually there. Regardless of the stack height the shoe doesn’t feel “elevated”. It’s fun to run it fast and it’s a great choice for downhills due to the effective and well build midfoot wrap.

Tune of the day: dBridge presents Exit Records (The Aptitude Show)

April 16, 2023 / Keine Kommentare

shoeporn: Hoka – Rocket X 2

Another month, another super shoe. Hoka has been on the forefront when it comes to running shoe innovation. They have been pushing the market like no other brand in the last few years. Hokas uprising is closely connected to their maximum cushion approach balancing with the weightlessness of their product. Their latest release features the utter pinnacle of their recent collection – the long anticipated Rocket X2.

The Rocket in its second edition is the brands leading road-racing shoe. Plainly aimed for marathon racing, the X2 has everything that all carbon super shoes these days obtain – a springy oversized midsole combined with a firm carbon plate – the magic combination for speed.

Although weight typically is one of the strongholds for Hoka shoes, I was quite surprised to find out that the update to the Rocket X does also include a weight gain of 234 grams. One of the explanations could be that the stack height has been raised from 30 mm/25 mm to 36 mm/31 mm. Although running in the Rocket X2 did not feel clumsy and heavy though.

While Hoka seems to rule the running shoe market, their top racing shoes have been lacking the magic somehow. One of the explanations for this is, that Hokas compression molded EVA foam, that is widespread with their training shoes, lacks the energy return that is needed for quicker running. The Rocket x2 is the first Hoka shoe to use the PEBA foam that most of the other shoe brands take for their top range carbon race shoes.

Hoka listened and changed quite everything to the initial Rocket X model. With the arrangement of the new foam material and a remodeled carbon plate, this shoe has an amazing springboard feel. I was super thrilled to feel that amazing bounce that this shoe overs. A very powerful and race-oriented feeling of pure bounciness. Entertaining!

Quite weirdly, the Rocket X2 doesn’t feel as “high” as some of the other carbon plated high stacked super shoes. It feels more like you’re in the shoe, other than on top of it. An experience some of the other shoes give to me and something that is very noticeable with this model. Consequently, this shoe feels exceptionally stable for its style. I sneaked some dry trails in during one of my jogs with this shoe and it felt positively bizarre to do that in such ease with such a road racing shoe.

Although I used this shoe on trails, it is clearly a road racing shoe and should be used just for this. The outsole is very solid, offers a great grip on dry and wet roads and runs smooth on the track. The design is pretty much flat and that creates a smooth and comfortable ride. Its feels very stable and durable, also something that is not the norm for high end shoes nowadays.

For some runners the missing padding on the heel section might be a problem. I’m used to it especially in the light high end racing shoes, but it is missing in this model. After some runs I figured out how to lace the shoe and it didn’t cause me any trouble at all, but It surely is a feature that can be improved in the next version.

Although there are some downsides, the latest version of the Rocket X is an amazing and fast racing shoe. It’s a proper and well-constructed update to its predecessor. The shoe has an amazing support for speed and that makes this shoe a lot of fun and easy to run fast in. While additional weight might be a problem, it gets outweigh by the pure springiness that is exceptionally special and to me one of the best on the market right now. It is no surprise that all Hoka Elite athletes instantly switched to this model as soon as it was accessible. A shoe that now moves that distinct Hoka character into a real road racing Rocket ship.

Tune of the day: Goldie @ HÖR

März 15, 2023 / Keine Kommentare

This competition left a proper impression from the very first time I heard about it. Skiing the iconic 90-kilometer Vasaloppet course during the middle of the night beckoned something distinct and inimitable. Back in 2018 I did an interview with Oscar Brandt and Christofer Eriksson who won back then. It happened that we were in Sälen in 2022 to watch the start of the race. A mere of 3.000 skiers lined up with their headlamps turned on – a very remarkable image that left me with the craving to give this competition a go – in the unforeseen future.

My primary XC skiing goal for this winter, another effort at the Nordenskiöldsloppet, got vanished as the distinct 220-kilometer contest got negated early on. Together with a friend I wanted to attempt a self-organized Double-Vasan approach but that sadly did not happen either. When this quest got called off, the Nattvasan pieces swiftly aligned themselves. Knowing that my friend Nils Spetz was an admirer of the race as well, it only took one phone call, and he was hooked. Together with our friends at Peak Performance we also had the appropriate outfit to face a gloomy night out in the Dalarna wilds. Spontaneous race trips are the best and even more so if the whole thing happens as flawless and natural as this time.

So, we sat in the shuttle bus from Mora to the start in Sälen and drove along the course. It was more than apparent what the conditions would look like. Substantial winds, especially on the plateau, shaped quite a challenging set-up for the impending nightshift. We heard that quite a substantial number of leaves and wood has been blown all over the tracks during the past few hours. The challenging setting formed some extra tension, but we were super eager and positive to get going. Admiring the team racing character in Swimrun, it felt quite natural to transfer this attitude into another endurance sport. Fortunately, Nils had the same attitude which made this mission even better.

With a start spot pretty much at the front of the masses we were fairly lucky. The race got underway and notwithstanding all the typical Vasaloppet madness, this one set off quite smooth. Some minor incidents at the very start of the first climb but then we kept on rolling along nicely. The tracks were super frozen which made up for some fast splits. Every now and then the wind supported us, occasionally we struggled with the headwind and at times it was even thinkable to skate as the side winds nearly knocked me out. Half-Competently we freestyled our way across the course and adjusted the technique to whatever was the safest. An insane rollercoaster in severe wind circumstances. Sometimes exciting, most of the times creepy.

Even though the other Vasaloppet contests offer a rich aid station buffet, the Nightvasan set-up is kept to an absolute bare minimum which complements the raw adventure charisma. Some of the stations were not even maned. We managed quite well but were not prepared to the extend we would have liked to be. There is quite some knowledge to take away for a return to the scene next year. But the raw and simple approach paired with the night racing is something that was even better than I awaited. Nocturnal contesting improves a diverse perception and competing as team even widens this approach.

5:13:40 hours later and at 01:13 AM our Dalarna nightshift came to end at an uncommon, deserted Vasaloppet finish line in Mora. We got precisely what we wanted, a tough and challenging night on the tracks with a very satisfying ending. To be continued…

Tune of the day: Alcapella – 100 Mad Presents Heritage

März 2, 2023 / Keine Kommentare

An ode to the Öppet Spår

I left last years Vasaloppet with a creepy indescribable feeling. The race itself doesn’t need any introduction or portrayal. I have been writing about it on this complimentary cyberspace site more than a few times and I haven’t altered my view at all.

Vasaloppet Sunday is the big day. And while I was profoundly and truly captivated as a kid watching German TV and the “Sport aus aller Welt” program, seeing all these thousands of skiers racing in the direction of this first climb, it really takes time and understanding for Swedish culture to fully get it. Personally, I do not know any other one-day sporting event that influences an entire country and its society in such a way as Vasaloppet does. Everybody knows about it. Every person appreciates it and everyone, to my full surprise every year, can judge the finishing times.

I’m fully sold on Nordic skiing and living in a country that makes it easy to train this sport, makes Vasaloppet the logical yearly pilgrimage. In 2022 I did the main race. Deprived of a qualification time that can be recorded in other XC ski competitions one need to start in the very back. I was privileged to get the chance to move up to start group 7 that year.

The morning of the race, people start queuing for hours to nick a perfect start spot. Preferably in the very front of their heat. That meant that I walked down to the start, waited for hours to put the skis down walked back to the hotel and had breakfast. After some time, its back to the start and then the 2^nd queuing will sooner or later start as thousands of people try to get up this first steep hill. I waited there for approximately one hour with complete halt. So, the real race feeling never came up. Image running the New York City Marathon and waiting on the Verrazzano Bridge after 500 meters of running…

Full tracks but still remarkable crowds along the scenic course were great but the definite performance on the day was hard to measure. Something that left me unsatisfied. With only two seasons of proper ski training, I could be aiming for a qualification time to get me further up the ranks. Something that theoretically is a goal in the future. Until now I might have the endurance, but I miss the raw strength that is needed to call Vasaloppet a race. Therefore, we decided to not do the main Vasaloppet this year and participating in the Öppet Spår, the open track, competition the weekend before was the top decision.

No cues, not as many competitors and no traffic jam on course made up for everything. Joint with a sunshiny day that shaped an appropriate Dalarna propaganda day was fairylike. We arrived at the start in Sälen on time. Didn’t had to wait for our starting bibs and just went to the starting corals 15 minutes before the start. After last years disturbing queuing experience this set the day off in a dazzling and happily unspectacular way.

When the gun went off, I could ski the first climb and even appreciated some parts of the course completely on my very own. A feeling of freedom that I experienced at the Nordenskiöldsloppet last season. A feeling that I love when XC skiing. Wouldn’t it have been for one of the nastiest energy bonks I ever had, this would have been an astonishing day. I totally bashed awfully early on in the race and only came back after gasping 2 Maurten caffeine gels and nearly half my hydration belt.

After 5:24 I arrived in Mora. Very happy and lastly knowing how fast I can ski the course. I was fitter last year so that still leaves room for imagination and enthusiasm. The big and “real” Sunday competition will be on the agenda sometimes. Then with an upgraded body posture, a qualification time but still with the same love for this sport and its supreme race.

Tune of the day: DROELOE x IMANU – CATALYST

Februar 19, 2023 / Keine Kommentare

Ski is the limit

XC Ski season is in full swing and I’m loving it. Living in a major city that has so many ski possibilities is unusual and I’m really appreciating it. With Vasaloppets Öppet Spår Monday (Track) and the Nattvasan (Track) coming up, I really appreciate getting stuck in the skiing mode.