X-Alps: An X-treme X-am

Red Bull X-Alps, began on July 23, 2007. It represents two of the world’s toughest adventure races in one. Each of the participants has to be a perfect alpinist and a virtuoso paraglider, and each of them has a mission: to traverse the Alps from east to west. Along the way their every move is pinpointed by Live Tracking technology, which enables fans to keep up to date with their exact location on www.redbullxalps.com.

CHECK THE REDBULLXALPS.COM FOR REAL-TIME UPDATES AND VIDEO CLIPS!

The equipment that the athletes carry weighs 44 pounds. The average body weight lost over the 528-mile stretch is 22 pounds – perhaps comparable to what will be taken of competitors’ minds when they cross the finish line. For Red Bull X-Alps is more than just a traversing of the Alps. “It’s an adventure, an expedition and at the same time a brutal competition,” says Red Bull Air Race pilot Hannes Arch – the man who thought up the gruelling race in 2003, which is run on foot and using paragliders.

From glacier to ocean

The Red Bull X-Alps course starts at Krippenstein (Dachstein range), Austria and finishes in Monaco. Only four turning points on the course have to be passed: Marmolada in Italy, Eiger in Switzerland as well as Mont Blanc and Mont Gros in France. The number of breaks taken is decided by the participants. According to experience, each athlete should minimize sleep to three hours per night in order to get to Monaco in a competitive overall time of 12 to 20 days.

Two races in one

The rules are as straight as the course itself: Only those who are both experienced alpinists and paragliders with valid licences are allowed to take part. Each team consists of one athlete and one assistant. And at their disposal, each athlete has only their own feet and a paraglider, which they have to carry with them at all times – as well as an emergency parachute, a helmet, a GPS system and three flares for emergency situations. An additional rule for 2007, the third time the event has been held, will make things even more interesting. Every second day the slowest competitor will be pulled from the race, making for exciting competitiveness both at the front and at the back of the field.

Online competition for alpinists suffering from vertigo

Those who didn’t secure one of the 30 starting places can participate in the adventure race in a less strenuous way. On the official website www.redbullxalps.com visitors can follow each of the athletes online, track their positions and compare them to other participants using the Live Tracking feature. They can also view the course via Google Earth program, read the athletes’ thoughts in their personal blogs and leave messages of support on guestbooks.