Red Bull X Alps – In July 2017 The World’s Toughest Race Returns

 

Starting in Salzburg, 32 Athletes of 21 nationalities will race a straight-line distance of 707 miles across the Alps to Monaco via 7 turnpoints in 7 different countries.

The race features 3 USA athletes: Gavin McClurg from Ketchum, Idaho, first-timer Jesse Williams from Bellingham, Washington, and first-timer Mitch Riley from Park City, Utah.

Travelling only by foot or paraglide, their every move is monitored by advanced Live Tracking technology and broadcasted to an audience of millions. With constantly changing weather conditions, tactical planning is as important as the extreme endurance required to participate. For this reason, each athlete has a supporter to help with strategy, nutrition and everything in between.

Before the main event, the one-day Leatherman Prologue race takes place in Fuschl am See. The top three finishers will each win an additional Ledlenser Night Pass, allowing them to race through the mandatory rest period. On day two of the main race, the usual 5:00am start will be delayed for each athlete by the time in which they finished the Leatherman prologue race behind the prologue winner. Only one thing is certain – anything could happen!

Red Bull X-Alps 2017 features hardest route in history.

The new route has been revealed for the 2017 Red Bull X-Alps, which will be the longest and hardest in the event’s 14-year history. Racing a straight-line distance of 707 miles from Salzburg to Monaco, including 7 different countries: Austria, Germany, Italy, Switzerland, France and for the first time; Slovenia. This exciting new development will make the world’s toughest adventure more challenging and more unpredictable than ever before.

As if that wasn’t enough, the new Slovenian turnpoint will lead the participants to race along Europe’s largest mountain range and traverse it four times between the northern and southern fringes. Race director Christoph Weber says; “Such a wide variety of potential routes comes with a whole new world of strategic possibilities that will push rookies and veterans alike to their very limits; both mentally and physically.”

 

 

The race starts at the historic Mozartplatz in Salzburg, Austria. From there, the athletes will run through the city and up the Gaisberg to Turnpoint 1. The scenic view above the Salzburger Land region will attract thousands of fans from far and wide. A grueling 98-mile straight-line journey south through Austria will take them to Turnpoint 2, the Mangart paragliding launch pad on the edge of Triglav National Park in Slovenia. Triglav is the first Slovenian turnpoint to appear in the race and is 9,397 feet above sea level.

Traveling northwest from Slovenia, the competitors will traverse the Austrian Alps for a second time to reach Turnpoint 3; Aschau-Chiemsee in Germany. Located at the foot of the Kampenwand in the picturesque town of Aschau im Chiemgau, the athletes will decide whether to continue west on foot, or climb upwards and take to the air.

Turnpoint 4 is the second Austrian turnpoint in the race and can be found in the village of Lermoos. Situated in the shadow of the Zugspitze, the almost 9,845 foot mountain connects Austria to Germany and offers the athletes huge flying potential.

Pushing back south through the Alps to Italy, the athletes will find themselves at Turnpoint 5, nestled closely to Lake Garda by Monte Baldo. At this point, the competitors will have successfully passed the halfway mark; but with tired feet, aching muscles and 301 miles still to go, anything could happen.

Turnpoint 6 lies 156 miles west at the Matterhorn in southern Switzerland, making it the longest stretch between two consecutive turnpoints in the race. If getting there isn’t hard enough, navigating around one of the highest summits in Europe certainly will be.

In a final push, the hungry competitors will battle it out over the remaining 152 miles to reach Turnpoint 7 in Peille, southeast France. Finally, the timer will stop, leaving the athletes to make the 1.3 mile victory flight over Monaco to the warm, blue waters of the Mediterranean Sea. Here, they will touch down in style on a landing float to celebrate the accomplishment and relief of completing the world’s toughest adventure race.

The new route for Red Bull X-Alps 2017 will be the most demanding in the race’s 14-year history. From now, the athletes have just over two months to prepare for the enormous journey that lies ahead. To download an animated route graphic visit: here

To meet the athletes and learn more about the race, head over to redbullxalps.com and facebook.com/redbullxalps.