View down the valley towards Salzburg from the Zinkenkögel Sesselbahn. Hallein is in the foreground.
Snowing hard and empty pistes.
31 December 2007
New Year's Eve
An afternoon of fun skiing on the Zinkenkögel, 10 minutes drive from our house. There was virtually no one around as it was snowing pretty hard most of the time and I got some beautiful fresh lines in. It's one of the oddities of skiing in Austria: locals aren't that keen on powder or off-piste riding, they love whizzing down groomed slopes under blue skies, which suits me fine. It means it's fairly easy to find untouched deep snow days after the most recent snowfall.
View down the valley towards Salzburg from the Zinkenkögel Sesselbahn. Hallein is in the foreground.
Snowing hard and empty pistes.
View down the valley towards Salzburg from the Zinkenkögel Sesselbahn. Hallein is in the foreground.
Snowing hard and empty pistes.
17 December 2007
11 December 2007
Krampus
Oh yes, it's that time of year again when Austria, that most civilised of European nations, goes nuts and allows people dressed as monsters to go around whipping the locals.
Basically the Krampus are demons that accompany St Nicholas on or around December 6 and scare the living sh*t out of little kids who may have been a bit naughty during the year. These days it's more a bit of fun, but still, they can be a quite menacing and those whips certainly sting.
We saw the best Krampus run in Fuschl am See, which is where these photos were taken. Afterwards we were having a few drinks in the pub and a whole bunch of them came in to dish out another beating.
The grand entrance.
Two Krampuses looking for someone to whip.
Katie and Ingrid with some new friends.
Basically the Krampus are demons that accompany St Nicholas on or around December 6 and scare the living sh*t out of little kids who may have been a bit naughty during the year. These days it's more a bit of fun, but still, they can be a quite menacing and those whips certainly sting.
We saw the best Krampus run in Fuschl am See, which is where these photos were taken. Afterwards we were having a few drinks in the pub and a whole bunch of them came in to dish out another beating.
The grand entrance.
Two Krampuses looking for someone to whip.
Katie and Ingrid with some new friends.
8 December 2007
Skiing
The season has come early, which makes a nice change to the dire season we had last year. The mountains have a decent amount of snow already and most resorts opened ahead of schedule.
Here's a couple of pictures taken by Craig Kolesky (www.craigkolesky.com) , a South African photographer. The visibility was pretty bad and these were taken in between the long periods of thick fog. Fantastic day out though..
Here's a couple of pictures taken by Craig Kolesky (www.craigkolesky.com) , a South African photographer. The visibility was pretty bad and these were taken in between the long periods of thick fog. Fantastic day out though..
7 November 2007
More mountains
It's freezing outside and snowing which is pretty exciting for us as it means the ski season will begin soon. Some of the ski resorts have opened already but we did make the most of a gorgeous autumn to get up a few mountains before it got too wintery.
This is the view from the Kleine Barmstein, a lump of rock that overlooks our town, Hallein. Some parts of the climb were a little unnerving, and there is a 140m vertical drop at the top.
The Große Barmstein, it's about 3m higher than the Kleine .. fascinating, I know.
Border crossing from Germany into Austria .. in the middle of a farmer's field. Nobody asked to see my passport.
Last ride of the season: the Trattberg. 1600m high, 1000m of climbing, and a spectacular view. Good times.
On the way down from the Trattberg - no idea why I look so miserable.
This is the view from the Kleine Barmstein, a lump of rock that overlooks our town, Hallein. Some parts of the climb were a little unnerving, and there is a 140m vertical drop at the top.
The Große Barmstein, it's about 3m higher than the Kleine .. fascinating, I know.
Border crossing from Germany into Austria .. in the middle of a farmer's field. Nobody asked to see my passport.
Last ride of the season: the Trattberg. 1600m high, 1000m of climbing, and a spectacular view. Good times.
On the way down from the Trattberg - no idea why I look so miserable.
29 September 2007
Gaisberg
I rode up the Gaisberg, a nearby mountain that overlooks Salzburg, this morning on a perfect autumn's day. The climb is about 12km long with 800m vertical and the last 3km being at over 15% - in other words, a world of pain. But as ever, it's always worth it for the view and descent back down.
27 September 2007
Ireland, to be sure.
After Croatia we had a few days in Cork, Ireland with my brother Mike and his girlfriend Grainne. The weather held out for us and we had a grand time on the beach learning the national game, hurling and practising our frisbee skills.
Evenings were spent in the many pubs which usually come complete with grumpy old men and a steady supply of the local stout, Beamish. We watched Ireland lose to France in the Rugby World Cup, which led to a lot of people yelling things at the TV like, "Jaysus, ya feckin little bolix!"
Our final night was also in a pub where we played Ringo, which was kinda like bingo, but with music and we were suitably hungover and tired for our flight the next morning.
Dromagh stone circle.
Mike and Grainne. Grainne hid a blackberry in Mike's hair - it took about half a day until he noticed.
On the beach..
No idea what this was all about, but someone made this weird entrance arrangment out of bike frames so it was worth a photo.
Evenings were spent in the many pubs which usually come complete with grumpy old men and a steady supply of the local stout, Beamish. We watched Ireland lose to France in the Rugby World Cup, which led to a lot of people yelling things at the TV like, "Jaysus, ya feckin little bolix!"
Our final night was also in a pub where we played Ringo, which was kinda like bingo, but with music and we were suitably hungover and tired for our flight the next morning.
Dromagh stone circle.
Mike and Grainne. Grainne hid a blackberry in Mike's hair - it took about half a day until he noticed.
On the beach..
No idea what this was all about, but someone made this weird entrance arrangment out of bike frames so it was worth a photo.
22 September 2007
Croatia
We spent a week chilling out on the Istrian peninsula in Croatia, swimming in the Adriatic sea and doing a bit of sightseeing. The countryside is a bit average but there are dozens of tiny villages to explore and the ones along the coast are quite beatiful. The Romans were quite prolific in the area and there are plenty of remains to visit including the incredible amphitheatre in Pula.
Food wasn't too interesting, but we had a fun few nights out including watching a rock cover band play on the shoreside of Vrsar fronted by two sisters who wailed and moshed their way from the Rolling Stones to Guns n' Roses while wearing super-tight jeans - alllriiiight!!!
Rominj - one of the nicest coastal villages along the West coast of Istria.
It was riddled with gorgeous tiny lanes to wonder around and get lost in.
The Roman amphitheatre in Pula .. "my name is Gladiator!"
It's quite amazing that the Amphitheatre has survived for 2100 years in such good condition - the Venetians wanted it knocked down, locals used the stones for building supplies and it has seen plenty of wars.
The Roman temple in the centre of town.
Food wasn't too interesting, but we had a fun few nights out including watching a rock cover band play on the shoreside of Vrsar fronted by two sisters who wailed and moshed their way from the Rolling Stones to Guns n' Roses while wearing super-tight jeans - alllriiiight!!!
Rominj - one of the nicest coastal villages along the West coast of Istria.
It was riddled with gorgeous tiny lanes to wonder around and get lost in.
The Roman amphitheatre in Pula .. "my name is Gladiator!"
It's quite amazing that the Amphitheatre has survived for 2100 years in such good condition - the Venetians wanted it knocked down, locals used the stones for building supplies and it has seen plenty of wars.
The Roman temple in the centre of town.
13 September 2007
Hibernation
There is snow on the mountain peaks and it's getting pretty nipply at night which means it's nearly time to pack up the bikes for winter. Unfortunately it gets too cold, snowy and icy to keep riding seriously throughout the winter here, not to mention that the roads are always salted which totally trashes bicycles.
It's been an awesome summer though and I've managed to pack in over 4000km of riding since Easter.
Riding with my local club has been fun too, though the mid-ride cafe stops are a somewhat more boozy than I've previously experienced. Usually we get a good two to three hours in before stopping, at which point everyone orders a large beer to wash down their sausage and bread snack. Makes a change to coffee and cake anyway.
Today's ride: Hallein, Golling, Voglau, St. Koloman. 650m of climbing - sweet.
The bike geeks among you will be happy to know that I have been riding a single-speed to work each day. There are a couple of nuggety hills on the way but it's such a cool rig to ride that it is going to suck not getting to ride it until next April.
The hack bike.
Beautiful.. please note missing spokes and chainring bolt.
It's been an awesome summer though and I've managed to pack in over 4000km of riding since Easter.
Riding with my local club has been fun too, though the mid-ride cafe stops are a somewhat more boozy than I've previously experienced. Usually we get a good two to three hours in before stopping, at which point everyone orders a large beer to wash down their sausage and bread snack. Makes a change to coffee and cake anyway.
Today's ride: Hallein, Golling, Voglau, St. Koloman. 650m of climbing - sweet.
The bike geeks among you will be happy to know that I have been riding a single-speed to work each day. There are a couple of nuggety hills on the way but it's such a cool rig to ride that it is going to suck not getting to ride it until next April.
The hack bike.
Beautiful.. please note missing spokes and chainring bolt.
19 August 2007
Red Bull X-Alps
Well, we made it. Working on the Red Bull X-Alps was an experience we'll never forget.
For those of you who didn't know, I have been working on this project since about December: it was basically an adventure race that starts on the Dachstein Glacier and finishes in Monaco. The athletes travel by either paragliding or hiking. www.redbullxalps.com has all the details. It took about 17days and we were on the road that whole time, drove a few thousand kilometres and camped in some pretty neat parts of the Alps.
Anyway, we got to follow the race in a camper and travelled with a couple of photographers and tandem paragliding pilots: Vitek from Czech, Olivier (France), Ralf (Austria) and Felix (Germany).
Overall, it was great, although a lot of work and we are still trying to catch up on sleep. We saw a lot of the Alps, met some very cool people from all over the world and we swam in the sea in Monaco, which was nice and warm. Highlights were the Swiss Alps and some very memorable drives through the night.
We crashed with Olivier at his chalet in Chamonix for a couple of nights of guitar playing and general merriment.
As for the camper van, well, we had more than a couple of little bumps, mainly my fault, I admit..
Ralf sleeping in his car
Our camper near Mont Blanc - the damage is on the other side
Katie on one of the many beautiful mountain passes in Switzerland
The view from where we free-camped in Monaco
Martin Müller, the third placed athlete landing near the beach in Monaco
Me on the beach in Monaco, looking a bit tired
These three are just a few of the 'official' photos, taken by the guys with the tandem pilots' help. This one near the Eiger, Switzerland and probably my favourite shot from the whole event
Chamonix valley
Olivier flying near Mont Blanc with his fisheye lens
For those of you who didn't know, I have been working on this project since about December: it was basically an adventure race that starts on the Dachstein Glacier and finishes in Monaco. The athletes travel by either paragliding or hiking. www.redbullxalps.com has all the details. It took about 17days and we were on the road that whole time, drove a few thousand kilometres and camped in some pretty neat parts of the Alps.
Anyway, we got to follow the race in a camper and travelled with a couple of photographers and tandem paragliding pilots: Vitek from Czech, Olivier (France), Ralf (Austria) and Felix (Germany).
Overall, it was great, although a lot of work and we are still trying to catch up on sleep. We saw a lot of the Alps, met some very cool people from all over the world and we swam in the sea in Monaco, which was nice and warm. Highlights were the Swiss Alps and some very memorable drives through the night.
We crashed with Olivier at his chalet in Chamonix for a couple of nights of guitar playing and general merriment.
As for the camper van, well, we had more than a couple of little bumps, mainly my fault, I admit..
Ralf sleeping in his car
Our camper near Mont Blanc - the damage is on the other side
Katie on one of the many beautiful mountain passes in Switzerland
The view from where we free-camped in Monaco
Martin Müller, the third placed athlete landing near the beach in Monaco
Me on the beach in Monaco, looking a bit tired
These three are just a few of the 'official' photos, taken by the guys with the tandem pilots' help. This one near the Eiger, Switzerland and probably my favourite shot from the whole event
Chamonix valley
Olivier flying near Mont Blanc with his fisheye lens
9 July 2007
Back in the UK
Spent the weekend near Bristol at the NASS - a sports and music festival. The event itself was a bit grubby. There was rubbish everywhere and the toilets were like some kind of apocalyptic scene. But the BMX competition that I was working on went off and the level of riding just amazing.
And we got to stay in a neat little village pub in a tiny place called Nunney with an ancient castle in the middle. Hanging out with two German filmographers Dominik and Thomas and the Dutch photographer Rutger was great. I'm really beginning to appreciate central Europe and all its quirks and cultures. I think they were slightly blown away at getting to crash in this perfect slice of English countryside.
And we got to stay in a neat little village pub in a tiny place called Nunney with an ancient castle in the middle. Hanging out with two German filmographers Dominik and Thomas and the Dutch photographer Rutger was great. I'm really beginning to appreciate central Europe and all its quirks and cultures. I think they were slightly blown away at getting to crash in this perfect slice of English countryside.
4 June 2007
More cycling fun
Yep, more cycling related activity. This time the Glockner Koenig mass bike ride/ race. Basically an uphill race 27km long, with 1800m climbing, the steepest section being 12% and incorporating 14 hairpins. In other words: world of pain!
This ride has been on the cards for a while since Mum and Dad did it a few years ago. Me and Dad rode this year and what a challenge! I managed to finish in 1hr 38min about 20 mins behind the winner and in 87th place out of 2020, and was felt totally spent. Dad wasn't too far behind in 3hr 13min.
Last few metres. The finish was amazing - 2445m above sea level with a fantastic view, way above the treeline.
Two knackered cyclists about to start a 27km descent.
This ride has been on the cards for a while since Mum and Dad did it a few years ago. Me and Dad rode this year and what a challenge! I managed to finish in 1hr 38min about 20 mins behind the winner and in 87th place out of 2020, and was felt totally spent. Dad wasn't too far behind in 3hr 13min.
Last few metres. The finish was amazing - 2445m above sea level with a fantastic view, way above the treeline.
Two knackered cyclists about to start a 27km descent.
27 May 2007
Giro!
Vai, vai! Well we went off to watch the Giro d'Italia and it was bella!
Although it rained a lot and was pretty freaking cold, we still had fun, saw the stars and I bumped into old university friend too. We were on the Tre Croci on one of the toughest mountain stages of the race and many of the cyclists looked pretty tired and cold.
But there is definitely something great about cycling when you can just rock up by the side of the road with a couple of million Italians and watch the best professionals race past. Forza Italia!
Although it rained a lot and was pretty freaking cold, we still had fun, saw the stars and I bumped into old university friend too. We were on the Tre Croci on one of the toughest mountain stages of the race and many of the cyclists looked pretty tired and cold.
But there is definitely something great about cycling when you can just rock up by the side of the road with a couple of million Italians and watch the best professionals race past. Forza Italia!
24 May 2007
Montpellier
Spent last weekend down in Montpellier, France for the Nokia FISE festival. I was working, but it was still a pretty neat couple of days and I got to hang out with some real nice folks.
Montpellier is a beautiful town, lots of typically French alleys and cafes to explore
The BMXing was absolutely amazing - best I've ever seen live for sure.
I was working on the Braun cruZer Tour part of the festival. Excellent competition and you can check the videos here: Daniel Dhers from Venezuela was my favourite. Super smooth and he should have won if you ask me..
Montpellier is a beautiful town, lots of typically French alleys and cafes to explore
The BMXing was absolutely amazing - best I've ever seen live for sure.
I was working on the Braun cruZer Tour part of the festival. Excellent competition and you can check the videos here: Daniel Dhers from Venezuela was my favourite. Super smooth and he should have won if you ask me..
19 April 2007
My ride to work
It has to be the best commute I've ever had: 32km through the alps, along a canyon and over a couple of tricky climbs. The canyon road is quite amazing, just wide enough for a car and with a short tunnel bashed through some rock (you can just see it to the right of the photo).
This is the last climb - a nasty 1 in 6 effort over the Sonnberg before dropping down to Fuschl where the office is. Gotta love it.
The cycling season is now well under way and I had my first ride out with the bike club (RC Hallein) last week. That turned out to be a 110km in 3hr 15min blast through Bavaria, just over the German border. I felt surprisingly strong given that it was my first proper ride in months, but it was seriously "vollgas" and no hanging around.
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