You may ask yourself how the hell I got into the Engadin Ski Marathon and cross country skiing?

Well, in the first place the Engadin valley is one of my favorite places for freeriding and one of the most beautiful places I know. Period. While a I was on a holiday with my brother he took part of the Engadin Ski Marathon and I went to see the famous downhill-section in the “Stazerwald”, where hundreds of spectators gather to watch thousands of participants pass the most technical part of the race. With around 10 to 20% crashing. The atmosphere took me and I decided to participate next time. That was 2014 so this year was my third marathon.

Meanwhile I really like it.

What started as a crackpot idea grew into a serious sport over the years. When you’re not 20 anymore, it’s good to make sure you stay healthy and one big part of it is working on your endurance. During the winter, apart form skinning up mountains, cross country skiing is my favorite. It’s relatively gently to your joints and it lets your eyes and mind wander through the landscape. 

Not quite what I expected.

This year I had great ambitions first but as I couldn’t manage to get onto my skis before last Monday, I had to tone it down a little bit. The fact that I forgot my insoles while collecting everything at 5am didn’t help either. For the first few kilometers I was busy recalibrating my balance and getting it going. While 2:42 is still a quite acceptable time I hope I can keep up to my ambitions next year and break the 2:30 mark for the first time.