Red Bull X-Alps 2015: prolgue today, the race begins Sunday

At a campground 25km east of Salzburg, Austria, there is a scene of fevered activity. Last minute adjustments are being made to equipment; maps are being studied and marked up, and final preparations to logistics, nutrition and strategy are being made.

The site, on the shores of lake Fuschl in Austria’s Salzburgerland region, is the temporary home of 32 athletes and their supporters who will shortly take on one of the world’s toughest challenges – the Red Bull X-Alps.

It is a race from one end of the Alps to the other by foot and paraglider only, and it’s about as heroic and epic as it gets. This Thursday July 2 the race kicks off with a one-day Prologue before the race proper starts on Sunday July 5 in Salzburg. The competitors then race via 10 Turnpoints in Austria, Germany, Italy, Switzerland and France, before finishing – by tradition – on a landing float in the sea in Monaco.

The straightline distance is 1,038km but this alone does not put into perspective the challenge and difficulty of this race.

"Make no mistake, the athletes here today are among some of the most impressive adventurers of their generation," says race Mastermind Hannes Arch. "You are looking at athletes who are completely at home in the mountains; they will run 50km, hike 2,000m up a mountain and then launch in conditions others would not dream of flying and then fly for several hours, sometimes as far as 200km in a single flight. And they do this day after day, from 05:00 until 22:30 until they reach Monaco. It’s incredible."

The lineup consists of 30 men and two women from 18 countries. It includes the three-time winner Chrigel Maurer (SUI), who set the fastest time in the last edition in 2013 with a remarkable time of 6d, 23h, 40m. The French were looking particularly strong this year until Clément Latour (FRA1) dramatically announced his retirement from the race due to injury. He came second in 2013 and his decision just a few days ago to quit robs the race of one of its stars. Flying the French flag now falls to Antoine Girard (FRA2), who came third in 2013. In an interesting twist, Girard’s supporter from 2013, Nelson de Freyman is now an athlete and at 23, the youngest competitor.

From the US are two noted characters, Gavin McClurg (USA2), a National Geographic Adventurer of the Year and Dave Turner (USA4) a badass climber and adventurer who last month hiked and flew the entire route to prepare, making it the fourth time he’s crossed the Alps by paraglider.

But the race is wide open. The Italian flying ace Aaron Durogati (ITA) could use his local knowledge of the Brenta mountains, one of the most challenging sections of the route, to his advantage. Then there’s Paul Guschlbauer (AUT1), third in 2011, who is a very strong adventure athlete. If he’s able to follow his race plan, he could be a podium contender.

"This is going to be one of the most exciting races we’ve ever had," says race director Christoph Weber. "The route is more challenging than in previous years and will really test the athletes. It will prove a gripping battle for fans to follow."

One of the unique highlights of the race is Red Bull MOBILE Live Tracking. Updated every second, it lets you follow every moment of the action, giving athlete positions, their flight/hike status, weather updates, thermal overlays, stats and more. You can even personalize to set up alerts so you never miss a news update or post from your favorite athlete. There is also a constantly updated news feed with the latest news, images and videos from the race from 05:00 to 22:30.

Bookmark it to your browser: the action begins with the one-day Prologue on Thursday July 2 at 10:00am.

For more information check out www.redbullxalps.com and the official profiles Facebook and Twitter.