Red Bull’s Der Lange Weg has been absolutely BRUTAL
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Athletes on an exposed traverse in the Austrian Alps. Christian Gamsjäger/Red Bull photo.
Red Bull’s Der Lange Weg, now a little over week in, has proven to be absolutely anything but easy for the team of seven skiers. Within the first eight days, they have dealt with dangerous weather conditions, less-than-ideal snow, and even medical trouble, with Janelle Smiley almost dropping out due to heart issues.
So far, the team has already put in nearly 100,000 feet of vert and covered over 300 miles, all under their own power. Check out Red Bull's LIVE interactive tracking map below.
Jackson's own Mark Smiley reports: “This was our third 10,000+ foot day in a row, with at least 26 miles each day and often over 30. Getting up to do it again is getting harder but yet we keep walking.”
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Yesterday, the team summited Austria’s highest peak, the 11,332-foot Großglockner. To put that into perspective, this is usually done as a multi-day climb. The team did it
as part of a 13,600-foot day of climbing and skiing…in bad weather. This is the kind of thing that has become the norm for these athletes: putting in absolute benders of days on skis with no break.
The madness continues, with three more weeks of skiing as the seven skiers head west into Italy to explore what the Italian Alps have to offer.
