Against Gravity: René Wildhaber and Patrick von Känel take off

The makers René Wildhaber and Patrick von Känel

René Wildhaber and Swiss paragliding pro Patrick von Känel have known each other for a long time. Wildhaber is one of the best-known enduro mountain bikers, while Patrick is a star of his scene and came second at the Red Bull X-Alpes.

Inspiration

About a year ago, René Wildhaber and Patrick von Känel were philosophising with a sports psychologist friend about the similarities between what felt like fundamentally different sports. That's when the idea for this project was born.

Background

The Blüemlisal hut at an altitude of 2840 metres in the canton of Bern is a hotspot for hikers. But bikers are slowed down by a trail closure. Hover over it with a paraglider.

Paraglider

Crazy: Patrick flew up from the valley to the hut with his paraglider. It wasn't wind that made this possible, but thermals. This is created when the sun heats up cold air. The effect is usually strongest around midday.

Facts for your paragliding adventure

• 1400 hm Patrick flew up with his bike and glider, taking around 30 minutes. René needed just under two hours to reach the meeting point by MTB and on foot.
• 110 kilos: This is the load capacity of the glider Patrick used for the ascent. He himself weighs 90 kilos, his bike 13 kilos.
• 27 square metres The surface area of a typical paraglider. The material is wafer-thin, but extremely robust thanks to a special weaving process (ripstop). For the final flight over the closed trail, a tandem glider twice the size with a load capacity of 200 kilos was used.