How did you get involved? It’s actually a bit of a quirky story – I became involved in the effort’s to save the Hector and Maui dolphins during the attempt to be the first man to free dive 100m in free diving. We called it Project Hector because 100m is a ‘hectometer’ – and to raise awareness of what’s happening to Hector’s Dolphins. We did the project, and it was a huge success, but my dedication to the cause didn’t end – so I've kept on campaigning. How endangered are they? Extremely. There’s only about 7,500 left worldwide – down from a population of 29,000 in the seventies. The Maui’s Dolphin sub-species of Hector’s Dolphins is thought to have only about 50 left in the population. You’ve only had one chance to swim with them… I’ve swum with other dolphins in the wild many times – where I live in the Bahamas, you see the Atlantic Spotted Dolphins, and Bottle-nosed Dolphins as well. But the swim with the Hector’s Dolphins was a really magical experience. It was in early 2011 when I was in New Zealand, and went to a place close to Christchurch – only a short encounter. Five or ten minutes. But even that was something I’ll never forget. They’re the 'Mickey Mouse' of the cetaceans – the dorsal fin is shaped like Mickey’s ear. They're all soft curves with colored shapes, gray and white, all over the body. World champion freediver Will Trubridge wants to raise awareness to protect the endangered Hector’s Dolphins. It’s much different to swim with a dolphin than any other marine life, no? Or even terrestrial life. Alongside them, watching them and watching you, it’s very apparent from just the look in their eyes that they are aware of you, studying you, curious about you. It’s a look you don’t get from other animals even cats and dogs. Maybe some monkeys. They’re very present, very aware creatures. Being alongside that and encountering that is a very incredible experience. Any other marine life you’ve bumped into down below? All the interactions I’ve had with big marine life were dolphins, sharks and manta rays. I’ve never actually swum with whales yet, never had the opportunity! That’s something I’d like to do. I’ve been in the water when humpbacks were close, just haven’t spotted one. In my childhood was with a dubong – it’s like a manatee – in Vanuatu. We didn’t know about him, although he was quite famous – the locals had been feeding it for years, and it was living all alone in the harbor. We jumped in to go snorkeling, we almost got blown out of the water by a bus-sized hunk of flesh trying to mate with anything it found. As a kid that was quite intimidating! How can we help the fight to save them? The organization NABU is leading the fight to save the Hector’s Dolphin – the goal is a complete ban on trawling or gill nets in their habitats. But we are up against a very stubborn and short-sighted government. You can learn more at hectorsdolphins.com Diving offers a unique chance for humans to observe marine animals in their native environment. Stay tuned to for even more incredible stories of divers and the denizens of the deep sharing space beneath the surface of the sea! What is your favourite marine animal and why? Share your story on Instagram by April 23 and tag your post with #suuntodive The three most inspiring posts will win easy-to-use, nitrox-capable, large-displayed Suunto Zoop Novo dive computers. For the terms and conditions click here      

There was easily a couple hundred sea lions around The sea lion colony at Hornby Island is active, and has little fear of people. My dive happened to be right around the biggest herring spawn of the year, meaning they were all around waiting for a feast. Ones you see solo in the wild tend to be a lot more shy. They just want to play… Of course, sea lions can be dangerous. I’m not saying you should go out and hug a sea lion – but if you happen to dive with this group you don’t have a choice. As soon as you’re in the water, they just want something to play with. They can come across as quite aggressive – they’ll nip at your suit, the top of your head, or tug on your wings, but they aren’t trying to injure you. I’ve had one put his full mouth on my dorm port – and another one yanked me up to the surface to play. … but it’s on their terms When they’re done, they’ll just head back to the rocks to sunbathe. These are ‘Stellar Sea Lions’ That’s actually the name of the breed. I saw a few California Sea Lions as well, but mostly Stellars. It’s super obvious they’re super smart When you dive with these sea lions, you get the perception that it’s all play. They’re very curious, and they’re very trainable. At the seaquarium, they train the sea lions to undergo all sorts of vetinerary procedures to keep them healthy. That part of British Columbia is absolutely stunning On this trip I was diving a wreck called Capilano. There’s so much to see underwater. Some of the best diving in the world! Nutrient rich water year round. Stunning wildlife. Plenty of wrecks. We dove during a blizzard Full white-out topside. Great visibility below. Sure, the water is cold, but the air above was even colder. If you’ve got the right gear it’s no big deal. One sea lion loved my Suunto Eon! He kept tugging at my dive computer – at one point he even looked like he was checking out my dive stats. So maybe one day they’ll make a good diver partner anyways! Diving offers a unique chance for humans to observe marine animals in their native environment. Stay tuned for even more incredible stories of divers and the denizens of the deep sharing space beneath the surface of the sea!

In modern times, interval training is a fundamental way to train endurance performance. I overheard my 10-year-old telling his brother, “the best way to get faster is to do intervals, that’s what my gym teacher said.” For the general public, any intervals will do, but for the highly trained endurance athlete we need to get a little more scientific. The basic premise of interval training is that you are able to swim, bike, or run at a higher intensity if your training is intermittent versus continuous. A 5k runner, for example, could head out the door and cover 3.1 miles as fast as possible a couple times a week, but would have a hard time holding their goal pace for much more than one mile. Instead, if the training was broken into half mile intervals, a race-pace could be achieved with every 800 meter bout as long as recovery was adequate. With each repeated bout there is a cumulative effect, up to a certain point, to stimulate adaptation. Beyond a certain point, maladaptation can occur. Types of Intervals In an effort to simplify we will focus our discussion on the most potent type of intervals known as VO2 max intervals. VO2 max is defined as an individual’s highest rate of oxygen consumption (milliliters of oxygen per kilogram of body weight per minute). A common misconception is that interval training is strictly anaerobic. These types of intervals do have a big anaerobic component, but by definition have you operating near your peak oxygen consumption, which is the key. Most athletes can work at VO2 max for only about 5 to 9 minutes, so intervals at VO2 max need to be shorter than that. If the interval is too short, then the anaerobic contribution is big, but there is not enough time to actually get to VO2 max. Personally I like 2-3 minutes ON with about equal recovery. Pacing Strategy Pacing is critical. Suppose you are running those 800 meter bouts and you start out by sprinting the first 200 meters and then have a gradual slow-down for the next 600 meters. Your average pace might be on target, but you have failed to reach VO2 max since you started with this huge anaerobic effort and then settled into a pace slower than your VO2 max intensity. There is something called a slow-component to VO2 max. This means that for any pace above lactate threshold, you will eventually reach VO2 max if the exercise is continued. So you do want to go fast, but to spend the most amount of time near VO2 max, you want a pace you can sustain for 2-3 minutes. If performed correctly your oxygen consumption will approach VO2 max about half-way through each hard effort. So if your workout is 6 x 2.5 minutes, you might in reality only spend a total of 7.5 minutes at VO2 max, which is fine. If performed poorly you may only spend a few seconds of each interval at VO2 max or none at all. Graph 1: Poor pacing strategy with high power output (purple) at the start of each bout and power dropping on each bout. Graph 2: Better pacing strategy here. In this case, power (purple) within each bout was very consistent, but there was still a drop off in power for the last 3 bouts. Graph 3: Power (white) fairly consistent throughout hard efforts. Notice peak heart rate (orange) is not achieved until the 6th bout. Different athletes, different software. Work:Rest Ratios An ideal range for work portion is about 1.5 to 4 minutes. We like the 2-3 minute range the best with a few exceptions. Work to rest ratios are usually around 1:1. The rest interval can be adjusted to increase or decrease the intensity of the workout. If you are having a hard time keeping pace, try adding 30 seconds rest. If you are completing the workout with energy to spare, try 30 seconds less rest the next time out. How Intense? Pace or power are your best guides for this type of training. Heart rate lags so far behind that it is not the best indicator and you don’t want to try to spike your heart rate to start each effort. If you have power on the bike, I like to use 110% FTP for 3 minute bouts, and 115% FTP for 2 minute bouts. For running, a 5k race pace or slightly faster will get you there. A 15 minute 5k runner can just use their 5k pace, but a 25 minute 5k runner might need to increase the pace slightly. If you are performing intervals uphill and don’t have power or pace to guide you, try this approach. Warm up to the base of consistent climb. On your first bout, hold back a fraction and note your distance at 1 minute and 2 minutes. Make a mark in the dirt. Recover on the downhill and repeat the same section of the hill attempting to at least reach the same finishing mark or go slightly further. Try to do this without going any further for that first minute. How Much? I mentioned earlier that this is the most potent form of training. So your goal is to be able to maintain the quality for the entire workout. For most people this means 15-21 minutes of total hard work. So that is 8-10 bouts of 2 minutes, or 5-7 bouts of 3 minutes. Keep it simple. Shoot for a very similar intensity every time and if you start to slow down you have done too much. How Often? A little bit can go a long way. I try to space out this type of training more than any other. For most people that means two quality sessions per week with one on the bike and one on the run. Training becomes more polarized during a VO2 max cycle with recovery and endurance workouts separating VO2 max bouts. Total training volume is reduced and avoid excessively long workouts during this time. Soon Ripe, Soon Rotten With this type of training, most people will plateau in about 6 weeks. I like to sprinkle in this type of training as key races are approaching and save heavy blocks of VO2 max interval training for the most important races of the season. Josiah Middaugh is the reigning XTERRA Pan America Champion and 2015 XTERRA World Champion. He has a master’s degree in kinesiology and has been a certified personal trainer for 15 years (NSCA-CSCS). Get to know Josiah Learn how to use Suunto Spartan's Interval feature

Most people call me Mel. I’m from Queensland, Australia, and I do triathlon. I used to be a professional runner with my main events as the 1500m and 3k steeplechase. I swapped to Tri in 2010 – I couldn’t afford to be a runner, and I kept getting injured. I gave triathlon a go, made some money, and kept doing it! Mel's background is in running – but now she loves the bike. © Thierry Sourbier, onlinetri.com I just jumped in. I did a small local race one weekend before to put it all together, and then just jumped in a half Ironman. The half is my favorite distance. You can do 70.3 every weekend, and I like racing, so I do that. It’s not so tough on the body and you don’t need the recovery time of the longer races. I only started swimming for real in 2010. I never really liked the water, I was more a land person. I could swim, of course, every kid in Australia grows up at the beach – but I used to get my mom to write me notes to get out of swim class! Swim is still my weakest part of the race – I never enjoy a swim. My favorite swim is Sunday afternoon for an ocean swim. I don’t hate it like I did when I first started. If I retired tomorrow I’d probably never get in the lap lane again. I’ve tried everything in the water and don’t improve – I’d swim the same times if I swim 30k a week or if I sat in the chaise lounge next to the pool. It totally does my head in! I love the bike. I usually try and ride hard, and get to the front in the bike leg, and make up what I’ve lost in the swim. To be honest, it’s my favorite part of the race. Mel on her way to a win in Ironman Western Australia in December. © witsup.com But the run is my strongest leg. I put more effort in the bike, but I can leave it all out there in the run – I think I have a better pace judgement in running, and know not to go out too fast. I’ve got a lot more KMs in my base as a runner than most triathletes. My training is a little unorthodox. I guess coming from a running background, I train quite differently – when I first started I went with a tri coach but I just didn’t agree with how he was doing things. Now my husband coaches me. I actually do a lot less running than most triathletes. I was getting a lot of injuries, so I bought a bike and got quite good at that. I do most of my base work there. I run up to 70k a week, where as most athletes do up to 100. But I do a lot more on the bike than them. I’ve got a few injuries. Most of my injuries have been in my running career – every stress fracture under the sun. I ruptured my hamstring tendon, after it had been tearing, but it wasn’t diagnosed, and it was six months till I got it fixed. So now I have two muscles going through one tendon. I have a broken rib that just won’t heal. That’s life! I love the hometown crowd. I used to always say Phuket was my favorite place to race – I just love the location. But the race has changed a bit, and now I really love racing in Australia – but I don’t get to race their often. Stay tuned for Mel's triathlon training tips! Main image © witsup.com

Watch the video and experience the first ever Suunto Summit that was held in October, 2016. We are thrilled to share the selections for the Suunto Summit 2017. After hosting an open, public application process, we received inspiring motivation letters and stories from all around the world. Within our final group we have authors, awarding- winning photographers, influential bloggers; we have XTERRA world-champions, and winners of major ultra-trail races. Balancing these inspiring experiences and accomplishments was a challenge, but we are thrilled to have had so many inspiring applications that shared a synonymous passion for being a part of the Suunto community. Stats: 6 female, 9 male 9 from Europe (2 France, 1 Spain, 1 Finland, 2 Sweden, 1 Norway, 1 Latvia, 1 UK, 1 Switzerland) 2 from USA, 1 from New Zealand, 1 China, 1 Malaysia. Suunto Summit 2017 participants: Arnau - Spain Diane-Perle - Switzerland Marta - Latvia Marit - Norway Mia - USA Barbara - USA Petra - New Zealand Ramon - Malaysia Sebastien - China Pelle - Sweden Jean-François - France Tim - United Kingdom (UK) Mathias - France Sante - Finland Oskar - Sweden Congratulations to all selected, and a huge thank you to all who applied and shared their passion with us! - Suunto Team

The World Vertical Week is about collecting vertical meters for your country and your sport. All moves in all human-powered outdoor sports count. To keep the playing field level, we were only comparing averages. A cumulative number of ascent meters per country would not have made sense as the population and number of Suunto App users varies.  Skiers are still quite clearly the queens and kings of the hill with 849 meters of ascent in average. The mountaineers climbed on the second spot with 636 meters and the trail runners rounded out the top three with their 400 ascent meters. Actually the order of the activities remained almost identical compared to 2016: the only difference was that mountain bikers passed the snowshoers in the listings. Average ascents in various activities Ski touring 849m Mountaineering 636m Trail running 400m Mountain biking 362m Snow shoeing 316m Trekking 293m Cycling 236m Cross country skiing 222m Running 104m   SKI TOURING IS NUMBER ONE – BUT WHO SKIS THE MOST? Now that we know that ski touring is the sport with the biggest average ascents, it is time to dig deeper. The snowy winter in the Pyrenees has boosted the skiing spirits of the Spanish and they were the only athletes to cross the thousand vertical meter mark – in any country and any activity. Felicitaciones, españoles! Top 10 countries in ski touring Spain 1034m Switzerland 938m Slovakia 936m Germany 927m Andorra 916m Italy 909m USA 883m Austria 877m Poland 874m France 858m   A SLIGHT SURPRISE IN MOUNTAINEERING Mountaineering was second in the activity listings. But the leading nation within that activity was a slight surprise: United Kingdom surely has a long mountaineering tradition, but only a few – at least here in the Suunto office – would have bet their money for the island nation. The UK was not among the top mountaineering nations last year, but still they took the first place with 836 meters in 2017. Top 10 countries in mountaineering United Kingdom 836m Italy 772m Switzerland 749m Germany 713m Japan 685m France 683m Austria 655m Taiwan 620m USA 600m South Korea 575m   ASIAN COUNTRIES DOMINATED TRAIL RUNNING It was clear already last year that China, Hong Kong and Japan are strong in the trail running segment. This year they occupied the top three with excellent performances and clear margins. Maybe having the Vertical Week in winter limits the possibilities for trail running in mountainous areas in Europe and North-America but still the Asian performance was impressive. Great climbing, China, Hong Kong and Japan! Top 10 countries in trail running China 887m Hong Kong 808m Japan 711m Italy 572m Portugal 540m Spain 524m United Kingdom 509m Slovenia 469m Greece 468m Austria 437m   CLOSE MARGINS IN COUNTRY COMPARISONS We also analysed the data for all human powered outdoor sports and compared the average ascents between countries. The margins were tight, but still there was one above the rest: The Austrians ascended on average more than any other nation, 320 meters per every workout tracked during the Vertical Week. Top 10 countries overall Austria 320m Italy 298m Switzerland 287m Spain 261m Slovenia 261m Portugal 258m Hong Kong 247m France 240m Norway 235m Slovakia 218m   TOP COUNTRIES IN OTHER ACTIVITIES And to give you even more to speculate here are the top countries in the other activities mentioned above.   Top 10 countries in mountain biking Italy 515m Slovenia 479m Spain 471m United Kingdom 465m Austria 461m Switzerland 443m South Africa 416m France 370m Germany 367m Poland 366m   Top 10 countries in snow shoeing Italy 564m Andorra 530m Austria 510m Germany 429m France 424m Switzerland 345m USA 228m Spain 213m Canada 178m Finland 163m   Top 10 countries in trekking France 406m Italy 397m Austria 353m Poland 322m Spain 307m USA 274m Germany 271m Norway 243m United Kingdom 229m China 141m   Top 10 countries in cycling Spain 405m Italy 403m South Africa 393m Colombia 392m Portugal 355m Cyprus 332m Switzerland 328m Czech Republic 308m France 298m Austria 294m   Top 10 countries in cross country skiing Czech Republic 391m France 312m Poland 286m Norway 270m Sweden 266m Italy 260m Austria 252m Canada 225m USA 222m Germany 221m   Top 10 countries in running Portugal 157m Hong Kong 151m Slovenia 148m Switzerland 136m France 128m Spain 127m Norway 126m New Zealand 124m USA 117m Czech Republic 115m   Main image © Patitucci Photo