Suunto Blog

Mira Rai now joins the group of Suunto adventurers, like Kilian Jornet, Ueli Steck and Greg Hill, who have been nominated as the Adventurers of the year in the past. We got in touch with Mira to hear the latest news. Hey Mira, congratulations! You are now the 2017 People’s Choice Adventurer of the Year. How does it feel? Wow! Amazing! I am very happy! I am very grateful for the support of everyone who supported. What does this award mean to you? It is very, very valuable for me. I had never thought I would win with top adventurers of the world in the competition. I am really thankful to everyone who has supported me and voted for me. I am very grateful to Trail Running Nepal, the director and everyone who worked behind the scenes to help me win this. This is not my win; this is an award for Nepal. How are you going to celebrate this? How will I celebrate? (laughs) I have not thought about celebrating! I want to thank everyone who has supported me. I think I will invite brothers and sisters for run/hike to one of the trails in Kathmandu at the weekend. You organized a running race in your home-town last year. Why did you do it, how was it and are you organizing it again? I wanted to introduce a trail race in my village, and let my village people experience what I do. I think organizing races and letting village kids have exposure to competitive running can inspire them to take athletics seriously if they are interested. I want to give the opportunity as I had had before. I also wanted to gain experience of organizing races. My first race had 124 participants. Everyone from children to elders were excited to participate. Since it was raining that day, so many people who were interested couldn’t join. I am thankful to get support from various agencies. I was able to donate 90 pairs of goldstar shoes to the kids and they loved it. It was a successful race. Yes, I want to organize it again. It is a very hard work. I will need more support. Why do you think sport is important for women in Nepal? Women living in the hills of Nepal are very strong. Many of them can carry heavy loads on technical trails without breaking a sweat. I think women should be encouraged to partake in sports in Nepal because like me, there can be many women who can make the country proud if given an opportunity. What are your plans for this year? Some interesting projects or races coming up? I want to focus on organizing trail races in Nepal this year with my Trail Running Nepal team. Also, I will be participating in races in China, France and Spain. How have you recovered from the ACL injury you had last year? My knee has not completely recovered. It might take another 3 or so months to fully recover. But I am working hard now doing physiotherapy, yoga, cross training to keep fit. Images by Anuj Adhikary For more info on running in Nepal, visit trailrunktm.com and trailrunningnepal.org   READ MORE MEETING NEPALESE TRAIL RUNNER MIRA RAI UELI STECK NOMINATED FOR ADVENTURER OF THE YEAR AWARD KILIAN JORNET NAMED ADVENTURER OF THE YEAR

Tell us about yourself: My name is Alex and I'm an American underwater photographer who's been working in Indonesia for the last four years. I live on a boat that splits seasons between Komodo, Raja Ampat, and the Banda Sea. I dive every day with my camera in the ocean's most diverse reefs and I love my job! Where do you like to dive? My work keeps me diving year round in Indonesia and you could say that I like Indonesia quite a bit. The diversity of species/subjects and of types of diving are endless. If you are feeling a bit burnt out on macro for example, it's not hard to find some wide-angle subjects like mantas, mangroves, or stunning reefscapes. It's where I've learned to take pictures and can't imagine a better training ground. What inspires you in the underwater world? I find myself most inspired by the underwater world by the fact that there is no experience on land where you can be so incredibly immersed in nature as you can be underwater. On land, not even the boldest photographer would be caught running around as a pride of lions hunts a heard of wildebeest. They'd be destroyed, either by the lions or by the stampede. Yet, underwater you can quite literally be in the middle of a feeding frenzy of the oceans top predators and come out without a scratch, and some pretty incredible images. As a photographer, those types of encounters are what you live for. How would you describe your photography style? Until I find that subject that I really want to focus my attention and time on, I'm sort of like a golden retriever who's found a ball, a stick and a cat at the same time. I want it all but can only choose one at a time. I'd say that my style is a bit eclectic, which I think also has a lot to do with the wide range of subjects in Indonesia. I love wide-angle and playing with natural light but I do love the hunt for those funny little benthic critters. Is there a story you wish to tell with your images? There's always a story to tell with your images, though I believe that story may be read differently depending on the viewer despite what I had intended to say with that image. I always want my images to reflect the beauty and fragility of nature. Hopefully some of that is getting though and maybe it even inspires some change in people’s perspective of the natural world and the need to preserve it. Follow @suuntodive and @alexlindbloomphoto to see more of Alex’s work! Check out also Alex Lindbloom Film and Photography on Facebook and www.alexlindbloom.com. On his website Alex hosts underwater photo tutorials. READ MORE 10 tips to take amazing underwater photos William Trubridge talks record attempts and the art of freediving

Let’s start simple, Gediminas – why’d you win? Easy – I don’t take defeat well. I wasn’t happy with my second place finish in 2015 – I was so close to first, but I made a mistake in the Grand Raid Reunion. I wanted to come back and do better. I also got a little bit of a nudge from Red Bull – but not in the normal way. I went for a little workout with them, but in the end, they weren’t keen on taking me on as an athlete. Those two things gave me something to prove. How long have you been running? I started in 2005 after my mission in Iraq. I didn’t do my first Ultra until 2009 tho. It’s been a very moderate progression over the years, but losing so closely last year really inspired me to train better and smarter. Gediminas Grinius was crowned the champion of Ultra Trail World Tour in 2016 Tell us about 2016: I kicked off with a 3rd in Hong Kong, and quickly followed with a 2nd in Gran Canaria, a 2nd in Lavaredo, and a second in UTMB. There were ten races on the tour, but only Sange Sherpa ran 6 (and never finished in the top 10) and two other runners did five. Four races with a podium finish was good enough to lock up the title! What was your training strategy? Quality over quantity. I tried to run from 100 to 150 km a week, depending on the block of training and periodization. In general, I am trying to run 5–6 times a week, between 20–40 km a week, including HIIT, intervals, back to backs, stuff like that. There are difference skills I am trying to develop. I needed more speed in UTMB so I am adding in more speed work, for example. But as I approach a race, I do more long runs and back-to-backs. What’s a back-to-back? I go for a long run late in the evening, then have a short recovery time – basically going to bed on an empty stomach, then waking up and running again. Generally I’ll try to do between 25 to 30km both of those days, and have a negative split – faster on the second day. Who do you hate to see next to you on the start line? I like the competitors in the field, and I like the challenge. No runners which I hate. Gediminas training in Cappadocia, Turkey in December 2016. Where do you like to line up? I do well in the longer races. I think my strength is in my mind – up to 100km, your physical state is a big factor, after that, many things come in to play. Even in our ordinary life, we have a lot of stress factors. We can cope with them in our ordinary life, and when you do back-to-back runs, you give your mind understanding of how to deal with stress while running – this is how training of mind goes. What’s the plan for 2017? Honestly? I had a very intense last three years, and right now I feel a little exhausted. The plan for 2017 is to run a bunch of races I didn’t run before because of the point counting system – spend more time with family, and run the races. The first will be Tarawera Ultramarathon in New Zealand, Madeira Island Ultra Trail in Portugal, and then I want to do the Cappadocia Ultra Trail in Turkey. And beyond? I’ve got my eye on a FKT – running around Lake Tahoe in Northern California in 2018. Then in 2019, I’m going for a combined record time on the Ultra Trail Grand Slam. Big goals. Any changes in your training plan? Yeah. I think I’m getting a coach. Images by Salomon Cappadocia Ultra-Trail READ MORE Four myths about ultra running that you need to know How to transition from flat to off-road How to run a sub-3h marathon

Watch Greg Hill’s "7 Terrain Tricks"   This sounds like a lot of thinking to do. That’s OK – it takes a lot of time to go up. It’s all about developing a loop of thought patterns that you keep going over and over – where’s the next safe spot? What’s above me? What dangers am I exposed to, and where am I going if something happens? – that’s what keeps you safe.   And it’s not about making things tough – sometimes it’s about making them easy. Yeah – especially the ‘fight the smallest guy at the bar’ trick. You want to go up the safest, easiest terrain, because often, it’s the least exposed to danger. If I’m touring in a new area, I’ll have looked at a map, found the smallest slopes, and used that information while I’m out there.   Greg, who taught YOU the tricks? Most of these I picked up at the beginning of my skiing career – but mostly, I’ve learned from the mountains themselves. If you watch and listen, you can learn a lot – and that’s at the heart of what many of these tricks are about. Nothing can teach you something like a real-life example. Early on, a mentor taught me to ‘always ski from the top’. Not long after, I found myself on a tour, about to drop into a line, and realized, I wasn’t at the top. So I got back on the ridge, worked my way to the top. The third turn in I sent down a Class III slide that would have almost certainly killed me.   That’s not the only time you’ve seen these tricks work in real life. Absolutely not. "Seeking the higher ground” – we were on Mt Manaslu in 2012. We camped on the highest ground we could find. That night, an avalanche caught 30 people sleeping in tents. Camps II and II got hit. 12 people died and 30 were caught in their sleeping bags. We were above the slide because we’d picked a spot with no risk from above – just 50m away from where the slide hit.   You want to reduce your time of exposure – but that doesn’t mean you need to rush. Yes – movement between safe spots should be fast, but don’t make hasty decisions. Move quickly, think calmly. You don’t want to rush decisions.   Is it possible to reduce risk to zero? Absolutely not. And for me, that’s part of the definition of adventure – it’s an activity that involves risk. That admittedly is part of what makes it exciting and interesting.   Stay tuned for more from Greg Hill in the next instalment of his video series – and ski safe! Main image: Bruno Long  READ ALSO Greg Hill's mountain rules     

Even if you’re just a casual diver, you’ve heard of Dean’s Blue Hole in the Bahamas. The deepest saltwater blue hole in the world, at over 200m, it’s a mecca for underwater adventures of any sort – from scuba divers to free divers. But what many don’t realize is the island nation is home to not only this natural wonder, but many more as well. The caves are referred to as the Abaco Blue Holes, it’s one of the most diverse and vast cave diving areas in the world – with many caves still unmapped. That’s precisely why Suunto diver Jill Heinerth will join an elite crew of divers in the Bahamas for a massive survey and documentation push on the Abaco Blue Holes. "I will be joining an elite crew of some of the finest cave diving explorers on the planet, lead by Dr. Kenny Broad, we will be joining Brian Kakuk of Bahamas Underground, and the Friends of the Environment in Abaco,” says Jill. The area is rich in dive history – her partners on the project have been exploring these caves for over two decades. You can make legendary dives through areas like Fangorn’s Forest in Dan’s Cave, or see artifacts such as 3,000-year-old crocodile skeletons in Sawmill Sink. Of course, diving here is with no small risk – as always with cave diving, the right equipment and a wealth of experience from at least someone on your team are absolute necessities. What’s the occasion for the study? "After over a decade of hard work, these blue holes have recently become protected within a newly designated national preserve,” Jill tells us. What’s even more interesting is that while this project is an underground operation, it isn’t undercover. They’ll be broadcasting almost live. “The team also has an aggressive outreach initiative that will include satellite transmissions to classrooms from the field and advanced 3D imaging efforts that will help to develop interactive resources that will help topside visitors get a sense of the beauty that resides beneath their feet.” Things they’ll see in the caves include stalactites and stalagmites formed by deposited calcium. They can be rich environments for marine life – Bahamas-based diver Brian Kakuk calls them ‘overstocked aquariums’ – and they hold unknown potential for research – and it’s big win for research. These caves have been important laboratories for climate change science and biological studies and their new added protection will undoubtedly offer many more opportunities for science. Follow along to see the Abaco Blue Holes project in action! Watch Jill Heinerth’s Expedition files on Youtube.   Get ready for hangouts by satellite: Virtual Field Trips to the Bahamas! This week a new BGAN unit (textbook sized device that allows video Google Hangouts from pretty much anywhere on the planet) will head by boat to Abaco in the Bahamas on a National Geographic Expedition with Kenny Broad and Jill Heinerth. The next hangout, an EBTSOYP Hangout, will be on December 8th @ 11am EST. Lots of camera spots available and you can check out a background hangout with Kenny and Jill here. >>Watch a replay of the Virtual Field Trip here<<   Read more about the project at intotheplanet.com

Last month, we sent Suunto #DiveWithMe winners Anna Starup and Theresa Thorp to the Philippines for a little dive adventure in paradise at Atmosphere Dive Resort – suffice it to say the girls enjoyed themselves. Now that they are answering e-mails again (because let’s be honest, we wouldn’t be answering e-mails on a dive vacation either) we pinged them with a few questions about the trip – and of course, got some pics. Anna, this was a learning experience for you. Anna: Yeah – I did my final certification in the Philippines after preparing at home in Denmark using online courses. Diving just caught me right away. In retrospect I’ve thought about why I didn’t take my open water earlier. Diving is definitely going to take me (and Theresa) to places in the world I’d never considered before. Best single dive of the trip? Anna & Theresa: That’s actually quite a hard question! The dive sites differed a lot and each had amazing aspects about them. Perhaps a dive at Apo Island where we saw a dozen turtles that played around with us. Or a dive where a blue-ringed octopus saw its reflection in Anna’s dive instructor’s camera and attacked it! At the same dive we saw 4 species of Octopus’ and a lot of cool frogfishes. Of course, you didn’t spend every moment on the boat… Anna & Theresa: Atmosphere quite is a little piece of paradise. Rooms, dining area, dive shop, beach – just amazing. We’ll have to mention the food here as well. Besides diving, eating was definitely a highlight every day! The people at Atmosphere were a huge part of the amazing experience we had. Everyone seemed like a little family, joking around, stopping for a chat, taking interest in each other’s (and our) lives. You made such good friends, you even got a nickname… Anna & Theresa: Someone from the dive crew, jealous of our cool Suunto D4i, nicknamed us “The Suunto Girls”, which kind of stuck to us for the whole trip. Not the worst nickname, right? We also have to send a special “thanks” to Ulrika, Marco and Daniel from the Atmosphere family, who were the main reasons why this trip became such an irreplaceable and spectacular adventure. We’re still feeling completely and utterly high on life, thank you! And you even got into the jungle! Anna & Theresa: On our way to the resort we met up with Theresa's brother and friend who is currently backpacking their way around Asia. We woke up at 5AM for a short jungle hike which led us to the most stunningly beautiful, lagoon called Kawasan Falls. Being there early meant having the waterfall all to ourselves for hours! A ton of fun swimming, cliff jumping and playing around in the lagoon before we continued on our journey to Atmosphere Resort. We also got to explore the Chocolate Hills, joined a dinner cruise at Loboc River, saw the Tarsier Sanctuary at Bohol Island, and visited Osmena Peak, the highest peak at Cebu Island. All spectacular sights and irreplaceable small adventures. Do you feel more confident underwater? Theresa: Getting to share the incredible underwater world with Anna for the first time was magical! We had so much fun during her Open Water Course, and later during our fun dives. Anna: I had studied quite a lot of theory, but all of it made sense when I got to try it in the water. I wasn’t sure how much I was going to remember if a situation occurred where I actually needed it, but during my very first dive for instance, my mouthpiece came off. Without knowing exactly what was going on, I just grabbed my reserve. So I think some of the exercises “internalizes” pretty fast. Can you name some of your favorite spots for future visitors? Anna & Theresa: The "turtle" divesite at Apo Island was called Rockpoint West. The divesite where we met the blue-ringed octopus was called Secret Garden although we called it Octopus' garden, as we saw a lot of octopus there. The whaleshark spot was called Oslob. Are the Philippines as a must-go dive destination? Theresa: Absolutely – especially if you're into muck and micro diving. It caught me right away, and I'm still in awe that critters, like the one we met, actually exist in real life! I was especially fascinated by the many different species of frogfish, nudibranch and mantis shrimp. Would you go back? Theresa: Definitely! The amazing dive sites and spectacular nature are sure to drag us back, and besides, we need to reunite with the amazing crew at Atmosphere Resort. What other spots in the world are next on your must-dive list? Theresa: Since this was my first time diving in Asia, I'll have to get back to explore some more! Right now places like Komodo, the Gili islands and the Maldives is on the top of my must-dive list. Galapagos has also been on the top of my list for quite some time now.