January Recommendations
Nikolai Schirmer – youtube channel
We have been bingeing Nikolai Schirmer‘s youtube channel over the last few weeks and we can‘t believe we didn‘t know about this Norwegian skier sooner! He‘s a super fun skier to watch and he offers a different point of view on skiing and mountaineering than we usually tend to see. We really appreciate what he‘s doing, as he‘s trying to be a fully sustainable pro skier. This means not flying heli‘s to reach remote summits but climbing up every mountain on his own power, driving an electric car and sailing to reach more remote locations in Norway instead of flying. Also, there is a lot of good knowledge about backcountry skiing and safety in his series, which nobody ever has enough of. Watching someone elses tips and tricks, as well as fuck ups, can really help you avoid some future mistakes in the mountains yourself.
Mark Eder‘s „The ultimate run“
100 points for creativity on this edit! This is really the peak of what a 21st century skier can achieve in the mountains today. Incredible footage showing what can be realistically done in filming ski edits today. Just sit back, relax and enjoy.
TRIO – short film
This short film tells the story of three humble Icelandic surf legends, who have been behind some major surf productions on the island. Their passion for surfing and dedication to a lifestyle which is grounded in nature and what is truly important in life is refreshing. The film gives you a great insight into the behind the scenes of Arctic Surfers, Iceland‘s oldest surf expedition company, and the passion for the ocean which is the undercurrent that brings everyone together. The chase of the right conditions, reading 10 different weather and wave forecasts and puzzling them together into one master forecast, the struggle to get to surf spots in the winter and the general grind behind being at the right place at the right time, is something we recognise all too well. And then when the stars align and it all works out, it makes everything worth it.
The Wave by Susan Casey - book
The Wave by Susan Casey is an amazing chronicle of big-wave surfers who travel the world and risk their lives to ride ever larger, more powerful and more dangerous waves, and the scientists who strive to understand and predict those waves. In her book, Casey manages to explain the complex science behind waves in easy terms while capturing the surfers’ intensity and the risk the surfers face riding those waves. Due to the constant shift between following the big-wave surfer Laird Hamilton and his friends on their journey to surf big waves, and explaining the science behind waves, Casey managed to write an interesting, fascinating and engaging book for anyone who is interested in waves (not only for surfers!). Besides surfing and waves science, Casey also touches on topics such as climate change and speaks to a lot of people and organisations that are involved in the vagaries of oceanic behaviour.
