Rise&Fall
Mountain Attack
Rise & Fall Mayrhofen
Four people, one team, no mercy - on January 14th, everything will be demanded of the athletes. Each team consists of a ski mountaineer and mountain biker who will give their best in the uphill. A paraglider and skier cover the downhill and do complete the team and risk everything to be the first crossing the finish line.
Among the more than 300 participants this year are Johanna Hiemer on touring skis, Aaron Durogatti and Judith Rubner on paragliders and Marius Quast on skis. The special thing about it is that both Johanna Hiemer and Judith Rubner will be competing in a women's team.
"I'm looking forward to this unique event - 4 different sports combined in on event is unique. The atmosphere is amazing." - Johanna Hiemer
We asked Chris Ebenbichler, the organizer of the event, a few questions in advance:
What is important for the teams?
The teams must form a homogeneous unit. The handover in the individual disciplines is crucial and, of course, the spirit within the team is always better when the athletes know each other. It's great to see how the team members cheer each other on, motivate and support each other. At the end of the day, they win or lose together and create unforgettable moments and emotions.
What is the most challenging discipline?
It's difficult to define. It's a high-intensity event and the short duration of the individual disciplines means that the athletes are constantly pushing themselves to the limit and in the red zone. There is no time to catch your breath and you have to stay focussed. It's a sprint for touring and biking, the paragliders are challenged by the running course and the difficult start section and for the skiers, with a 3-minute giant slalom and the obstacles before the finish, the lactate level is almost unbearable
What is the discipline in which you can win everything and lose everything?
The two RISE disciplines of ski touring and mountain biking certainly offer the most time. Unfortunately, you can lose everything if you fall in the last discipline, skiing.
How do the teams prepare for this special event?
The teams and athletes prepare very individually. For some amateur athletes, having fun comes first. The professionals, on the other hand, take things very seriously. For the ski tourers, it's a kind of benchmark for the start of their season and the mountain bikers see it as the starting signal for preparation and the first training courses in warmer climes. However, the same applies to everyone: Without adequate preparation, it will be a knife-edge ride.
How many teams are competing? Men & women?
There will be 80 teams and 10 individual starters on the day of the event. We hope to welcome around 20 women's teams to Mayrhofen this year.
©Michael Werlberger
SATURDAY, 13.01.2024
Europahaus Mayrhofen
From 16.00 to 18.30: Bib-Collection & Pastaparty
19.00: Welcoming and briefing
20.00: "RED BULL X-Alps 2023": Multimediashow with Christian "CHRIGEL" Maurer in the Europahaus - Ticketinfo
SUNDAY, 14.01.2024
Eventarea in front of Ahornbahn
11.00: Entrance - Warm up
11.30: START - RISE&FALL KIDS-RACE 2024
+ Prize ceremony: KIDS-RACE
12.45: START - RISE&FALL SINGLE-RACE 2024
13.00: START - RISE&FALL TEAM-RACE 2024
directly afterwards: Flower Ceremony
From 16.00: Live music with the band "Jukebox Brothers"
16.00: Prize ceremony
Approx. 17.00: RISE&FALL Afterparties in Mayrhofen
Mountain Attack
The 26th Mountain Attack will take place on 19th of January 2024 and athletes will give their best over 6 distances. In Saalbach-Hinterglemm, hundreds of athletes will once again give their all this year - the 3-person relay over the marathon distance is new. Suunto athlete Jakob Herrmann is not only last year's winner and therefore Mountain Man 2023 with a time of 2:22:14 but will also be on the starting line again this year. "The challenge is definitely the first mountain! You tend to go too fast or lose a lot of energy because it's so steep. In 2020, I was almost 1,5 minutes behind the leaders on the first climb and I finished 2' ahead with a new course record," says Jakob Herrmann. It remains to be seen whether a course record will be set this year in addition to his preparation for the 24h project, but we will certainly be there.
© Philipp Reiter
Roland Kurz and his team have been organizing the Mountain Attack for 26 years now and give us a closer look at the ski touring event of the year:
How did the Mountain Attack come about?
We started the first race in 1999. It was very well received internationally, the media reported on it and so the idea became a vision - the Mountain Attack. It has since become a touring ski cult event, the biggest and toughest night-time piste ski touring race in the world with participants from over 20 nations and numerous side events, a meeting point for the scene, business and sport.
What makes the Mountain Attack so special?
The Mountain Attack is a race over several distances (Schattberg Race - vertical, Tour and Marathon - individual) where it is possible for amateur and hobby athletes to compete with the best athletes in the world in a race at the same time, in the same weather conditions and with the same snow conditions. Thousands of spectators on the various peaks and in the valley are up close to the racing action and motivate all participants to achieve their personal best. A unique atmosphere for all enthusiastic ski mountaineers and fans. And: because the course has been the same for 25 years, everyone can compare their own performance with that of previous years.
What is the biggest challenge and who is the Mountain Attack for?
The route. The start on foot, running through the centre of Saalbach, with thousands of spectators, and especially the first steep climb up the Schattberg with over 1000 metres of altitude difference is a special challenge - affectionately called "Il Muro" (the wall) by the Italians. The steep climbs and the long and steep descents throughout the race are unique and very challenging.
Everyone is welcome, even without a national or international athlete's licence, who loves the sport and is an experienced ski tourer. Numerous athletes from summer sports, such as triathletes, trail runners and cyclists, like to use ski mountaineering in winter as optimal training preparation and are represented in large numbers at the start of the Mountain Attack.
© Philipp Reiter
PROGRAM FOR FANS AND SPECTATORS
FRIDAY, 19.01.2024
13:00: Start Junior-Sprint: Schattberg-Basisareal. Final 14:45 Uhr
ca. 15:00: Attack-Party: Mountain Attack-ARENA Schattberg with DJ Musik & Expo
16:00: Mountain Attack - START at thee Dorfplatz in Saalbach
16:40: First finisher Schattberg Race
16:50: First estimated arrivals Hinterglemm
17:15: Prize ceremony Junior-Sprint, Stage Attack-Arena
17:35 – 18:25: First finisher in Saalbach – Mountain Attack-ARENA, Schattberg
17:00 – 22:00: Athletes crossing the finish line - Moderation and Party
22:30: Prize ceremony on stage – Mountain Attack-ARENA, Schattberg