Trailer Release: Innsbruck. Powder. People.

Neil Williman has been part of the Snowmads crew since we started to rebuild the Snowmads truck or maybe even before the Snowmads had actually found their name. Back then we were just a bunch of snow-mad freeriders who loved skiing, snowboarding and adventuring in the mountains together. A few crazy trips and filming missions later Neil took on the producer role and made „Working Volks Freeride“. This time he welcomed director Timm Schroeder to the Snowmads family, and together with NINE&ONE produced our new short film „Innsbruck. Powder. People.“

The storyline of „Innsbruck. Powder. People.“ goes like this: After many winter seasons and competitions in North America, France and Sweden, a professional freeride skier from New Zealand named Neil Williman ends up in Innsbruck. There he meets many talented locals like the Snowmads crew, who show him just how great the mountains around Innsbruck are. Deeply impressed by the seemingly endless possibilities in this paradise, they discover together what is skiable during a global pandemic, and what is not, while trying to only use public transport and campers.

There’s no question that it was an unusual season last year, travelling was difficult or impossible … a perfect winter to spend at home. So, when Neil invited the Innsbruck locals to join him in his movie project a great crew of friends and Snowmads quickly gathered. When good friends come together usually good things happen, and it was no different in this movie.

Make sure to check the trailer on our YouTube Channel and keep your eyes out at our instagram channels @snowmads and @ibkpowderpeople to find news on where and when to watch the full movie!

We’re proud of your producer debuts, Neil! And congrats to Timmy Schroeder, who directed, shot and edited this award-decorated short film. Congrats also to second camera man Daniel Bear and the whole crew who was part of this inspiring short film!

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Riders ⛷🏂
Neil Williman
Leo Rauch
Manuela Mandl
Sam Good
Christoph Schoefegger
Núria Castán-Barón
Erika Vikander
Fabian Lentsch
Markus Ascher
Julian Zenzmaier
Konsti Ottner
Dominique Heinrich
Dodo Konrad

Film/Photo 📽📷
Timm Schroeder
Daniel Bear
Alex Fuchs
Markus Tonak

Production 🎬
Neil Williman
Karin Lechner / NINE&ONE

© Chris Bezamat
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Fabian Lentsch Skis Big Mountain Dream Lines

Fabi and TGR (Teton Gravity Research) – a strong team, a bunch of creative minds and the common instinct for aesthetic lines. They teamed up for several weeks over the past three years, hit the roads across Austria with the Snowmads Truck, explored in Albania and captured fine big mountain skiing.

Fabi stands for high class skiing, TGR for the production of high class outdoor sports movies – the perfect combo! 
Austria got hit by massive snow falls and all time skiing conditions were on the menu. The Snowmads Truck was right there when the snow was fluffy and stable. Fabi was able to finally ski some lines he’s had an eye on for several years already, while the TGR crew was on the right place at the right time – like always! 

Austria is widely known for skiing, big winters and big mountain lines. But have you ever heard of skiing and big mountain lines in Albania? A fairly unknown country whose borders opened up for foreigners quite recently in 1990, a country with huge, mostly undiscovered mountains and decent amounts of snow when the Adriatic storms hit the country. 

big mountain dream lines
Fabi working his way down a dream line in Albania © Chris Bezamat

Fabi, describe your feelings when you see yourself skiing big lines in a Teton Gravity Research production! 

As a kid those big TGR productions have been super inspiring for me. Their films have definitely been a huge part of my process of becoming a professional skier.

How did you get in touch with TGR? 

One day I got an invitation for a film trip with them in Albania. To be honest, I was super surprised and super stoked as well. Apparently my reputation wasn’t too bad in the States and so they got in touch with me. It’s not everyday a European rider gets the chance to be part of a TGR movie.

Fabian Lentsch relaxes after skiing big mountain dream lines
© Chris Bezamat

The mountains and especially skiable lines are mostly undiscovered in Albania. How did you check out possible faces and lines to ski? 

Around two months before the shoot I had the chance to hop on a small plane and do some scouting flights. Well this almost makes it sound too easy. We couldn’t find any airplane in Albania and had to fly into the mountains from North Macedonia which required a special hard to get permission to cross into the Albanian airspace. Luckily I got connected with a great crew in the Balkans who helped us with all the logistics and whom I now can call some of my best friends. That was an important step for our adventure down there. 

© Fabi Lentsch – Analog

How did you like the mountains and the skiing in Albania? 

The Albanian mountains are super impressive and wild – such is the weather down there. We didn’t have many good days with the right conditions but those days we’ve had were mind-blowing.

One year later you and TGR teamed up again, this time in Austria. How did that go?

Austria has seen one of the best winters ever, so the time was right to ski some big lines in my backyard. It was a special feeling to welcome the whole crew in Austria, travel around in our Snowmads Truck and discover my home mountains during a very special winter. We’ve had a really good time but on the other hand I also felt the pressure of a big production, the pressure of having to deliver somehow. In the end we’ve had all time conditions and found some really good lines, lines that probably wouldn’t have been possible in any other winter. We were lucky but also hard working, that’s a good combo I guess.

Fabi Lentsch Skiing Big Mountain Dream Lines
© Chris Bezamat

„I’d like to thank the whole TGR crew! Thanks for the fun times in Albania and Austria. Long days, big lines and short, cozy nights with rather limited space in our truck – great memories!“
Fabian Lentsch

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Fabi meets… Tom Leitner

„Fabi meets…“ is a series of interviews with Fabian Lentsch and other skiers, friends and people he meets on the road. Same questions, different answers!

Fabi meets….Tom Leitner – a passionate freeskier since day one! Tom had his first public appearence in the little world of freeriding later than most but rapidly broke into the small group of the world’s best competitors. After many years of alpine racing, he joined the ‘new-school’ freestyle skiing movement in the mid-90s, at the same time as many of his friends switched to snowboarding. Born and raised in southern Bavaria he grew up in the mountains, grew up with skiing and later got the chance to travel the world by moving fast and stylish on two sticks. Tom has been part of the very first Snowmads trip A Journey Towards Eastern Suns – unfortunately he’s had a super bad crash back then and was forced to leave Iran way too early.

Name: Tom Leitner

Age: 38

City: Traunstein

How is/was it to grow up around here?

It was paradise when I was a kid. I had the privilege to grow up very free and to be outside a lot. I definitely believe that  my childhood gave me the basis for everything I do these days. It`s those childhood memories that I strive for, even if more subconsciously than consciously.

Well, I`ve been skiing for thirty five years now and it has been one of the constants in my life.

What do you think about skiing? Have you ever tried it or seen someone ski? What do you associate with it?

Well, I`ve been skiing for thirty five years now and it has been one of the constants in my life. It`s my passion and it can take on so many forms. I think it can potentially fill up a lifetime. There`s always place for progression, even if our physical abilities decline with age.

To me backcountry skiing has a unifying power, too. Wherever you meet skiers with a similar dedication, you will most probably find yourself in a silent agreement with them, about certain values, attitudes and preferences. It’s like a secret bond of people who have made similar experiences, which, in the end, lead you on a certain path in life. 

Skiing chose me, I would say

Why did you choose this job/career?

Skiing chose me, I would say. It`s not like it has ever been a career path to me. One thing came after the other and for a couple of years I was able to make a living of it. Looking back, it’s been only a short period in my life and only one aspect of my life as a skier. A very special time of my life with certain privileges that most people don`t have the chance to experience.

What are you most passionate about and why and what makes you happy?

It`s definitely my family. Ten years ago I never would have thought that I`d become a family man. But the course of seeing a kid grow up from the start and experience humanity in its purest and most innocent form has definitely left a mark on me. But every dad knows that it is something which can not be explained until you experience it yourself.

I believe that vague fears are something to be tackled and to be actively overcome.

What advice would you give to your younger self?

I mean, you only become the person you are through making all the mistakes and follow a couple of misleading trails here and there. Still, looking back, I wish I’d have had more courage in certain situations. I believe that vague fears are something to be tackled and to be actively overcome. It took me some time to figure that out in my life. But I am a very happy man at the moment, so I believe that everything had to go the way it did.

What is freedom to you? 

Personal freedom to me means the ability to realize the countless possibilities around us and to have the discipline to grab them. Freedom has a lot to do with discipline.

Love, What is it?

I am surely not a man to give a definition. But I definitely know that it is the answer and the way.

How do you spend most of your free time?

I love to be active in nature. It gives me peace of mind. Apart from that I am alway busy, somehow. Even if I don`t have a real job, haha!

What does money mean to you?

I don`t care about money, as long as there`s enough, haha!

How to follow Tom and his adventures:
Instagram

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Snowmads Screensavers – Our Moments for your Device

Snowmads Screensavers – Our Moments for your Device!
When scrolling through our archives we quickly realized that there are so many unforgettable moments we’d like to share with you.

Here’s our first selection of screensavers (desktop and mobile) for you. Get inspired and motivated by the Snowmads, go out and experience your very own special moments.

desktop

mobile

Here you can download the screensavers:

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Snowmads Good Reads – Our Book Recommendations

Snowmads Good Reads is our series of book recommendations for you! Books we have with us on our travels, books we read on rainy days or lazy afternoons in the hammock. Snowmads Good Reads is no advertising for any book it’s simply what we like, what inspires us and what we think you should have on your reading list.

The Snowmads‘ way of traveling is a slow way of traveling, an intense and mindful way of exploring cultures, unknown mountain ranges and places far off the beaten path. Traveling slow for us also means taking time for reading, for inspiration and giving thoughts an open space. Reading offers fresh input, different opinions and perspectives on things that concern us.
This week Fabi Lentsch is sharing three of his favorite books that inspire him – find out which ones he is recommending and especially why!

Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind 

by Yuval Noah Harari

“You could never convince a monkey to give you a banana by promising him limitless bananas after death in monkey heaven.” 

“We did not domesticate wheat. It domesticated us.” 

I love to read books which challenge the ways I perceive the world and Sapiens was definitely one of these books. We Homo Sapiens exist since about 70.000 years and spent most of this time in the nature moving around looking for food. Then the agricultural revolution happened which led towards the present way of life. We settled, build cities and also invented stories which make it easier to live together. Such as money, nations, gods, laws and many more. It surprised me how much of our today’s behaviour is still rooted in the genes of our ancestors and saw the patterns of how we became enslaved by bureaucracy, timetables and consumerism. An amazing book for everyone who wants to know more about our species or ultimately about her/himself. 

“As far as we can tell from a purely scientific viewpoint, human life has absolutely no meaning. Humans are the outcome of blind evolutionary processes that operate without goal or purpose. Our actions are not part of some divine cosmic plan, and if planet earth were to blow up tomorrow morning, the universe would probably keep going about its business as usual. As far as we can tell at this point, human subjectivity would not be missed. Hence any meaning that people inscribe to their lives is just a delusion.” 

Quotes by Yuval Noah Harari

Shantaram 

by Gregory David Roberts

“Happiness is a myth. It was invented to make us buy new things.”

“Love is the opposite of power. That’s why we fear it so much.”

I always thought of myself as being this great traveler and adventurer until I read Shantaram by Gregory David Roberts. He escaped a maximum security prison in Australia and somehow managed to flee to India where he lives many existences over quite some years. Such as running a self built clinic in a slum, producing fake passports along with many other dubious activities for the mafia, going to war in Afghanistan and another time in prison in Mumbai. As a hunted man without an identity, home or family he’s searching for love and a meaningful life behind the curtains of a hidden Mumbai society. 

Reading about his adventures made me question my way of traveling and the goals and values in life. Shantaram was one of my motivations to live in Iran right now and learn the language to experience life beyond just being a tourist. 

“But the soul has no culture. The soul has no nations. The soul has no colour or accent or way of life. The soul is forever. The soul is one. And when the heart has its moment of truth and sorrow, the soul can’t be stilled.”

Quotes by Gregory David Roberts

How to Change Your Mind? – The New Science of Psychedelics 

by Michael Pollan

“Why assume that “normal” consciousness is the real one, while the boundless and transcendent variety is somehow fake?”

“Compared with other drugs, psychedelics seldom affect people the same way twice, because they tend to magnify whatever’s already going on both inside and outside one’s head.”

Psychedelics are still quite a sensitive topic in our society and often linked to horror stories of people jumping out of windows. The truth is that humans are using psychedelics such as “magic” mushrooms since thousands of years which gives us reason to believe that they played a big part in our evolution. After the movement against psychedelics in the 1960s researchers have picked up the topic again and it even finds its way into therapeutic use. This book is about the history, recent research including brain scans while people are tripping and Michaels personal travelogues under the influence of these non-addictive drugs. I’ve made experiences with psychedelics during an Ayahuasca ceremony in Brasil about four years ago and this book managed to answer many questions I still had. 

“Habits are undeniably useful tools, relieving us of the need to run a complex mental operation every time we’re confronted with a new task or situation. Yet they also relieve us of the need to stay awake to the world: to attend, feel, think, and then act in a deliberate manner. (That is, from freedom rather than compulsion.) If you need to be reminded how completely mental habit blinds us to experience, just take a trip to an unfamiliar country. Suddenly you wake up! And the algorithms of everyday life all but start over, as if from scratch. This is why the various travel metaphors for the psychedelic experience are so apt. The efficiencies of the adult mind, useful as they are, blind us to the present moment. We’re constantly jumping ahead to the next thing.”

Quotes by Michael Pollan

As someone once said: „Reading is dreaming with open eyes.“ We want to wish you happy dreams, relaxing moments, many inspiring words, quotes and a quality time out from the every day life!

Photo Credits

Tamo Gokadze

Florian Breitenberger
Anjuna Hartmann

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Fabi meets… Guro Vashakmadze

„Fabi meets…“ is a series of interviews with Fabian Lentsch and other skiers, friends and people he meets on the road. Same questions, different answers!

Guro Vashakmadze is one of Georgia’s freeski pioneers and knows the Caucasus mountains like the back of his hand. Fabi and Guro met during the very first Snowmads trip A Journey Towards Eastern Suns in 2016.

Name: Guram Vashakmadze (Guro)

Age: 26

City: Tbilisi/Gudauri

How is/was it to grow up around here?

I grew up in the area of the Gudauri ski resort in the time of civil war and political instability of Georgia. Gudauri appeared to be an island of peace and joy in the ocean of wrath at that time. The mountains left me with good memories from my childhood so I am thankful for it especially when I imagine what my generation and the older ones had gone through.  

Guro enjoying the Georgian pow

What do you think about skiing? have you ever tried it or seen someone ski? What do you associate with it?

For me skiing is a lifetime competition with others and most important with myself. I am constantly trying to prove myself that what I am able to do. I can do it better and better – always! There are no real borders which could limit your abilities. Unless you are not trying to overcome gravitation  

Fabi during a skiing trip to Georgia

Why did you choose this job/career?

I did not choose this job, I just grew up with it. Maybe it was meant to be like this? I don’t know, I just know there was no exact moment when I decided to follow my real passion. This passion existed since I started skiing. I should admit that it is not my real job at the moment, hehe…

What are you most passionate about and why and what makes you happy?

I am passionate about team spirits, when I feel that I belong to the group of people on whom I can rely in the much needed moments. I used to play rugby and still I admire this sport. The reason is that the mental connection between the players gives the result of the game. The team spirit is about respect, support and honesty. These three things are one of the most important values for me. 

What advice would you give to your younger self?

I’m not going to give any advice to my younger self as long as I am a result of the things I’ve done in the past and the decisions I made. I am proud of myself and my past life with its’ own good and bad parts. I do not regret the bad parts, that’s actually where an experience comes from and without this experience it is hard to grow as a successful person.

What is freedom to you?

Freedom enables us to call ourselves reasonable beings – humans. If there wouldn’t be the ability to free ourselves from our desires, being independent in making decisions considering all the results they could lead us to, we would look like the beings who are slaves of their own desires. To be free from yourself is the most important part.  

Heliskiing in Georgia

Love, What is It?

The ability to express pure kindness given to us by ultimate power.  

What does money mean to you?

I do not belong to the category of people who consider that they have to be deeply negative about money. I think we should be as honest as possible. Money is the thing that gives us the possibility to follow the things we have a passion for, to be independent from the others, to have a chance to do something good for our families, friends or just unknown people. It is not important what money means for me or what it actually is, but the way you get it and the purpose you spend it for. 

How to follow Guro and his adventures:

Instagram
Twitter
Facebook

Keen on traveling to Georgia? Here you go! Snowmads Travel Georgia Experience

Check out what CNN has to say about skiing in beautiful Georgia: Why Georgia is one of the world’s most underrated skiing destinations!

Big Mountain Dream Lines – The Snowmads in Georgia

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Fabi meets… Neil Williman

„Fabi meets…“ is a series of interviews with Fabian Lentsch and other skiers, friends and people he meets on the road. Same questions, different answers!

Neil Williman, mainly Kiwi, partly English, living in Austria with a Swedish lady he met in France. Beside skiing he’s working as commentator and engineer. He’s been filming with Fabi since 2013 after meeting him and Raphi Webhofer in New Zealand. Their welcoming and generous ways are a big part of the reason why he ended up moving to Innsbruck. Neil has been part of the Snowmads films A Journey Towards Eastern Suns , Ya Mas and Snowmads – Sense of Home . Neil is also well known as the voice of the Freeride World Tour.

Neil during the very first Snowmads trip „A Journey Towards Eastern Suns“

How was it to grow up in New Zealand? 

Good, but not very ski focused, the closest ski hill was 1.5 hours drive then 1.5 hours walk away! And it only had rope tows that you needed a special harness to ride. Eventually I moved to Europe, mainly because of the skiing.

What do you think about skiing? Have you ever tried it or seen someone ski? What do you associate with it?

 Yep I love it and I do it a lot. Skiing means a lot to me, especially since it gives travelling such a sense of purpose since. It’s something you can share with people at home, or on the road, whether you know them well or you just met them.

Why did you choose this job/career? 

Being a pro skier just kind of happened from following my dreams and heart. 

What are you most passionate about and why and what makes you happy? 

Skiing, travelling, friends. They just go so well together since the mountains bring people together in such a special way.

What advice would you give to your younger self? 

Follow your heart just as much as your head.

What is freedom to you? 

The fact that we can travel to pretty much anywhere in the world that we want to is pretty special, it’s something that not everybody has the chance to do and I appreciate it very much.

Love, what is it? 

Being ready to give something back to a person or thing that makes you happy.

How do you spend most of your free time? 

Skiing, biking, playing guitar or with firestick.

What does money mean to you? 

A necessary evil that allows me to do the things I love

Neil and Fabi on the summit of Mt. Olymp in Greece

How to follow Neil and his adventures:
Instagram
Facebook

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The Roots of Snowmads – Interview with Markus Ascher

Ever wondered how the whole Snowmads idea started?
Markus Ascher is talking about the first steps, how things developed and about the process of refurbishing the old fire truck. Read the full story now!

Markus „Moggä“ Ascher, skier, life artist and Snowmad from the very beginning! Moggä introduced the idea of combining skiing and vanlife with „Blacky“ , his 4wd Mercedes van. When Fabi came up with the idea of refurbishing an old fire truck, he didn’t hesitate to join the project and play an important role in the whole process of turning an old fire truck into an outstanding and unique vehicle to travel the world with. 

From your perspective: when and where would you say Snowmads was born? 

I guess I can’t name this one specific birth date or place, it was more like a years long process leading up to what Snowmads is today.
If you go all the way back the idea of chasing the snow and exploring mountains in a camper van started with a trip to Switzerland where Fabi, Matthias Egger and Jonas Blum, a swiss photographer borrowed the Volkswagen van of Fabis parents, in lack of money for hotels. We were freezing our asses off in the van because we neither had a heating system nor did we have good sleeping bags with minus 10 degrees outside. I remember Matthi saying „Moggä, i think my nose is frozen“ while shivering next to me in the middle of the night. Nevertheless we had some of the most amazing days of tree runs in that Swiss valley – thanks to a nice lady called „Chrige“ who we met in the gondola. She let us sleep on the floor in her living room, I don’t know if we could have made the whole week in the camper… That was in 2011 and we definitely learned that for winter camping you need a proper vehicle. We didn’t have that, neither did we have the money to buy it or the knowledge to build one. But the plant was seeded so to say and after some more years it started flowering.

The very first vehicle that later turned into a Snowmads Van – Moggäs „Blacky“
The Mercedes LAF1113 that would later become the Snowmads Truck

Moggä, we need to build another van like yours, but bigger and for more people“. 

How did the whole idea of building the Snowmads-Truck develop? 

It probably started with a phone call from Fabi some weeks after he, unexpected for almost everyone, quit the Freeride World Tour in 2015. He called and said „Moggä, we need to build another van like yours, but bigger and for more people“. 

Two or three years before that Fabi went on a six months road trip to climb, fly and ski with an almost falling apart standard camper van you can find in every camp ground, which him and two friends Leo and Domi bought for around 5000 Euros. They drove from Austria all the way to Kirgistan, learned how to travel big distances and to live on the road – even with a far from perfect vehicle for those dusty dirtroads. I remember when Fabi told me that one time their engine dropped down onto the road in the Kirgistan no mans land. When they came back the car was a total wreck for european standards. But Fabi still says it was one of his best trips.
Meanwhile I had rebuilt myself an old fire fighter truck with the goal to build a winter camping van which turned out really nice. The inspiration came from a 3 months surf trip to Portugal with my girlfriend in a super small and really basic van, just big enough for the two of us and no luxury whatsoever. We saw a lot of surf bums living at the beaches in their big, old Mercedes Trucks. Rusty, but luxury villas compared to our Renault Espace, some of them even had wood stoves inside.

The idea to bring that surfing lifestyle to the mountains fascinated me. So the idea for my second, now bigger van was born.

Surf vibes in Portugal and Moggäs Renault Espace
Truck and project became way bigger than expected!

The idea to bring that surfing lifestyle to the mountains fascinated me. So the idea for my second, now bigger van was born. I finished it just the same season as Fabi had his short stint on the Freeride Worldtour and it was his second FWT stop in Andorra coming up. We decided to drive to the Pyrenees one week before the contest to visit Aymar Navarro and we had an amazing time! Camping in the parking lot and skiing really nice lines in front of our door. When Fabi and Aymar left for Andorra and the competition Fabi already was like „Man, I really don’t feel like competition,  I would much rather stay here“ But yeah, usually when you’ve qualified for the tour, you just go there because as a freerider its one of the best opportunities to make it as a professional. Not so Fabi and when we had a chat on the phone the next day he was really considering quitting the tour – one day later he was already sitting in the bus on his way home. Of course we were far from being the only ones quite stunned by Fabis move to quit the world tour at the second stop in his first year. His explanation blog post reached a lot of people and gave everyone to understand that he wants to explore the world outside the contest scene. That was also the time when that „Moggä, we need to build a bigger van“ phone call happened… We were still talking about a „van“ back then.

Slightly turning into mechanics…

From a crazy idea to suddenly having bought an old fire truck – what happened in-between? 

From the idea to buying the truck it was just one and a half months actually. We quickly saw that with buying and rebuilding a simple van we ́ll never be able to fit eight people plus equipment and necessities like water and food and make that vehicle drive well in the offroads. So we came to a Mercedes Truck from 1985 that was actually used as a lorry in gravel pits and construction yards to carry heavy loads on heavy roads. You don’t see them a lot here in Europe anymore, in the east, specially Iran, you do a lot. If you see them here they’re mainly rebuilt into expedition trucks, cause they’re one of the most reliable vehicles you can think of. Really basic, but really well built. Fabi was just on a filming trip in Alaska with Legs of Steel and we were talking a lot on Skype, when I found the right model of the truck for sale on a scrapyard in Hamburg. Ready to be shipped to Africa, thats what usually happens to them when they get discharged from European Fire Departments with usually really little kilometers on them.

Fabi getting to know the Truck from the inside

The Snowmads Truck had 33.000km on it. The Price and condition of the Truck was too good to let it go, even though we had no fixed plan for the further rebuilding. So I took the train there and bought it for Fabi. It took one more month that he actually saw what he had just bought. Fun fact: None of us was even allowed to drive it, cause it is a Truck with more than 7,5 Tons and neither Fabi or me had the license for that.

Finally allowed to drive a Truck – Fabi and his brand new driving license

We talked to many people and companies if they would help us build the truck and quite a few of them told us, especially when we told them details, that we are crazy and would have no chance to do that with our amount of money.

The long process of refurbishing the old fire truck and finally hitting the road for the first time with the Snowmads-Truck. How would you describe that time? 

Woah that was crazy! Fabi once said that was probably the most exhausting time in his life. As I said, when we bought the truck we didn’t have a fixed plan and none of us had ever build something like that. We just had the experience and blueprint of my van, but the truck was an incomparably bigger project. The idea to buy the truck, put it in front of my house and rebuild it like I basically did with my van was not possible with that one, for once just because of its sheer size. We talked to many people and companies if they would help us build the truck and quite a few of them told us, especially when we told them details, that we are crazy and would have no chance to do that with our amount of money. Luckily Fabis‘ manager Karin of NINE&ONE had a lot of trust in our crazy idea and also Fabis‘ long time sponsors Red Bull and Scott where willing to join the adventure. But still we were far from being on a paved road and the rebuilding turned out to be 6 months of craziness that would actually fill another blog post. But in the end the truck turned out to be amazing! 

„With passion you can achieve a lot that is  thought to be impossible – and we definitely have a lot of passion! „

What do you connect with Snowmads? Which values? What kind of lifestyle? 

I guess the story of how it was born shows quite a lot of what Snowmads is.  It’s about realizing things you dream of, even when it seems unreachable or even impossible. I guess we learned that from skiing, just because no one has done a line you feel absolutely good with doesn’t mean it’s not possible – even if there will be people telling you that it is. When we came up with the idea of the truck and especially details about it, for example the fact that we wanted to insulate it with sheep wool cause we like natural materials, many people and even offroad camper building experts told us we were idiots. Most of them didn’t even believe we would be able to build something like a functioning truck in the first place, cause of too little money, not enough time and too little knowledge.

„One of the essences of Snowmads: going on adventures that are deemed impossible for whatever reasons

Probably you’ll always have those reactions… But yeah, with passion you can achieve a lot that is  thought to impossible – and we definitely have a lot of passion! Thats probably one of the essences of Snowmads, going on adventures that are deemed impossible for whatever reasons. I can tell you, buidling the truck was not the last time we got a lot of questionmarks on faces for our ideas… Generally we all love to be outside in the nature, the mountains, we love to ski, love to explore remote places and cultures and make deep connections with the people and places we meet. And we try to do all of that with open hearts and minds. I can tell you it was a crazy but beautiful ride till now and I’m looking forward to what’s still to come! 

… and finally a paint job! Our good friend Julian Vogel did all the art work for our Truck
Somewhere in Iran…

Want to know more about Markus „Moggä“ Ascher? Check out his episode from our webisode Snowmads Home Stories!

Photo Credits
Florian Breitenberger
Marco Freudenreich
Fabian Lentsch
Markus Ascher
NINE&ONE

Thank you!

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Snowmads – Watch List

Welcome to the final round of our Snowmads approved film recommendations

Before you read on: Have you already seen our first two Snowmads watch lists? Find them here Part 1 & Part 2

As the first two versions of our Snowmads recommended films have all been connected to the Snowmads universe in some way, we’re now offering you a fine selection of films we just really like and think they are highly recommendable. An exception here is TWENTY with our friend Léo Slemett.
We really hope you liked our watchlists and enjoyed a couple of hours skiing fine lines and good times… at least mentally and on your screen.


Here’s our final Snowmads approved selection for you:

HAMKUMMEN – HOMECOMING

Should we travel more or think more about homecoming? 
This question photographer and filmmaker Lukas Dürnegger asks himself in this movie.

ZABARDAST

Zabardast means „fantastic“ in the Hindi language – Zabardast is a definitely a fantastic movie, a movie about an expedition to the great Himalayas of Pakistan, a movie that really impressed us.

LA LISTE

Redefining steep skiing with Jeremy Heitz and Sam Anthamatten – meanwhile this movie of Jeremy and Sam skiing ticking off 15 4000m peaks and their steep faces is almost a classic. By the way: Part two of La Liste is about to drop soon, stay tuned.

TWENTY – An accidental history of free riding by Guido Perrini

TWENTY is the culmination of twenty years of big mountain filming, and raises the question of ‘is it worth it?’ Twenty is an emotional story of the development of freeriding, the passion for being out in the mountains and why the characters return to it again and again, even after tragedy strikes.

Here you go – lean back, grab a cold one and enjoy!

HAMKUMMEN – HOMECOMING

ZABARDAST

LA LISTE

TWENTY – An accidental history of free riding

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Snowmads – Watch List

Here’s a new round of Snowmads approved film recommendations

Enjoyed the five films of our first Snowmads Watchlist?

A new week of staying at home, doing home workouts, dreaming of spring skiing and of course hiding from that world wide virus pandemic is coming up.
Watching a good movie is always a good way to recover from post Easter workouts or when isolation boredom kicks in.
Watching a good ski movie is the best way to dream of big missions and make new plans for when that bloody virus is gone!

Here’s our Snowmads approved selection for you:

SKI VACATION

Follow a Brazilian couple on their skiing vacation in Austria. A nice mix of comedy and skiing, starring Snowmads Raphi Webhofer and produced by our friends of Whiteroom Production.

TIEN SHAN – A KYRGYZ SKI ADVENTURE

The movie shows the story of four friends, including Fabian Lentsch, traveling to the former soviet republic of Kyrgyzstan in 2012. Super confident they made their way into the Tien Shan mountain range, where they were confronted with snow conditions they have never seen before.

ALTAI – AN UNEXPECTED FORTUNE

Another Whiteroom production. In Spring 2014 the Austrian and German ski alpinists David Pitschmann, Fabian Lentsch, Joi Hoffmann, Michael Trojer and Jakob Schweighofer headed to the remote Russian Altai Mountains in hope to discover a skier’s paradise.

SOUTH LINES

Follow the journey of our Spanish friend and Snowmads Aymar Navarro, who has also been part of YA MAS, and Txema Trull on their annual trip to South America’s austral winter an the incredible Andes mountain range. An epic adventure full of gnarly lines and sharing experiences with local skiers from Chile and Argentina as well as internationally known riders like Leo Slemett and Marion Haerty.

USHBA

Late season 2017. Samuel Anthamatten, Markus Eder, & Leo Slemett head to Svaneti Georgia to hopefully climb Ushba and make a first descent on skis. This mystical 4710m mountain in the Caucasus Mountains is very remote and must be accessed on foot. Before the ascent the crew gets to warm up the legs and experience some of the best skiing they have ever had in a wild heli-ski session in epic conditions. Leo Slemett has also been part of the very first NINE&ONE / Snowmads production A JOURNEY TOWARDS EASTERN SUNS.

Here you go – lean back, grab a cold one and enjoy!

SKI VACATION

TIEN SHAN – A KYRGYZ SKI ADVENTURE

ALTAI – AN UNEXPECTED FORTUNE

SOUTH LINES

USHBA