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Hub AI
Red Bull X-Alps AI simulator
(@Red Bull X-Alps_simulator)
Hub AI
Red Bull X-Alps AI simulator
(@Red Bull X-Alps_simulator)
Red Bull X-Alps
The Red Bull X-Alps is a paragliding adventure race in which athletes hike or fly approximately 1,200 km across the Alps. It first launched in 2003 and has taken place every other year. Around 30 athletes take part, navigating their way via a predetermined set of turn points that vary with each race. Every kilometer must be covered either on foot or by paraglider – athletes either hike carrying their wing, or they fly, carried by their wing.
Teams consist of one athlete and one official supporter, whose role it is to provide strategic advice, weather reports, and psychological and nutritional support. In practise, many athletes have two or three supporters.
Originally the race followed a course from the Salzburg region to Monaco. (The exact start and finish has varied over the years.) Inherent in the race’s early appeal was the adventure of journeying from the mountains to the sea, following the length of the Alps from east to west.
The race last finished in Monaco in 2019. For the 2021 and 2023 editions the Red Bull X-Alps followed a circular route around the Alps finishing in Zell am See, Austria. The 2025 route is a figure-of-eight course, also finishing in Zell am See. The exact route is normally unveiled in March before the race start.
All editions of the race from 2009 to 2023 were won by Christian Maurer, while Aaron Durogati won the 2025 edition. Red Bull X-Alps is often credited with the revolution in lightweight paragliding equipment design, helping to kick-start "hike and fly" as its own paragliding discipline.
The concept for the Red Bull X-Alps was developed by Austrian pilot Hannes Arch who saw a TV documentary in which German pilot Toni Bender crossed the Alps from North to South by paraglider, carrying all his equipment, sleeping rough and hiking parts of the way.
"I thought it would be cool to base a paragliding competition on this format and developed a basic concept for it - and the idea was born! Together with Red Bull, we have developed it over the years to be the Red Bull X-Alps it is today - the toughest and most extreme endurance and outdoor race in the world. Its simplicity is what makes it most appealing. We start in Salzburg and whoever arrives in Monaco first wins. That's it. It's about body and soul, not about hundreds of rules and regulations," Arch has said.
When conditions are good, athletes use paragliders to fly, and when they are not they must run or hike, carrying their paraglider and other mandatory equipment. The use of tunnels and all other forms of transport are not permitted.
Red Bull X-Alps
The Red Bull X-Alps is a paragliding adventure race in which athletes hike or fly approximately 1,200 km across the Alps. It first launched in 2003 and has taken place every other year. Around 30 athletes take part, navigating their way via a predetermined set of turn points that vary with each race. Every kilometer must be covered either on foot or by paraglider – athletes either hike carrying their wing, or they fly, carried by their wing.
Teams consist of one athlete and one official supporter, whose role it is to provide strategic advice, weather reports, and psychological and nutritional support. In practise, many athletes have two or three supporters.
Originally the race followed a course from the Salzburg region to Monaco. (The exact start and finish has varied over the years.) Inherent in the race’s early appeal was the adventure of journeying from the mountains to the sea, following the length of the Alps from east to west.
The race last finished in Monaco in 2019. For the 2021 and 2023 editions the Red Bull X-Alps followed a circular route around the Alps finishing in Zell am See, Austria. The 2025 route is a figure-of-eight course, also finishing in Zell am See. The exact route is normally unveiled in March before the race start.
All editions of the race from 2009 to 2023 were won by Christian Maurer, while Aaron Durogati won the 2025 edition. Red Bull X-Alps is often credited with the revolution in lightweight paragliding equipment design, helping to kick-start "hike and fly" as its own paragliding discipline.
The concept for the Red Bull X-Alps was developed by Austrian pilot Hannes Arch who saw a TV documentary in which German pilot Toni Bender crossed the Alps from North to South by paraglider, carrying all his equipment, sleeping rough and hiking parts of the way.
"I thought it would be cool to base a paragliding competition on this format and developed a basic concept for it - and the idea was born! Together with Red Bull, we have developed it over the years to be the Red Bull X-Alps it is today - the toughest and most extreme endurance and outdoor race in the world. Its simplicity is what makes it most appealing. We start in Salzburg and whoever arrives in Monaco first wins. That's it. It's about body and soul, not about hundreds of rules and regulations," Arch has said.
When conditions are good, athletes use paragliders to fly, and when they are not they must run or hike, carrying their paraglider and other mandatory equipment. The use of tunnels and all other forms of transport are not permitted.