Day two of the Red Bull X-Alps started slowly but delivered a nail-biting race that saw four-time winner Chrigel Maurer rise from 22nd place at the start of the day to end with a commanding lead over race hero, Romanian Toma Coconea. Technical problems, however, meant that many passionate fans were unable to follow the race.
Toma had played his Ledlenser Night Pass to run through the night and seize a 30km lead over his closest challenger on the ground, Stephan Huber. Low cloud and strong winds meant that flying did not ever seem to be an option, and yet both Toma and Chrigel flew.
Toma used his ground advantage to launch from the famous paragliding site of Goldeck in the early afternoon. Little did he know that Chrigel had already launched earlier, well behind. Chrigel hopped from ridge to ridge in dynamic and then thermic lift, to catch Toma and ultimately overtake him.
The athletes who flew made excellent ground, with France’s Gaspard Petiot making an equally impressive rise through the ranks from near-last to 3rd. Similarly, Nelson de Freyman, Paul Guschlbauer, Stanislav Mayer, Aaron Durogati, and Nick Neynens used their strong-wind flying skills – and bravery – to leapfrog their way into the lead gaggle. Those who chose discretion over valour spent a second day with their gliders unopened and slipped back.
Coconea’s incredible stamina keeps him in the top three now – he convincingly outran everyone else on the ground in a continuous 35 hour push. Challenging weather conditions remain ahead, with sunshine and headwinds expected in equal measure.
The 2017 race is very much on.
Fans, however, were left increasingly frustrated as Red Bull’s new live tracking system proved unreliable. With slow updates, regular freezes, no history and no 3D view, they turned to social media to express their frustration. We can only hope that Red Bull are working hard to fix these problems and that they will be resolved soon.
As the good weather moves into the Alps, so the race and the excitement on Day 3 will accelerate. We all hope that the technology can keep up with the athletes on this incredible adventure.
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