Juraj Koreň is an expert alpine climber and pilot from Slovakia who has been chasing some very extreme (often solo) adventures around the world for the last decade, including his 7 “virgin summits” attempt to climb and fly off the world’s highest peaks. We begin this conversation discussing his experience in the 2019 Red Bull X-Alps and how mistakes in his first race have guided his last five years of preparations for his second race this June. They discuss the challenges of solo climbing and the importance of understanding mortality in adventure sports. Juraj reflects on his experiences, including a harrowing solo climb of the north face of the Eiger and the mental battles faced during the Red Bull X-Alps race. We discuss the addictive nature of extreme sports, the lessons learned from past experiences, and the importance and intrigue of solo missions for personal growth and reflection.

A year ago almost to the day professional Red Bull adventure athlete, 9 time Red Bull-Alps competitor, brainchild of “The Search” projects, professional speaker, loving father and husband Tom De Dorlodot was learning how to kite-ski in Norway for a future planned expedition across the length of Greenland when things went horribly, horribly wrong. This wasn’t Tom’s first major injury, but this one has forced Tom into some scary places both mentally and physically. Tom’s year has been a blur of darkness and light: nine major surgeries, months of antibiotics, at times a real risk of losing his leg pulling against optimism, hope, love of family and beautiful lessons.

Jeff Ayliffe hails from South Africa and has been under some sort of canopy for a great deal of most of his action-packed years, beginning at the age of 5 when he became obsessed with skydiving. Jeff shares his journey from a young skydiving enthusiast to a veteran member of the national team. He recounts personal stories, including the thrill of formation flying and some terrifying, and sometimes tragic moments when things went wrong.