BLACKYAK Made For Missions - Podcast

Mountain peaks, crisis areas, eight years in a tent - Vibeke Sefland, the Norwegian adventurer, takes us through a life full of courageous expeditions and humanitarian missions. Learn how her childhood close to nature taught her how to handle dangerous situations and hear about her work with courageous women in Afghanistan.

An episode like a summit push: meet Danish adventurer, mountain guide and high altitude alpinist Jakob Urth, who first plunged into the fire and ice of his passion on Mont Blanc and went on to become one of the greatest mountain guides in the Himalayas. Hear about the challenges and dreams in the two lives of a mountaineer - one on summits and basecamps, and one as a returnee to his life at home. Hear how the mountain guide leads his clients through the painful rigors of an eight-thousand-meter climb up to, perhaps, the most significant moments of their lives, and what motivates him even beyond that.

Especially on Annapurna you have to be prepared for anything. For example, unexpectedly becoming a hero again: This time Adam Bielecki became part of a rescue team that set out to find a climber who fell into a crevasse in the most dangerous passage of the mountain. In this extraordinary episode you can hear for yourself how resilient we humans are, that there are moments when you should take a rope longer than 50 meters and observe once again that there are much more important things in life than the summit.

Being an "outdoorsy" person teaches you a lot along the way. In the mountains, we see the effects of climate change clearly before our eyes. Matthias' guest this time is the far-sighted entrepreneur, avid athlete, speedflyer and film maker Malcolm Wood. With documentaries like The Last Galciers or A Plastic Planet – which David Attenborough called the most important film of our time – the mountain advocate in the UN world environment programme has made it his mission to share his experiences with the world. Enjoy this heartfelt, inspiring and profound conversation.

Mountaineering is the privilege of introspection. Because Jost Kobusch embarks on his spectacular projects alone, he has plenty of time to reflect. He shares his astonishing experiences of his recent winter solo ascent of Denali, his attempts to do the same on Everest and he and Matthias shed light on what is cliché and what are their true motivations in this profound conversation.

In this episode, Tenji Sherpa sheds some light on what it takes to regularly stand where others aspire to stand just once in their lifetime. In conversation with Matthias, he talks about his path to becoming an internationally certified mountain guide and how climate change is transforming conditions at high altitude. We also hear about his time with Ueli Steck and the significance of Nimsdai Sherpa's success. This episode was recorded on January 25, 2023.

In the world of mountain sports there are many first times. Uta Ibrahimi, however, stands out. She is the first Albanian woman to climb Mount Everest.  In this episode she talks to Superfrenchie about her next missions, her past successes and her goals, which are even bigger than the eight-thousanders she has climbed: To raise awareness about nature, the mountains and human rights, especially in Kosovo and Albania.

What is it like to paraglide off K2? Alpinist Max Berger, professional mountain guide and executive in the outdoor industry for Petzl, shares his experience from years of challenging missions. Tune in for Matthias talking shop with this forerunner of mountain sports who made his mark by founding the ice climbing world cup and making several first ascents.

In this episode, Matthias talks with extreme mountaineer and polish superstar Adam Bielecki. How did he get into mountaineering? How does he prepare for his high-altitude expeditions? And how does he deal with the dangers inside the death zone, being a family man? Tune in! This episode was recorded on Dec 22nd, 2020.