When you want to become the best at something, you have to dedicate yourself fully to it. You have to immerse yourself in your goal and put all of your energy into tenaciously pursuing it.
For Nikolai Shirmer, that meant carrying jugs of water up a mountain all summer long, trail running, lifting weights, practicing alpine rope techniques, riding road bikes, building stamina, and, of course, skiing a lot.
In Strike, Shirmer takes us behind the scenes of his freeride training to Austria. The freeski phenom got a few young guns and a cinematography crew together to document how he trains and what kind of skiing he does to prepare for the season.
And spoiler alert: Its gnarly. Shirmer doesnt hold back even when hes just training. Alongside Alex Hackel, Virgile Didier, Krister Kopala, and Vetle Sevild, Shirmer shows the world just how rad freeski training season is —and just how hard you have to work to ski at their level.
Runtime: 19 min., 6 sec.

Training for a 200-Mile Ultramarathon: 3 Runners, 3 Strategies, and the Gear They UseRunners share training tips, exercise philosophies, and essential gear for big-mountain races as they prepare to run the Italian Tor des Géants. Read more
The New Public Lands Rule Balances Conservation Against Drilling
The Best Running Headphones of 2024
Reasons to Love Running in Austin
The Best Fire Pits of 2024
The Best Beach Wagons of 2024
Meet the Lunar Cruiser: NASA Taps Toyota for Special Moon Build
The Subtle Art of Catch and Release
Arctic Expeditions Ain’t What They Used to Be: Lonnie Dupre’s Gear Tell-All