This is my Red Bull X-Alps 2025 application. I wasn’t successful this time. I am posting this as a resource. Maybe it will help someone in the future.
Why do you want to do the race again?*
I have unfinished business. I had a few unforeseen events occur during the 2023 edition, and I would love another attempt to see how I perform, knowing what I know now.
Entry is never guaranteed (unless you made the podium). Why should you be in the race again?*
In 2023, I was performing well. I was fit, flying well, and I had a solid team. I experienced an allergic reaction on day three, which caused me to drop to the back of the field. My result would have been considerably better without this unforeseen obstacle. Also, I believe our team showed a fun and lighthearted side of the race, and I would like to bring that back to the next edition of the race.
Were you happy with your last performance? *
On the whole, yes. A few days into the race I outflew the competitors in my vicinity but the distance between myself and the next athlete was too great to make up. I had fun, which was the main goal :).
What will you do differently this time around?
I will take prophylactic antihistamines to ensure I won’t have an allergic reaction. I will also fly with updated settings on my instrument, as I had an issue in the last edition where I landed in a no-takeoff zone, which cost me a lot of time.
What is your race goal?*
My race goal is to finish in the top 10.
What do you enjoy about the race? *
I enjoyed the intensity of the experience. I went through such a range of emotions and experiences in such a short period. I enjoyed pushing myself physically and mentally. I also enjoyed making new friends, meeting fellow athletes, fans and X-Alps staff members.
What scares you about the race? *
The lack of local knowledge. The race is much trickier, being non-European. I have more experience in the European Alps, which will benefit me greatly.
What also scares me is making the right decisions while tired, being in a dangerous situation as a paraglider, and the economic cost of such a race.
What is your approach to risk and safety? What are your rules for staying safe?
Whenever I think of risk and safety, I weigh the rewards. More often than not, the increase in risk isn’t worth the reward. I give myself quite a wide safety margin with all the adventure sports I participate in, not just paragliding.
I plan to be as physically and mentally prepared as possible. Doing so is one way of increasing my safety margin and mitigating risk.
My main rule for staying safe is to stop and assess the situation. I will also rely on my team to give me safety advice.
Paragliding and adventure experience
Paragliding: I was licensed in Nepal in 2012. Since then, adventure flying has been my main focus. As a junior pilot, I spent every weekend driving around Central Australia, looking for new launches and throwing myself off a few mountains. I was the only paragliding pilot in town and dreamed of being the first to fly over the ranges there. I made it my mission to fly as much as possible and learn quickly to do this safely. I, therefore, travelled back to Nepal and spent a few months in the house thermal there, learning how to turn circles. After an SIV, when I had around 100 hours, I went to Bir (Indian Himalayas) with my vol biv gear. I was lucky to bump into a very experienced vol biv pilot, mountaineer and multi-adventurer, Bryan Moore (from NZ). He trusted my abilities and took me on my first vol biv adventure. Looking back on this, it was a pivotal moment in my flying progression. After my return, I was lucky to have furthered my skills to the point where I could safely pioneer paragliding in remote Central Australia. Since then, I have continued to progress. I am a well-rounded, safe pilot with experience in the smaller mountains of Australia and the bigger, more technical mountains of New Zealand, the European Alps, the Himalayas and the Pyrenees. I have competed in cross-country paragliding competitions for six years. I was a member of the Australian Paragliding Squad for four years. I was a paragliding instructor and commercial tandem pilot in Bright, Australia. I was the first Australian resident to compete in the X-Pyr and the fourth in the X-Alps.
Adventure: I have climbed for 17 years. Climbing is a passion for me, and I find it highly rewarding. I have put up first ascents in the Himalayas, New Zealand, and Australia. I climb in all different styles – bouldering, sport, traditional, and mountaineering. In addition to climbing, I surf, kayak (white water and touring), mountain bike, road bike, trail run and kite surf.
How have you trained/improved your flying skills since your last participation?*
Over the European winter I flew in the NZ Alps. I believe flying in New Zealand is more technical than in Europe. I spent a few weeks practising acro during the European summer in Organya, Spain. I also had a few flights in the European Alps, but the weather wasn’t very good when I visited.
How many years have you been paragliding (years)? *
12
Do you fly anything other than paragliding?*
Model aeroplanes and kites.
Tell us how you got into paragliding*
My father was a fixed-wing pilot. When I was six, we built balsa wood gliders together and launched them from a bungee, catching thermals off the local tennis court. I joined the air training cadets when I was 13, where I learned more about flying. That same year, after witnessing my first hang glider, I said to myself, “I will do that when I grow up”. I had no idea how it was even possible to soar like a bird unassisted. Twenty-five years later, I took the plunge and never looked back.
How many hours did you paraglide in 2023? *
200ish
How many paragliding flights did you make in 2023?*
105
If you have an online flight log, for example xcontest, provide the link to your flights below.
https://www.xcontest.org/world/en/pilots/detail:rbinstead
What is your CIVIL ID (FAI), if you have one?
36686
List your top results in hiking and fly competitions since your last participation (result, competition, year)*
The last time I did any comps was the X-Alps. I supported Shane in the X-Pyr (I owed him one), and we came 3rd.
What was your best cross-country flight in the Alps or a comparable region since the last edition (location, distance, triangle/flat/one way, year)?*
My best flight was in January this year in the NZ Southern Alps. The flying was extremely technical. It wasn’t my longest flight, but my best because of its difficulty.
List your best acrobatic paragliding maneuvers that you can fly
Spirals, sats, wingovers.
List your top 5 adventure flying, hike & fly or vol biv experiences in the last three years (place, year, what)*
1) Bir India, October 2023, 6-day vol biv. I guided friends into the Kullu Valley, and we explored around the 6000m peaks that line the valley.
2) NZ Southern Alps, January 2023, two-day solo vol biv. This was a great adventure. I flew deep into the NZ Alps, exploring new terrain.
3) NZ Southern Alps, January 2024, one-night biv. I aimed to fly to a beautiful saddle that overlooks Mt Aspiring (iconic peak). The flying was very technical, but I was lucky to reach the goal. The following day, I was hit with bad weather and had to retreat to the valley.
4) The X-Alps 2023… of course :).
5) Bright Australia, January 2023, hike and fly link up. I did a triple link-up of three mountains in one day.
What other adventures have you done, either races or personal projects?
I have quite a few pre-2023, but since the last X-Alps, my favourite adventure has been kayak touring the Marlborough sounds and Abel Tasman National Park (NZ) with my partner.
Are you the holder of a record?
No
Training and Performance
What’s your training philosophy? Do you follow a regular plan?*
My training philosophy is “consistency is the key”. I feel it is important to do regular training. I will follow a solid plan that will start 40 weeks before the 2025 X-Alps prologue.
Do you have an online training log, like Strava?
https://www.strava.com/athletes/2680445
Do you follow a special diet?
Yes. I try not to eat sugar and as many whole foods as possible. When I follow a training plan, I eat supplemental protein and other anti-inflammatory foods.
What’s your approach to nutrition?
Nutrition is a piece of the pie. If your nutrition is bad, you can’t perform well or recover as fast.
Who makes the ideal supporter? (No names needed, rather we want to know if you are looking for a top paraglider pilot, weather expert, or just someone to do the driving and cooking?)
The ideal supporter has previous experience in hike and fly races. Ideally, someone who has done the job before or competed in a race. It is difficult to fully understand the demands without some prior experience. From a practical level, the main supporter has to be good at juggling tasks. They should not only be comfortable with the more mundane tasks like cooking but also be part meteorologist, part psychologist and part strategist.
Richie's Adventures 
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