N° 43 – May 2013

thirty degrees no. 43 M Ay 2013

Sport An unforgettable adventure in the Zanskar Valley • Climbing: Kevin Hemund, a young man with a solid anchor Living the life of a professional kitesurfer • Mission Antarctic Society The Qugo: Riding the trend of electric urban vehicles Origami still bends the design world to its will • The Cocoon House, architectural metamorphosis LIFESTYLE Summer festivals • Summer walks in the Col du Sanetsch • Françoise Jaquet, the new president of the Swiss Alpine Club • Portfolio: Bali

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Impressum 30° Degrees (since 2002) N°43, MAi 2013 / Cover photo: David Schweizer

Editing & administration CB Communication sàrl Rue du Simplon 20 – Case Postale 386 1001 Lausanne - Switzerland info@cbcommunication.com / www.cbcommunication.com Tel.: +41 21/ 312 41 41, Fax : +41 21/ 312 41 11 Editor-in-chief christian.bugnon@cbcommunication.com Deputy Editor-in-chief frederic.rein@cbcommunication.com Assistant severine.cherix@cbcommunication.com Editorial assistant sophie.artar@cbcommunication.com Writers (in order of appearance) Christian Bugnon, Serge Greter, Nicolas Zambetti, ClaudeHervé Bazin, Frédéric Rein, Saskia Galitch, Stefan Michel, Jean-Marc Sueur, Patrice Schreyer Photographers (in order of appearance) David Schweizer, Redbull, Christian Bugnon, Erica Gold/ Solar Impulse, Giacomo Blanchetti, RTS/Aymon Benoît, Ultraks 2013, WamHouse, Hervé Annen, Ben Thouard, Patrice Schreyer, Tero Repo/The North Face, René Robert, Jacques Richon, Qugo, Webber Wave Pools, Louis Vuitton, Catherine Meuter, Planning Korea, Keystone / Sebastien Rabany, Yann Orhan, Marco Prosch, Paul Elledge, Sony Music, Mathieu Dorthomb, AFP ImageForum/Jason Merritt, Martin Bissig, David Schweizer, Freerideworldtour.com/J. Bernard, Mike Tittel, Trail VSB / F.Perraudin, Trail VSB / C.Bussat, Dieter Spinnler, Jean-Pierre Grandjean, COMO Hotels and Resorts Graphic design: marlene@cbcommunication.com florian.blanchard@cbcommunication.com (AD) christian.bugnon@cbcommunication.com German translation: Sabine Dröschel English translation: Simon Till, Paul Subrenat Photo-offset printing: Images 3 Printing: IRL + Lausanne SA 30° available in Swiss newsagents from Naville & Valora, one issue for CHF 8.Collector issue CHF 15.Subscriptions to 30°: info@30degrees.ch Subscriptions in Switzerland: March / May / June / September / December 1 year (4 editions + 1 Collector issue ) for CHF 57.– –25% for 18-24 year olds and over age 65 2 years (8 editions + 2 Collector issue ) for CHF 99.– –25% for 18-24 year olds and over age 65 Advertising for French-speaking Switzerland + English version (Internet & iPad) www.30degres.tv www.30degrees.tv christian.bugnon@cbcommunication.com Advertising for German-speaking Switzerland www.30grad.tv Blueorange Media GmbH Sonja Kupper 062/ 772 21 56 sk@blueorange-media.ch Copyright : © 2012-2013 30°degrees magazine All rights reserved.

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30° magazine, an official media partner of the Swiss Alpine Club CAS-SAC for competition sports This issue as well as our Verbier luxury special issue are available on the iPad. You can also find us on Facebook and Twitter.

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Winter was lovely... and long. Our white «collector’s» December issue was a resounding success, as was our special mountain issue dedicated to the Verbier resort. For this we thank you all, and are happy to announce that more special issues will be forthcoming next season, covering Verbier (again), Zermatt, and others, as the best Swiss resorts take front and centre.

By that time we will have journeyed together to places that defy imagination, places of indescribable beauty. In full-blown summer we’ll buckle on our snowboards and follow the trails of Xavier de Le Rue, who set off to conquer 60º Antarctic slopes that plunge into its icy oceans. Freeriding in all its glory! A Swiss winter expedition, set out to pedal in the heart of Zanskar, comes face to face with other legendary landscapes sublimely transfixed by the eternal Himalayan cold.

It’s a journey of both suffering and euphoria. In that place, nature is king; man is no more than a plaything, who must adapt or die. Several warm breaks whisk us away to Polynesia, for some lagoon kite surfing (a dream come true), to Bali, to Turkey, and even for some origami.

More well-preserved gems, more excitement and enjoyment–this time hidden much closer to home. Up the Trail Verbier St-Bernard (7000 m of vertical gain to cover!). On the rock faces of the Schilt, in the Bernese Jura. Across the Sanetsch, mineral-covered like a home-grown Great White North. And even through the aisles at Baselworld, where the world of watchmaking expertise reaches new heights of excellence (plus a brief anthology of models to look for). So Swiss. So beautiful. As you’ve no doubt noted, summits are frequent stars on our pages. In this issue, 30° gets closer to the Swiss Alpine Club than ever, sitting down for a chat with its upcoming new president—the first woman to hold this title in the institution’s history—and lighting the candles on its 150th birthday cake. And herein lies the simple truth, our very own creed, if you will: at any latitude, in any form, mountains are our passion.

Don’t forget that you can also fully enjoy this issue, plus many extras, in digital format on the web and your iPad.

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Christian bugnon | Publisher & Editor-in-chief thirty degrees | 3

14 Contents No. 43 MAy 2013 SPORT Living the life of a professional kitesurfer

The Schilt, a little piece of Verdon in the Jura

Mission Antarctic An unforgettable adventure in the Zanskar Valley Climbing: Kevin Hemund, a young man with a solid anchor

Freeride is busting its borders Trail Verbier St-Bernard: Hit the trail for adventure and the big outdoors

14 20 24 56 66 69

56

72

LIFESTYLE News 08 For Jacques Richon, Antarctica is the most beautiful prison in the world 34

Portfolio: Bali with Keystone 36

Music: Summer festivals 50

Music: Is Kodaline the new Coldplay?

52

Movies: The enigmatic Johnny Depp 54

Summer walks in the Col du Sanetsch 74 Franรงoise Jaquet, the new president of the Swiss Alpine Club 81

74

society The Qugo: Riding the trend of electric

urban vehicles 42

Wave Pools: where the surf is always up 44

Origami still bends the design world to its will 46 The Cocoon House, architectural metamorphosis 48

The Swiss army knife is in good hands 71

Travel: Turkey, the giants who defy time itself 82

Trends in timepieces: Baselworld 2013 88

Trends: sport 91

Hotel review: Bali, the most soothing of retreats 94

94

Jérémie Eloy back from a lovely kitesurfing session in the waves off Vairao on the Tahitian peninsula.

Jérémie is well acquainted with the spot, as he’s spent a lot of time in Tahiti and never misses the chance to catch some air when he’s in the vicinity.

Living the life of a professional

kitesurfer

Happy winner of the “Julbo Swell Session� competition, Hugo, a young 25-year-old kitesurfing fan from Normandy, sets off to ride the winds and waves of French Polynesia. AKA, when dreams come true.

mission

Antarctic

North of the Antarctic Peninsula, Graham Land’s colossal spine juts out of the icy waters.

Famed for their gracefulness, Balinese dancers bring to life the Hindu legends of the fabulous epic Ramayana.

portfolio

BALI with keystone

Iconographiy째째째 christian bugnon

the Cocoon

House architectural metamorphosis

This imaginative project, dreamed up by the Planning Korea studio, is based around a central cocoon, with two adjacent glass-panelled buildings of more rectilinear proportions. An audacious project due to come to life in 2015 on the Korean island of Jeju.

fThe Cocoon House is currently under construction on the Korean island of Jeju.. sThis contemporary house sits in the heart of magnificent green surroundings. dWithin the cocoon, inspired by a living organism, everything is designed with curvy lines. aThe roof doubles as both a garden and a pool.

Text°°° Frédéric Rein Photos°°° Planning Korea The cocoon is there for eyes to see, but the process of metamorphosis has already taken place. On paper at least, an architectural project as unique as it is audacious has been brought to life: the Cocoon House. Brainchild of the Seoul-based studio Planning Korea, this modern construction of 308 m2 has been designed around an unusual cocoon lying in the centre with circular openings, inspired by a living organism. The curvy “eco-structure”, in some ways reminiscent of Dali’s soft watches or Gaudi’s follies, will be set between two extensively glazed cubic buildings. This futuristic residence will sit proudly between Gotjawal forest and the ocean, and is to be built using locally-sourced materials from the Korean island of Jeju. The groundwork has already begun, with delivery scheduled for late 2015.

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Not just a roof over your head In the meantime, the computer-generated images give us a fascinating foretaste of this playful project. Push open the virtual door of the Cocoon House and you find yourself in a world of luxury where the boundaries between floors, walls and ceilings are often blurred. And the same goes for the borders between interior and exterior: the lush setting can be enjoyed on all sides through vast bay windows, while trees are all around and rise up to the roof! Here the artistry is not just in the architecture, but it lies in the vegetation too. Up high, on top of one of the side buildings, a real garden can even be found, providing both thermal insulation and a means of dispersing rain water. The roof also houses a small pool, where you can take a quick dip while enjoying the ocean as a scenic backdrop. And then of course there are the bedrooms, as well as a library and a meeting room, offering a combination of living, working and leisure spaces.

The Cocoon House is more than an architectural project,The it’s aCocoon way ofHouse is currently under living… and in quite some style! construction on the Korean island of Jeju. www.planningkorea.com

An unforgettable adventure in the

Zanskar

Valley

Cycling through the Himalayas in midwinter might sound impossible, but a Swiss expedition has just proved it can be done. As we find out, however, the risks mounted when they put their skis on.

At age 29, Kevin Hemund is one of the very best Swiss bouldering climbers, as evidenced by his 2012 Swiss Champion title.

Kevin Hemund a young man with a solid anchor

The 29 year old Swiss bouldering champion from Bienne is on a continual quest for improvement while remaining true to his ideals.

Text°°° Jean-Marc Sueur Photos°°° david schweizer Parents act as their children’s natural guides through life, paving the way ahead. It is usually they who lead or inspire a child to head in a certain direction, leaving a lasting imprint. The life of Kevin Hemund, Swiss bouldering champion, is heavily marked with a respect for that which is simple and healthy, a desire imparted over long treks through the heart of Jura’s natural bounties. Mountain and rock climbing are passions he inherited from his parents. While studying gymnastics, he spent a week of climbing with the OJ-Seeland team from the Swiss Alpine Club, SAC. It was a revelation; the beginning of a new life in which this discipline would play an increasingly significant role. Thanks to his hard work and self-sacrifice, his skills grew with each new competition, leading to victory after victory until finally reaching the national team, of which he has been a member since 2003.

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A way of life Kevin Hemund is an expert in bouldering (rock climbing up short heights without a rope or safety harness, indoors or at the base of natural rock faces), and tirelessly works to earn his place among our planet’s elite. "But more than improving my performance in competition, climbing is a way of life for me, my vital connection with nature," confides Hemund, who is also a sports teacher and majored in biology.

"There’s nothing better than a day spent on the rocks with friends." A resident of Bienne for the past 5 years, this 29 year-old bachelor, who is also a scientific consultant to the SAC in the field of competitive sports, is actively on a quest to scale another mountain, one that in his eyes is much more significant: that of his personal growth as a human being.

So important, in fact, that it may be even more valuable than his titles and medals. "Unfortunately, in the real world we face issues that are much more serious than the challenge of scaling a rock face." His is a route traced by reason and fixed by values resolutely carved into the rock he climbs.

“Climbing is a way of life, my vital connection with nature”, explains Kevin Hemund.

The view of Arpelistock from the summit of Gstelihorn, with the picturesque Arpille ridge on the right.

Summer walks in the Col du

Sanetsch

A bit of desert in the heart of Switzerland? A trip to the Himalayas or to Iceland just a few steps away? Indeed, our country has some hidden gems to reward those who take the time to seek them out.

thirty degrees | 75