Tag: Manel Gras
Mattin’s epic Easter training weekend
The Easter week turned out to be an amazing training opportunity for many of our athletes. More than any, Mattin Íñiguez made the most of it. The teacher from the Basque Country is on a sabbatical year and is free to fly and travel.
Mattin left the start point of the race at Hondarribia on Thursday the 2nd of April and encountered typical Basque weather…
He said about the beginning of the trip: “I went to train the first part of the race. We started in wet, horrible conditions—typical Basque Country. I ran 45k the first day, then 30 the second day, but I could fly a little bit to the south part of the Pyrenees. I wanted to explore the Sierra de Abodi; it’s a mountain chain that I didn’t know, so we tried from there. I didn’t fly very well at first, but we got to the Pic de l’Orri and it was magic. It was like 100 kilometers to Escalona.
The next day I flew from Peña Montañesa, and I managed to get to the Catalan ski resort of La Molina, more or less. So I had very good flights during two days. On the third day of flying I tried to go to the sea, but I was late and I didn’t fly very well, but I managed to get to Maçanet de Cabrenys.”
Getting to the sea was impossible with an easterly head wind and weaker conditions as he progressed. However, Mattin was very happy as this trip allowed him to pass some of the possible turnpoints of the 2026 race and explore areas he didn’t know. He also passed the iconic peak of Canigo, still covered in snow and looking imposing from all angles. In fact the trip was made even more special as there is still a lot of snow on all the Pyrenean peaks, making the vistas even more dramatic.
The trip also allowed him to work with one of his supporters to explore the route, research and evaluate different options. After day three, Mattin was unsupported, without a tent or sleeping bag, with just his friend “Visa” as an assistant. And after such a long 5 days, what about getting back home? An option would have been to attempt to fly back, but it was pure coincidence that Meet Director Iñigo Redín was scouting the end-of-race turnpoints and was able to meet up with Mattin and take him back to his car near Pamplona!
And what did he learn in these five days? “That it’s going to be very difficult to arrive to the sea.”
Other X-Pyr athletes making the most of the booming conditions this weekend were local pilots Manel Gras, who flew two triangles of 120 and 197 km and then flew another huge flight on the 8th of April, flying from Berga to the border with Andorra and back to Sant Quirze de Bezora. On the 6th of April Francesca Mugianesi flew 130 km from Áger to close to La Molina and Pierre Remy made the most of the north side of the Pyrenees with a 169 km triangle starting from Couraduque.
You can check their flights in our post.
You can browse all Mattin’s flights on XContest.
Check his IG profile.
X-Pyr 2026: Athlete announcement
After a record-breaking number of applicants, we can now announce the selected teams. There are 50 – the largest number in the history of the event. Some are familiar faces to the race. Defending champion Simon Oberrauner (AUT) and 2024 runner-up Christian Schugg (GER), as well as local pilot and former World Champion Pierre Remy (FRA) will be racing against 4-time champion Chrigel Maurer (SUI) who returns to the race after a break.
There will be 30 rookies, including 5 women. Many local Pyrenean pilots have been selected and their knowledge of terrain and weather may be crucial. Here you can see all the teams that will be on the starting line at Hondarribia on the 21st of June.
We say this every edition, but this year we have the highest level of competitors ever and the racing should be fierce. There are so many potential winners in the field. It’s going to be an exciting week!
ROOKIES: these rookies are stepping onto the X-Pyr stage for the very first time.
FIRST TIMERS: meet the athletes taking on their first X-Pyr.
YOUNG GUNS: these athletes are all under 30, will young legs beat mature minds?
INTERCONTINENTALS: these athletes have crossed continents to participate in the race.
RETURNERS: they’ve felt the scale of the Pyrenees before, and bring something priceless: experience.
LOCALS: they know these mountains. Will local knowledge become the decisive advantage?
GOALIES: they have done it once, from coast to coast. Can they reach goal again?
WOMEN: there have never been so many women taking part in such a high-level H&F race.
LEGENDS: every athlete in this group has stood among the best at X-Pyr. This year’s race pits defending champion Simon Oberrauner against 4-time champion Chrigel Maurer. Pierre Remy has been tantalisingly close to the top spot and is hungry for glory. Last time rookie, Christian Schugg, pulled off an incredible final flight to take 2nd place. Can he do one better? Standa Mayer has always made goal, can he do it a fifth time? And we welcome back our friend Toma Coconea. A legend in H&F racing.
Soon you will be able to see all the team info, interviews, etc. Keep watching this space.
