Harald Philipp is a star. At least in the mountain bike world. Well, at least in the German-speaking world. But here he is a colorful dog, after Danny MacAskill his name is quickly mentioned by many. He became famous for his daring high alpine descents through via ferratas. His video clips on YouTube and Vimeo reach six-figure access numbers, and he also has a fan club. He is an undisputed star. And what do many of these stars have in common? They go on lecture tours and talk about their unique lives with a good dose of narcissism. Harald Philipp is also currently touring from stage to stage, giving a guest performance at the Viamala Sportwerkstatt in Thusis on December 3. In Herbert's home town, and therefore a must-attend event. 8.30 pm, let's see how the star performs.

A little coquetry to start with. He has absolutely no talent for mountain biking, he says mischievously, earning restrained laughter. And then everything turns out differently than expected. Instead of a narcissistic self-portrayal, he launches into an in-depth psychological treatise on the nature of the mountain biker. Harald Philipp has given a lot of thought to himself and his flair for mountain biking and tries to capture his experiences in pictures, words and video clips. And suddenly he is no longer a star, but just like everyone else in the room. Someone who has simply given a few more thoughts, perhaps also because of his borderline experiences. He has the same motivations, the same joys, the same frustrations, the same experiences as everyone in the audience. The initial skepticism has subsided, turned into sympathy halfway through the lecture and finally even turned into a Swiss-restrained euphoria. There's someone in front of us who says exactly what we've always felt but somehow couldn't express. And now we also believe that he has no talent. Because talent is completely unimportant. Passion counts, and with a lot of passion, talent becomes secondary.

And when Harald Philipp, a German living in Innsbruck, is out and about in Graubünden, a bike tour the day after the lecture is a must. Even at the beginning of December in sub-zero temperatures. The Rhine Gorge is on the program, one of the great singletrail classics in Graubünden. The only problem is that there's not much sun here at the beginning of December, and there are probably ice fields to overcome, so we'll probably freeze our toes, fingers and ears to death. Could be nasty.

Then - like the evening before at the lecture - everything changes. The ground on the trails is frozen, but grips the tires like a bomb. There are only very few and very small patches of ice. Instead, the frozen dew seems to lie over the valley floor like a fine layer of powdered sugar, a fairytale landscape straight out of a picture book. The water of the Rhine is crystal clear, as is the air, and the sub-zero temperatures are bearable. By the time we finally reach the first houses in Ilanz, we have gone through almost all of the psychoanalysis stages from Harald Philipp's lecture. And that's in December. The Rhine Gorge in winter has become something of a post-season highlight.

This also applies to Harald Philipp, his smile is unmistakable. And now we know: He's not a star. He's just like you and me. Rides his mountain bike like you and me - just a little more often. And thinks about it a little more often. And that makes him valuable. Someone who analyzes us all, who holds a mirror up to us, who makes us think. He's one of us, just a bit more colorful.

More information about Harald Philipp:
www.summitride.com

Tour through the Rhine Gorge (Bonaduz-Ilanz) on December 4:
Rhine Gorge Super Tour