Ever wondered about what goes on behind the scenes of a ski brand? We give you a sneak peek of the hidden magic with this guest blog post from new sustainable ski brand UNTRAKT, who headed out to Grindelwald in the Swiss Alps for their first photo shoot.

Planning a photo shoot takes a lot of work at the best of times, but throw in the extra kit & equipment needed for a ski shoot, as well as the unpredictability of the weather & snow conditions, and you’ve got yourself a party!

So we were praising the snow gods when we checked the weather only a few days prior to our scheduled arrival in Grindelwald (Switzerland), and discovered that despite a previous week of heavy rain they were now experiencing a huge dumping of snow. This was before the season officially started, so the weather was always going to be risky, but everything fell into place and we were welcomed into the village with plenty of snow piling up.

With such as strong reputation for high quality skiing areas it’s no surprise the Swiss have also perfected the logistics of a trip to the mountains. Flying out with SWISS you can sit back and relax with your ski equipment included in their standard luggage allowance.

Having never been to the area before we were thrilled to find that our hotel was so close to the train station, which offers direct access up the side of the Eiger to the ski area of Kleine Scheidegg. With some stunning views on the way up and plenty of space to securely store all the equipment that a photo shoot entails, it felt like a very civilised way to start the day.

Flurries of early morning snow gave way to bluebird skies as we made our way up the mountain and found ourselves heading straight into untouched powder at the side of the beautifully groomed pistes.

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Despite the sun doing its best to offer some warmth, the temperature was well below zero so lunch inside offered some welcome respite and a chance to try out some local fare. To work off the copious amounts of cheese that were consumed, the afternoon saw the opportunity to tackle some off piste on the Lauberhorn, an iconic venue in the FIS Ski World Cup season. Having hiked to the top we felt we’d earned our turns and the powder didn’t disappoint.

As the sun started to set on the face of the Eiger, we made our way back down to Grindelwald and were already making plans for the next day of shooting ahead.

With an early start and huge amounts of snow & ice to clear from the hire car, we were slightly numb fingered and bleary eyed as we made our way round the valley to Stechelberg and took the first gondola up to Gimmelwald and then Mürren. The connection up to the Schilthorn ski area was seamless and we were offered the stunning view of Piz Gloria at 2970m in the morning sunshine.

Following a morning of skiing on corduroy lunch was certainly calling, so we headed back down the mountain to the car-free village of Mürren. Sitting on the sun-drenched terrace of a mountain restaurant is certainly a good way to spend your lunch break and makes a delightful change from eating at a desk back in the UNTRAKT London HQ!

The afternoon promised a complete change from the piste based morning as we attached skins to the skis and clipped into our touring bindings. We chased the sun through the trees and a few hours later found ourselves back in Mürren for a well-earned beer to finish the day, and also the shoot.

We’ve designed the first UNTRAKT range to be as versatile as possible, offering kit that performs both on and off the piste so you can enjoy whatever your ski day throws at you. Having the photo shoot in the Jungfrau region allowed us to easily access all the types of terrain we needed and flying with SWISS meant there were no problems in taking all the kit we needed.

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We’re so pleased to be sharing the new Untrakt range with snowsports enthusiasts everywhere through SportPursuit. Our first photo shoot gave us the chance to showcase the performance and style of the kit in perfect conditions, and we’d love to thank everyone involved for their support: 

Hotel Alpina in Grindelwald for their hospitality during our stay.
Buri Sport for the ski & equipment rental and for going above & beyond
Reto Neiger from Zen Snowboards
Daniel Wildey for his amazing photography
Our brilliant models Andrea, Bruno, Yorrick, & Mara

Discover UNTRAKT on Instagram, untrakt.ski or shop the new collection on SportPursuit now.