Chasing Lines Through the Alps

Together with TUDOR and Porsche Zentrum Bern, Stebler Gstaad invited a select group of guests to experience a day where the Born to Dare spirit was not simply talked about, but lived. That morning, Gstaad was wrapped in grey. Rain hung in the air and mist drifted through the mountains. Hardly textbook surfing weather. Yet somehow, it was exactly the right setting for a day shaped by TUDOR’s Daring Spirit.

Because Born to Dare is not about waiting for perfect conditions. It is about setting out anyway. The day began at The Mansard in Gstaad, where our guests came together over breakfast. Following a welcome and driver briefing, nine Porsche vehicles from Porsche Zentrum Bern were already waiting outside.

Then it was time to start the engines and head for the Valais.

The convoy left Gstaad and made its way over the Col du Pillon towards Sion, along a route made for more than simply getting from one place to another. Wet roads, banks of mist and an ever-changing Alpine landscape demanded attention. Around one bend, the mountains opened up in front of us; a few minutes later, their peaks disappeared back into the clouds. It was anything but a flawless postcard morning.

And that was precisely what made the drive so memorable.

Falling was part of it too

After the briefing and warm-up, it was time for our guests to get into the water. Paddle. Stand up. Find your balance. Fall. Laugh. Repeat. Very quickly, it stopped mattering who had surfed before and who was stepping onto a board for the first time. What mattered was giving it a go. For the next hour, everyone experimented, encouraged one another and worked towards the next wave. Some found their feet after just a few attempts. Others needed a little longer. That was part of the appeal. With the Valais Alps in the background, those unplanned moments began to unfold: a first successful take-off, a few extra seconds on the board, or simply the satisfaction of having tried something that, only that morning, had been well outside the usual routine.

And that is perhaps where the Daring Spirit feels most convincing: not as an abstract idea, but in the decision to step onto the board, take the wave and have another go when it does not quite work out.

A warm welcome to Stefano Erard

Surf the Alps also gave us the opportunity to welcome Stefano Erard, who took over responsibility for the Swiss market at TUDOR this year. We were pleased to have Stefano with us on the road and at Alaïa Bay and look forward to continuing our partnership with TUDOR through many more shared experiences.
Few introductions could have been more fitting: personal, active and firmly rooted in the spirit of Born to Dare.

Then came the sun

For the journey back to Gstaad, the convoy took a different route. Heading over the Col des Mosses, the weather finally turned. After a day of rain, mist and water, the clouds began to lift and the sun broke through over the mountains. The timing could hardly have been better.

Back at The Mansard, surfboards and car keys made way for drinks on the rooftop terrace. In the evening sun above Gstaad, there was time to revisit the day, exchange stories and celebrate those first successful waves. By then, Surf the Alps had brought together plenty of contrasts: mountain roads and moving water, rain and sunshine, control behind the wheel and balance on a surfboard.

But the part we will remember most is the people.

Our thanks go first and foremost to our guests, who embraced the idea, tried something new and filled the day with energy, humour and genuine enthusiasm. We also thank TUDOR for the partnership, Porsche Zentrum Bern for the collaboration and organisation around the vehicles, the team at Alaïa Bay for taking such good care of us in the water, and The Mansard for welcoming us at both the beginning and the end of the journey.

Some days are measured less in kilometres or seconds than in firsts.

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