“Planet Alaska” is the latest film from Norwegian freerider @BrageVestavik. The @BLURMEDIA production captures Brage’s most ground-breaking adventure to conquer untamed Alaskan terrain.
Following in the footsteps of freeride icons in disciplines like skiing and snowboarding, Brage is taking his riding into the unknown, a journey of self exploration, testing the limits of possibility on a mountain bike.
"Planet Alaska" is more than just a film; it is a testament to Vestavik's relentless spirit and dedication to his craft. This is an ode to true freeride, redefining what is possible in the world of mountain biking while solidifying Brage's recognition as an innovator and next-generation rider.
Supported by Red Bull, Crown Mountain Guides, GT Bicycles, Fox Racing, Michelin, and Marzocchi
Directed by Brage Vestavik and Herman Bøgeberg Filmed and Produced by BLUR Media (Herman Bøgeberg, Axel Rødningen, Oscar Kalsnes) Executive Producer - Mike Garceau FPV by Luke Bredar and Jonathon Chandler Edited by Herman Bøgeberg Color Grading by Axel Rødningen Sound Design by Herman Bøgeberg & Sebastien Uebbing Photography by Ale Di Lullo and Justin Befu Film Artwork by Memo Sandoval
Music: “Sirkel” Performed by: Nifrost Courtesy of Dusktone
“Clear II” Performed by: REZN
“Mysterious Vanishing of Electra” Performed by: Anna Von Hausswolff
“Ugly And Vengeful” Performed by: Anna Von Hausswolff
“High Tide” Performed by: REZN
“Ocean Dweller” Performed by: Bismarck Courtesy of Dark Essence Records
“Echoes” Performed by: Bismarck Courtesy of Dark Essence Records
“The Tree Of All Seeds” Performed by: Bismarck Courtesy of Dark Essence Records
“Saturn’s Children” Performed by: Electric Wizard
About to ride this line.
Doesn't even look rideable from here.
That is sick. That is really sick.
Definitely a lot of exposure.
Kind of a no-fall zone.
To me, Alaska has always been the pinnacle of a big mountain.
And now I'm finally here with my crew.
And we quickly realized we've got so much to learn.
You make plans, choose lines to ride,
the weather is constantly changing.
Not raining, not raining, so it's clouds.
There's always possibility of a better line hiding behind each mountaintop.
You really want to go out in this R44,
we can run by there real quick and run down that ----.
As rowdy as Braga is, and as much as he wants to throw down,
he's a very, very calculated person.
He wants to do the biggest lines, only ride them once, and then move on.
It's kind of an intimidating thing.
Alaska is a little bit more scary than a lot of places.
I just want to let the mountains guide me.
But I find myself easily get lost in the vastness of it all.
It makes me realize how small I am in all this wild and unforgiving landscape.
It's like I'm on a different planet.
I want to get out there.
This place makes me come alive.
But where do I even start?
Is this your first time coming out here?
Yeah.
Look at this place.
The scale in Alaska is super tough to understand.
There's no trees, it's hard to tell how big a slope is
if you have nothing that you can compare it to.
How big do you think that is?
It's a lot bigger than what it looks like in the heli.
You kind of got to aim for stuff that looks small in the heli.
It was this drop that looked tough.
And that's a brick wall of ----.
It's this cliff right here that you want to go through, this notch.
Hey buddy.
What are we doing right now?
There's a line over there.
It's weird because some lines look easy from there,
but this one looks fucked from far away.
It doesn't even look right.
Alright, we've got people up top, man.
You know how to do this.
Where are we off to next, my friend?
I want to go to that big couloir we saw the other day.
Copy that.
We were gaining momentum,
and I had this bigger line in mind.
With an hour left of daylight and the outrun looking manageable,
we decided to get the crew in position and head straight to the top.
But I had a gut feeling telling me to have a closer look at the middle of the line.
It's hard as a rock.
How's this looking, dude?
I think it's a no-go, man.
Look at this.
I'm not digging it at all.
I'm really glad we took a second look at that.
Braga's speed would have accelerated him so fast
he might not have made the corner at the bottom.
Who knows what would have happened after that.
This was definitely a bit of a wake-up call,
and we decided to leave this one behind.
I have to be mindful of each step I take out there.
This place is way larger than me.
Great.
Yeah, look at that thing.
Yeah.
Dropping in.
Dude, that's a sick one.
Too easy.
Yeah, **** it. Let's get out of here.
Let's go get some scouting done.
Let's do it.
As I get to the bottom of these lines,
I'm so stoked and relieved.
It's like the mountains are allowing me to move further.
And there's a part of me that immediately wants to go find the next line to ride.
What I'm saying is I couldn't get a helicopter down there
if something were to go wrong.
The ridge of it could be rideable.
See what I mean?
I think you'd be able to shut it down before it gets real rowdy.
I'm feeling it, man, in my stomach.
Looking at it.
We're getting close to some really interesting stuff here, though.
Getting scared, you know?
Okay, now what you wanted, Bragi, is this face we're looking at right here.
I think this looks sick, dude.
This dirt's all looking pretty good to me, dude.
There's something about conquering a mountain
that I think lays deep inside the human instinct.
Yeah, we got some lines for tomorrow, dude.
Brilliant, man.
Stoked, man.
All right, Bragi, I've got it.
You've got a good start.
Get your speed and check for that first.
Have a safe start, dude.
Yeah, Bragi!
I want to ride the lines how I envision them.
But I also want to survive.
And I feel like those two are constantly battling,
pulling on each other,
and flirting with that line
creates an insane state of mind to ride in.
Dropping in three seconds.
Okay, I'm good, I'm good, I'm good.
If you lose fear and get too confident,
you'll quickly be reminded that the mountain is in control.
Oh, you're not riding out?
Sometimes it's the mountain that dictates
how far I can really push it.
Throughout this journey,
I find myself wondering,
do I truly need to find what I'm looking for?
After all, it's this search
that keeps this endless adventure going.
Yeah, Bragi, we're fighting a little bit here.
I'd just say be ready, man.
That was a ******* fun one.
