Messner on Nanga Parbat, an interview with Jacopo Lahbi, and other cycle-metaphysical digressions

In 1970, Reinhold Messner – perhaps the greatest mountaineer of all time – faced the mountain that would mark his life forever: Nanga Parbat.
A difficult, dangerous mountain, an expedition into the unknown.
He and his brother Günther chose a face that had never been climbed before, and they made it to the summit.
But the descent turned into hell, into tragedy, the one that would shape Reinhold’s entire life:
an avalanche swept them away, and Günther died.
Messner descended alone, frozen, delirious: everyone thought he was dead.
It was the beginning, and the wound, of his entire life. He could have stopped there.
Instead, he went on.
From that moment on, every mountain became a journey despite everything.

After losing his brother, his fingers, and his friends (for there was great controversy around him), Messner kept climbing the great peaks.
“I don’t go back to conquer them,” he said, “but to understand how far I can go.”

Messner would return to Nanga Parbat seven times, not to prove anything, but to understand;
perhaps for reasons known only to himself and to the god of mountaineers.
“I didn’t go back to look for Günther. I went back to look for myself, the part of me that was left up there.”

Nanga Parbat became his obsession and his therapy, the symbol of that point where turning back is no longer possible, and moving forward is the only way.
In 2005, Günther’s remains were found, and we can imagine Messner, that man who seems made of the same stone as his mountains, feeling that, somehow, finally,
Nanga Parbat had given him an answer.



There’s a point where turning back is far harder than going on.
It happens on bike journeys, on climbs, on cold nights, on those times when, curse the patriarch, you’ve run out of water but refuse to give up.
And it happens with passions too, those that sometimes appear out of nowhere, yet reach a point where turning back is unthinkable.
And every time we return to a road we already know — on a bike, in the mountains, or in life — it’s never really to repeat it,
but to see whether we have changed.

The incredible self-portrait of Messner on top of Nanga Parbat, 1978

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🚀 A few beautiful and interesting things. Or just interesting. Or just beautiful. 🚀

😎 A smiling nonconformist
Former world-class athlete, co-founder of the Enough team, and an excellent crowd-surfer at BAM! concerts.
We interviewed Jacopo Lahbi,  about travel, life choices, and that unmistakable look that always seems to say something wonderful is about to happen.
👉 Read the interview

🗞️ News – 🚴‍♂️ Sofiane Sehili is finally free
You may not have heard: Sofiane was unfortunately being held in a Russian prison.
We’re overjoyed that he’s finally free — and that we can once again picture him happy on his bike.
💛 We’re waiting for you, Sofiane!

🍺 See you at G.Round
Our dust-and-beer brothers at G.Round have announced the dates!
If you want to ride in beautiful places, have fun, and dance with your helmet on, you know what to do.
⚠️ Limited spot

🔧 Tech
When it’s not you who decides, but the shape of your butt 😅
How do you choose the right touring saddle? Our good old friend Dino Lanzaretti explains it all.
🎥 Watch the video

🤖 Can’t live without it?
Oakley has unveiled the new Meta Vanguard, complete with AI features, real-time stats, and who knows what else.
Beyond the wonder of technology outpacing imagination, we’ll keep happily pedaling without Mark Zuckerberg.
👉 If you’re curious

💚 Support Bikepacking.com

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And they’ve been friends of BAM! since the very first edition.
So, if you can, support this wonderful independent media outlet.
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🚲 Beautiful bikes for strong dreamers
The most stunning bikes spotted at Bespoked in Dresden, beautifully captured and told by The Radavist.
👉 Watch the gallery

🌍 BECAUSE WE’RE NOT JUST TRAVELERS

Barbarian Days – A Surfing Life

What does surfing have to do with bike travel?
A lot, believe me.

William Finnegan’s Pulitzer Prize–winning memoir is much more than a book about surfing: it’s the story of a life spent chasing waves, places, and a search for meaning.
It’s also a poetic reflection on obsession, on time, and on that moment when — as in the best journeys — turning back no longer makes sense.
📖 Barbarian Days, published in Italian as Giorni Selvaggi, by 66thand2nd