Extreme sports influencer falls 600ft to death into Italian Dolomites ravine crash
An extreme sports influencer has died after tragically crashing his bike and plummeting 600ft into a ravine. Andreas Tonelli's family raised the alarm on Tuesday evening after he failed to return home from a ride in the Italian Dolomites, sparking a huge helicopter search at around 9pm. His body was found in a ravine in the Vallunga area of Val Gardena three hours later, and was recovered the following morning. Authorities believe he plummeted from the mountain into the ravine below after a bicycle accident. Tonelli, 48, had 127,000 followers on Instagram, where he regularly shared videos of his daring trips on his mountain bike.
One recent video showed him perilously clambering across a rock face using a wire to pull himself across with his bicycle on his back. In 2014, he left what he described as his "boring office job" to become a full-time bike guide.
He had been organising bike trips since 2003, including routes across Italy, throughout Europe, and eventually all over the world. Mr Tonelli was also known to be a keen photographer, hiker and climber, and had proudly spoken of his bicycle climb of the active volcano Nevado Ojos de Salado in Chile.
Among his feats was the completion of the L'Onda di Hokusai ('Hokusai Wave'), a route in the Dolomites made up nearly entirely of frozen mountaintop, and a successful scaling of the Tupungato volcano in central Chile.
The accident on Tuesday unfolded in the Vallunga area of the Italian Dolomites as he tackled a difficult section alone. Just moments before the fatal fall, he posted an Instagram story showing himself smiling at the summit.
Andreas was born in the tiny village of Völs am Schlern, at the foot of the Schlern mountain. In a recent comment about his love for travelling, he wrote: "But since I spend seven months a year travelling, I also call home all the other places in the world where I feel happy and free."
Tributes have flooded in from within the European mountain biking community, with many speaking of him as an inspirational figure in the sport Outdoor clothing manufacturer Norrona, who Mr Tonelli worked with as a brand ambassador, wrote on Facebook: "Andreas was a passionate, dedicated, and important voice within the Norrøna family.
"We will remember his big smile and his deep love for mountain biking, for nature, and for the friendships forged out there. Not only did he take part in testing and developing new Norrøna products, Andreas also worked as a bike guide for Norrøna Adventure — sharing his passion for mountain biking with every guest he met.
"He made a profound impression on everyone fortunate enough to meet him. Our heartfelt thoughts and deepest condolences go out to his family and friends."
One person commenting on the post described him "one of the most inspiring people in the hike and bike adventure scene", while another recalled meeting him on a trail in Norway and described him as a "good person".
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