The team
Bernie Steidl
Having grown up in a kayaking family, Bernie was already able to record first ascents in the Alps in his youth. The expedition "Sturzfahrt vom Nanga Parbat" in Pakistan, in which he took part at the age of 20, was also a great success. By founding SOURCE TO SEA in 2008, he turned his passion into a profession! Through his daughter, who now paddles diligently alongside him, he realized how important it is to convey the value of nature and the fun of paddling to the younger generation. This is why he is committed to the preservation of Tyrolean torrents as chairman of the WET association.
Eli Trafoier
Eli - team leader of the kayak school. From a summer job as a secretary in a rafting company in Vinschgau to slalom racer in Verona and kayak instructor in Tyrol. This can only be Eli's impressive career as a kayaker with an exponentially increasing learning curve! Kayaking was simply love at first sight for her. Eli is involved in everything to do with sport - really everything - and now enjoys passing on her knowledge to those interested in kayaking with a great deal of attention to detail. She also actively supports us in the organization of the kayak school and the OETZ TROPHY, where she fearlessly distributes tasks and manages the team of helpers.
Vali star
Vali has been a kayak instructor at S2S since the 2023 season and has become indispensable. He gives courses at all levels of difficulty, is extremely motivated and manages to pass on his love of kayaking to our participants. For this reason, hardly anyone in our team receives as many nice emails and positive feedback after the kayaking courses as Vali. So there must be something to it :-). In addition to his work in the kayak school, he manages the Innsbruck canoe polo team and works as a ski instructor in winter.
Luca Daprà
Luca is one of our most versatile kayak instructors. Having grown up in canoe slalom, Luca has been concentrating fully on white water sports for several years now. He also works for the mountain rescue service and is an experienced alpinist. When you're white water rafting with Luca, you can rely on him completely and count on him to be there when you need him! It is no coincidence that he was given the nickname "Supa-Luca" during a kayak course. He specializes in safety courses, technique training and play-the-river courses. When he's not in a kayak or climbing a mountain, he takes care of the organization of the OETZ TROPHY, which has been held annually in Ötztal since 2021.
Bijan Arbab
At home in the upper Inn Valley, Bijan has been river rafting professionally for over 20 years and has fed off wild water in rafts, kayaks and canyoning on 4 continents. He is now a teacher at a school and teaches safety and rescue courses from March to november. He has also been training raft guides for 14 years.
Bijan is a certified instructor from Rescue 3 Europe and the International Rafting Federation and is responsible for our safety and rescue courses. From many years on and in Africa's warm rivers, he has brought his passion for swimming in white water to our refreshing waters.
Andi Brunner
Actually, we don't think we need to write anything about Andi because everyone already knows him! At the age of eleven, Andi had to decide whether to become a competitive gymnast or a professional kayaker. Thank goodness he chose the latter. Now he manages our Pro Team and competes in extreme kayak races all over the world. He has also been on kayak expeditions on the most difficult rivers - for example on the Indus in Pakistan or in Meghalaya in India. Andi is with us on the Zambezi, where he lives and trains for about 2 months a year. That's why he knows every wave there by name and shows us the best spots for kickflips!
Valentin Gutierrez
Vale is a former World Class Academy head coach, lawyer and team rider for Kokatat and Jackson Kayaks.
Growing up in a kayaking family in Argentina, among the highest peaks of the Andes, Vale
soon developed a passion for the outdoors. In the course of his whitewater kayaking career, he has traveled the world and has first ascents in the central Andes mountains (ARG) and the USA to his credit. Valentin has mastered all facets of the sport and has represented Argentina in freestyle,
extreme and slalom world championships. He loves to share his passion and knowledge with the next generation of paddlers.
Lenni Zaschke
Lenni finally came to us in 2021 after years of watching him grow up in various kayak courses. Originally planned mainly as a store employee, Lenni stepped on the gas in terms of paddling technique to such an extent that he has developed into a member of our pro team and an experienced kayak instructor over the last few years. Incidentally, Lenni can undercut like a world champion. So if you see someone on the river who is more vertical than horizontal, it's probably Lenni (or Bren Orton). When he's not in a kayak, Lenni can be found skiing around Innsbruck. He is also a gifted skateboarder and footballer.
Anne Steinkogler
We should have asked her earlier, because since Anne joined our team, we can do everything and look good doing it! She makes sure that you can always find everything you need in our store. She makes sure that we always find everything you need in the store. But above all, she is a huge graphic talent, has designed all our logos and labels and can also take photos. Anne is the smallest kayaker in our team, so you can get advice on sizes XS/S from her. Apart from that, she lovingly repairs our broken items of clothing. And some of us have already been surprised by her with hand-knitted socks...
Phil Michel
With the decision to study biology and the choice of Innsbruck as a place to study, Phil's focus shifted from freestyle to whitewater and discovering the rivers of the Alps, which were still largely unknown to him at the time. Phil has been an integral part of the S2S family since his arrival and is not only the lead organizer of the OETZ TROPHY party, but also one of our most established kayak instructors. His motivation to discover new places and learn new skills is infectious for all his paddling students and his emphatic manner always creates the right atmosphere in the group so that you can explore your limits together with him and feel safe and perfectly looked after at all times. As a little add-on, he can always come up with exciting fun facts about the local flora and fauna, giving you a whole new perspective on our favorite playground - the river.
Magda Steixner
Magda has been with us for years as a kayak instructor and jumps in when the hat is on fire! As a genuine Tyrolean, she knows the rivers around Innsbruck inside out, has looked at every rock at every water level and also conveys a great deal of confidence and relaxation. This is perhaps due to the fact that, as a trained social worker, Maggie always knows exactly what our course participants need. Magda is also very active in the local kayaking club, the KNI! If you live here, why don't you drop by there?