Team KEEGO: Frederik Böna

Next in the Team KEEGO series - our most loyal KEEGO pioneer and owner of probably the craziest world record in cycling - Frederik Böna! Read what drives the Double-Everesting record holder.

Spoiler alert. It's pasta.

Can you tell us a little about yourself?

My name is Frederik Böna, and I come from a town on the edge of the Neckar-Odenwald district. I studied in Würzburg and now live in Bammental in Kraichgau, between Heidelberg and Sinsheim.

In 2017, I started racing bikes more ambitiously. Cycling quickly became my great passion. The more altitude meters, the more fun I have. From 2018, I therefore increasingly concentrated on cycling marathons in the Alpine region. In 2020, I started to realize my own projects with the racing bike more and more often, sometimes in connection with fundraising campaigns. The highlight so far was certainly my world record for the fastest double everesting in connection with a fundraising campaign for a women's center in Afghanistan.

I work as an integration officer for the Sinsheim city administration.

Why are you passionate about your sport?

For me, cycling means freedom.

I can ride as long as I want and wherever I want, I am in nature and can always push myself to my physical limits and try to shift them. In addition, I can switch off very well while cycling and just have carefree fun.

What does your workout look like?

My training is very time-consuming. I usually train between 20 and 30 hours a week. This is only possible because I commute to work by bike and combine it with my training. My training usually includes a lot of elevation gain, especially on the Königstuhl, Heidelberg's local mountain, which I actually ride up and down several times a week. On Fridays and weekends, I usually have long and quieter training sessions, while during the week I train shorter and more intensively.

You have a very special success on your record – the Double Everesting world record. Can you tell us more about your preparation for this extreme challenge?

Since I had chosen April 10th for my world record attempt, I had to train a lot in autumn and winter. While many other cyclists at this time mainly train indoors on the roller, I almost exclusively rode outdoors. This was not always easy in the relatively harsh and snowy winter of 2020/2021. Riding outside for five hours in sleet and strong wind is not necessarily pleasant. To be honest, sometimes I need exactly these training sessions. Although it takes effort to get on the bike in such conditions, I have never regretted it afterwards, and sometimes I feel a certain satisfaction in having defied the weather. Besides, I also agree a little with Friedrich Nietzsche: What doesn't kill us makes us stronger.

It was difficult to gain as many meters in altitude as possible, even in winter. Going uphill was never the problem, but going downhill was sometimes a major challenge on slippery roads. Nevertheless, I was able to complete my training completely as planned. In extreme conditions, such as icy roads, I sometimes switched to the trainer and rode on Zwift. At the beginning of February I even did a virtual Everesting there. That was incredibly hard for me mentally - I'm simply an outdoor athlete.

Hydration and nutrition plan: Are there, for example, guidelines for the amount of water you want to drink every day? Are there any foods you particularly like to eat, but never on competition days?

As far as hydration and nutrition are concerned, I don't really worry much. I generally drink a lot, exclusively water or tea in everyday life. However, I don't know how much I drink, I just go by feeling. During sports, I usually consume isotonic drinks.

There are many foods that I like to eat, especially fruit.

 I especially like bananas, kiwis, blueberries and raspberries.

Otherwise, I also enjoy eating asparagus and, as a cyclist, of course, pasta.

In everyday life, I also often eat bread or rolls with whole grains, porridge, and muesli. On competition days, however, I avoid these, as the high fiber content would otherwise cause me problems.

What do you consider to be a crucial difference/advantage you have compared to other athletes?

I rarely have bad days. I can almost always perform at my best when I want to. I also never have motivation problems when it comes to my training. Even in winter, in the evening after work, in the dark and sleet, I get on my bike, ride off and complete my training.

What are your goals? - What keeps you going?

My biggest goal is to continue having fun on the bike and staying healthy.

In terms of sports, I dream of a world record for the fastest Triple Everesting and the most altitude meters within 12 hours.

I would also like to be on the podium in the next few years at one or two cycling races, such as the Maratona dles Dolomites.

What excites you about KEEGO?

I spend a very large part of my free time on the racing bike. I logically have to drink a lot.

With conventional bicycle bottles, I always had the problem of never getting rid of the plastic taste. Not to mention the health damage threatened by the plastic particles. I pay attention to a healthy lifestyle, have never smoked or drunk alcohol. Actually, it's almost absurd how long I've been drinking from plastic bottles on the bike.

After drinking from the same two plastic bottles for over 1,200km during Paris-Brest-Paris 2019 and it just became disgusting at some point, I reacted and looked around for alternatives. I came across KEEGO relatively quickly. Back then it was brand new on the market, but I liked the revolutionary approach. I was thrilled from the first test. Natural taste, easy to clean - that's exactly what I always wanted!

Over time, I became aware of other advantages. Because the bottles are so easy to clean, they can be used virtually "forever". In winter, the drinks in the bottles also stay warm longer, and in summer they stay cool longer.

Please tell us more about the most difficult moment of your career or life and what you learned from it or how you overcame it.

When I was physically almost unable to move and almost bedridden for weeks with severe back pain in late 2018/early 2019, I probably went through the most difficult phase of my life mentally. During this time, I realized which of my friends I can always rely on. That gave me a lot of strength. When I was able to start walking again, at least, things slowly started to improve again. During the first longer walks with my dog, I also learned to appreciate exercise in nature in a completely different way.

Overall, I have to say that I have been spared from very difficult phases in my life so far, fortunately.

Is there a person in your life who has a decisive influence on your career as an athlete or your life in general?

Actually, there are several people who have significantly influenced and partly inspired me as a cyclist.

A good friend of mine - Michael Leiblein - showed me that it is possible to ride over 100km with a road bike on several consecutive days. He gave me a lot of tips and accompanied me on my first long training sessions.

Rainer Hess, with whom I rode Paris-Brest-Paris in 2019, has repeatedly shown me impressively that it is usually not the body, but the head that is the limiting factor on the bike.

Joachim Heitel prepared me for the Ötztaler Cycle Marathon in 2017 and thus opened the door to the cycle marathon scene in the first place. He also rode the first two tours over 300km with me and was with me on Mont Ventoux when I conquered it six times in a row.

Peter Morstadt also gave me a taste for it in 2017 with his experience reports about various cycling marathons in the Alps.

For some time now, my girlfriend  Kathi has also been supporting me in all my road bike activities. Without her, my successes in 2021 and especially my world record would not have been possible.

My life in general has been greatly influenced by my parents and grandparents. Without them, I certainly wouldn't be who I am today.

KEEP GOING Frederik!

Team KEEGO