"My motivation? I just think it's really cool!"
Peter Berweger at the start of his home stage. The Walchwil native leads the rankings with 75,000 meters of elevation gain.
When it comes to elevation gain, Peter Berweger is the benchmark at this year’s Zugerberg Finanz Trophy. With 75,000 meters of elevation gain, he leads the rankings. The Walchwiler native shared what drives him at the start of his home stage.
That Thursday, Peter Berweger clocked five climbs up the Walchwilerberg, totaling 2,450 meters of elevation gain. For the vast majority of Trophy participants, that would already be a major achievement. For Peter, however, one might almost call it “just” five climbs. He has often completed the previous stage at Chnollen 10 to 16 times. At the end of June, he even managed 21 climbs in a row—with 4,424 meters of elevation gain, that’s equivalent to half an “Everesting,” or half the height of Mount Everest. Peter called it the “Chnollen Festival.”
A month later, it was time for the full Mount Everest: the passionate athlete completed the 5.2-kilometer route up the Walchwilerberg—with its 490 meters of elevation gain—18 times. He started at 2:40 a.m. “This ‘Everesting’ had been on my bucket list for a long time, and this year I wanted to tackle it,” Peter explains. “I’m currently between jobs, so I can really indulge in my hobbies.” The night before, he set up a supply depot. “After six runs, I had a hearty breakfast at home with rösti and fried eggs. Then I did seven more runs until lunch, followed by another five.” 200 kilometers in thirteen and a half hours of net riding time!
Will it reach 100,000 meters of elevation gain?
Sports have always been a part of Peter Beweger’s life; he describes cross-country skiing as his main winter sport, running year-round, and, when time allows, alpine sports. “In the past, my standard schedule included the Zurich Marathon in April, a mountain or ultramarathon like the former Swissalpine in Davos, and the Jungfrau Marathon in September.” Peter first learned about the Trophy through his former employer, Partners Group. There, in 2023, he and Jérôme Lamy encouraged their colleagues to participate in the corporate team competition. Last year, he tackled a few routes, and this year he’s eyeing the 100,000 mark. “It’ll be tough, though. I’ll be away for a few more weeks, so I’d have to go all out on the Schmittli stage, since the final stage on the Raten has relatively few elevation gain meters compared to the route’s length. We’ll see… The final tally will be on October 2, 2026. I just think the Trophy is a cool thing, which is why I’m already really motivated.”
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