Interviews Archives - Revolution Watch

LVMH Watch Week 2024: Daniel Roth Tourbillon Souscription and the gérald genta Mickey Mouse Repeater

Wei Koh — Tue, 30 Jan 2024 05:32:39 +0000

LVMH Watch Week 2024: Daniel Roth Tourbillon Souscription and the gérald genta Mickey Mouse Repeater

Made by the world’s biggest luxury brand, but with all the emotional richness of the greatest independent watchmakers.

Feature

Jan 30, 2024

They might just be two watches, but what they symbolize is something extremely powerful. Together, the Daniel Roth Souscription Tourbillon presented for the first time in the metal, and the gérald genta Only Watch Mickey Mouse Jump Hour, Retrograde Minute, Minute Repeater clearly articulate Louis Vuitton’s unabashed mission statement that it intends to be a force of reckoning in the world of haute horlogerie or high watchmaking. Says Jean Arnault, “The significance of Daniel Roth and gérald genta is that allows us to bring into Louis Vuitton the highest level of technical watchmaking, hand finishing and metiers d’art. Neither of these will ever be volume brands but they allow us to strive for the highest level of excellence.”

With this objective set, Arnault massively re-energized two of the greatest living watchmakers today Enrico Barbasini and Michel Navas, the co-founders of La Fabrique du Temps and high complications specialists that worked at Patek Philippe, gérald genta, with the legendary Pierre Michel Golay, and also Franck Muller.

Says Barbasini, “Honestly before Jean arrived, I was on the cusp of retiring because there was this disconnect between the high complications we were making such as the Carpe Diem minute repeater with automatons and the entry level quartz watches. It was too confusing. But when Jean Arnault came, it changed everything. He gave us all a new sense of energy and the desire to take everything we’ve learned over our careers to express the highest level of watchmaking we could.” Says Michel Navas, “Jean is really a once in a generation leader. Someone who is immensely passionate, who has real watchmaking education, great taste, and is at the same time a person that inspires other through his kindness.”

Daniel Roth’s first tourbillon

Is the new Daniel Roth Tourbillon Souscription better than the original?

With their mission clearly delineated, the two set out to show the world the level of watchmaking they and Louis Vuitton were capable of. They set their focus on the recreation of one of the most beloved and iconic timepieces. Daniel Roth’s first tourbillon created a series of souscription watches for Asprey’s in 1988, featuring his signature double ellipse case and his elegant tourbillon with its signature three-sided second hand fixed to the cage. As the watch was brought to me by my friend Louis Westphalen who has now joined Daniel Roth and gérald genta, I was in the midst of asking my smart-ass journalist question: “What distinguishes the new watch from the original or is it just a simple facsimile of the past…” Then I stopped mid sentence. Because the new La Fabrique du Temps watch laid before me utterly took my breath away with its visual richness. “Damn that is spectacular,” I unconsciously muttered to myself.

Orignal Gouache from Daniel Roth

To begin with, the watch is faithful in diameter to the original — but a full 2mm thinner. Importantly, the raised seam that ran the length of the case used to split the watch in the following way: The bezel would occupy one third of the case’s thickness while the remaining mid and back case would occupy two thirds of the volume. Says Arnault, “In some ways this felt unbalanced to us and so we worked so that this seam would perfectly bisect the case creating a greater visual harmony. In addition, we reworked the lugs to create a greater contour so that the watch fit the wrist better.” After Arnault and team had done so, they showed this to Daniel Roth who laughed, and said that these lugs were even better than the original, which are straighter, but that was what his casemaker was capable of at the time of production.

Daniel Roth Tourbillon Souscription

Compare the dial on the original watch with the new watch’s dial and you will similarly see a world of difference. There is a much greater sense of three dimensionality in the stunning guilloche à main pattern. The dials of the 20 souscription watches are all made by Kari Voutilainen, not at his dial making workshop Comblémine, but rather, his atelier at Chapeau de Napoléon in the Jura where his best craftsmen and vintage engine turning machines reside. Even more impressive is that La Fabrique du Temps has taken it upon itself to start producing its very own guilloche à main dials, and have sourced the machines and the artisans to create those dials for the production pieces to follow. Another small detail is the use of blue ink rather than black which produces a more dynamic effect on the dial.

Then there is the movement of the watch. Says Arnault, “In the context of the late 80’s Roth explained to us that he was limited in his choices for the movement and ended up using a Lemania calibre as his base. As such what you actually have in the double ellipse case is a round movement. Which you can’t tell because the timepieces have closed case backs.” Says Barbasini, “Jean, Michel and I were adamant that we would make a double ellipse shaped movement that perfectly matched the shape of the case.” To which Arnault adds, “In the production models, we will have a sapphire case back so that you can see this movement.” And what a movement it is. A chalice or repository for all of Barbasini and Navas’ know-how.

Barbasini elaborates, “The countersinks for every screw are concave and black polished. The flat bladed click for the barrel is similarly black polished. We wanted to push the level of hand finishing to the extreme.” Says Navas, “This is not a show off movement. It has a lot of very discrete handmade elements that not everyone will notice. But we wanted our colleagues and other watchmakers to look at it and say ‘Wow, respect. This is really well done. La Fabrique du Temps is serious about its watchmaking.’” But it is the front of the watch and specifically the tourbillon that is the star of the show.

Somehow even in comparison to the original, the tourbillon, bridge and cage seem more luminous, reflecting more light. The pillars of the bridge are also concave and black polished. This is incredibly hard to do but Michel and Enrico insisted on it because it brings something visually. Arnault points out that Barbasini and Navas didn’t want the screws for fixing the dial to the base plate to mar the beauty of the movement, so they devised a system for fixing the dial at the perimeter of the calibre instead so the screws would be hidden by the case.

Daniel Roth Tourbillon Souscription

On the wrist, the Daniel Roth has the feeling of being something very special. Not a watch that shouts but a watch that is perfectly executed in every way. And though it was made by the world’s biggest luxury brand, it has all the emotional richness of the greatest independent watchmakers. You might scoff when I compare it to a Kari Voutilainen or a Rexhep Rexhepi, but I challenge you to try it on and tell me what you think.

Donald Duck and Mickey Mouse, as seen in Miami.

Return of the Mickey Mouse watch by gérald genta

“Dude am I seeing things or did you just make a cloisonné enamel Mickey Mouse watch?” I asked Arnault. He replied, “Of course we did. And that dial is made in-house in La Fabrique du Temps.” But I should point out that everything is enamel. The retrograde arm that jumps back to zero to indicate the minute, the underlying jump hour wheel… it is all enamel and incredibly well executed. It was at this point that Arnault handed me the first production watch featuring the same minute repeating jump hour retrograde minute movement found in the Only Watch timepiece featuring Donald Duck playing golf — a one-off prototype. “Look at Donald’s cap,” he said. The famous Disney character was wearing a checked gold cap and it had been rendered so that every tiny square in the checked patter was delineated using ultra-thin gold cloisonné wires before being filled with enamel.

What is important to understand is that both Barbasini and Navas spend many years at gérald genta working together with the famous Pierre Michel Golay on the most complicated watches in the world such as the first grande et petite sonnerie. Says Arnault, “No living watchmakers today understand the creative and technical spirit of the brand better than Michel and Enrico. Because they were a big part in the creation of Genta in its golden age.”

As such, it was relatively straightforward for the two watchmakers to create an all new calibre but reflecting the spirit of Genta. Says Arnault, “Even the shape of the movement’s bridges echoes the shapes that Genta loved. For example, we used an octagon to frame the repeater’s flying regulator.” Indeed, the obsessiveness around the creation of these timepieces was so intense that Barbasini who is a golfer adjusted the retrograde action of Donald’s arm to more accurately depict an actual golf swing. Activate the repeater using the crown on the left side of the case and the watch strikes out a deep but very clear note for the hours, two notes for the quarters and a high note for the minutes with impeccable timing.

References to the octagon can be found in the design of the new Gerald Genta calibre.

Finally, both watches though expensive, represent what I consider to be strong value propositions relative to what they offer. The Daniel Roth in particular at 140 thousand Swiss Francs is spectacular value for a watch finished to that level. And the gérald genta repeater with its stunning cloisonné enamel dial and added dial side complication offers more than fair value. When I asked about this, Arnault explained, “There are a lot of brands that charge what I consider to be irrationally high prices we wanted everything we do to connected to authenticity and real value.” With these two watches, Arnault and La Fabrique du Temps have just earned their way into the rarified milieu of true high watchmaking and I for one can’t wait to see what comes next.

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FROM THE SHOP

Parmigiani Fleurier

Limited Edition

Parmigiani Fleurier Tonda PF Micro-Rotor "Purple Reign" x Revolution

$26,400.00

TECH SPECS

Movement	Self-winding caliber PF703; 48-hour power reserve
Functions	Hours, Minutes, Date
Case	40mm; polished and satin-finished stainless steel with platinum knurled bezel; water resistant to 100m
Dial	Purple; rhodium-plated applied hour markers
Strap	Polished and satin-finished stainless steel bracelet
Limited Edition	Limited and numbered edition of 50 pieces

The post LVMH Watch Week 2024: Daniel Roth Tourbillon Souscription and the gérald genta Mickey Mouse Repeater appeared first on Revolution Watch.

Martin Klocke explains the historical inspirations for Sherpa Watches

Bhanu Chopra — Fri, 26 Jan 2024 03:00:18 +0000

Martin Klocke explains the historical inspirations for Sherpa Watches

The founder of Sherpa Watches slays it with compressor dive watches.

Interviews

By Bhanu Chopra

Jan 26, 2024

I met charismatic Martin Klocke in Geneva during Watches and Wonders at the AHCI exhibition. After our first Negroni he started to drop some cool Zen Buddhist philosophy on me and that lead to a discussion about his brand Sherpa watches. I was genuinely impressed with Martin’s knowledge on compressor dive watches, particularly with historical Enicar compressors. I sat down with Martin for a quick tete-a-tete.

1. When I first met you in Geneva, I was curious about the name. So, my first question is how did you arrive at the brand name – Sherpa?

Well, to explain this fully, we have to do a small excursion into history: in 1956, the original watchmaker Enicar SA in Lengnau sponsored a Swiss expedition to Mt Everest and Lhotse. During this expedition, they discovered that the Sherpas were doing the main job, and so they named their most robust watch “Sherpas” in honour of them. And then continued with a now legendary series of watches under this name. I wanted to bring back those watches, because some ten years ago I really grew fond of them, and when I started on the watch brand adventure, I found that “Sherpa” as a trademark for watches was available, and I registered it. This is how the name came to me. Basically the passion for the old Sherpa series of original Enicar SA from the 1950s and 1960s, and the origins going back to 1956.

In hindsight, this is a really good brand name for me, as it also allowed me to connect to the Tibetan-Buddhist tradition of the Sherpas. I am a Tibetan Buddhist myself, and this opened up the possibility to develop the “mantramatic” movement featuring the first spiritual complication in a watch.

2. Unlike most watch companies, you are transparent about the list of your suppliers and all of them are based in Europe. Does Made in Europe matter anymore?

This is a good question and the answer will depend on whom you ask. For me, this was clear: I for my part wanted to bring the watches back with German and Swiss parts only. For me it does matter. Only in Europe I can be sure that working conditions and environmental concerns are satisfied. And also we have to keep business in Europe, otherwise we will only inherit lists of suppliers in Asia to our children… Being an outsider to the watch industry when I started, and being completely naïve, I did not fully understand the implications of this decision – price wise – but in the end I kept my decision and I am happy to have done so, even though it resulted in a higher price point than what I assumed at the beginning.

The original watches in the 1950s and 1960s were 100% Swiss made, and I wanted to keep this heritage in Europe to honour the originals. Of course not everyone can appreciate this attitude, I understand this, but many customers do.

3. The design language of your watches is evocative of 60’s and 70’s compressor dive watches. Can you describe the inspiration behind the design of your watches?

As mentioned above, the Ultradive and the OPS are both members of the Sherpa series of original Enicar SA from the 1960s. Even though this era is clearly visible, these designs had something timeless to them and I always knew that they would have a place in the current market. We refined the design on many levels, and increased the quality in every aspect. This includes a complex sapphire box glass with black metallization on the rim to reduce reflections, applied diamond polished indices on the domed dial, faceted diamond polished hands, Sherpa Orange Super-LumiNova and many more.

The other inspiration was the company Ervin Piquerez from Bassecourt, Switzerland (also called EPSA). EPSA was a hugely innovative case maker company, pioneering and patenting the “Compressor” design in several versions. They had over 200 patents and supplied to many companies, mostly with their double crown cases. I take up their heritage and design by reinventing the compressor bayonet and the compressor crowns in my new models. This makes them the only complete compressor watches on the market, and thus not only are my watches evocative of “compressor dive watches”, they ARE compressor watches. This was the minimum I could do to appreciate the heritage. And we pay tribute to that heritage by having. The “EPSA-Stop” name engraved next to the original EPSA dive helmet logo on the case back. So, the inspiration comes from two Swiss companies which unfortunately closed their doors in the 1980s, but offering a legacy worth taking up again.

4. Finally, can you give us a preview of what is in works?

Of course, looking at the amazing legacy of the Sherpa series of the past, one can see how many wonderful models could be on the horizon. And I love them all! This goes from GMT watches to Chronographs to further dive watches.

The next step will be a metal bracelet. And then we will do some variations of the Ultradive dials and maybe also variations of the OPS, opening up the models to a wider audience by giving more options

And after that of course we are planning new models. I expect them to come out in 2024.

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FEATURED FROM SHOP

Furlan Marri

Limited Edition

Furlan Marri x Auro x Revo - Flyback Chronographs 3188-A ‘Salmon Flyback

$3,175.00

TECH SPECS

Movement	Manual winding Sellita caliber AMT5100, with rose gold plating and custom bridge for Furlan Marri; 58-hour power reserve; heated blued steel screws
Functions	Hours, minutes, small seconds and flyback chronograph
Case	38mm (46mm from lug to lug); stainless steel with olive-shaped pushers for Honey Blue flyback, Taupe flyback and Tasti Tondi pushers for Salmon flyback; water resistant to 50m
Dial	Taupe, blue, or two-tone salmon and black (Revolution edition); double printed text with pulsations scale, polished applied indexes
Strap	Italian leather with quick release system
Limited Edition	270 pieces per reference + 30 collector boxes (including one of each references) in addition.

The post Martin Klocke explains the historical inspirations for Sherpa Watches appeared first on Revolution Watch.

The nitty-gritty of vintage watch repair, according to an actual watchmaker

Troy Barmore — Wed, 24 Jan 2024 13:00:17 +0000

The nitty-gritty of vintage watch repair, according to an actual watchmaker

We sat down with one of NYC’s most respected private watchmakers to shed some light on the mysteries of watch servicing.

Interviews

By Troy Barmore

Jan 24, 2024

You’ve finally done it. After months, perhaps years of planning, researching, saving, obsessing – you’ve bought yourself that watch. The watch. The watch you’ve been dreaming about. It’s magnificent. You bring it home, and begin your journey with your new timepiece companion. Days turn into weeks, weeks into months, months into years. Slowly but surely, the watch begins to take on the character of use. Maybe a scratch or two here, a small dent or abrasion there.

A little dirt begins to accumulate underneath the bezel, or within the links of the bracelet, and that high polish shine begins to dull ever so slightly. No matter—it was meant to be worn. Meant to be used. You’re proud of those scratches, that grime. But then one day, you begin to notice something is off… the time is a little wrong. Strange. Maybe you forgot to wind it? Sure, that must be it. You reset the watch and go about your day. But then a few days later, again, it’s a few hours slow. As the reality begins to sink in, you feel a cold chill go down your back – you need to have your watch serviced.

But what do you do now? Do you take your watch back to where you bought it? Surely it’s out of warranty now. Do you send it to the manufacturer? So many questions. But fear not! Recently, I sat down with my old friend Harris Freedman of NYC Watchmaking to take the fear and guesswork out of getting your pride and joy serviced.

Revolution: Harris, welcome! Thank you for sitting down with me and helping to demystify for our readers the process of watch servicing. If you would, can you give us a little rundown on your background – who you are and how you got into watchmaking?

Freedman: Totally. My name’s Harris Freedman of NYC Watchmaking. I was doing sales and was really dissatisfied with that. But I was also into watches. I started selling watches, and realized I was dissatisfied with the act of selling, but not what I was selling. So I wanted a change, wanted to work with my hands, and dive a little deeper into watches. I found a mentor to take me under their wing and get my hands on some watches, learn how to fix them. And it all just took off from there and organically bloomed into what it is I’m doing now.

Revolution: Very interesting – so you apprenticed with another watchmaker, but did you go to watchmaking school and take classes or anything like that? Or did you just learn by doing?

Freedman: Just learned by doing. My mentor pretty much gave me cheap little watches that cost like, 150 bucks and said “see if you can get this running.” It didn’t run well, and it wasn’t clean, but by the end it was ticking. It was nice because you go to watchmaking school and you spend months on theory and you don’t touch a watch for the first six months to a year typically. Meanwhile I got hands-on right away with vintage watches, which really allowed me to build my hand skills. At the same time I had my own textbooks where I was studying after hours learning theory, what types of oils go where, cleaning, how to tell when it is clean, etc.

Revolution: That’s really cool. You had this combination of technical and academic foundation, but taught and applied in a hands-on, real world way rather than in a classroom setting over a prefixed period of time.

Freedman: I think it taught me, I want to say critical thinking in terms of figuring out why something’s not working or how things are put together. Which I think especially working on vintage watches is really helpful versus working on brand new watches.

Revolution: What is the biggest misconception that people have about having their watches serviced?

Freedman: So I think that the biggest misconception is that a watchmaker is a watchmaker and a mechanical watch, a mechanical watch. Fixing vintage watches is, I think, a different skill than repairing modern watches. Or to put it a different way, a lot of people who are trained on modern watches might not have the same problem solving skills that would be necessary to fix or figure out what’s going wrong with a vintage watch. They might really need the original workshop manual from the brand to put it together and without that they’re kind of lost. It’s really a different skill set.

Revolution: When should people bring their watches in for service? Alternatively, when should they not?

Freedman: There’s two camps, especially when it comes to Rolex, for example, that I’ve heard lots of people say. You don’t need to service your watch until it’s not keeping good time. And other people are: “Rolex says service it every five years, so you should do that or as close to it as possible.”

When I was selling watches, I was in the first camp of the, if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it – the brand is just trying to get more money out of you, etc. But the reality on the inside of the watch is very different. I guarantee those people have never opened up a watch, looked at pivots, the jewels, and seen the real wear and tear happening inside. And I guarantee if a watch that hasn’t been touched in decades but been worn every single day, even if it’s been keeping great time for three decades, is heavily worn.

Revolution: Interesting, so in forestalling service, even in a watch that maybe is keeping time ok, you might be inviting bigger problems down the road?

Freedman: Exactly. So I think I would say to avoid issues happening, bad timekeeping or watches breaking, get your watches serviced every three to five years, especially vintage. For modern ones, I personally wouldn’t go longer than seven. It’ll just help keep longevity. There’ll be less wear on parts because they are lubricated the entire time that they’re running instead of lubricated for the first three to five years and then running fine for another two as they wear down and down and down. And then you have an issue.

Revolution: What are some dos and don’ts? Are there things people could figure out by googling or should they just call you at the first sign of trouble?

Freedman: Yeah, I would definitely say it never hurts to Google questions and try something easy, but I wouldn’t recommend opening your own watch up and taking the case back off or something like that. But I’ve had people come in and be like, my crown is broken, and it’s just a screw down crown which they can’t pull out because it’s screwed in. Knowing the difference between quartz and mechanical, etc. But in general, I have an open door policy – shoot me an email, ask me a “stupid” question, I’ll tell you you got to try winding a little bit more or I’ll hop on the phone with people, give them advice. Worst case I’ll say ship it over to me, I’ll take a look.

Revolution: Should people send their new watches back to the manufacturer or the AD for servicing once it’s out of warranty?

Freedman: I think there’s kind of two answers to that. One is depending on the question of how far out of warranty it is. If it’s decades, I would not recommend sending it to the AD. A lot of the people there haven’t seen stuff that’s decades old. So even if the brands will fix it, which some won’t for that old stuff, the people who are fixing it haven’t touched one of those in a long time – They’re only used to working on newer watches. Part two of that is that old stuff is getting collectible now and you don’t want to risk the chance of them polishing it (even if they say they won’t) or swapping out dials and stuff like that.

That having been said, if it’s a year, two year, three years out of warranty, unless you see it being highly collectible and you definitely don’t want polish or anything like that, I think the ad is generally fine.

Revolution: You mention case polishing, which is a hot button for a lot of people. Where do you stand, yay or nay?

Freedman: Personally? For my own watches, I’m a nay. I think visually to a collector, it’s a very personal choice. And I think there’s a lot of vintage guys who will look down on you if you do it. It comes down to what makes you happy – and if having a shiny case with no scratches makes them happy, obviously I think they should polish it.

When a client asks my advice, I will give them the knowledge and inform them that you can only polish it so many times and the more times you polish it, the more metal gets taken away. That could affect the value down the line. But I don’t think the primary purpose of collecting or the hobby should purely be about resale value. I like originality personally. I like how sharper cases look. So again, personally for me, no. And I would advise other people no as well, but I would never shame them or tell them they’re wrong if they do want it.

Revolution: If a watch was inexpensive to purchase, would it follow that that watch is going to be inexpensive to service?

Freedman: You would think. But that isn’t usually the case. Unfortunately, most of the cost is in tools and labor. So the labor to fix a cheap watch is the same as the labor to fix an expensive watch, they have the same components. You still have to take them apart, you have to clean everything, put it back together, get the timing set in. In fact, cheap ones can take even more time and effort than expensive ones because they’re not engineered as well, so they don’t go back together as easily.

Revolution: That’s very interesting. And kind of thinking about that in my mind, I always sort of thought of it as sort of like, hey, a three hand movement is a three hand movement. But that might not actually be the case. In fact the less expensive movement might actually be more difficult, more time consuming, more expensive to clean and service and reassemble than a more expensive movement.

Freedman: It really can be. And especially when they get more and more complicated, you have more complex parts in there that are cheaped out on – where there should be jewels, there aren’t jewels, for example. So if you go longer without servicing, it will wear much quicker. And then you have to rectify that and that takes more time and effort, or involves replacing larger components of the watch. So it’s kind of the opposite of what you would think. Cheaper watches can be in fact more expensive labor- and time-wise than some more expensive ones.

Revolution: If you have to replace internal parts – does that mean the watch has lost its originality or is a… FRANKENWATCH? [THUNDER CLAPS AND LIGHTNING]

Freedman: It’s a good question. I hear that term getting thrown around all sorts. I don’t know that people really know what it means. For me, it comes down to a couple of things – there’s the discussion of preservation versus restoration as opposed to building out a watch to intentionally fake something. To me, a Frankenwatch would be like if you’re putting in an incorrect bridge from another watch and it’s got a different serial number on it or it’s got a different finish to it just to build a watch together so you have something functional and working. It’s putting in a part that wasn’t originally in there or never should have been in there in that form, but is functional and that to me then makes it an imposter.

Revolution: Interesting. So say you have a watch with a base ETA2824 in it, and a tooth breaks off of a wheel, so you go and take a wheel from another 2824, but maybe it’s a generic one, not the derivative that the brand used. It has the same barrel, but it’s not from that manufacturer’s gussied up version. Is that a bridge too far for you (no pun intended)?

Freedman: To me it depends on the finish because, especially you said an ETA 2824, a lot of brands use those movements and ETA has a couple different grades of the base movement that they sell and then sometimes the brands will alter the movements themselves or adjust the finishing or something like that. So for me, is it the same finish? Is it the same version of the part? Is it truly indistinguishable? The trick is knowing which parts are which.

Revolution: How can people vet their potential watchmaker or service center to feel more confident in their capabilities? What are some red flags to look out for?

Freedman: I think word of mouth is really valuable here. Talk to some other collectors who’ve had things serviced, see what kind of experience they’ve had and see if they were happy with it or not. I think other than that, it would be to reach out and talk to the watchmaker in question.

I have an open door policy – you can email me, I’ll email back personally or I’ll hop on the phone with a lot of people before they’ve even sent me work. We have the discussion, what do they want done with their watch? What are they looking to get out of this experience? So if you can do that, I think that’s really where you get a step up with smaller independent shops versus much larger ones or going back to the factory. You end up with a more individual, more personalized experience.

Talking about the red flags, I’m going to go back to quoted price range. You get what you pay for, if it sounds too good to be true, most likely it is. There’s a reason why they’re undercutting on price and there’s things that won’t be done or will be skipped out on to get it to make sense at that whatever hourly rate it is or per job rate or anything like that.

Revolution: If everybody else is quoting you $1,200 to service something and then you find a guy who’s willing to do it for $350… maybe you should at least have an eyebrow raised at that, right?

Freedman: You’re probably going to get the 47th street dip on that one – put it in a tub of solvent, let it sit for 20 minutes, pull it out, spread oil with the paintbrush all over it.

Revolution: And then everyone wonders how vintage watches get over oiled or have big old oil slicks and moisture damage all over them.

Freedman: Exactly. So yeah, I’d say word of mouth recommendations and try and talk to them directly. If you can talk to them, you get along with them, if they’re passionate about watches, they’re happy to do work with you, to get it exactly how you want it and to be honest and real with you. I think that’s a great place to start.

Revolution: If there was one key takeaway point for our readers, regarding the process or experience of having their watches serviced, what would that be?

Freedman: Let’s see, how do I want to say this? Go in with the knowledge and the confidence that it’s about you as the customer. I think a lot of times you go into a watchmaking shop and the company or the watchmaker will try and make it all about them or about the watch – what they have time for, when they can get to it, what they want to do to it, and it doesn’t really need to be like that.

There are definitely things that need to be done that you might not know about, but I think if they’re not giving you the conversation, if they’re not explaining to you what they’re going to do to your watch and you’re not walking away understanding the process, I think that’s an issue. I think there’s a big problem in the industry about transparency and communication and customer service, and as a result people don’t go in expecting those things and I think they should.

Revolution: Interesting. So they should come away from that conversation, from the evaluation, having a general understanding of what is going to be done to their watch and, most importantly, why it’s going to be done, and what it’s going to cost.

Freedman: Exactly. If they say something like, we’re going to replace the crystal, and they don’t tell you why they want to replace the crystal. You should feel comfortable and be able to ask what the reason is for replacing it. If they say we have to replace the hands or we won’t do the service without replacing the hands. The customer should be made aware and at least then be given the choice of saying, okay, I don’t want to do it.

Revolution: It seems a lot like taking your car to a mechanic.

Freedman: In my head pretty much exactly the same thing. And I fix my own cars as a hobby on the weekends. It’s just a different tool set. The tools tend to be quite a bit larger and it’s just working on a larger thing, and with watches, you have gaskets to keep moisture out of the watch and with cars you have gaskets and o-rings to keep it all inside the engine, but other than that, it’s essentially the same thing.

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FROM THE SHOP

Furlan Marri

Limited Edition

Furlan Marri x Auro x Revo - Flyback Chronographs 3188-A ‘Salmon Flyback

$3,175.00

TECH SPECS

Movement	Manual winding Sellita caliber AMT5100, with rose gold plating and custom bridge for Furlan Marri; 58-hour power reserve; heated blued steel screws
Functions	Hours, minutes, small seconds and flyback chronograph
Case	38mm (46mm from lug to lug); stainless steel with olive-shaped pushers for Honey Blue flyback, Taupe flyback and Tasti Tondi pushers for Salmon flyback; water resistant to 50m
Dial	Taupe, blue, or two-tone salmon and black (Revolution edition); double printed text with pulsations scale, polished applied indexes
Strap	Italian leather with quick release system
Limited Edition	270 pieces per reference + 30 collector boxes (including one of each references) in addition.

The post The nitty-gritty of vintage watch repair, according to an actual watchmaker appeared first on Revolution Watch.

Chronopassion is the Parisian retailer making watch appreciation cool

Celine Yap — Thu, 18 Jan 2024 05:45:04 +0000

Chronopassion is the Parisian retailer making watch appreciation cool

Bringing expertise, experience and a rockstar attitude to horology, Chronopassion is undoubtedly powered by passion.

Interviews

By Celine Yap

Jan 18, 2024

It says a lot about a single-boutique retailer when it is placed on the same pedestal as the giants of the industry. Founded and based in Paris, Chronopassion is one such retailer, known — and long admired — for its small but dynamic presence in the luxury watch scene.

Decked out in a fresh, modern aesthetic, the store located on swanky Rue Saint-Honoré doesn’t scream for attention at all, but anyone who has a keen eye for luxury will immediately be drawn to its intriguing window display where revolving carousel cabinets tote the season’s most desirable contemporary timepieces. Whether you’re looking from outside in or standing on the inside looking out, it’s obvious that Chronopassion is no ordinary luxury watch boutique, with a reputation for always doing things differently than others.

Chronopassion storefront at Rue Saint-Honoré in Paris

It’s been this way since the very beginning and if you’ve met its founder, Laurent Picciotto, you would be able to immediately discern why. His office resembles much more a recording studio for a rock band than the working space of a luxury watch chief executive. The entire space is swathed in posters and paintings of art of all genres, many of which are from the watch industry.

Says Picciotto, “When people come into my office, their eyes are always looking all around because there is so much going on. It took me a long time to accumulate this much stuff, there are a lot of souvenirs, stories… It’s all the memories past and present.”

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Laurent Picciotto (@laurentpicciotto)

Indeed, since its establishment, Chronopassion has been a powerhouse in the retail scene. Running the business for more than 36 years, there is nothing that Picciotto has not already seen, experienced and mastered in luxury watch retail.

He has a big personality and a ton of enthusiasm for horology — to say nothing yet of his phenomenal sense of style, which has undoubtedly led him to cultivate an incredible acumen for watches. And it is this unbridled passion for watches and being in the watch business, surrounded by other like-minded individuals who love watches and who are bringing interesting things to the watchmaking landscape, that distinguishes Picciotto and Chronopassion from your run-of-the-mill retailers capable of little beyond the regurgitation of SKUs and RRPs.

Maximillian Büsser (left) hanging out with Laurent Picciotto

He shares, “This comes from the DNA of Chronopassion. Most retailers want to sell what people ask for.

“Of course, there are exceptions and generally most do support some independents, because they have a lot of institutional brands to lean on. For us, year after year, we work less and less with institutional brands and more through the independents.

Laurent Picciotto and Edouard Meylan (right) of H. Moser & Cie

“It is our philosophy and our mode always to start a new thing if we love it.”

Picciotto and his team of passionate watch enthusiasts are the primary reason why Chronopassion is a luxury watch destination unto itself, where aficionados gather and freely indulge in their love for horology on all levels.

Independent Spirit

Where Chronopassion really stands apart from its peers is in the portfolio of brands available here, which focuses less on the mainstream institutional players and more on the alternative segments. What happens then is that the environment is naturally acclimatized to spotlight fine watchmaking from an artisan’s perspective.

Chronopassion’s core range thus includes a plethora of names from haut de gamme independents to emerging microbrands with a unique point of view to offer. As a matter of fact, the store has always been a hotbed of rising star independents as far back as the late ’80s when brands like Audemars Piguet, Daniel Roth and Gérald Genta were just re-entering the luxury conversation.

Laurent Picciotto with Felix Baumgartner (middle) and Martin Frey (right) of Urwerk

And now with the LVMH Group looking actively to revive the latter two brands in the contemporary context, Chronopassion’s strong reputation as a retailer that actively supports the work of independent watchmakers positions it perfectly to play a pivotal role in the rebirth of these legendary names. Watch director of Louis Vuitton Jean Arnault came by the store on one occasion to discuss the project and asked if Picciotto had any archive materials to share.

Picciotto smiles as he recalls the meeting, “I said no, we don’t have any pictures in the computers, but there are about four or five kilos of paper documents from the past you’re welcome to look at.”

Inside Chronopassion's eclectic interior

Picciotto strongly believes in the importance of speaking from the heart about all kinds of watches, whether or not the brand is retailing in his store. For someone who is constantly consulted on watch purchases and as a passionate observer of the industry for decades, he prides himself on always sharing his true opinion on any subject. He says, “Some retail businesses take a corporate approach to retail sales and this is, in my opinion, sometimes kind of dry. For example, at mono-brand stores, most of the time you are quickly made to feel that only that brand is superior, all others are not.

“To me, this is not clever.”

The MB&F Lab at Rue Saint-Honoré in Paris

His open advice has always enlightened customers to see things from a new perspective, and occasionally that has meant a change in decision — sometimes to a brand he doesn’t carry. But that’s perfectly acceptable for Picciotto because it brings him something else instead that money cannot buy: trust.

“We want that long-term trust with our customers. We want that long-term relationship. To have that, one way is to speak the truth, speak from our heart, and say what we honestly feel,” he continues.

Laurent Picciotto with the MB&F LMX Paris Edition (Image: David Carteron)

And the corollary of that is a strong following of loyal customers who recognize that if a brand is good enough for Laurent Picciotto, it is definitely good on all counts. The Parisian retailer has never been one to wait passively for opportunities.

Rather it is quite the opposite, as Chronopassion has been working very closely with key brand partners in creating exclusive limited edition watches that express its unique philosophy and vibrant identity while also strengthening the partnership and, most importantly, creating added value to its customers.

MB&F LMX Paris Edition

Throughout these 30-plus years, Picciotto has actively co-designed special limited edition timepieces with selected brands, both as a creative exercise and a powerful message of solidarity between partners. After all, Chronopassion and many of today’s greatest independents go way back. It has been a trusted retail partner of MB&F since its earliest years and was, in fact, the first point of-sale in the world that sold the very first Horological Machine No. 1.

That was in 2007 and interest in independents was far less fervent than it is today, which speaks volumes about Chronopassion’s incredible score with MB&F and its unwavering belief in the brand’s timepieces.

Stronger Together

Last year, the two entities jointly opened the first MB&F Lab in Paris, which is located right next to Chronopassion’s Rue Saint-Honoré address, and this year the chemistry continues with the special edition MB&F LMX Paris Edition watch featuring a gorgeous dual time display and breathtaking mechanics hovering over a radiant purple dial. This is a watch that catches the attention of watch enthusiasts and novices alike, while being completely artisanal in character and a rare beast even among the highly exclusive realm of MB&F watches.

Another cherished brand partner that Picciotto has been working very closely with in co-creating special editions is Bulgari, and by now everyone has been talking about the latest Bulgari, Chronopassion and Mo Coppoletta collaboration — the Octo Finissimo Tattoo Fuoco. Completely engulfed in tattoo-inspired flames, this is the third and final piece of a trilogy of watches after Aria (2021) and Acqua (2022), which are all anchored around the natural elements while evoking the beauty of body art.

Chronopassion × Mo Coppoletta × Bulgari Octo Finissimo Tattoo

Picciotto, along with Fabrizio Buonamassa Stigliani, product creation executive director of Bulgari, and renowned tattoo artist Mo Coppoletta, imagined these breathtaking motifs as the “skin” of the Octo Finissimo, now interpreted through the warm nuances of sandblasted rose gold. The earlier pieces had been crafted in titanium and enrobed in clouds and stars with the Aria, and crashing waves in the Acqua.

Based on such a compelling origin, coupled with alluring aesthetics, these retail exclusive editions are certainly sought after. But they also demonstrate how Chronopassion, with Picciotto at the helm, wants to play a more active role in deciding what kinds of watches it ultimately gets to sell, rather than be a mere middleman for their partners.

Says Picciotto, “I always say when it comes to creativity, there is no season for that. At some fairs there are plenty of fantastic pieces and at others, much less.” So by capitalizing on his signature rock ’n’ roll attitude to take greater control and pushing ahead to really think creatively on every aspect of the business, Picciotto has well established Chronopassion as one of the leading voices in luxury watch retail today.

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From the Shop

Furlan Marri

Limited Edition

Furlan Marri x Auro x Revo - Flyback Chronographs 3188-A ‘Salmon Flyback

$3,175.00

TECH SPECS

Movement	Manual winding Sellita caliber AMT5100, with rose gold plating and custom bridge for Furlan Marri; 58-hour power reserve; heated blued steel screws
Functions	Hours, minutes, small seconds and flyback chronograph
Case	38mm (46mm from lug to lug); stainless steel with olive-shaped pushers for Honey Blue flyback, Taupe flyback and Tasti Tondi pushers for Salmon flyback; water resistant to 50m
Dial	Taupe, blue, or two-tone salmon and black (Revolution edition); double printed text with pulsations scale, polished applied indexes
Strap	Italian leather with quick release system
Limited Edition	270 pieces per reference + 30 collector boxes (including one of each references) in addition.

The post Chronopassion is the Parisian retailer making watch appreciation cool appeared first on Revolution Watch.

How Ahmed Seddiqi & Sons led the way for luxury horology in the Middle East

Celine Yap — Thu, 18 Jan 2024 03:19:59 +0000

How Ahmed Seddiqi & Sons led the way for luxury horology in the Middle East

Representing the very best in luxury watch retail, Ahmed Seddiqi & Sons and its flagship event, Dubai Watch Week, has placed the United Arab Emirates front and center as the cultural beating heart of the Swiss watch industry.

Feature

By Celine Yap

Jan 18, 2024

Dubai is often regarded as the de facto luxury capital of the United Arab Emirates, and rightly so, given its overall high standard of living, lavish shopping malls and the fact that it ranks among the safest cities in the Middle East, and indeed the world. So, it is known as the City of Gold for a very good reason, and one of the most prominent names in Emirati luxury that has consistently elevated the UAE, not just within the Gulf but on a global stage, is Ahmed Seddiqi & Sons, which is undoubtedly the number one luxury watch retailer in the Middle East today.

With its massive network of multi- and mono-brand stores spread between Dubai and Abu Dhabi, Ahmed Seddiqi & Sons is the retail juggernaut fueling the region’s curiosity, passion and appetite for the best timepieces the world has to offer. Notably, it is through the vision and tenacity of this homegrown luxury watch retailer that the UAE frequently places among the top 10 largest markets for Swiss timepieces, with total exports in the first half of 2023 worth CHF 620.9M.

Combined with other key countries such as Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Kuwait and Bahrain, the Middle East represents CHF 1.1B in that same period.

Seddiqi Holding HQ

This burgeoning community of watch aficionados stands among the most sophisticated and fanatical in the world, thanks to the leading role Ahmed Seddiqi & Sons play in developing a strong watch culture in its territory — and this comes right from the heart of the company’s founding family. If it were not for the fascination of its founder, Ahmed Qassim Seddiqi, with high-quality Swiss timepieces in the 1940s, the company’s history would have been written very differently indeed.

So essentially, the story of luxury watch retail in the UAE is the origin story of Ahmed Seddiqi & Sons, a family business run by four generations of the Seddiqi family since 1950.

The first in the UAE

From the first Ahmed Seddiqi & Sons store in the old Bur Dubai Souk, the company has now expanded into a massive conglomerate with over 1,000 employees. Seddiqi Holding was established in 2007 and manages a range of businesses including Ahmed Seddiqi & Sons with more than 80 brand partners represented across over 50 stores throughout the region, aftersales division Swiss Watch Services, and Mizzen, a subsidiary focusing on unique retail concepts for luxury consumer brands such as Aesop, Orlebar Brown and Gentle Monster.

Ahmed Seddiqi & Sons was the first in the UAE to represent Rolex in 1952 and Patek Philippe in 1960. Naturally, the watch industry was in a completely different place than where it is today, and consumers as well had not yet been acquainted to luxury watchmaking on an intimate level.

The Ahmed Seddiqi & Sons Boutique in Dubai Mall houses the largest Rolex showroom in the world

However, the ambition of Ahmed Seddiqi & Sons was always this: to cultivate a community of passionate watch enthusiasts, to put the UAE firmly on the luxury horology map, and to show how a beautiful watch is also very much an object that can transform time into cherished moments.

Presently, Ahmed Seddiqi & Sons is directed by co-founder, Abdulmagied Seddiqi, who is the second of four children of Ahmed Qassim Seddiqi, and his brother Abdul Hamied Ahmed Seddiqi who takes on the role of Chairman of the Seddiqi Holding. Members of the family’s third generation have also helped manage the company in various key positions.

Its Chief Commercial Officer, Mohammed Abdulmagied Seddiqi, is one of the most prominent individuals in the global luxury retail industry, who is also shaping and developing the market for all brand partners of Ahmed Seddiqi & Sons.

Chief Commercial Officer, Mohammed Abdulmagied Seddiqi

Chairman of Seddiqi Holding, Abdul Hamied Seddiqi
Vice President and Chief Financial Officer, Osama Ibrahim Seddiqi

Chief Marketing & Communications Officer, Hind Seddiqi
Chief Human Capital Officer, Hassan Abdulmagied Seddiqi

Performing as Vice Chairman and Chief Financial Officer is Osama Ibrahim Seddiqi, and Hassan Abdulmagied Seddiqi is the company’s Chief Human Capital Officer; not forgetting Chief Marketing and Communications Officer Hind Abdul Hamied Seddiqi, who also holds the key position of Director General of Dubai Watch Week, the biennial anchor event on the luxury watch calendar designed for everyone in the industry — watchmakers, brand principals, watch buyers, watch journalists, even young children — and has positioned itself as the reference event for watch fair organizers all around the world.

Why Dubai Watch Week is the place to be

In its sixth edition now, Dubai Watch Week sets out to unite and grow the global watch community by providing the best platform on which to share knowledge, build connections, and ultimately, to celebrate watchmaking. Attracting tens of thousands of international visitors over its weeklong activation, this event distinguishes itself from other major trade shows by focusing not on sales but on watch culture.

To achieve its goal, the organizers have curated well over 100 different programs and masterclasses, forums and craftsmanship workshops, plus a plethora of music and gastronomical experiences to keep the audience engaged.

A discussion panel at Dubai Watch Week 2023, featuring Danièla Dufour (left), Philippe Dufour (middle), with moderator Wei Koh (right)

At the 2023 edition, guest speakers arrived from all over the world to provide insights from different corners of the industry along with key members of the Seddiqi management team, and VIP speaker His Excellency Omar Sultan Al Olama, the UAE’s Minister of State for Artificial Intelligence, Digital Economy and Remote Work Applications.

Guest speakers included watchmakers and brand owners such as Philippe Dufour, Max Büsser, Jean-Claude Biver, Georges Kern, François-Henry Bennahmias and more, auction house specialists from Christie’s, renowned watch collectors, and Revolution and Grail Watch founder Wei Koh.

Ressence TYPE 1° DX3
Breitling Chronomat GMT Dubai Edition

But of course, it wouldn’t be called Dubai Watch Week without the real stars of the show — the watches. Every two years, Ahmed Seddiqi & Sons unveils an exclusive collection of Dubai Watch Week limited-edition timepieces co-created with selected brand partners and designed expressly for the Middle Eastern collector.

In 2023, some of the highlights that have emerged include the Bovet 1822 Récital 15 Meteorite, the Breitling Chronomat GMT 40 in two variations, De Bethune’s DBD Evergreen, the Hublot Classic Fusion Black Magic with colorful Arabic script, and the beautiful sand- colored Ressence Type 1 DX3 featuring cloisonné enamel.

Vyntage Horology: A brand founded from passion

Ahmed Seddiqi & Sons also took the opportunity to present the latest developments on Vyntage Horology, its very own brand crafted as a tribute to the modern connoisseur. Two new collections lead the charge, named Monograph and Purity, both highly wearable at 40mm and 39mm respectively, and always reflecting exquisite craftsmanship while blending tradition and innovation.

“Vyntage Horology is a labor of love,” says Mohammed Abdulmagied Seddiqi. “It is a venture that is fueled by our family’s dedication and passion toward horological excellence, and through it, we are committed to preserving and enhancing our timeless legacy.

Vyntage Horology Monograph Light Blue
Vyntage Horology Purity Silver

“The launch of Vyntage Horology further expands our offering and underscores our ongoing commitment to elevate the region’s status as a destination for horology and luxury.”

From its origin story through its formative years and right up till the present moment, Ahmed Seddiqi & Sons has never lost sight of its goal — to bring luxury and horological authenticity to the hearts of watch connoisseurs. And what began as one man’s passion for fine watchmaking has truly blossomed into a bastion of excellence in luxury watch retail, affirming Ahmed Seddiqi & Sons as the dazzling pride of Dubai and the UAE.

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From the Shop

Furlan Marri

Limited Edition

Furlan Marri x Auro x Revo - Flyback Chronographs 3188-A ‘Salmon Flyback

$3,175.00

TECH SPECS

Movement	Manual winding Sellita caliber AMT5100, with rose gold plating and custom bridge for Furlan Marri; 58-hour power reserve; heated blued steel screws
Functions	Hours, minutes, small seconds and flyback chronograph
Case	38mm (46mm from lug to lug); stainless steel with olive-shaped pushers for Honey Blue flyback, Taupe flyback and Tasti Tondi pushers for Salmon flyback; water resistant to 50m
Dial	Taupe, blue, or two-tone salmon and black (Revolution edition); double printed text with pulsations scale, polished applied indexes
Strap	Italian leather with quick release system
Limited Edition	270 pieces per reference + 30 collector boxes (including one of each references) in addition.

The post How Ahmed Seddiqi & Sons led the way for luxury horology in the Middle East appeared first on Revolution Watch.

Running an Ice Marathon in Antarctica? This Is the Watch You Need

Zen Love — Mon, 08 Jan 2024 13:00:52 +0000

Running an Ice Marathon in Antarctica? This Is the Watch You Need

We spoke to two extreme athletes just returned from testing Montblanc’s newest watch in some of the world’s harshest conditions.

Interviews

By Zen Love

Jan 8, 2024

What’s it like to run a marathon in Antarctica? Is that even a thing? It’s hard to imagine, but you can do it if you want to. But “you have to really, really want to,” says alpinist Simon Messner who recently participated in the Antarctic Ice Marathon together with watch brand executive Laurent Lecamp.

People have many reasons for undertaking such extreme endeavors. For Messner and Lecamp, one of those was to test and call attention to Montblanc’s rugged world time watch made expressly for mountain climbing and extreme cold, the 1858 Geosphere Zero Oxygen. It’s the latest iteration of a concept Montblanc pioneered: a watch with a case completely free of oxygen.

Why does a watch need to be oxygen-free? It means you won’t find the crystal fogging up with moisture in the frighteningly frigid conditions of mountains or glaciers. It’s an issue which adventurers such as Messner and Lecamp can attest to.

Neither Messner nor Lecamp is any stranger to cold or extreme sports. Simon is the son of legendary mountaineer Reinhold Messner and an accomplished alpinist in his own right, as well as a Montblanc brand ambassador. He’d never run a marathon before. Laurent Lecamp, on the other hand, is an experienced marathon runner and the Global Managing Director of Montblanc’s Watch Division. It’s worth noting that not every watch executive accompanies brand ambassadors on the likes of grueling arctic adventures.

The Montblanc 1858 Geosphere Zero Oxygen South Pole Exploration LE watch on the wrist of Simon Messner while in Antarctica (Image: Montblanc)
Laurent Lecamp (left) and Simon Messner at the Classic Car Club Manhattan speaking about having just returned from the Antartic Ice Marathon (Image: Troy Barmore)

Other versions of Montblanc’s watch have been worn by famous mountaineers. This limited edition is specifically dedicated to Reinhold Messner’s 2,800 kilometer crossing of the Antarctic continent in 1989-1990 (the year Simon was born) on foot and with only minimal equipment. It features a pale-blue dial color based on the glaciers Messner and Lecamp would’ve jogged past during the marathon and a caseback depicting the Southern Lights—which they didn’t have a chance to see since the sun didn’t set for their entire trip.

Only a couple of days after having completed the race (they came in seventh—together—among around 80 participants) Messner and Lecamp landed in New York City. We had a chance to sit down with them for an interview as well as a fireside chat with collectors at the Classic Car Club Manhattan.

With muscles still sore and skin still a little wind-burnt, they were able to confirm that the watch’s dial did indeed pair well chromatically with the glacial ice and that it remained perfectly fog-free. They also shared insights about life, mountain climbing and reflected on what it’s actually like to run a marathon in Antarctica. Here are the highlights of our broad-ranging chat.

The following interview has been edited for length and clarity

The Antarctic Ice Marathon is a standard 42.195 kilometers (26.219 miles) but facing katabatic winds and temperatures of around -30 degrees Celcius (-22 Fahrenheit). (Image: Montblanc)

Can anyone run an ice marathon? What does it take?

Simon Messner: You have to train a lot. For me, it was the first marathon I ever ran so I was not sure what to expect. It was quite tough. I would say that not everybody could do this. You have to really want to. I’m coming from mountaineering and it’s the same rule: you have to really, really want to do it, and I think it’s the same for this marathon.

Laurent Lecamp: For me, it’s all mental. I would say that if someone wants to do it, he can do it if he or she is willing to train regularly, three or four times a week. It’s just a question of time. If you’re willing to give up a lot of things to reach your goal, it’s possible. An example: we saw a guy who was 81 years old, and he was running the half-marathon. In the end, it means that everything is possible, but you have to train. So yes, it’s possible. For people who say it’s only for the elite, only for a few people—forget it, that’s not true.

Adding to the environment's already extreme cold are katabatic winds—strong, downhill winds in Antarctica flowing from the polar plateau. (Image: Montblanc)
The Texture of the 1858 Geosphere Zero Oxygen is based on a picture taken by Laurent Lecamp of the glacial ice on Mont Blanc and produced by an old technique called gratte boise; this variant's dial color is based on that of Antarctic glaciers. (Image: Montblanc)

What was it like getting to Antarctica? What was it like to be there?

Messner: We were flying along the coast, and it’s never-ending. It’s hard to explain, but you need hours, and it’s just ice, ice, ice, 4 kilometers thick. My brain cannot understand this.

Lecamp: You just have to imagine when you land. The place we went was extremely windy, and all the snow was blown away and we could see the ice. And I was observing this from the plane and the pilot said “landing,” and I said “no, he will not do it.” The plane was a [Boeing] 757-200, so a huge one, and it was landing on the ice. For me it was “merde, how is this possible?” And this is where the experience started.

Everybody was at the window observing what was happening. It was 20 degrees [Celcius] inside and then you go out and it’s -30 degrees. Then you go back to the camp where we discovered our tent where we slept for three nights, or tried to sleep.

Among around 80 participants, Messner and Lecamp finished the 2023 Antarctic Ice Marathon together in 7th place. (Image: Montblanc)

So, the day comes and you start running. What was underfoot? Ice? Snow? What was the marathon itself like?

Lecamp: It’s a glacier. If you remove the snow you see the glacier. It was hard to predict the next step. You have to pay attention and you always have to focus on what’s in front of you. It’s completely different from a normal marathon.

Simon said, it’s not 42 kilometers, and he’s right. I run normal marathons which are 42 kilometers, but here the feeling was 55 or 60 kilometers. It’s different because you have snow, it’s slippery, you have strong winds, it’s extremely cold, feeling like -30. So when it’s -30 and you have the wind in front of you and all the snow and all the ice just below, one step is not like one step in a regular marathon.

Messner: I’ve always run as part of my mountaineering preparation, but always uphill. It’s not difficult anymore. But starting to run longer distances, in the snow in the rain, to figure out how it works—it was very tough. I could do this walking with a heavy bag, but running was another game. It started becoming interesting after 30 kilometers.

What was the toughest part? Was there a time that you wanted to give up?

Lecamp: The last kilometers were a huge pain. I’m used to running on snow and ice, so the first 30 kilometers was no issue at all. But frankly speaking, during the last kilometers I had this issue here [indicates inner thigh] and at every step as I was running I could feel the contraction on my face. I don’t know what happened that time, but when you’re on the snow and the ice you’re not stable, and I had this pain.

So that was difficult because you say “will I be able to make it to the end?” We said we should finish because we have the watch, and everybody will ask. We have the interview, so what can we say if we don’t manage it [laughs]? And it’s once in a lifetime, so giving up wasn’t an option.

Laurent Lecamp is unusual among watch brand executives for accompanying extreme athletes like Simon Messner to test watches in extreme conditions. (Image: Troy Barmore)
Even in -30 degrees Celcius, the 1858 Geosphere Zero Oxygen remained fog-free for legibility and appreciating its ice-inspired dial. (Image: Montblanc)

Was there anything you weren’t expecting or weren’t prepared for?

Lecamp: If you want to pee, you cannot. In Antarctica, it’s forbidden. That’s something we didn’t know about. Every five kilometers you have a checkpoint with toilets, but they say in between it’s impossible to pee. They say that if you do it, they have to cut the ice and everything around it to remove it because it has to be pure. Otherwise it’ll be there for the next 100 years.

We thought it was a joke but it was not, they repeated it many, many times. So that’s a stress because, you know, you pass a checkpoint and after two kilometers you have to wait three kilometers. And in the cold, it’s not the same. Imagine you have to go to the toilet, but I say “ok, first you have to walk four kilometers.”

Messner: It’s summer there so it was, for three days, always day. This is something I wasn’t expecting.

Lecamp: Yes. Because the tent is heated by the sun, it’s completely light inside. For us, it was like lying on the beach under the sun all day long and all night long. So I remember the first night: you don’t sleep. You have the excitement, you have the sunlight, you have jetlag. One night, Simon said “did you hear that?” It was the opening of a crevice which is very typical in the mountains. So then I couldn’t sleep at all.

The Montblanc 1858 Geosphere Zero Oxygen features an oxygen free case in tribute to Reinhold Messner's historic mountain ascents without the use of supplemental oxygen. The first watch to feature an oxygen-free case means much slower aging of the components and oils as well as avoiding condensation inside the crystal in freezing temperatures. (Image: Montblanc)

Did the watch perform as expected?

Lecamp: We received so many questions from runners. Runners were asking a lot of questions about the watch. They said “why do you have a mechanical watch?” And we explained it to them. One of them had a mechanical watch and he had some drops [condensation] inside and he could not see [the time]. Because in the tent it was 15 degrees and it was -30 outside. So the 45 degree difference makes the humidity inside the watch [condensate on the glass]. But it doesn’t happen with our watches because there is zero oxygen inside.

Why zero oxygen? Because we were inspired by Reinhold Messner who was the first to climb the highest peaks in the world with no supplemental oxygen. And Simon, every time he climbs, he never uses oxygen.

Did you see the kind of glacial ice which inspired the dial of this 1858 Geosphere watch?

Lecamp: On the other side of here [indicating on a photograph], we saw a huge glacier with a specific blue, and the blue of the glacier was the same as the dial. For the dial, we were working with the team to create the same color as the glacier from Antarctica, and we created this. So it means that you have the real color of the glacier.

And one dial requires 30 days to be produced. Gratte boisse is the process we’re using to create this dial. It’s an old process from the 19th century, it’s made by hand. The thickness is 0.4mm, but we can create the depths of the glacier thanks to this technique. And it seems we are the last ones in Switzerland using it.

Though advised against it, Messner and Lecamp insisted on racing together and were the first ever to complete the Antarctic Ice Marathon as a team. (Image: Montblanc)

You climb mountains. You run ice marathons. Why? Is climbing fun? Is there pleasure in the experience?

Messner: There is not. The first marathon is the same. There’s not pleasure, there’s not joy. That comes afterwards. [At the top?] Mmm, no. The last successful expeditions I did, at the top you’re just totally exhausted. You just feel lucky that you don’t have to go further. The joy, if it’s there, comes afterwards, maybe weeks afterwards.

Does the joy of mountain climbing come from the sense of achievement? From satisfaction or bragging rights? Or is it something else?

Messner: Every young climber thinks doing a bivouac would be amazing, sleeping up there in the mountains. At some point, there comes the time where you have to do it and you’re not prepared. You will not sleep a second, it’s very cold, you’re sitting there just shivering. Again, it’s not fun. But afterwards you know exactly what it means to have a simple bed or just a warm place. If you’ve ever been really thirsty, a simple glass of water is the best thing.

Simon (left) with his father Reinhold Messner. (Image: reinhold-messner.de)

You had a fear of heights as a child. How did you go from vertigo to climbing mountains?

Messner: Mountaineering, as you can imagine, was totally normal for us, me and my two sisters. At some point I just wanted to experience it for myself. So I went for my first time alone, and I noticed I had this very strong vertigo. It started two meters off the ground. And this was something I could not accept for myself, so I wanted to know where this fear is coming from and why I’m not able to handle this. It was more the question of where the fear is coming from than the climbing itself which motivated me.

Did your father encourage you to follow in his footsteps or give you any advice that you particularly remember?

Messner: My father always said “I don’t like that you climb. You are free, you can do what you want. But I’ll give you one piece of advice: if you climb, never fall.” It’s very simple. You have to distinguish the sport of climbing from alpinism. In alpine climbing, it sounds very simple, but it’s an old rule: you’re not allowed to fall. If you do fall once, maybe you survive. Two times, maybe. But the third time, maybe not.

Simon Messner speaks with watch collectors at the Classic Car Club Manhattan about mountaineering, the Alpinist mindset and more following completion of the Antarctic Ice Marathon. (Image: Troy Barmore)

Mountain climbing is dangerous. Is that a good thing?

Messner: When I was young I always knew that you can die. It’s possible, but it was ok for me. But if you’re in this field for many years, and I’ve been climbing for 16 or 17 years, you lose a lot of friends and a lot of people you know. So you start thinking. And I think that the highest art is knowing when to stop, so I keep this in mind. If you follow the highest[-level] climbers in the world, they will not get old. This is a fact.

I once interviewed Reinhold Messner, your father, and he told me that his is “the art of reduction, reduction, reduction.” Is this your approach, to eschew equipment and technology?

Messner: It’s the mindset of alpine-style climbing. You don’t use fixed ropes, no help from porters, no artificial oxygen. For me, it’s very important what the climbing society thinks of a climber. It’s much more important than what all the other people think. The greatest, “most difficult climb” is done with the least equipment, so just your strength and your mind.

It’s very simple thinking. It’s about using less technology because you see here in New York what is possible with all the technology. So in mountaineering if you use all this, at some point we don’t need to invest our energy anymore or our skills. This mindset is still present in the Dolomites where I was raised as a climber. It’s a very old tradition. So, we are not swimmers in the Alps.

What would be the perfect soundtrack for running the Antarctic Ice Marathon?

Lecamp: The ERA songs “Ameno” or “If You Shout.”

Learn more about the Montblanc 1858 Geosphere Zero Oxygen South Pole Exploration Limited Edition here

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Atelier Wen

Limited Edition

Atelier Wen X Revolution Perception - XI

$3,400.00

TECH SPECS

Movement	Self-winding extra thin Dandong caliber SL1588; 41-hour power reserve
Functions	Hours, minutes and seconds
Case	40mm; grade 5 titanium; water resistant to 100m
Dial	Red guilloché with "Sunmao" structure; rhodium plated applied indexes
Strap	Titanium bracelet and white colored rubber strap
Limited Edition	Limited and numbered edition of 100 pieces

The post Running an Ice Marathon in Antarctica? This Is the Watch You Need appeared first on Revolution Watch.

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Running an Ice Marathon in Antarctica? This Is the Watch You Need

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Can anyone run an ice marathon? What does it take?

What was it like getting to Antarctica? What was it like to be there?

So, the day comes and you start running. What was underfoot? Ice? Snow? What was the marathon itself like?

What was the toughest part? Was there a time that you wanted to give up?

Was there anything you weren’t expecting or weren’t prepared for?

Did the watch perform as expected?

Did you see the kind of glacial ice which inspired the dial of this 1858 Geosphere watch?

You climb mountains. You run ice marathons. Why? Is climbing fun? Is there pleasure in the experience?

Does the joy of mountain climbing come from the sense of achievement? From satisfaction or bragging rights? Or is it something else?

You had a fear of heights as a child. How did you go from vertigo to climbing mountains?

Did your father encourage you to follow in his footsteps or give you any advice that you particularly remember?

Mountain climbing is dangerous. Is that a good thing?

I once interviewed Reinhold Messner, your father, and he told me that his is “the art of reduction, reduction, reduction.” Is this your approach, to eschew equipment and technology?

What would be the perfect soundtrack for running the Antarctic Ice Marathon?

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