DAVID ALEMANNI

My father sat me on a kayak in a lake when I was 5 years and at 10 he took me to the first rapids, right into the Dora Baltea. Exactly like love at first sight, I could not distinguish whether attraction or fear was stronger... and obviously the attraction won.

During my first year at university (I had enrolled in the 'then' Information Sciences), a friend invited me to go rafting in a newly opened centre in the Aosta Valley. A new world opened up to me. Everything was still in embryonic form, rafting had just been bornstill had to take shape, but two things were clear: I was in the right place, doing the right thing for me and would not continue with my IT career.

A year later I had the opportunity to go with other friends to the Himalayas to navigate the Ganges from its source. Soon after, we went to Siberia to explore other rivers. I left my studies to pursue the dream of "navigating all the great rivers of the world".

I knew that economically it would not be easy, but the lure of the river was absolutely irresistible. Working as a safety kayaker and rafting guide could pay for plane tickets and life in other countries.

I have had the opportunity to participate in and lead kayaking and rafting expeditions in Africa (Zambia, Zimbabwe, South Africa ...), Asia (India, Indonesia, Nepal), Australia and Tasmania, Siberia, South and Central America (Argentina, Chile , Costa Rica, Ecuador, Guatemala, Mexico, Peru ...), the United States ...

Every summer I returned to Italy because the call of the Dora Baltea and the Aosta Valley was so strong.
Thanks to opportunities offered to me by friends, I started my own small rafting school in 1992, which slowly developed into what today is Totem Adventurea multi-adventure centre offering kayaking, rafting, canyoning, paragliding, worldwide expedition trips and yoga.

In the same years I started working for the Italian Rafting Federationas an instructor for guides and today I coordinate the training programmes for over 600 active guides in Italy.

In the following years, new experiences presented themselves for me; I had the opportunity to be called upon to train civil defence, police, fire brigade and military groups, thus enabling me to learn about the needs of professional rescuers and the world of organised rescue. A whole new world for me, with a lot to learn.

Although the modus operandi of the outdoor world and organised rescue seem distant, they actually have a common denominator: working safely.
This means working on preparation, training and prevention.

In 1999, with Eve Eichenberger, then my partner in life and river adventures, we decided to founding SAFE®the first European river and flood rescue school, representing Rescue 3 International in Italy and Switzerland.

That was 20 years ago, and I still love teaching courses at any level, no matter whether the students are beginners, highly specialised fire fighters to be trained for rescue in artificial barriers or experienced guides who need to prepare for an expedition to remote areas.