Konigssee

As it is snowing outside I thought I would update you on what we did last week.

A few years ago we went to Ruhpolding, Germany for a holiday and whilst there we went over to Innsbruck for the day in order for me to have a go on the Olympic bobsled track at Igls. However, this was only the summerbob which ran on wheels and ever since then I have wanted to have a go in a real bobsled.  The track at Konigssee had been rebuilt in order to host the World Championships in 2011 and as it was only a couple of hours away it seemed like a great time to try out my "I have a need, a need for speed" craving.

We drove up on Tuesday morning and checked into our hotel in Schonau am Konigssee which was about a 10 minute drive from the track. The hotel seemed nice but the rest of the village was fairly quiet and most of the places that served food were closed, although we did find a place that was just about to close and had a roll and a couple of cakes left for us to scoff back in our room.

Well the time came to go to the track and I was starting to feel a little nervous. It had also started to rain quite hard but by the time we had got to the track the weather had dried so Gemma would not get wet (only cold!) whilst waiting for me to cannon down a steep hill.

I checked in for my "ride" (90 Euros) and was told to walk 500m up the hill to the start. By now I was a little more nervous as I was told I would be a co-pilot for the ride and it made me start to wonder what I would have to do if the pilot had an accident or didn't turn up, but then I thought "in for a penny, in for a pound" and how hard could it be to steer down a 1200m track at speeds of up to 120kmh whilst experiencing 5G's of force?!!!


Coming into the finish
(me at the back working the brakes)

When I got to the top there were already 3 other people there and the first 2 were given helmets and got into the bobsled with the driver and off they went. The other guy and I were then given our helmets and told to get into the bobsled, which I must say was a tight fit as my shoulders were pressing against the side of the sled. The driver, Eric Dengler is the owner of the company that runs the bobsleds, then gave a safety instruction course in German and asked if we were ready? I said "can you say that in English please and what happens if something happens to you?" He replied "basically if the bobsled tips over, hold on tight and wait for it to stop". Well that alleviated my worries about having to climb over him and steer if he had an accident!

CHAMPION!

At the finish.

It was now time for the off. The driver gave the sled a slight push to start us off and then jumped in as we picked up speed going into the first bend. The next 55-60 seconds went by and I was shaken about a bit, so much so that I thought I was a woodpecker on speed, but wow what a ride!! So much better than the summerbob.  Going through the curves between 2.5 and 5G's was amazing and there was no time for the driver to relax for as soon as you were out of one curve you were into the next. 


Checking the medal is real.

Yep I really was there and did it.

After the ride we were given our certificates and medal and I got to stand on the winners podium. It was now time to celebrate and we went over the river to a bar and had a couple of celebratory beers whilst wearing my medal! Of course, Gemma only had a non-alcoholic drink as we had to get back to the hotel.


Lake Konigssee

On arriving back we were told that dinner would be from 6.30-7pm and it would be a 3-course meal. We duly were down in the restaurant by 6.30pm and had a beer each. Other guests started to turn up and just after 7pm we were served. By this time though we were aware that although it was a 3-course meal (good value at 14 Euros each) there would be no choice and you would have what you were given or go without. It all reminded us of school dinners or going to a holiday camp/hotel. Fortunately, we both liked what was on offer and stayed for a couple more beers and some schnappes. There certainly seems to be a recurring theme on our trips!!!

Overnight there was quite a bit of snow in the region and we woke to find the car covered in 10-12cms of it. The roads however were clear and we had a smooth run down to Obersalzberg (the southern headquarters of Hitler's government) where we spent a good couple of hours at Dokumentation Obersalzberg (5.50 Euros which included an audio handset in English). I thought I knew a fair amount about the Nazis but this place gives you a much better insight into what went on both within the rise of the Socialist Party and then Nazi Germany. This place is well worth a visit and the only downside to it was that there is just so much information to take in in one visit. 

Time to head home and after stopping for a bite to eat we then encountered snow and sleet for the next 80-100kms which made driving for Gemma quite difficult, but we stayed behind a couple of lorries which cleared a path for us. Once back across the Karawanken mountain range tunnel and into Slovenia the snow had stopped which made driving for Gemma a lot more pleasant.

Overall, a crackingly good trip and whilst the bobsled run was expensive I would say it is certainly worth it as it is one of the fastest tracks in the world.

Time to decide where to go for our next trip?!!