regional customs
Historical race “Nostalski” with skis made of wood
A participant jumps over a ski jump. photo
© Angelika Warmuth/dpa
In Krün, Upper Bavaria, skiers met on Saturday for a fun race in laced leather ski boots on wooden slats with old cable bindings. The weather conditions were excellent.
With old wooden skis from at least the last century, skiers competed in Krün in Upper Bavaria on Saturday. At the historic ski race “Nostalski”, around 90 participants in laced leather ski boots threw themselves down the small mountain at the Barmsee lift on wooden slats with old cable bindings.
The race originally planned for January 7th was postponed due to the lack of snow. Now the conditions were ideal. Due to the fresh snow and some additional artificial snow, the snow cover in Krün was about 70 centimeters.
According to information from the local bachelor club as organisers, there were four starting classes: men’s and women’s, each with or without edges. Because the steel edges only came up in the 1920s or 1930s. Anyone who showed the historical equipment could ride along.
There are nostalgic ski races in several ski areas, for example on Shrove Tuesday in Bayrischzell in Upper Bavaria and in Sankt Englmar in the Bavarian Forest. In Leogang, Austria, nostalgic skiers from several countries compete for the title every two years. Last year the race would have been there again, but was canceled due to the pandemic. In most races, as in Krün, old skis with and without steel edges are permitted in their own starting groups.
Nostalski Krün Nostaging Bayrischzell Nostaging St. Englmar