Lisa has put both hands on the barriers and follows the horses between the bars with her eyes spellbound as they leisurely strive towards the town hall. Some riders in their stately-looking wine-red and silky-blue dresses look like princesses, another group has armored themselves with brown and gray wool sweaters in Norwegian patterns for the cutting cold.
Word has got around that Petrus is not always sympathetic to the Leonhardi trip and likes to send rain and gusty winds. But on Saturday everything is different. The blue sky suggests a heavenly blessing – and at the votive office in front of the decorated Leonhardikirche, Pastor Otto Gäng encouraged the numerous guests with a wink not to “upset Peter either”. The seven-year-old Lisa does her part to ensure that Petrus stays in a good mood and that the sun is still shining when all about 250 participants with the 20 carriages and wagons arrive at the fairground after a lap of honor through the city. Together with the family she enjoys the parade and can easily get over the fact that she is not sitting up there on the back of a horse or on the driver’s seat. She knows how it is, because at the Willibaldritt in Jesenwang she has been driving with the Mammendorfer D’Moasawinkler for almost as long as she can remember. She thinks the Leonhardifahrt is “great” and with bright blue eyes she sees the Graf Toerring fanfare train from Gernlinden approaching, which is turning onto the main road for the second time.
During the first round, all horses, riders and coachmen passed the grandstand in front of the Sparkasse and picked up the blessing from Pastor Otto Gäng. Next to him are former mayor Sepp Kellerer, the third mayor responsible for customs Birgitta Klemenz, deputy district administrator Martina Drechsler, district councilor Gabriele Off-Nesselhauf and the federal and state representatives, Katrin Staffler and Benjamin Miskowitsch, a little further back mayor Erich Raff -lastig, but also the member of the state parliament Hans Friedl from the Free Voters has mixed with the audience. And the entire spectrum of politics is represented in the carriages and chest wagons – even if the district craftsman and CSU city councilor Franz Höfelsauer has opted for the district craftsmen’s wagon.
At times it looks like a black-green coalition in a chest car after Hans Schilling and Martin Kellerer (both CSU) have joined Gina Merkl and Jan Halbauer (both Greens). On the back of the car it says “Sankt Leonhard, please for us”. But even the power of the sacred sometimes reaches its limits. Before the cold bloods lay down in the dishes, Alexa Zierl from the ÖDP, which has fought many a skirmish with this “coalition” in the city’s political bodies – to top it all off, is allowed to sit at the front. But there is truce that day. On the other hand, nobody is sitting at the very front of the Red Cross wooden chest car. Maybe the beer kegs should go in there. The long-time BRK chairman and city councilor Franz Neuhierl reveals a secret a few meters from the Amperbrücke. Of course, he says, just like in the past three decades, there is again a delegation from the French twin town of Livry-Gargan – three women and one man. This time, however, they did not come exclusively for the popular traditional event. Rather, before the return trip, you will stop off at the Kaltenberg Castle Brewery. And invite a couple of barrels of beer. Because in two weeks the Bavaroise tavern is rising in Livry-Gargan. And at such a Bavarian festival you won’t get very far with Beaujolais or Bordeaux.
The Edigna Association from Puch didn’t get too far this time either. Actually it belongs to the pageant like the cold wind and the rain. Traditionally, his wagon is pulled by a team of oxen. In recent years it has been the two pious Max and Moritz. This year, however, the energetic duo was indisposed. And despite all efforts, the city was unable to find a replacement, explains Jürgen Schröter, who is responsible for events at the city.
Oxen would certainly have been an eye-catcher. But Yosif, 31, also finds the Leonhardi trip “very interesting”. The Eritrean native, who has lived in Germany for six years, sits with a Freud and his former German teacher Heidi Sedlmair in a café on the main street, while the magnificently decorated car of the gardeners and the model of the Aich church rattle over the cobblestones. Of course, he knows religious parades from his North African homeland – he is an Orthodox Christian. But the mixture with Bavarian customs – quite unique. It’s almost even better that you can see something like that again after the long corona break. The organizers of the Leonhardi trip recommended wearing face masks. But viewers prefer to try to keep a certain distance, even if that doesn’t always work.
Of course, a band cannot wear a mouth and nose protection one way or another. This also applies to Schöngeising wind music. The Leonhardizug is a premiere for conductor Steffen Schmitt. And for the 30 musicians it is the first pageant in a long time. “The last time we played with the big formation was at the Leonhardifahrt two years ago,” says one of the group. Everyone is happy to be able to play again. It was “a fantastic feeling” – and of course a good introduction to the big band concert in Schöngeising at the beginning of December. They brought the wagoner’s march with them. And because it is initially slightly uphill towards the town hall, the appropriate Botsener mountaineering march is started.
After a good hour, it’s over again – apart from a shy horse, according to the police, everything went smoothly. In front of the Sparkasse, a few people crowd in front of the drinks and food stand of the home guild. And Gildemeister Daniel Brando has time to explain the larger historical context. Because the Heimatgilde not only dances regularly in the carnival season, in the post-war period it set the course for the modern Leonhardi trip – initially as a horse show on the meadow next to the monastery. On this day, Brando is especially happy that the people of Bruck can simply meet face to face again. This is how Schröter sees it too. He hopes it will continue like this: Lucienhäuschen swimming in mid-December, followed by the folk festival in spring.
The Willibaldritt in Jesenwang will also take place again in the summer. Happy news for Lisa, who watches the splendid six-in-hand car.