animiert magazin nummer21 winter

Mit dem Eröffnungsevent vom 11. und 12. November 2017 wird die Saison mit Skitest und Langlauflehrer so richtig eingeläutet. Infos dazu unter www.engelberg.ch. Es ist zudem geplant, in absehbarer Zeit natio- nale Langlauf- und Biathlon-Wettkämpfe in Engelberg durchzuführen. The opening event on 11 and 12 November 2017, featuring a ski test and cross-countr y training, hera lds in the new winter season. For f ur ther in- formation v isit www.engelberg.ch. There are a lso plans to hold nationa l cross-countr y and biath lon competitions in Engelberg in the near f uture.

Cross-country skiing is growing in popularity – and that’s no surprise. How joyous it is to glide through a winter wonderland, breathing in mountain air and enjoying the view – choosing your own speed, exercising your whole body, and no queuing! Now, Engelberg is an even better place to practise this booming winter sport. It ’s still high summer when I meet Eskil Läubli and Roger Bütler to ask them about their ideas for the f uture of Nordic combined in Engelberg. L istening to them ta lk, I get infec t- ed with their enthusiasm and a ll I want to do is go cross-countr y skiing – de- spite the summer heat. Eskil and Roger are co-presidents of the newly formed Nordic Kommission, which aims to develop Engelberg’s cross- countr y skiing and biath lon facilities. “Engelberg has great potentia l,” says Roger. “It ’s easy to reach and has a unique natura l landscape and guaranteed snow.” Until now, Engelberg has lacked a professiona l cross- countr y inf rastruc ture, and that ’s precisely what the nine-member Nordic Kommission is tack ling. This winter season will a lready see severa l improvements thanks to the suppor t of landowners and the loca l government. The Spor ting Park now has a Nordic Center with ever y thing Nordic fans need: changing rooms and lockers, showers, a wax ing area, trail maps, and webcams with v iews of the trails. The Nordic Center and the trails themselves a lso have clear new signage. An at trac tion on the Erlenbach trail is guaranteed snow thanks to the new snow cannons, which were tested out last winter. If the weather is cold enough, skiing can star t on the 2 km circu lar trail as early as November. “Our goa l is to cover around 10 km of trails in ar tif icia l snow,” says Eskil. Thanks to the loca l council, the trail network

a lso has a new par t-time technica l manager in the shape of Wa lter Hursch ler, who will medi- ate between trail users and the council. The trails have been improved, and the illumina- tions for night-time skiing will be ex tended to the Erlenbach trail. A lthough the Kommis- sion was on ly set up at the end of last winter, it has a lready achieved a great dea l thanks to its members’ passion for the spor t. Eskil and Roger are keen to point out that this season is a test period. By the 2018/19 season a new plan will be drawn up incorporating more trails –

a lthough qua lity will mat- ter more than quantity. “The qua lity of the trails, and mak- ing them more appea ling in- cluding with undu lating sec- tions, counts more than how many kilometres there are,”

“With our skis we wanted to step away from the specialisations that are so common today.”

says Roger. Such improvements are to be made to the trail on the Gerschnia lp, for instance. And ta lking of undu lations, the latest trend in Nordic combined is Red Bu ll ’s Nordi X competi- tion – an exciting race with uphill and down- hill elements. The Nordic Kommission is plan- ning a permanent trail for this ski style and is hoping to run an internationa l competition at some stage. For that to happen, it will have to insta ll an at trac tive circu lar course of around 3 km. The Nordic Kommission team have a few ideas for the course, but they’re not let ting on what they are just yet. Whatever the case, it is clear that exciting things are happening in the rea lm of Nordic combined in Engelberg. But the Kommission can’ t do it a lone: “We are of fering a platform and put ting a f rame- work in place to a llow Engelberg to become a cross-countr y skiing hub. Now businesses and ser v ices in the v illage have to do their bit too.”

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