Help, I'm surrounded! Hundreds of pairs of eyes stare at me from under bushy brows. Mouths open in silent screams, teeth bared. The circle around me gets tighter and tighter. The army of nutcrackers search for prey. Bits rattle woodenly, then they snap. Hasta la vista, baby!
Seiffen - birthplace of the mountain bike marathon
However, Seiffen is not only the capital of the so-called toy corner, but also - and you would hardly expect this - the birthplace of the first mountain bike marathon in Germany. It happened in 1993, when a total of 214 pioneers battled their way through the eastern Ore Mountains on studded tyres over a distance of 100 kilometres. And today, just like 16 years ago, it is locals Günter and Albrecht Dietze who always fire the starting gun on the first weekend in August. With the subtle difference that the 2009 bang electrified over 1500 bikers. Record number of participants!
The 789 metre high local mountain of Seiffen is the best place to get an overview of the area. On the north side, the Ore Mountains appear mainly green and hilly, actually harmless. Endless fields, forests and upland moors undulate. Sleepy villages nestle on one shoulder of the terrain or another. Steam locomotives still hiss over the tracks through some of the winding valleys. It seems as if the local time zone had been forgotten to be changed to the present. The climate is harsh, the summer short. Pictures of metre-high walls of snow hanging everywhere in the mountain inns bear witness to this.
The three best MTB tours around Seiffen
1st Metal Mountain (27.4 km, 1045 m elevation gain, 2 h 20 min)
2. around Seiffen (21.5 km, 662 m elevation gain, 1 h 50 min)
3rd Miriquidi trails (29.4 km, 809 m elevation gain, 2 h 30 min)
The article on these MTB tours in Seiffen and the GPS data can be downloaded below:
