Enjoy? Three wiry lads from Bavaria have a different idea: biking 4,100 metres in altitude in three days and paddling around 24 mountain lakes on a stand-up board. Here is a foretaste of the story in SUP 1/2015, which will be published on 6 May.
24 mountain lakes in 3 days! Endless exertions, hellish metres in altitude and a rucksack as heavy as concrete! In this interview, Manuel Stecher talks about the exotic BIKE & SUP tour:
With stand-up boards and mountain bikes through the Alps: a 3-day trip with 4100 metres of altitude and 24 mountain lakes.
Interview: "An incredible journey has come to an end!"
SUP: Stop, stop, stop, stop, stop! What do you mean, over? It hasn't even started yet.
Manuel Stecher: Okay, okay, I can let a little bit out: Well, it was actually a crazy idea with this tour.
SUP: Sounds like a realistic but sporty endeavour.
Yes, but when we all put our rucksacks on for the first time in the evening before setting off, we almost fell over backwards and had to laugh heartily at what we were about to do. We opened a beer to calmly reconsider the situation....
SUP: A beer? Reconsider?
Well, two or three. But then we were determined. The next day, the fog hung low and the shadows were long ...
SUP: I can imagine.
At Lake Heiterwanger See near Reutte, the first rays of sunshine hit us and bathed the water and the yellow autumn leaves in breathtaking colour palettes. It was as if we pushed the mist aside a little with every paddle, while the sun slowly coloured the lake a deep blue. But I won't tell you any more than that!
SUP: So come on! A few highlights, a key section, the previous one was rather cheesy. What should the bikers think?
I can still remember the most difficult ascent of the tour. The ascent was so extremely steep that we were forced to shoulder the bikes with the boards for almost an hour! We slipped several times on the damp earth of the northern slope and had little grip with our cycling shoes on the narrow hiking trail. The sweat was pouring and we had already reached the absolute limit at the start of the tour. We cursed and shouted, cheering each other on and praying that this climb would soon come to an end.
And the rest should just be pure enjoyment? Think again. You can read how the story ends in SUP 1/2015.
