Jürgen Haase is actually a pretty relaxed guy. But this morning he is a little nervous. "I didn't sleep well," he admits frankly. And that's not because of the extremely baroque furnishings in his hotel room. Nor is it because of the rush-hour traffic in the centre of Garmisch-Partenkirchen thundering past right under the room windows. It's because today is his big day - with a challenge that would have been completely utopian for him not so long ago. Jürgen has been living with an artificial heart valve for seven years and, due to complications following his operation, has only just escaped death. And now he wants to climb 3,000 metres of altitude in one day.
"I've never been in the saddle this long," he says - and adds with a wink: "If I need an emergency doctor, please tell them that I'm taking blood thinners. Otherwise, I'm in perfect health." Jürgen has prepared conscientiously for this day, with targeted training, professional bike fitting, a riding technique course and, above all, constant dialogue with his cardiologist. He gave the green light right from the start, but with one proviso: Jürgen should make sure that his heart rate does not rise above 125. Otherwise, his cardiologist is very happy with him, says Jürgen. Apart from one small vice: smoking cigars. "It's my passion and my profession," he says, who runs a large cigar shop on Nuremberg's main market square. His second passion is still fresh: the 56-year-old from Ingolstadt and his wife only discovered e-mountain biking on holiday a year ago. He has lost a proud 30 kilos since then, says Jürgen. Which makes the cardiologist particularly happy.
It's raining in Garmisch as Jürgen mounts his bike computer. "Luckily the heat is over," he says, who loves the coolness. Then he gets on his Bulls e-bike, beaming with joy. 1500 metres in altitude - he's never done more in one day. He therefore needs a good plan to tackle the 3000 metres in altitude. Because the tour takes him from Garmisch around the Wank and then up two steep and long climbs to Schachen and Alpspitze, Jürgen has parked his car in the hikers' car park in Elmau the day before - as a depot for provisions and a spare battery. And yet he is already worried from the first few metres that he might run out of power: Will the batteries last? Will his stamina be good enough? Will the weather hold out? He knows that he has a long day ahead of him and will have to manage the balancing act between a battery-friendly and heart-rate-friendly riding style.
EMTB Challenge 3000: Esterbergalm, Schachenhaus and Kreuzeck
He does well on the first climb around the Wank. Jürgen feels fresh, the climbs are moderate apart from a few steep stretches. "Everything is going according to plan," he says contentedly, but also knows that he still has two monster uphills to conquer. Shortly before the 900 metre ascent to the Schachen, Jürgen starts to wonder: "I still have 36 per cent battery", he thinks as he takes a short break at his car in Elmau to fill his water bottle. Too much to change the battery just yet. Too little to make it all the way up to the Schachenhaus. Jürgen doesn't hesitate and packs the spare battery into his rucksack. The problem: at an additional four and a half kilos, it is now far too heavy. "That's the lesser of two evils," says Jürgen dryly and continues cycling full of vigour.
Half an hour later, standing at the edge of the path, he is happy with his decision. After exactly 1577 metres in altitude, the first battery fails. Jürgen's confidence grows that he will make it. "More than halfway," he realises with satisfaction, but also knows that it could be a close-run thing in the end. Ergo: Jürgen must not let up on his own efforts. Then he tackles the steep and rough gravel track up to the Schachenhaus at 1876 metres.
Jürgen leans back, savours a hearty portion of cheese spaetzle with a non-alcoholic wheat beer and enjoys the spectacular view of the imposing mountain massif. But when he looks at his smartphone, he starts to wonder: the weather app is predicting severe thunderstorms. From 3 p.m. onwards, there are supposed to be thunderstorms on the Alpspitze - and that's exactly where Jürgen's final ascent will take him. Arriving down in Garmisch, it does indeed start to drizzle. But Jürgen is focussed on his goal. But this last stage is a tough one. The climbs soon become so steep that he has to dismount and push. The problem is: when pushing, his heart rate rises to almost 140 - 15 beats higher than the cardiologist advised. Dark storm clouds are now approaching. Jürgen struggles. Sometimes he rides, sometimes he pushes his way up the ramps. And again and again he has to rest. The remaining power in his battery is diminishing alarmingly, and the first flashes of lightning are twitching through the dark clouds in the distance.
"I'm not turning around until I've got these damn 3000 metres of altitude on the speedometer," says Jürgen energetically. He can now see the Kreuzeckhaus in the distance. It's at 1651 metres and he should have made it there at the latest. Jürgen fights his way up metre by metre. Once again, he has to dismount, push, take a sip and push his pulse back down. The rain gets heavier. 100 metres before the Kreuzeckhaus, the time has come: Jürgen clenches his fist in triumph, the strain on his face giving way to a happy smile. Jürgen holds up his bike computer: the display shows almost seven hours of riding time and exactly 3000 metres in altitude. "Done," Jürgen shouts with relief into the dark afternoon sky.
The storm front now hangs menacingly over him. Jürgen struggles into the saddle and starts the descent into the valley. Suddenly the rear wheel is flat, and while he is changing the inner tube, it starts pouring with rain. When Jürgen arrives in the valley completely soaked, the motor switches off on the last few metres to the hotel. Battery flat. "Precision landing," says Jürgen with relief as he gets off his e-bike. Then he plops down in an armchair in the hotel garden and lights a cigar. "I've been looking forward to this all day," he says and adds: "My cardiologist will forgive me."
The preparation
We had our reader Jürgen Haase professionally prepared for the EMTB Challenge 3000 with the support of renowned experts.
The route
Three mountains, two batteries: a few metres below the Kreuzeckhaus, the bike computer showed exactly 3000 metres of altitude. Just in time, because after the descent, on the last few metres to the hotel in Garmisch, the battery was empty. The last climb in particular, the very steep uphill towards the Alpspitze, was a real drain. Here Jürgen had to dismount and push again and again.
