Garmisch-Partenkirchen, and a milling machine

The Four Hills Tournament is decided also in the starting lane, says Peter Riedel

Peter Riedel, in a few days the 61st Four Hills Tournament will begin, and for this competition series you have a special connection with Garmisch-Partenkirchen due to the venue.

Even aside from the fact that the Four Hills Tournament fascinates every winter sports enthusiast, I maintain very good contacts with the people in Garmisch-Partenkirchen. After all, a few years ago we implemented a project together that was anything but easy given the time pressure. The fact is that the Olympic hill of 1936 has been replaced by one of the world's most modern facilities and is thus one of our major prestige and showcase objects.

 

When the hill was rebuilt in 2007, your company won the bid to lay the approach track. And over time there were repeatedly new developments.

The approach track in Garmisch has a total length of 103.50 meters. A double-track track was installed, ensuring trouble-free winter and summer use—simply cover one track and uncover the other beside it. And vice versa. Within four weeks we had built the approach track, but we had decided with partner REHAU to install it flush with the ground and only then install it on the hill when it was 90 percent complete. As planned, at the end of 2007 a Continental Cup was held, and in 2008 the Austrian Gregor Schlierenzauer was the first winner on the new facility.

 

Modern measuring techniques and a new milling machine have been added…

“Yes, a year ago Peter Riedel GmbH installed a measuring technology that is probably unique. On the one hand, it is able to generate sports science data that is exclusively available to the coaches of the various teams, on the other hand some numbers and facts are also of public interest and are disseminated by the media – for example the strength applied by the athlete in the two, in other words whether he moves in ‘balance’ or his reaction times. It is no longer a matter of eye judgment whether he is ‘too early’ or ‘too late’ at the hill table in Garmisch-Partenkirchen, but a measurable quantity. This can be followed on January 1 on ARD!
A new milling machine was delivered to Bavaria a few weeks ago to fully satisfy the new FIS regulations regarding the depth of the starting lane, for example.


When you look at a ski jumping facility, a milling machine may seem like an insignificant detail...

But it isn’t. The milling machine cuts grooves in the ice block with its blades. And these grooves ensure that the ski jumper can glide optimally and feel even more air beneath their skis. The coefficient of sliding friction is minimized, and the approach to the takeoff table is free of bumps and jolts. The milling machine from our company features, among other things, a new chassis, an innovative three-axis milling system, and special blades that structure the ice even better.


Who will win the 2012/13 Tour?

Oh, I suppose I am the wrong one to ask. But I join the experts who forecast a great duel between Austria and Germany, and I am curious, like ÖSV head coach Alexander Pointner, how the young German talents will handle the pressure that will weigh on them to this extent for the first time. I hope the Tour remains exciting until the last jump in Bischofshofen. And I know that it will be decided both in the starting lanes and in the Ski-Line lane in Garmisch-Partenkirchen.


Many thanks for the interview, have fun at the 2012/13 Tour and all the best in the New Year!

Read at the end of January 2013
Starting lanes from the set block. Visiting Peter Riedel GmbH.