Anniversary party at Bergisel

There was no room for superstition today, Friday the 13th, in Innsbruck. On the contrary: Austrian ski jumpers and Nordic combined athletes could hardly wait to test the new run-up track. In recent weeks, the patented run-up system from Peter Riedel GmbH was installed here. At the official hill handover on “Black Friday,” managing director Peter Riedel and his team celebrated an anniversary, because the Bergisel hill is the 50th hill worldwide equipped by the Erzgebirge-based specialist with its innovative, weather-independent run-up tracks.

The celebration took place in Innsbruck in bright sunshine with the first real jumps from the home skiing stars. “I am simply happy,” says a satisfied Peter Riedel. “We raised the almost 100 m long approach track by 39 cm and evened out irregularities in the take-off of up to 11 cm. Unlike before, there will be a constant approach speed and thus also acceleration. I was sure the athletes would be delighted.”

“The moment when the new track is finally tested is always very special and emotional for me and my team as well. Only then do you realize whether everything in the production and installation of our patented modules has worked, and whether the track is accepted by the athletes. I always take the opportunity to be involved in the first jumps to obtain direct feedback from the jumpers. That is enormously important for us.”

And the response could not have been better: “Hats off, I’m totally thrilled and delighted that it turned out so well. The flight curves plus the track are really liked by the athletes. I know all the jumpers very well, and you can see that they feel really comfortable. This is a huge upgrade for the Bergisel hill,” explains Markus Maurberger, ÖSV head coach in Innsbruck and home coach of Gregor Schierenzauer, Andreas Kofler, Manuel Fettner and Manuel Poppinger. 

Martin Nagiller, one of the lead jumpers at Bergisel, notes: “I’ve done three jumps now, and it’s really cool. The take-off track glides well and remains nice and smooth. There’s a real crowd at the mountain right now – everyone wants to jump, everyone is excited, everyone is satisfied. The new track will guarantee us excellent competition and training conditions for the winter.”

Every hill has its quirks, and during installation the team repeatedly encounters small and larger problems that cannot be foreseen. At the Bergisel hill, for example, a new pressure water line had to be laid out of schedule because what was previously reaching at the top of the run-up would simply not have been sufficient to meet the high quality standard Peter Riedel set. “I’m pleased that our suppliers could respond at short notice and thus the on-time handover was never at risk. For the first time, we also installed side panels and carpets made of flame-retardant material due to legal fire protection regulations,” explains a visibly satisfied Peter Riedel. 

Worldwide there are around 1,500 ski jumping facilities. The 50th hill in the Peter Riedel GmbH portfolio will certainly not be the last one...