Takk for i år - Wir haben fertig!

What a cool and exciting Raw-Air that was! It had pretty much everything, from mostly great weather to storm and precipitation, from new world records to crashes. The competition series really lived up to its name!

First of all, I would like to congratulate the strong team from Austria! Flying high Stefan Kraft once again outshone almost everyone and with four Austrians in the top 7 of the overall standings, our “favorite neighbours” also shine as a team.

What definitely also shone were the organizing committees of the venues. Whether in Oslo, Trondheim or Vikersund, the organizers once again proved that they deliver perfect work and can serve athletes, coaches, and spectators a ski jumping festival at any time. I would also like to say THANK YOU to them. Only in this way was it possible for me and my team to make the track competition-ready at three venues almost simultaneously and ensure track support during the events.

In particular, I want to highlight Trondheim. As the upcoming world championship host, this year was essentially the dress rehearsal for it. The procedures were carried out and rehearsed exactly as they will be next year in front of tens of thousands of spectators. This is extremely important for us companies that have to deliver on site as well. The coordination between organizations, teams, and external companies must fit together in every last detail and work smoothly when the spotlights and cameras go on next year and the whole world looks at the city of 200,000 inhabitants in the middle of Norway. And I must say, everything is already running perfectly and absolutely smoothly.

The facilities are nearly finished and fit into the landscape as if they had been shaped to perfection. Sustainability is not just empty words here, but is lived 100 percent. From our most energy-efficient spill‑cooling ever to wooden plates and cutlery and exclusively electric mobility within the stadium.

While the ski jumping team continues its journey to Planica in the middle of this week to pitch tents for the traditional season finale, it is time for us to say goodbye. Goodbye to a long, challenging season in which a lot happened.

From the Ski Flying World Championships at Kulm to Raw Air and the successful implementation of our new digital data monitoring, it has been an incredibly varied season. In addition to optimized track cooling down to minus 15 degrees, which also works at warmer temperatures, we have introduced a new brush system and an even faster winch. All tools that will massively ease track work in the future.

For now we will put our feet up for three days before continuing with numerous regional steel construction projects and production for the track in Saalfelden :-

A nice time and take care!

Yours Peter Riedel