Zeitraum Magazine 2019

ZEI T RAUM

What an experience it is to drive your vintage car through a place which is both an

international gourmet village and the most beautiful spot in Austria. Doors have helped us find new perspectives – and not only at the Philosophicum: Light spaces for instance make nature and art become one. Reasons enough to capture time in capsules. So that they might remind us of all the wonderful people we get to know: Passionate pioneers and likeable Tetsi.

And let’s not forget the children of Lech who were basically born with skis on their feet.

LECH ZÜRS MAGAZINE

2018/2019 issue

2018/2019 issue | € 5,-

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Lech Zürs in figures Experience

Bergfreundschaft.

Food

Europe’s highest street food festival will take place in Zürs, 1,700 above sea level.

983 snow-makers and 75 slope preparation machines provide the Ski Arlberg winter sports region’s perfect runs.

The legendary ski tour called The White Ring boasts a total length of 22 kilometres and is among the most legendary ski races in the world. The record is 44

minutes and 10 seconds.

In 2019 the Arlberg Classic Car Rally will celebrate its 10th anniversary.

Almost two thirds of all of Lech Zürs’ winter guests are active golf players. Lech‘s golf course allows you to tee off 1,509 metres above sea level. This makes it the highest course in Austria.

Every mountain hike begins with the first step. The route has been chosen.

Our eyes are focused on the summit. We can rely on each other.

The values of attentiveness, responsibility and trust are what count.

Bergfreundschaft develops. In the mountains and in our bank.

Skyspace-Lech is located 1,780 metres above sea level. This light space created by world-famous US artist James Turrel makes heaven and earth come together.

M y Le ch Card

In 2019 guests can buy a Lech Card for 22 Euros from as little as one overnight stay.

My Lech Card

In August 2018, 111 time capsules the size of thermos bottles have been stored in the spire of Lech’s Old Parish Church. Filled with stories and personal treasures donated by Lech residents and guests, they document the present for future generations.

+43 55 83 26 26 . privatebanking-lech.com

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EDITORIAL

can vividly remember talking to the Austrian writer, essayist and Tractatus award winner Franz Schuh about happiness itself and a heated debate with Konrad Paul Liessmann about populism during a brunch in the panoramic restaurant, over fine ham and cheese of local provenance. The event is called Hohe Luft - Philosophieren am Berg (literally ‘High Air – Philosophizing in the Mountains’). Hohe Luft is not only the name of the philosophy magazine I‘m the chief editor of.

‘High air’ is also a good way of referring to the cold and clear mountain air in which – according to Friedrich Nietzsche – real thinkers move. Even as a kid, I loved the mountains, the craggedness of the landscape and its scarce vegetation. ‘High air’ vitalises our spirit, clears our mind, calms our restlessly flowing souls I don’t think there is any other environment in which you can find peace as quickly as in the mountains.

»LECH IS LIGHTNESS IS LECH-EREZZA!«

Lightness at high altitude On the summoning power of the mountains / by Thomas Vašek My favourite place in Lech is high up in the mountains – on the Rüfikopf. For some years now, on a certain day in September, I have been getting up at the crack of dawn to philosophise about just about everything, guilt and atonement and other human issues with a very special character at 2,350 metres above sea level.

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Every step we take towards the summit changes our perspective, extends our horizon. What seemed large and worrisome before, stress in the office, clashes with one’s partner or children, the political situation, all of that suddenly shrinks and becomes inconsequential. The mountains in their ‘sublimity’ (Immanuel Kant) leave us flabbergasted at first. In the face of their immense size we are possessed by our desire to gaze and marvel. Bit by bit the weight of our lives falls from our shoulders and we feel relieved. Italian writer and universal scholar Italo Calvino thought lightness (‘la leggerezza’) to be the most important value in what he called the ‘post-industrial’ era. His future is our present.

‘philosophic’. But also the town of Lech itself, gently nestled in this impressive landscape, invites one to find peace and to devote oneself to one’s thoughts. This is why this is the ideal place to stage the Philosophicum, an event that has long become a supra-regional institution, where each individual guest has the opportunity to sharpen, develop and perhaps even question his or her own thoughts during lectures. Exchanging ideas with like-minded people and the surprising encounters that await the visitor there are at least as important.

I feel like these September days in Lech are a gift of time – time to think and pause but also a time to spend time together which really enlivens and enriches the whole experience. For me personally, the ‘high air’ provides room for possibilities in which I can breathe freely. The sense of reality that accompanies me through the whole year, when writing texts of travelling to hold my lectures, is transformed into a sense of possibility that allows me to further develop new ideas with playful lightness. I believe that with such an attitude of lightness, we can overcome even obstacles as tall as mountains – and get a new perspective on things from high up. Lech is lightness is ‘Lech-erezza’!

Thomas Vašek ... born in Vienna, Thomas Vašek is the founding chief editor of the philosophy magazine Hohe Luft. He studied economics and mathematics and worked as a journalist, serving, among

We are living in an epoch of complexity and contemporaneous non-contemporaneity. Digitalisation and globalisation have significantly altered our reality. What we need today isn’t worrisome heaviness but an attitude of lightness to spur us on and to inspire us to think creatively – in other words to elevate us to that ‘high air’. I believe the worst evils of our time are the resistance to change and the belief in one‘s own infallibility.

others, as the chief editor of the MIT Technology Review and P.M.-Magazin as well as a department chief at the Austrian news magazine Profil. He wrote several books such as Zeit leben (2018), philosophie! Die 101 wichtigsten Fragen (2017) and the best-seller Work Life Bullshit (2013). Additional titles include: Denkstücke (2012), Die Weichmacher (2011) and Seele. Eine

With their subtle superiority the mountains teach us to be humble and the ability to flexibly adapt to changing conditions. The views of beautiful Lech from high up in the mountains and the unique Arlberg region create a hovering condition within me that I cannot describe as anything but

unsterbliche Idee (2010). He is also a member Tractatus Award (2018) jury.

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CONTENTS

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100 MOTORZONE

LIVINGZONE

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EXERCISEZONE

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CULTUREZONE 102 A rally like no other

“If you grow up in such a town, skiing is your life.”

Spending your childhood in Lech Zürs

108 Scooters to Arlberg

“Lech is not only a great place to live but also very amiable” Long-time mayor Ludwig Muxel Into the future via a time capsule Unique charity campaign for the restoration of Lech’s church spire Just call him “Tetsi” On the close friendship between Lech and Hakuba in Japan

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A different dimension of hiking Art project: Doors on the Green Ring Unparalleled links Playing golf in an alpine environment “Run of Fame“ Spectacular ski round trip through time and space “Full house on the cross-country ski trails” From downhill to cross-country skiing

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Let‘s ride – safely!

Snow & Safety Conference in Zürs

“I was totally shocked!”

How to react in the event of an avalanche

Controlled blasting Avalanche Commission ensures safety in the mountains

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Alpine play of light The multi-media music festival “Fantastic Gondolas”

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Wolfgang Schüssel

The mountains as “a charging station to relax and recuperate”

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PLEASUREZONE

High Times Event calender “Abundance leads to weariness” Philosopher Prof. Wilhelm Schmid at Medicinicum Lech Tracking skiing culture A visit to the Lechmuseum Language that stirs the soul Lech Literature Days Closer to the artists Lech Classic Festival

118 Dining pleasures

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James Turrell Let there be light! Skyspace Lech is now open

Series: Arlberg Pioneers | Michael Manhart

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The highest scooter meeting in the world

110 The “snow pope” of Lech

Dream cars in a dreamy scenery

Lech Zürs, an international gourmet village Street Food Festival Delicious food 1,700 metres above sea level

122 Milena or an unsatiable zest for cooking

The story of a young chef who went far but stayed close.n

126 Ancient knowledge with a modern twist

Herbal exploration hikes at the Arlberg 2018/2019 issue

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FOREWORD

Dear readers,

Partnership In 1937, Doppelmayr built the first ski lift in Zürs. 80 years later, the ski destination belongs to the exceptional ski area „Ski Arlberg“.

Doppelmayr says thank you for the outstanding cooperation and partnership over the past decades.

Together we have completed many remarkable ropeway installations. For this trust in our company and products, we are very grateful. doppelmayr.com

0 years ago Tetsuya Maruyama, a young hotel owner from Japan, visited Lech for the first time. Since then, ‘Tetsi’ – as he is known in the village – has been coming back regularly as a guest and his home town of Hakuba has been Lech’s partner city for many years.

Back then, in the late 1980s, Lech Zürs already ranked among the most renowned skiing resorts in the world. Skiing and freeriding – important elements of Lech’s skiing culture – have left their marks on history and culture and it is these that the latest exhibition in the Huber Hus attempts to address.

Over the years, Lech Zürs has undergone significant changes. When it comes to skiing, topics like individual and terrain safety have taken centre stage. In addition, the areas of culinary arts, art and culture were able to establish themselves. Today, the ‘World Gourmet Village’ of Lech Zürs boasts the highest density of Gault Millau toques in the world, a fact that our international guests highly appreciate Our cultural offers are just as varied. Lech’s Literature days turn our alpine setting into a lecture hall while the Lech Classic Festival, Jazzbühne Lech and Tanzcafé Arlberg provide musical highlights. The Philosophicum, already in its 23rd year, will complete the cultural summer of 2019 with its typically vibrant exchange of ideas. The art projects ‘Türen am Grünen Ring’ by Tyrolean artist Daniel Nikolaus Kocher and the newly opened Skyspace Lech by James Turrel – one of the world’s leading ligth artists – enrich our high alpine landscape with works of art and invite our guests to hike and linger. Fantastic Gondolas, a multiple award-winning event, will once again mark the beginning of the winter season The strong pioneering spirit of the people of Lech, their love of their village and the curiosity with which they have always embraced new developments have turned the former skiing town of Lech Zürs into a modern space for thinking and movement offering its guests premium sports as well as culinary and cultural experiences while maintaining the authentic charm of a small mountain village.

Best regards Hermann Fercher

Hermann Fercher ... has been the Managing Director of Lech Zürs Tourismus GmbH since 2010 after serving as a Tourism Director in Kitzbühel and Kirchberg and a Marketing Manager at Swarovski.

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LIVINGZONE

GENDI COR ALITISS ENITIS CUMQUAS EOS UNT ACCUS ARIA NONES RES DIT, OMMOSAN DICIPICIMUS NOS ABO. BORRORROVID ERSPIENDIT QUI QUAM COREPER IBUSANT IBUSAM LATIBUS MOLUPTAM RECUPTAT EA DOLORIT PARCIPSUNTEM QUIAS EA VOLOREIUM, SUNTORRUM QUAS EVEREPRO VENT OCCUM A QUE QUUNTIS EST, NONSEQUIA DENIT AUT.

Lech Zürs am Arlberg makes the entire world come together.

While some come to spend their holidays there, others come back to stay. They are all united by a deep love of the region.

Characterised by spectacular mountains and a hospitality that turns everybody – guest and residents – into a member of a big family.

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LIVINGZONE

The Children of Lech

»IF YOU GROW UP IN SUCH A PLACE, SKIING IS YOUR LIFE« Those who live in Lech Zürs am Arlberg are lucky to live in a place where others come to spend their holidays. But how does life in a tourism region actually look like? We have asked young residents of Lech and Zürs. And where have we met them? On the ski runs of course for most of them were virtually born with the two boards on their feet.

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When Sarah’s shin protectors hit the gates during slalom practice, it goes ‘click, click, click’. The twelve-year-old has been skiing for nine years and looks like a future superstar with her helmet and racing suit. Nevertheless, Sarah’s own idea of her professional future is a different one: “I would love to go to hotel management school,” she says. “I would like to try it at least because we have a bed and breakfast at home and I can imagine taking over from my parents one day.”

Aspirations. If Sarah chooses to follow up on her aspirations she will take the same path as many other children born in Lech Zürs. Hosts, racers and ski instructors – they all lay the foundations for their future jobs early on.

In this way, many of them also follow in the professional footsteps of their parents. With this they not only continue their own family’s tradition. They also shape their home: For it is the many owner-operated hotels, bed and breakfasts, restaurants and shops that contribute to making Lech Zürs a particularly hospitable place with their warmth as well as premium quality and services.

Skiing as a part of life. “My father worked as a ski instructor for more than 45 years and that has had a great effect on me,” says Michael Huber. The 29-year-old is a trainer at Skiclub Arlberg and has taken Sarah under his wings. “When I was a little boy, I virtually learned how to walk and ski at the same time, made my first swings in front of the garage and then took to the runs. Skiing is a part of everyday life for all of us who live here. It’s actually more than that: If you grow up in such a town, skiing is your life. This is why we all learn it and many turn it into a job.”

While Michael is telling us his story he is standing next to the slalom course he has constructed himself, never letting the Arlberg’s future ski stars out of his sight. “Almost three thirds of all the kids in Lech’s elementary and secondary schools are members of our ski club. When they start practising here at six years old, most of them are already using the parallel style.

Here with us they spend time together with their friends and classmates and we promote their talents. Not everybody becomes a professional athlete, of course. But a winter sports town like Lech Zürs needs good ski instructors and hotel owners who are able to go on great tours with their guests.”

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LIVINGZONE

Five children, five lives in Lech

Valentin, 9

Of leaving the nest early and coming home happy. At age fourteen, at the latest, the children of Lech Zürs leave the town to attend colleges or residential sports schools that are all located far away from the two towns. In about two years, Sarah will probably leave for Bludenz, while Michael went to Schruns’ skiing middle school at age ten and from age 14 attended the skiing high school in Stams.

If you now think that the life of the residents of Lech and Zürs solely revolves around Arlberg mountain, you are mistaken.

“Just like many of my friends I have travelled a lot and even went to New Zealand. One of the biggest advantages of being a ski instructor or service employee is that you can work almost anywhere,” Michael reports.

Sooner or later, however, most people are drawn back home: Some because their family needs them and others because – as a child of the Arlberg – your love of your home and its fascinating nature will always be with you.

As a freestyler, Valentin can often be found at Lech’s Funpark. “There, on the box, we do 90-degree turns and grabs during which we touch our skis,” he explains. He has been skiing since he was four years old and has race practice four times and goes freestyle skiing once a week. “I think this is what I always want to do.”

Of pioneers and professional athletes Founded in 1901 Skiclub Arlberg is one of the most renowned clubs in the Alps. It currently has 8,800 members from more than 60 countries. These include legends such as Hannes Schneider who ranked among the world’s best skiers in the 1920s and 1930s as well as Patrick Ortlieb. The Bregenz-born ski racer has been living in Oberlech for some time and won Olympic gold in the downhill race in 1992 and became World Champion in 1996.

But Skiclub Arlberg not only produces world champions and Olympic medallists, it also helped shape skiing and tourism in the Arlberg region. As far back as 1928 the Club staged the 1st Arlberg-Kandahar Race which remains a World Cup race to this day. With his ‘Arlberg Technique’, Hannes Schneider furthermore established the predecessor of parallel turning.

Michael Huber ... Skiing runs in Michael Huber’s blood and he looks forward to every practice session

His parents run a hotel in Lech and just like all the other children of hotel-owning families, Valentin already helps out in the company. “Usually, I bring the guests their drinks,” he says.

He notices the guests especially during school holidays and Christmas time, when more children are accompanying them.

“It’s usually fun.”

In the winter time, besides skiing, Valentin loves to skate with and without a puck. In the summer, he rides his bicycle, engages in archery or rides his hoverboard. But he also loves to spend time outside of Lech: with his family in Greece, Salzburg or in Spielberg in Styria to watch the MotoGP race.

»IT‘S USUALLY FUN.«

The Club’s logo and emblem of Skiclub Arlberg have not changed since then. It was designed more than one hundred years ago and still shows a circle with two crossed skis and a ski pole marking the single-pole technique commonly used back then.

with Skiclub Arlberg’s children.

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LIVINGZONE

Sarah, 12

Isabella, 8

Ever since she first saw the light of day, holiday guests have been a part of Sarah’s life. Her parents run a bed and breakfast which means the family’s work routine has a big influence on her private life. One example would be Christmas: Since the B&B is always pretty full around Christmas time, Sarah helps out where she can. On Christmas Eve there is always a programme for the guests while she gets her own presents in the morning of the 25th of December. “It has been like this my entire life,” she says and shakes her head when asked whether she would like to change anything about this.

“I don‘t really want to be a ski racer, but I can imagine to,” Isabella tells us. She has been skiing for five years and regularly attends practice four of five times a week. She loves to ski when the weather is nice but also takes to the slopes when it‘s foggy. “You can’t see much and that makes it fun,” she smirks.

Her father used to be a ski instructor and today runs a ski sport shop which doesn‘t leave him a lot of time to ski with her. But when she can‘t go down the mountain on her skis, she also likes to play in the snow, go tobogganing with friends or build an igloo. “Actually, I can‘t imagine being at home anywhere else. Spring, summer, autumn or winter – you can do almost anything here.” What Isabella particularly likes is the fact that – contrary to big cities – she can walk through the village alone in Lech.

The twelve-year-old spends most of her free time outside, enjoying nature. “In the winter, I attend skiing practice and ski a lot with my friends.” In the summer time, she loves to hike and ride her bicycle.

When it comes to her future, Sarah currently intends to go to hotel management school in Bludenz when she turns 14.

“Some leave as early as after 4th grade but that would be too early for me. In general, I find the idea of going to boarding school soon a bit difficult at the moment. But I will get used to it.“ Then she adds: „I would also like to live in a city in England or France in order to gain experience abroad.”

»SOME LEAVE AS EARLY AS AFTER 4TH GRADE BUT THAT WOULD BE TOO EARLY FOR ME.«

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If she could wish for anything else in Lech it would probably be a beach. As Lech’s schools do not have Christmas holidays in winter due to the high season, they close in May for two weeks. During this time, Isabella’s family likes to travel to Mallorca, where she finds swimming in the Mediterranean “really cool.”

»ACTUALLY, I CAN‘T IMAGINE BEING AT HOME ANYWHERE ELSE.«

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LIVINGZONE

Johannes, 9

Maxi, 9

“Attending ski practice is just the way it is here in Lech”, is Johannes’ answer when we ask him why he is a member of Skiclub Arlberg. Two of his best friends with whom he loves to hang out are also members.

Together with his parents and his little sister Maxi spends his summers in Carinthia and his winters in the Arlberg region. While his father – depending on the season – works as an instructor with the water ski club or ski instructor, his mother runs a hotel in Zürs in the winter season. For Maxi this means that he not only has to change his place of residence but also his school and his friends. But he is quite calm about it: “It’s not that difficult really. Mum talks about the curriculum with my teachers and if something doesn‘t match, she teaches me at home. And I have friends up here and in the valley.”

If they can‘t be found on the slopes the build caves in the snow that are big enough to crawl into them. There, they hide or stockpile snowballs for the next fight.

His dad runs a ski rental business where Johannes helps out in the workshop. He can‘t yet prepare his own skis but he takes are of putting poles and other rental equipment away.

He takes to the slopes five or six times a week, most often for practice but also to ski with his grandpa.

»ATTENDING SKI PRACTICE IS JUST THE WAY IT IS HERE IN LECH.«

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He loves ski practice at Skiclub Arlberg and also skis a lot with his father. He is also a passionate cross-country skier and since he used to live in Zug until last year, he would often take to the ski trails and the woods towards Älpele with his friends. “It was like a giant adventure playground. Then we would have a picnic in the woods and examine snowy anthills.” Of course, they would venture out alone, the nine-year-old adds full of self-confidence. “We would carry a mobile phone and first aid kit for emergencies.”

»AND I HAVE FRIENDS UP HERE AND IN THE VALLEY.«

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LIVINGZONE

“Volumes and size are secondary in Lech. The people have gradually developed the place with caution and predominantly towards quality,” Ludwig Muxel proudly exclaims.

Long-time mayor Ludwig Muxel

»LECH IS NOT ONLY A GREAT PLACE TO LIVE BUT ALSO VERY AMIABLE«

Ludwig Muxel has been the most senior Lech resident for more than a quarter of a century. High time then to talk to the village’s long-standing mayor about his municipality. The result is a love letter to a place by which its inhabitants and the Lord mean particularly well.

hen asked how many days he spends in Lech Zürs, he can’t answer “with absolute certainty”. The fact of the matter is that the municipality’s most senior officer rarely ever leaves his Arlberg, and not just because of his professional obligations. One exception is an island he calls “the second most beautiful place on earth”.

“I love Sylt. Twenty years ago, I visited it for the first time in the framework of our cooperation with Kampen. Our mountains on the one side and the wild, flat nature of Sylt on the other is a contrast that appeals to me.”

What makes Lech Zürs so special? The answer to this would fill entire books, says Ludwig Muxel, leaving no doubt that he means every word. God meant well by the people of Lech Zürs and they have treated His gift with respect.

“Our nature here is truly unique and I am grateful for it.

The people have gradually developed the place with caution and predominantly with the goal of increasing quality. Volumes and size are secondary which is a strength the people of Lech Zürs can be proud of.”

In this context, Ludwig Muxel doesn’t overestimate the municipality’s contribution. Instead, he stresses the dedication of its hosts and other service providers. And is full of praise for his political predecessors.

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“Many important steps have been made after World War II. Even on topics such as land use planning, people have come up with great concepts long before my time. Not least, our land-use plan is stricter than almost anywhere else in the Alps. The people clearly thought that Lech Zürs needed to expand. But we don‘t want everything to be covered. There has to be space between the buildings. These are all milestones in our development that have been set decades ago. And we can build on that today.”

»IT WAS ALWAYS CLEAR: LECH ZÜRS NEEDS OPEN SPACE. NOT EVERYTHING SHOULD BE BUILT UP. THE CITY NEEDS SOME AIR BETWEEN BUILDINGS.« How other municipalities are handling this matter “is not for me to comment on,” says Muxel. But there are surely examples that make us say, “That’s not where we want Lech Zürs to go.”

The consequences for the sometimes difficult balancing act between living space and economic area are quite pleasing. In the past, Lech Zürs was not destroyed by short-term considerations and that won’t change in the future either.

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LIVINGZONE

It doesn‘t get much better than this. And when it gets hot and mucky in the low-lying areas of the country, it’s always a few degrees colder in Lech Zürs and there are no gnats here either ... one thing is true for summer and winter alike, by the way: We cater to guests looking for a quality vacation.”

What remains is to find out where such guests would find this level of quality. How would the mayor characterise typical Lech Zürs residents?

Even in the summer, Lech is a “great place to spend time” and not just for

“They are determined and have understood that top quality and a down-to-earth attitude don’t necessarily rule each other out. They treat their village with respect and know that every tomorrow is followed by a day after tomorrow.”

its mayor.

According to Ludwig Muxel, one of the secrets to Lech’s success is the family atmosphere of its businesses.

“Today, Lech Zürs is not only a great place to live but also very amiable. Despite the fact that we are a village with intensive tourism, it has a lot of charm. We have remained a village in which both residents and guests feel welcome.”

Nevertheless, his 25 years as mayor have not always been smooth sailing, Ludwig Muxel admits. As beautiful as nature may be, it sometimes claims its victims. Which presented him with special challenges in his role as mayor.

“Being there for ordinary people is particularly important to me. But socialising with the rich and powerful is also an agreeable aspect of my job. The flood of 2005 or the avalanche winter of 1999 were less enjoyable, of course. Those were truly special challenges involving much hardship and worries and both events were drastic experiences, not only for me. Without exaggeration, one can say that they have also left their mark on the village.”

Since time immemorial, Lech Zürs has been characterised by the various businesses’ family-based structure. Particularly in the era of digitalisation, Ludwig Muxel regards this as a strength that is appreciated more and more by the guests.

“It’s another one of those balancing acts. But we are mastering it pretty well. Of course, we don‘t generally refuse all modern technology and new developments. On the contrary. At the same time, 95 percent of our businesses are run by the owners and not by international hotel chains

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and anonymous managers. This familiarity can be felt by the guests in a big way – this personal touch is something that feels really good, especially in our fast-paced world.”

And in this spirit, the mayor gets to listen to many stories in which Lech Zürs is referred to as a ‘different world’ or ‘oasis of tranquillity’. These are thoughts he can take pleasure in.

summer and so are our winter hiking trails, for instance Gaisbühel. In summer, I recommend doing the Tannberg round trip. I also think that Rüfikopf is an amazing starting point for hikes. Hiking into the Tyrolean Lech Valley, to Stuttgarter Hütte or to Zürs is a wonderful experience.”

Ludwig Muxel

It is striking how often the keyword summer is used in our interview. Actually, the warm season is becoming more and more important for the traditional winter sports village of Lech Zürs.

And for very good reason, as the mayor tells us with pride.

... born 13 June 1955 in Lech.

Father to two daughters: Anna Katharina (1987), Maria (1988).

Following his graduation from Commercial College in Feldkirch in 1973, he worked at

»THIS IS EXACTLY WHAT PEOPLE ARE INCREASINGLY LOOKING FOR IN HOLIDAYS: DECELERATION INSTEAD OF ACCELERATION.« “This is exactly what people are increasingly looking for in holidays: Deceleration instead of acceleration. And we have a lot to show for in this area, in winter and in summer. Our offer is extensive but at the same time, there is not as much hustle and bustle in Lech Zürs as there is in other places.”

High time to ask the mayor for his personal tips for staying in Lech Zürs.

“The way we handle it, summer tourism has great potential. Our offer includes golfing, hiking, our Forest Pool and the Lech Card and is particularly impressive in combination with our restaurants, hotels and great events.

Raiffeisenbank Lech.

Served as deputy mayor from 1990 to 1993 and as Lech’s mayor from April 1993.

The sporting head of the municipality There are times when even mayors can enjoy some free time. Ludwig Muxel likes to spend his out in nature.

“Hunting is an important hobby to me. I love being outside as it allows me to switch off. For me, it is not important whether I shoot something or what. What I see and experience is much more important. Apart from that, I’m a passionate runner and have participated in the Sylt Marathon, among

others. Despite the fact that it only runs for 33 kilometres, it is considered difficult as the course is bang straight and one always needs to fight headwinds. Lech Zürs is a paradise for runners still waiting to be discovered.

And perhaps I will finally start playing golf too. I would surely love to try. Maybe when I’m retired, let’s see when that is going to be.”

“For me, the Zug Valley is magnificent in both winter and

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PR

Experience legendary “Bergfreundschaft”

»For me, successful private banking is all about excited customers.« CEO Georg Gundolf

Investing with Raiffeisenbank Lech. Mountain air clears the mind.

Raiffeisenbank Lech practices private banking differently. Investing on holidays. Relaxed consultation.

Consultants who listen and take their time. An interview with Director Georg Gundolf and Private Banking Consultant Günter Smodic from Raiffeisenbank Lech about values and valuable encounters.

First impressions last – because they are accurate. We are sitting in a timber-lined meeting room with the resounding name of Gölda Boda. A fire is crackling in the open fireplace, there is an almost humble silence and outside the first snowflakes are falling from the sky. The friendly atmosphere and an amiable welcome make you forget that you are actually in a bank. One can feel that this bank works differently, that it stands out from the grey banking landscape. These first impressions are accurate.

Assuming responsibility – for the individual and the big picture alike. Director Georg Gundolf on the history of Raiffeisenbank Lech, its deep roots in the region and the effects its legal form of a cooperative has on its business. “We differ from conventional companies in the fact that we do make profits but do not wish to maximise them.” Our main mission is to meaningfully contribute to society‘s prosperous development and to be self-supporting at the same time. As a cooperative bank Raiffeisenbank Lech is not the property of a range of supervisory units but that of the people and is thus also accountable to them.

Profits, for instance, have never been distributed, but allocated to reserves or used for projects to promote the region.

Experience legendary mountain friendship – a strong promise. Raiffeisenbank Lech does not work on the basis of targets or commission. Which is very uncommon in the banking industry. “But this very principles is the basis for neutral, independent and customer-oriented consultation,” opines Private Banking Consultant Günter Smodic. The customers’ requirements are always at the centre and are analysed meticulously.

“We not only strive to fully understand our customers’ needs in general but also their individual lives and future plans.”

Knowing various perspectives one can then develop optimum strategies fully tailored to the individual. The result are strong relationships based on mutual trust, creating lasting mountain friendships. Just like on a common mountain tour.

THE bank in Lech am Arlberg since its inception in 1901. Small picture: Raiffeisenbank Lech around 1930.

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LIVINGZONE Innovationspreis

Into the future via a time capsule

ROTE WAND

SCHUALHUS JAUSESTUBA

The town’s Old Parish Church has long been one of Lech’s most striking landmarks, and that’s not all: The church’s steeple now also serves as a time machine! Since 8 August 2018, it holds 11 time capsules filled with the wishes, stories and little treasures of many Lech residents and guests. The capsules are likely to be opened in 2080.

Welcome to the Chef’s Table in the Rote Wand Schualhus

Built in 1780, Zug’s old schoolhouse accommodated the alpine dairy and the school for a long time. Today, all those looking for culinary delights that are in a class of their own have come to the right place at the Rote Wand Schualhus: they can try the Rote Wand Jausestuba on the ground floor or the Chef’s Table on the top floor. Max Natmessnig took over the culinary chairmanship of the Chef’s Table in the Rote Wand Schualhus this year. The native Lower Austrian has cooked his way from the “Steirereck” in Vienna to the “Oud Sluis” three-star temple in the Netherlands through

to the “Chef’s Table at Brooklyn Fare” in New York in less than 10 years.

From the very front row, experience at the Chef’s Table in Zug’s old Schualhus how Max Natmessnig and his team compose, create, stage, dress and serve a meal of between 16 and 19 courses made from mainly regional products before your very eyes. Accompanied by corresponding drinks at every course, an unforgettable gourmet experience is created at the Chef’s Table – second to none in the Alps.

he reason behind this unusual event is the fact that Lech’s parish is facing the challenge of coming up with some 100,000 Euros to renovate the church spire. It was Parson Jodok Müller’s wish to turn the idea of a fund-raising campaign into something purposeful, sustainable and simple which gave rise to the Kirchturm 2080 initiative.

Bernd Fischer from Lech is one of the co-organizers of the fundraising campaign „Church Steeple 2080“.

All 111 time capsules are stored in the container next to him.

In the framework of the campaign, its initiators sold a total of 111 time capsules at 988 Euros each, intentioned on sending personal items of Lech Zürs residents into the future along with information on the Church and the parish. Every time capsule is about the size of a thermos jug and could be filled with anything its owner wanted to pass on to future generations.

Tuesday to Saturday, advanced bookings only · Phone: +43 5583 34350 · gasthof@rotewand.com

FONDUE PIONIER SEIT 1959

ROTE WAND

The Jausestuba

in the Rote Wand Schualhus Both in the small, exquisite restaurant and outdoors – the cosy yet exclusive ambience of the Jausestuba in Zug’s old Schualhus invites you to tarry a while and treat yourself. The guest can look forward to regional specialities from Vorarlberg, “vô:dô” products from Lech’s farmers and our friends in the Alps.

In addition to home-made fizzy drinks, exclusive juices and Austrian wines, we serve for example a hearty Szegedin goulash, a good portion of pork chops, tender rack of venison, mountain cheese dumplings and buttermilk pancake.

ROTE WAND

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SCHUALHUS ZEITRAUM JAUSES TUBA | CHEF’S TABLE

Daily from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. · Telefon: +43 5583 34350 gasthof@rotewand.com · www.rotewand.com

Enjoy tradition

in the Rote Wand Fondue Stuba It is over half a century ago that the pioneer of culinary delights Josef Walch senior was the first person to bring the fondue to the Arlberg.

Heads of state and many other familiar faces have been picked up from Lech at least once in their lifetimes in a horse and carriage by Josef Walch and taken to the Gasthof Rote Wand, where they were pampered in line with the rules of the art of the fondue. An evening in our Fondue Stuben is still considered a culinary highlight on the Arlberg.

Please reserve in good time.

A-6764 Lech/Zug · T +43 5583 34350 · gasthof@rotewand.com www.rotewand.com· Mon - Sat, 6 to 9 p.m.

Bernd Fischer, you have organised this extraordinary fund-raising campaign. How did you come up with this idea?

We found out that there are only scarce records of the steeple’s last renovation in the mid-1950s which is a pity since it would be exciting to learn how such a job would have been accomplished almost 70 years ago, to answer questions like who supplied the material, who performed the renovation, was every farmer obliged to contribute shingles and how was the spire’s tip installed back then? Taking it off alone was hard work despite the use of modern technology.

Is this why you want to provide future generations with information on how things are done today?

Yes, that was part of the idea, but the campaign was about much more than that. The Church characterises our village and plays a vital role in our lives, providing a pillar from the time our baptism makes us a part of the community to the time we have to say good-bye upon death. It brings people together while offering room for tranquillity and reflection. This is why we thought it a splendid idea to store our values, concerns and stories in the steeple.

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LIVINGZONE

Conventional stainless steel pipes that are closed on top and bottom serve as time capsules.

8 AUGUST 2080 / by Bernd Fischer he time capsules are going to be opened any minute now and all of Lech Zürs is thrilled to discover what messages their own ancestors have left them. Bernd Fischer describes his idea of what this moment could be like: On the 8th day of August 2080, a certain restlessness and tension grips the village. The church steeple needs renovating and the required wooden shingles have arrived. Since digital shingles have not been invented yet, the village is looking for people who still practice the old craft today.

How did the people react to your idea?

Very well, all the capsules were sold by the end of the 2017/2018 winter season. We also received lots of positive feedback. The people thought really hard about what to put into their time capsules which brought them together and that’s exactly what we had wanted to achieve.

Before starting the renovation, the Council of the Old and Wise convenes to open the time capsules that have been stored in the spire’s very top since 2080. Its members are still capable of reading the old writing and some can even remember the summer of 2018. What will the ‘HDs’* have packed into the capsules? How did they stand the test of time? Questions upon questions.

Who are the people that bought the capsules?

Most of them are residents, but also a few guests. Many families gave the capsules to each other as presents, parents giving them to children or vice versa. Some capsules were reserved for the ten oldest residents of Lech Zürs, the schools, the refugees, the fire brigade, the town band, the mountain rescue team, the ‘herb women’ and the museum association.

This diversity results in exciting content for future generations and that, we can say with some certainty because of the speed at which we live today.

The big moment has come. The capsule is removed from its fixture by a drone and brought directly to the Council of the Old and Wise. It is opened and 111 little capsules are revealed. Capsule upon capsule is opened, analysed and sorted. Open questions are collected while scanners try to find out the nature of the objects within. Who has ever heard of USB, SSD and HD? How can these old storage media be read?

Thankfully, the old people of the village will be able to put the puzzle together. All residents of Lech Zürs are connected via digital glasses and can follow the proceedings online. They laugh and celebrate. The many stories from the past bring the people together!

*Our generation will be known to history as the HD (for ‘head-down’) generation, since our heads are always directed downwards onto the screen of our iPhone or the like.

The campaign was titled Kirchturm 2080. Why do you want the capsules to be opened in that year?

We think that the spire’s last renovation dates back to 1950.

According to our calculations, the next time the shingles will have to be renewed will be around 2080, a good opportunity to open the capsules.

Let us conclude with a practical question: Where did the time capsule containers come from? Were they made specifically for Lech Zürs?

The pipes are conventional stainless steel pipes used by plumbers and were generously donated by Wagner Haustechnik und Anlagenbau. They were welded to a bottom panel, with an end cap similar to a semi-sphere like those often used as the end cap of railings on top.

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One of the instructions for opening the capsules is that all content has to be turned into an exhibition.

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www.inmediasred.de

LIVINGZONE

So, my place oR youRs? Don’t mind. Kampen, Lech. Love them both.

Just call him “Tetsi” 30 years ago Tetsuya Maruyama visited Lech Zürs in the Arlberg Region for the first time. It is fair to say that – back then – the Arlberg region stole the heart of the hotel owner from Hakuba in Japan. For he has been coming back regularly to see partners, colleagues and many many friends again. Those only refer to the friendly gentleman from the Far East by his nickname “Tetsi”.

s a young man, Tetsuya Maruyama wanted to see the world. More precisely, the alpine world. His family has been operating a hotel in Hakuba, the birthplace of Japanese ski culture, for more than 90 years. His grandfather founded the company whose CEO Tetsuya is today. Back then, he realised that he had to experience how skiing tourism worked in the Austrian Alps.

Familie Erdmann · Kurhausstraße 35

“When Japanese people think of skiing they think of Austria, even today.” He deliberately kept a low profile, wanted to get to know the hotel business with all its facets. For that reason, he would peel potatoes in the kitchen of the Hotel Arlberg. Even today, he can tell you how to make a perfect potato salad.

Partnership without barriers. It’s like riding a bike. That also applies to the German language which Tetsuya Maruyama still speaks well. Even if he didn’t, language barriers have long been overcome between Lech Zürs and Hakuba. “If you know someone for such a long time, you understand each other naturally,” says Tetsuya. “When you look into each other’s eyes, you know what the other person thinks.” Hakuba and Lech Zürs have been fostering an intensive partnership since 1991. The two communities share a lot. Both resorts have maintained their authentic charm despite being highly attractive winter sport destinations.

In the course of years and decades, this has given rise to may genuine friendships. Both parties regard their exchange

D-25999 Kampen/Sylt · phone 0049-4651 448-0 · www.hotel-rungholt.de 30

The Rungholt, muse and mentor of the partnership Lech-Kampen

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Herzlich Willkommen im neuen

Sonnenburg Literatursalon Welcome to the new Sonnenburg Literature Salon

When he was a young man, Tetsi knew that he had to get to know ski tourism in Austria. Today, he is his own boss.

as enriching. You can learn a lot from each other when it comes to business – even if you‘re separated by thousands of kilometres – if you share the same passion. Thus, Tetsuya can‘t help but take to the runs every time he visits Lech, even though his time at the Sister Resort Party is limited. Every year in spring – towards the end of the season – both of Lech’s partner communities are invited to come to the Arlberg.

»IF YOU KNOW SOMEONE FOR SUCH A LONG TIME, YOU UNDERSTAND EACH OTHER NATURALLY.« Home is where your heart is. Even after all those years, Tetsi still discovers new things in Lech. He also tries to allow his employees (he has different ones accompany him every time) to ‘look beyond their own noses’. “Witnessing how they experience Lech, Austria and Europe for the first time makes me discover ever new aspects as well.” That particularly applies to Lech. “The people here have always been good at embracing and implementing new developments. At the same time, Lech Zürs has somehow managed to remain the same village I fell in love with 30 years ago.”

But that, Tetsi continues, is exactly what makes Lech Zürs so special. And maybe even distinguishes it from other skiing resorts. Many places claim to unite tradition and modernity, but practising this commitment authentically is a different story.

Lech Zürs masters this balancing act, Tetsuya Maruyama confirms. He ought to know. For he has not only been coming here as a guest for 30 years – he is virtually at home here.

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Lech and Hakuba: thousands of kilometres apart and yet friends for 27 years Lech and Hakuba have been fostering an intensive friendship since 1991. The city is located in the Japanese Alps close to Nagano. The Happo ski resort, one of the leading winter sports regions in the country, is part of it.

There, the snow cover can reach a height of eleven metres during the season. The town achieved international recognition through the 1998 Olympic Winter Games in Nagano. Hakuba hosted the ski jumping events and the Alpine ski racing disciplines, among others.

=

9.339,29 km

7 hours of time difference

Sonnenburg Literatursalon 2018/2019 Sonnenburg Literature Salon 2018/2019 21.+22.12.2018 Alexandra Helmig Kosmo & Klax

07.03.2019 Jörg Bernardy Philosophische Gedankensprünge

07.01.2019 Jörg Mühle Zwei für mich, einer für Dich

10.+12.03.2019 Tommy Krappweis Ghostsitter & Mara und der Feuerbringer

05.+07.02.2019 Christine Knödler • Das Schaf im himmelblauen Morgenmantel • Poetische Schatzsuche im Lyrik-Workshop • Kinder- und Jugendbuchliteratur 16.02.2019 John Wray Gotteskind

Reading in German and English

04.03.2019 Nikolaus Nützel Was ist Liebe?

Tetsuya Maruyama ... manages the Taigakukan Hotel in Hakuba

13.04.2019 Birgit Müller-Wieland Flugschnee 16.04.2019 Jacopo Pasotti Wie viel wiegt ein Berg?

19.04.2019 Hanni Münzer Unter Wasser kann man nicht weinen

Workshop in German and English

20.-27.04.2019 Melanie Laibl Bilderbuchtage in der Sonnenburg

Aktuelle Autoren-Veranstaltungshinweise finden Sie unter https://www.sonnenburg.at/literatursalon/. Kartenreservierungen werden unter literatursalon@sonnenburg.at erbeten. Karten für Erwachsene 20,00 EUR und für Kinder 5,00 EUR. Information about current author events can be found at https://www.sonnenburg.at/en/literaturesalon. We ask you to register under literatursalon@sonnenburg.at. The tickets will be 20 EUR per adult and 5 EUR per child.

Karten/Tickets Tel: 0043.5583.2147

Happo, representing his family’s third generation to do so. The family-run business has been in operation for more than 90 years.

2018/2019 issue Hotel Sonnenburg Hoch GmbH & Co. KG . Oberlech 55 . 6764 Lech am Arlberg . Vorarlberg . Österreich Tel: 0043.5583.2147 . welcome@sonnenburg.at . www.sonnenburg.at

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TALKINGZONE Lech Zürs’ spectacular mountain backdrop not only invites its visitors to decelerate. It also challenges and inspires – Wolfgang Schüssel and James Turrell, among others.

While the former Chancellor makes his mark with the Europa Forum, among others, US artist Turrell grants the region a “different perspective”.

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TALKINGZONE

Let there be Light!

Skyspace-Lech is now open and shows its visitors a spectacle of lights the likes of which they have never seen before! With his internationally celebrated art installations American James Turrell has already made many a visitor see new perspectives. He combines natural light with artificial light creations in a truly unique way. “I don’t want to depict light or paint it,” says Turrell. “I want my work to be light!”

Skyspace-Lech ... was created on the initiative of the Vorarlberg-based “Horizon Field” art association which had been founded in 2012 to commemorate UK artist Antony Gromley’s work of the same name in Lech and its surrounding region. Thanks to excellent contacts through Kunsthaus Bregenz, it managed to recruit James Turrell for the project. In 2014 the artist chose the location and supplied his drafts for the Skyspace whose swift completion is the result of the voluntary efforts and generosity of many participants. The association’s ‘Baustein’ campaign alone raised more than 250,000 Euros. In its context, supporters were able to purchase their own ‘building stone’ which was engraved and nincorporated into the building.

Its opening does not mean that the project is complete, however. “As the owners we think it’s our responsibility to look after this work of art, to convey its importance to the visitors and to take care of it,” said Otto Huber, the chair of Horizon Field, during its opening ceremony. www.skyspace-lech.com Artificial and natural light merge in a unique way.

kyspace-Lech immerses the visitor in light. As twilight falls, its walls and ceiling are bathed in light of changing colour. The oval space in its centre and smooth surfaces leave no focal points for the eye. One’s gaze gets wide. Through the opening in the ceiling, the sky is perceived as part of the room. From the outside, it looks like a dome that can also be closed due to weather conditions.

tres above sea level at Tanneg close to Oberlech. One reason for the art installation’s remote location is that the best way to experience Skyspace is alone, free from external influences or distractions. At sundown and sunset the skies above Lech create colours that one perceives in a completely different way from inside Skyspace than one would when directing one’s gaze to the sky in everyday life.

For one’s perception to change, as Turrell intended, one need to take time, however. Which is why waiting is part of the precisely calculated light programmes. Sometimes, incoming daylight is incorporated into the installations, at other times, a so-called “closed programme” is played, for instance in the event of bad weather.

What’s more, you would usually see the horizon at the same time. Skyspace-Lech offers a different experience. Here, your perspective is predetermined. This makes artificial light and naturally incoming light merge in a special way that one would barely notice under normal circumstances. As an onlooker, you don’t stand in front of it but find yourself inside the work of light art.

The sky above Lech. Skyspace-Lech was built 1,780 me-

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Light in space. “Introducing light into existing spaces has been defining Turrell’s work from the very beginning. Legend has it that little James – who grew up in an orthodox quaker family – would drill holes into the thick sheets that darken his room in bright sunshine. Light would permeate the impervious canvas through these bright spots. At the same time, it would get into his room and throw little spots of sunshine onto the walls and floor. James had taken the starry sky and brought it to his room.

Considering Turrell’s life and work, it is not hard to regard this childhood memory as the starting point of his career. Which is why the artist places great importance on passing on a message and to make us see his perspective on the world.

At second glance, Skyspace-Lech is therefore less remote than you might have thought at first. From Oberlech, a hiking trail leads to Tannegg all year round. In the winter, you can even reach mthe installation via the ski run. This is no coincidence and was minutely incorporated into the concept

by Turrell. A floor matt to clean one’s (ski) boots is therefore also part of the concept as is heating seating.

»SINCE JAMES SHOWED ME THE SKY, I SEE IT FROM A DIFFERENT PERSPECTIVE.« Stefan Sagmeister, international graphic designer

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TALKINGZONE

»WE ARE NOT AWARE THAT WE OURSELVES GIVE THE SKY ITS COLOUR.« James Turrell

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Light everywhere! ! Turrell has created more than 100 Skyspaces over the years, many of which in remote locations.

So that as little artificial light as possible can disturb the art of light. His work’s location was also an important criterion in Lech. “Lech is a special place for a Skyspace,” says Turrell. “The clean mountain air makes the sky appear particularly bright and blue.” Three possible locations had been presented to him. It came as no surprise that he chose the one option that is the furthest from the town itself.

In Turrell’s self-mocking perception, however, Skyspace-Lech is actually in a rather ‘urban’ location – at least compared to his Roden Crater project. This extinct volcano can be found in a remote corner of the Arizona desert. For decades, Turrell has been working on bringing light into its interior via tunnels, shafts and galleries and to combine it with artificial light installations. But even his conventional projects take an average of 15 years to complete. Skyspace-Lech took him only four. Responsible for this were all trades, supporters and sponsors who contributed their passion, generosity and skills to James Turrell’s unique project.

James Turrell … was born in 1943 in Los Angeles, the son of orthodox Quakers. He majored in psychology and mathematics and additionally earned an arts degree in 1973. Turrel lives and works in Arizona and Maryland. Various exhibitions and retrospectives around the world are dedicated to his work.

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TALKINGZONE

»A CHARGING STATION TO RELAX AND RECUPERATE« He is a staunch European, serves as Austria’s Chancellor from 2000 to 2007 and has been coming to the Arlberg for 25 years. In the course of his career, Wolfgang Schüssel has gone through all the highs and lows of being a politician. Respected by his friends and (political) enemies alike for his legendary negotiation prowess and tenacity, he is regarded as a Chancellor who has moved many things and left a lasting impression on Austria.

An interesting interview with a man who not only puts his mark on Lech by founding its Europa Forum.

For a quarter of a century, you have been coming to Lech Zürs up to three times a year. Does nature play an important part in your life?

For a city-dweller like me, the mountains are a charging station to relax and recuperate. Holidays in the mountains are three times as relaxing as vacationing at the sea.

Do you have more time today?

Not always, but more often.

What do you like about the Arlberg? What makes Lech Zürs so special?

Above all, it’s the warmth of the people, the breathtaking nature and the way the town maintains its beauty.

Was it difficult for you to say goodbye to politics?

After an initial change of habits I would say that I actually managed the transition quite well. At least I don‘t have any withdrawal symptoms any more.

Apart from their warmth: How would you describe the typical Lech resident?

I admire the people’s serenity. But the people of Lech are also self-confident, open and they love their home. And, they are curious about the future.

Do you have any regrets about your political career?

I had the unique opportunity to listen to the last speech given

by Israel’s President Shimon Peres who died two years ago.

He criticised the timidity and pessimism of the Europeans.

Shortly before his death his son asked him the same question: Whether he has any regrets. His answer was: “My dreams were not great enough.”

Are there any special experiences you associate with Lech Zürs?

I’m a little proud of the Europa Forum that I have initiated with Governor Martin Purtscher and later his successor Herbert Sausgruber. It’s great that EU Commissioner Günther Oettinger and Governor Markus Wallner continue pursuing our ideas on the topics of energy and digital developments.

Who are your closest friends in Lech Zürs?

There is Mayor Ludwig Muxel, but I also enjoy close relationships with Sigi and Andrea Wolf and the former Telekom boss Ron Sommer.

You are reputed to be a talented football player. What kind of sports are on your agenda in Lech?

Just reguar and backcountry skiing.

Do you have favourite run?

It’s no particular run that fascinates me. It’s rather the entire wide-ranging resort – the most beautiful in Austria.

You are 73 now. What is currently the centre of your life?

Our two-year-old granddaughter Elsa keeps me and my wife Gigi pretty busy. Apart from that, I am still highly concerned with the fate and future of the European Union. In the course of the past 300 years our continent saw 123 wars between countries that are now members of the EU. But peace has prevailed for 70 years – that is probably the most important argument for its existence. If it did not yet exist, we would have to found it immediately.

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What do you do in your free time?

I read, play the Cello and football and spend time in the mountains – those are my private passions besides my family.

And vice versa: What are you particularly proud of?

I might point to some important and successful measures such as securing pensions, overhauling budgets, privatisations, solving the forced labourer issue and restitution laws, doubling R&D funding. Also, I served as a successful EU Council President twice. Having been able to shape Austria’s joining of the EU in 1995 as a part of Alois Mock’s team was a special experience that I fondly remember to this day.

Since you so openly address this topic: What could you learn for your ‘real’ life from your time as a politician?

Listening to your inner voice has never hurt anyone, not even me. To remain humble in success, to be strong in defeat – politics is a good school here too.

»HOLIDAYS IN THE MOUNTAINS ARE THREE TIMES AS RELAXING AS VACATIONING AT THE SEA.«

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TALKINGZONE

What does that mean for us Europeans?

First of all that not everything is automatically a disadvantage.

It will require us to concentrate on developing our strengths and talents. Brain power will become the most sought-after resource in the future. Europe will fight to maintain its place in the village that is the world – both as an economic location and a lifestyle.

Those who hitch a ride on the nostalgia train risk waking up in the museum of local history!

Finally, let’s return from the big wide world to Lech. The Arlberg region stands for quality and a respectful approach to what God has created in this area. Would you call this a role model for others?

Absolutely. Exempla trahunt – good examples inspire and captivate. A clean environment, great architecture, neighbourhood and togetherness, economic success – who wouldn’t like to adorn themselves with these attributes?

Who among the current politicians earn your respect?

Former politicians would be well advised to be very cautious in evaluating their successors. Each one of us had enough opportunities and possibilities to shape their country – and hopefully we made good use of them. But I gladly admit to being impressed

by Sebastian Kurz and his work and I am not afraid to appreciate Angela Merkel very much as an excellent European politician and also as a clever friend.

Do you see here something like a trend that people start appreciating such an attitude again?

Somewhat. There have always been people who have found and preserved the difficult and precious balance between ecology and economy, tradition and modernity, country and city, root and treetop. Hopefully there will be enough of them to save our planet and not just a beautiful village.

What can we expect from today’s politicians?

Credibility and professionalism. Compromises and edges. Innovation and a sense of home. Concepts and explanations.

Target-orientation and flexibility.

Wolfgang Schüssel – taken literally Dr. Schüssel with the former Upper Austrian Deputy Governor Franz Hiesl in Lech Zürs.

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»

What are the hot topics of our time, in your opinion?

The big countries define the big topics – today it’s the emergence of China and the US’s change in position. This is what we need to find answers to.

What will be shaping our lives in the future?

Digitalisation and artificial intelligence. In June 2018 Henry Kissinger wrote an impressive article in which he asks essential questions. Among others, Kissinger wrote that “artificial intelligence could mean the end of human history.”

What does the digital development do with us humans?

To answer that I have to go back in history a bit. Until 1800, the population of the earth remained rather stable at about half a billion people. Their life expectancy was about 26. A third of mankind lived in Europe and raised about half of the global GDP. Today there are over seven billion people, Europe‘s share of the world population is only ten percent, its economic po-

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wer still 25 percent. Our life expectancy has tripled. In 2030, eight and a half billion people will inhabit this earth, in 2050 it might be ten. The number of people over 60 will rise from 800 million to two billion. Europe will then account for only five percent of the global population and about ten percent of economic output.

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I’m a boundless optimist.

»

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»THOSE WHO HITCH A RIDE ON THE NOSTALGIA TRAIN RISK WAKING UP IN THE MUSEUM OF LOCAL HISTORY!«

The old templates – Lipizzaner horses, Mozart balls, neutrality – don’t apply any longer in the complex reality of the 21st century.

The state is a like an oil tanker. It only allows for very slow course corrections – and not even all of them in the same direction.

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»

I do not see why we should already be discussing the compromise of the compromise.

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»

You know my old phrase – either you negotiate or you talk about it.

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EXERCISEZONE Those who venture out will experience spectacular things.

From unique skiing round-trips and powder-covered hills, spectacular hiking trails or Austria’s highest golf course: Lech Zßrs am Arlberg offers its guests extraordinary holiday experiences year-round. Far away from your daily routine and yet in the midst of things.

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EXERCISEZONE

8 Daniela Egger

Doors in open space

9 Lecher Jugend 7 Andreas Koop

Lech

1 Gottfried Bechtold

Zug 2 Patrick Kaufmann

The nine doors that adorn the Green Ring hiking trail imposingly stand out from the open landscape. At first sight, they look bizarre for they don‘t serve an obvious function out in Lech’s mountains. Nevertheless, almost all hikers who encounter them passes through them. They trigger something in them. They make them think. This is exactly what artist Daniel Nikolaus Kocher intended.

6 Daniel Nikolaus Kocher

5 Hrachya Nardanyan 4 Christian Piffrader

3 Reinhold Neururer Zürs

The Green Ring The Green Ring is more than a hiking tour through the impressive mountain landscape that surrounds Lech Zürs at the Arlberg Region. It is a journey to a modern world of legends specifically created for this hike.

Those who want to explore the entire trail can do so in three stages of some 27 kilometres in total.

A particular highlight, nine doors present themselves to hikers on the route in the summer months: In the middle of nature and set up by international artists and Lech’s youth.

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A different dimension of hiking he ‘Türen am Grünen Ring’ project has been – in the truest sense of the word – standing 2,000 metres above sea level since 2017. It was initiated by Lech Zürs Tourismus in cooperation with the Municipality of Lech, Raiffeisenbank Lech’s Lebensraum Lech programme and Rüfikopf AG as the project leader. Daniel Nikolaus Kocher create the idea and concept. A total of eight designers from five countries and Lech’s youth developed individual concepts on how to style the doors.

They were tasked with thinking about leaving or stepping into outdoor space and virtually confining them.

xenpass watershed or the large-scale installation titled ‘Lecher Chluppa-Trockensteinmauer’ at Kriegeralpe. Other installations can only be seen for a short period of time as “we don’t want to overload the landscape with art,” as Kocher explains. The trained sculptor visited Lech for the first time about 15 years ago. Back them, he installed the snow stages for Bregenz Festival in the village together with his project partner Thomas Koch.

Since then he is drawn to the Arlberg every year to implement new projects.

Walking as motiviation. Thus, the teenagers worked with the Vorarlberg-based graphic designer Martina Strolz to design a door that mirrors their own world of emotions. “First and foremost, the door has a social, almost political nature – it marks an end in a way,” Kocher says. For Lech’s youth has a hard time gaining a professional foothold in their home country after school and staying there if they don’t want to work in tourism.

For them, doors often represent ‘leaving’ for an undetermined period of time. “In the framework of the project, they also created the www.lech-heim.at website where they further express their hopes, fears and wishes.” Just like Lech’s next generation, the international artists whom Kocher knows personally have freely interpreted their doors for themselves. Every stage of the Green Ring has three of them.

»MY WORK IS ABOUT PLAYING WITH PERSPECTIVES.«

Art comes and goes. . “The people love being surprised by analogue projects like this,” Daniel Nikolaus Kocher knows from experience. The 37-year-old Tyrolean has been the Green Ring’s artistic director for ten years. In this time he has been able to install many objects of art ‘up here’, among them the Fle-

Doors trigger something in us. In cooperation with Vorarlberg native and author Daniela Egger, he has installed his first door in Lech in 2013: As the entrance gate to the Green Riddle Ring it was built particularly for children and simultaneously marked the beginning of the Green Ring doors’ further development. “Doors can signify many things, from protection, openness or curiosity to defining boundaries. Stepping through a door triggers something in us. It always means leaving one room and entering a new one.“ And yet, one remains in the same place when stepping through the doors on the Green Ring trail.

They are not surrounded by low walls or fences and practically removed from their purpose.

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the other hand it is weird to regain one’s freedom by suddenly facing a rock wall. “My work is about playing with perspectives.”

»STEPPING THROUGH A DOOR TRIGGERS SOMETHING IN US. IT ALWAYS MEANS LEAVING ONE ROOM AND ENTERING A NEW ONE.«

Camouflaged transition. Kocher is deeply moved by the door designed by Swiss artist Patrick Kaufmann. Without knowing where it would be placed on the hiking trail, the latter has styled his door in such a way that it perfectly fits in to its natural environment: It is located on the transition to Lake Monzabon where hikers are treated to entirely different views on either side. The rugged rock landscape virtually merges with one side of the door which Kaufmann has made to look just as wild by using layers of coffee grounds and blue pigments. The soft, flowing shapes on the other side seem to merge almost directly into the lovely green slope with its discreet folds.

The various doors that adorn the Green Ring appear suddenly in front of the hiker. Every one tells its own story and invites people to step through, as shown by Daniel Nikolaus Kocher (image below).

Dungeon or freedom? In order to still distinguish them in the outdoor space, some artists have designed the front and back differently. Just like Kocher himself: Madloch his door towers high up on Madloch and catches the eye from a distance. Its front in warm red and green is reminiscent of a Mediterranean door that welcomes everyone who steps through it.

Those who open it are treated to an impressive view of Lech.

The other side, however, is styled like the door of a dungeon through which one’s gaze falls on a rock face.

Playing with perspectives. “My door signifies a smooth transition between freedom and being imprisoned in a dungeon and vice versa. Onlookers don‘t really know whether they are in or out,” Kocher explains. For one is inadvertently confronted with the question whether one really steps into a prison when Lech and all that open space is right in front. On

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Patrick Kaufmann had no idea where on the hiking trail his door would be installed. It is all the more dazzling how perfectly it harmonises with its location on Rüfikopf.

“As if Patrick has foreseen it,” says Kocher. The same could be said about him. For he has chosen every door’s location without knowing what it would look like. Coincidence or telepathy? We will probably never find out. “At the vernissage, during which the doors were set up, the scenery definitely resulted in some tears and goose bumps among those present.” ”Everyday” objects. Daniel Nikolaus tells us a nice anecdote from the first year to illustrate what effects art out in nature can have. “I had just finished grouting the foundations for one of the doors when a hiker approached,” he tells us, the memory causing him to smirk. “He curiously looked down on me, asking what this is supposed to become. ‘A work of art,’ I replied. ‘What?’ the hiker cried. To which I replied: ‘A door.’

This calmed the hiker and he said, ‘Oh, ok. That’s good then!’”

Doors, the freelance artist opines, are everyday objects and are therefore regarded as something completely normal, no matter where they are located and what purpose they fulfil – or don‘t fulfil.

Daniel Nikolaus Kocher ... has been the Green Ring’s Artistic Director since 2009. Of particular interest to him are are unconventional concepts and installations in the public realm.

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Small map, many possibilities From hikes through breathtaking mountain scenery, bicycle tours or special children’s programmes: The Lech Card gives you the chance to experience your summer like never before in the mountains of Lech Zürs in the Arlberg Region.

Exploring magnificent nature on foot. Herbal exploration hikes, geological trail excursions or a tour to Körbersee Lake: Guided themed hikes are offered exclusively to Lech Card holders.

From as little as

€ 22 ,Browse through history. Immerse

“Doors can signify many things, from protection, openness or curiosity to defining boundaries.”

yourself in the history of the Arlberg or listen to stories from the region: With the Lech Card, you are entitled to various discounts at Huber Hus, the Walsermuseum and Lech’s community library.

Award-winning For its project Türen am Grünen Ring (literally ‘Doors on the Green Ring’) Lech Zürs Tourism has received a recognition award in the framework of the Tourismus Innovationen Vorarlberg event 2018.

Varied sporting activities on your summer holidays.

No matter what you are up to: The Lech Card offers you many options to be active. For free or at discounted rates, cool down in the Forest Pool, participate in guided e-bike tours or engage in some rounds of bowling at sport.park.lech.

Children’s Adventure Week with the Arlberg Alpin guides. The Lech Card offers something special for the kids. Children between the ages of 5 and 14 can actively experience our magnificent nature and participate in highlights such as canyoning and climbing free of charge.

Be mobile! Holders of a Lech Card can use the blue local Lech buses free of charge. They offer a great way to reach all starting points of hikes in the region. Discounts are also available for the cable cars that are open throughout summer in Lech and Warth.

Winter and summer season

The doors spend the winter in the valley where they are exhibited in various hotels. The respective hotel owners sponsor the works of art, in turn serving as the project’s funders. In the summer season 2019, the ‘doors without a purpose’ are once more carried or driven to the various stages of the Green Ring and can be experienced for the last time from June to October.

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You can find all information and prices at www.mylechcard.at.

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»I DON’T THINK THERE IS ANY OTHER ENVIRONMENT IN WHICH YOU CAN FIND PEACE AS QUICKLY AS IN THE MOUNTAINS.« Thomas Vašek, founding Chief Editor of the philosophy magazine “Hohe Luft” and avowed fan of Lech Zürs.

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Mr Kleissl, you have been in operation since 2016. The course is magnificent and very popular. You must be pleased.

Yes, absolutely! Up to now we have been able to win a lot of fans for our course in a very short time. Nevertheless, I think we‘re just at the beginning in terms of its potential.

What had to be planned and considered in advance?

Since almost 40 businesses were involved in its completion we naturally had to consider many individual perspectives and opinions. On top of that, environmental compatibility was particularly important to us. Our efforts have clearly paid off and we were even praised for implementing the project in such a beautiful way.

It is fair to say that the finished course has no equal, don‘t you think?

That’s right. At 1,509 metres above sea level, it’s the highest tee-off point in all of Austria. Behind the green, a rock face rises almost 600 metres into the sky. The entire course is shaped by the Lech River and we even have a waterfall. You will be hard pressed to find such a panorama anywhere else.

Unparalleled links

Unique tee

Playing golf in unique places is not a new idea, however.

No it isn’t and there are courses situated even higher. Our partner resort of Beaver Creek has several courses that are located above 2,000 metres. But their climatic conditions are entirely different. Lech is special, for instance in terms of the growing seasons. Up here, the snow lasts much longer which makes the growing seasons shorter than in other areas. In turn, plants grow much faster. For us as operators that translates into ever new insights and challenges.

Which you seem to be mastering just fine. What’s your opinion on that?

Considering the fact that it‘s only our third year, we have created a course at a very high level. Even though the weather wasn‘t very kind to us. In the first year it rained almost non-stop. The year after we needed the rain for the plants but it remained dry, of course.

rience golf player you have to first get used to it. If you don‘t know the course your focus will be impaired at first. Adding to this are the effects of high altitude. The air is so much thinner up here that the balls fly up to 15 percent further when compared to courses located at normal elevation. Which means that the ball often doesn‘t land where the player wanted it to.

So that means that the course is a challenge even for experienced players?

Indeed. The course is very narrow which requires even more concentration from the player. To be fair, golf is a very demanding sport to begin with. But that’s its whole appeal, right? Experienced players frequently tell me that “the whole world will know this course in ten years!”

Speaking of challenges: You stage many different tournaments each year. What can golf players expect from taking part?

Our events cater to very different target groups to make sure they offer something for everyone. Players can qualify for European and world finals through our club tournaments. The ‘Dirndl and Lederhosen Tournament’ – you might have guessed it – is just about the fun, however. This is a great mix and also carries a social component.

»GOLF IS A GAME WHOSE AIM IS TO HIT A VERY SMALL BALL INTO AN EVER SMALLER HOLE, WITH WEAPONS SINGULARLY ILL-DESIGNED FOR THE PURPOSE.« Winston Churchill

Teeing off in the idyllic Zug district means golfing in immediate proximity to the region’s magnificent nature.

It determines the course of its nine holes and offers a spectacular mountain panorama. “It never gets old,” says Markus Kleissl, the Managing Director of Golf Lech AG. On the other hand, the course also requires lots of special care and demands certain skills from its players that only apply ‘up here’.

What about the maintenance of the course?

Our green keeping company takes perfect care or our facility’s condition. The architect who designed the course also serves as supervisor and the people up here know what they are doing. I personally inspect the course once a week just to get an idea of what’s going on. This is also why I play here as often as I can.

Do you still notice the impressive backdrop when playing?

Of course, I will never get enough of it! But even as an expe-

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9-hole Lech Zug golf course In the quiet hamlet of Zug in the idyllic Zug Valley lie the nine holes on either side of Lech.

Nature has determined the route – up river it heads towards the Rote Wand as far as the Zug ravine. After the third tee the route along the Lech leads to Stierloch brook, then past the fishpond and back to the start.

Would you have known?

Hole in one Getting the ball into the whole with just one strike is not impossible but very unlikely. Even professionals only manage that once in every 2,500 strikes.

Amateurs have to try at least 10,150 times to achieve this feat once.

Handicap Even though single digits are considered the magical mark (meaning -9.9 or less) three out of four golf players don’t manage anything less than -18.

Unique: At 1,509 metres above sea level, it’s the highest tee-off point in all of Austria.

Where does the golf course’s journey go?

We are only scratching the surface of our potential right now.

Almost two thirds of our winter guests play golf. Due to the fact that more and more of them also come to enjoy our glorious summers here in Lech Zürs, we naturally hope to be able to convince them of our golf course as well. Golf is a sport that has been proven to be beneficial for mind and body, after all.

History The Scots are generally thought to have invented the sport of golfing. Other theories, however, place its birthplace in Holland or France.

Best of the Alps Golf Cup This unique series of tournaments is held on ten of the most beautiful golf courses in the European Alps. Its exclusive venues also include Lech and St. Anton am Arlberg.

This open tournament is played as an ‘18 hole stableford’ event. This counting method that is particularly considerate of non-professionals as badly played holes don’t weigh as much when it comes to the final rankings.

Markus Kleissl ... didn‘t have much to do with golf originally and had to be convinced by his wife to get his licence. Today, the Managing Director of Golf Lech AG boasts a handicap of -9.8!

To get to 18 holes participants start on the St. Anton am Arlberg course before switching to Zug’s, the highest golf course in Austria.

1 Par 4, 191/248 m Hill overlooking the Rote Wand.

2 Par 5, 425/468 m The slope is on the right, the fairway on your left is restricted by the dead channel of the River Lech, The green is located on a small plateau at the outlet of the Zug ravine.

4 Par 4, 275/292 m And it‘s back across the brook from a small hill. The River Lech is a constant in this game.

7 Par 3, 122/140 m The signature hole. Once the Stierloch brook has been mastered, the ball lands on an idyllic green close to the River Lech

Par 3, 106/122 m To the left of the green there is a pond, on the right the River Lech stands and watches.

Par 3, 74/79 m The shortest hole takes you back upstream to Lech and is located in a forest clearing.

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Par 3, 101/122 m After a leisurely walk past the beautifully loca-ted Zug fishpond, you are now at the last hole, which needs to be played across a natural pond.

9

Par 4, 310/339 m A real challenge. After a drive at an altitude of over 200 m, there‘s a dogleg to the right of 100 m across the River Lech and onto the green.

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Par 4, 261/284 m Tee 6 can be reached via a modern steel bridge and it‘s located in a forest clearing.

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sports enthusiasts for they belong to the “blue” category. For advanced skiers, this means that they can raise their speed and enjoy a lightning quick downhill run. Others can start slowly and let their gaze wander. For no matter where you ski or take a break, you will always be able to discover new details about the surrounding mountains all the way until you encounter the Zürs valley station after some eight kilometres.

Professional athletes, celebrities and pioneers

The “Run of Fame”: A ski tour through time and space Standing on top of Rüfikopf, you first forget about time and enjoy the magnificent Alpine panorama.

After that, you fully focus on the “Run of Fame” that stretches out in front of you. This spectacular ski tour is 85 kilometres long and follows in the footsteps of Olympic champions, Hollywood stars and pioneers of winter sports.

he snow creaks with every step. Lots of the stuff has fallen during the night and instantly glues to your boots when stepping out of the mountain station. You cast your gaze across the mountaintop and in the direction of the slope. This is not only the starting point of the “Run of Fame” but also that of the legendary and traditional race, The White Ring – The Race.

Even without any professional athletes present, there is a lot going on up here, since the skiers and snowboarders who arrive on the gondolas quickly spread out across the terrain. Expertly prepared slopes await which is why we also quickly put on our skis, buckle up our boots and helmets, put on our goggles; and off we go. Purple and orange signs show us the way to the “Run of

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Fame”. Since this ski tour honours renowned pioneers of skiing we encounter one of the “Run of Fame’s” cozy lounges by the side of the slope, offering us roofed benches depicting the Arlberg’s most important figures and inviting us to take a break.

For beginners and advanced skiers alike. The course that leads from Warth to St. Anton via Schröcken, Lech, Zürs, Stuben and St. Christoph and vice versa is designed in such a way that you can start at any point. Those who – like us – start from Rüfikopf in the direction of Zürs can look forward to a long, almost continuous downhill run that features both wide slopes and narrower sections.

The hills on this part of the tour can be mastered by all winter

The “Run of Fame” Lounges along the slopes invite skiers to take a break and let their gaze wonder.

Furthermore they showcase celebrities who have contributed to the legend of the Arlberg, such as Yul Brynner who is pictured on this back board.

Once we have arrived in the town we take off our skis and step into a Trittkopfbahn I gondola. With a capacity of 10 skiers and a large panoramic window, it hovers to an elevation of 2,200 metres in a matter of seven minutes. This cable car system has been completely revamped in the framework of the connection between Zürs and Stuben / Alpe Rauz. From its top station, skiers can use Trittkopfbahn II to ascend further to a height of 2,420 metres from where they can ski down to Zürs. We, however, decide to take a different highly worthwhile route: one that allows us to stop at the ‘Hall of Fame’.

The “who is who” of the white sport. In the rooms directly adjoining the gondola station, we immerse ourselves in the history of the Arlberg. As soon as we step through the door our gaze falls on a wall to the right with portraits of numerous women and men. They all have earned the right to a place on this ‘Wall of Fame’ for shaping today’s ski culture as pioneers. Because they achieved sporting success or significantly influenced the legend of the Arlberg with their films.

A large touch screen provides information on the individuals, their lives and their achievements. One room further we switch to our auditory sense and listen to stories from the early years of winter sports such as Johann Müller’s: The Pastor spent only a few years in Warth yet significantly contributed to the origin of skiing in the late 19th century. He tells the listener the story of how he saw pictures of “Nordic snow boots” in a magazine, ordered them instantly and tried them out in secret under the cover of darkness. “I deduced from the pictures that the boards were buckled to the boots and that one would use a large alpenstock to ski.” Word of his nocturnal tests quickly got around in the village and many a resident joined him.

Of agents and starlets on skis. The “Hall of Fame” also has its own movie theatre showing clips from famous films that were shot in the region. These include blockbusters such as The Third Man starring Yul Brynner as a CIA agent who travels to the Arlberg to solve his son’s mysterious and fatal ski accident as well as Bridget Jones: “The Edge of Reason” with Renée Zellweger as the likeable and chaotic titular character causing a stir on Lech’s slopes.

Visitors can, by the way, assume the role of Bridget themselves: Just stick you head through the hole in the photo wall next to the movie theatre and impersonate Renée Zellweger sliding down the hill head first.

The “Hunt of Fame” is another hands-on station. This video animation challenges you to make it down a virtual run as fast as possible, chased by Olympic champions from the Arlberg region such as Mario Matt and Patrick Ortlieb.

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From downhill to cross-country skiing

»FULL HOUSE ON THE CROSS-COUNTRY SKI TRAILS« Cross-country skiing is no longer a niche sport. Especially not at the Arlberg. Those who take to the cross-country trails there will find perfect conditions and more. There’s also the very real chance of encountering Vorarlberg’s future hope Jasmin Berchtold. She is Lech Zürs Tourism’s cross-country skiing ambassador and has been training in the region for five years.

How did you end up in Lech Ms Berchtold?

As winter sports athletes we need snow early in the season to be able to put the skis on as quickly as possible following the summer break and to get used to the motion sequences. Others travel to Scandinavia or so but I live right at the Arlberg where we often have snow from early November onwards. That’s ideal for me which is why you can find me here regularly.

In the “Hall of Fame”, visitors get to meet the heroes of the Arlberg – from skiing culture, sport and film.

Onto the next stage. Following our visit to the exhibition we take a Flexenbahn gondola. This system has also been rebuilt in 2016 and takes us down to Alpe Rauz, one of the ski resort’s most important hubs. From there, we continue on the “Run of Fame” towards St. Christoph and St. Anton.

To the top at speed The White Ring – The Race is one of the most legendary ski races in the world. Every January, exactly 1,000 professional

What do the trails offer you here?

They are ideal for endurance sessions. The course switches neatly between flat sections where my heart beat stays low and challenging ascents. Most of the time, I head for Zug Valley from Lech. All the way to the town of Zug the course is rather level which makes is suitable for beginners. As you approach Älpele it becomes more challenging and features a number of steep ascents and descents.

The Lech Zürs region offers 30 kilometres of cross-country ski trails.

The trails can be used free of charge the entire season.

athletes and amateurs take to the 22-kilometre course. .

Those who do the entire tour will encounter blue and red slopes in alternation. Nur am Madloch gilt es, ein Stück Skiroute zu meistern. The local ski instructors reckon that advanced skiers should be able to complete the course in one day. Allow for two days to fully enjoy the experience. To put this into perspective, the “White Ring’s” 22 kilometres can be tackled in half a day.

To get your hands on one of the sought-after tickets, the organisers have thought of something particularly spectacular: the Zürs Speed Race. This race is not decided on the basis of the participants’ overall time but the highest speed one can reach going downhill.

Apart from the snow, what else do you need to optimally prepare?

We cross-country skiers do a lot of weight training, we work on our stability and isometric exercises to achieve the required tension. This is where sport.park.lech offers great possibilities of acquiring these basic skills. It provides many workout machines – regardless of what body part I want to work on.

Since 2018, the race is held on the “Balmen 134” run from

The joy of skiing. To bring our excursion to a fitting end we enjoy some sunny downhill runs on the slopes of St. Christoph before once again taking Flexenbahn to head back to Lech.

The runs there allow lots of space to carve and your skis glide through the glistening snow as if on rails while every curve confirms the notion that we are having a great time in a magnificent ski resort.

Trittkopf down to Zürs. What’s also new is that the best riders don’t just secure themselves a ticket for the White Ring race.

They also start as one of the first 100 which means they are sure to finish in the leading group.

The White Ring – The Speed Race: 17 January 2019 The White Ring – The Race: 19 January 2019

The Arlberg is more famous for alpine than cross-country skiing. Do you feel like you have to prove yourself?

No, not at all. Cross-country skiing has always been a part of this region. On the contrary: There are more and more people who give cross-country skiing a try as an alternative and switch their carving skis for the much narrower boards. That means full house on the cross-country ski trails. [laughs]

Jasmin Berchtold ... has been born in Schwarzenberg in 1996.

She discovered cross-country skiing aged three and it is currently her biggest goal to go to Seefeld to take part in the Cross-Country Skiing World Championships 2019 with the Austrian National Team.

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Those who want to experience the “Run of Fame” with Schnann Flirsch its 85 kilometres andStrengen 18,000 metres of elevation changes Innsbruck should mark 26 January 2019 in their calendars: The Run of Fame Day is all about the heroes of the Arlberg – and if you are lucky, you might be shown the tour by an Olympic Schöngraben or World Champion.

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Braunarlspitze 2648

EXERCISEZONE

Time is running out. Victim number four is found after some 30 minutes. He is equipped with a slim RECCO reflector as can be found stitched into lots of skiing gear. Finding him takes a little longer since a special manual detector is required to locate these reflectors: We have to wait for the professional rescue team. This victim had been buried under a load of snow.

“He will have started struggling after such a long time,” says Stefan. “Clear his respiratory passages, if possible him place in a stable position and warm him up,” he instructs us.

Let‘s ride – safely!

Freeriding has become a fixture of skiing culture on the Arlberg. However, one has to be particularly careful when riding in open terrain for one could easily trigger an avalanche in deep snow. Safety is key – provided by either avalanche protection in general or adequate emergency equipment in particular.

Avalanche victim number five makes us worried. We can’t find a signal. It looks like this person had no LVS on them. In such cases, one has to resort to using probes. “With this method, it is important that you walk shoulder to shoulder and always keep the same distance when stepping and probing.

Every centimetre counts!” Stefan stresses.

Emergencies in the mountains: The Snow & Safety Conference in Zürs tells its participants what to do in the event of an emergency.

n this December morning, Zürs greets us with plenty of snow and clear blue skies. But it’s cold – freezing cold! The thermometer shows minus eleven degrees Celsius. Standing around, the tips of one’s fingers and toes quickly start to hurt. We are standing in the middle of a field of snow close to the street leading out of the village. Little snowhills have been piled up all around us, reconstructing an avalanche emergency scenario with several people buried under the snow that are to be found as quickly as possible.

The exercise is part of the agenda of the annual Snow & Safety Conference in Zürs on the topic of safety in the mountains.

Applying caution during the rescue. The event is aimed at putting the participants’ knowledge of and skills with emergency equipment to the test sensitising them on the responsible handling of deep snow. Mountain guide and workshop instructor Stefan tells us that five people have been buried in this ‘avalanche’ (there are puppets hidden in the snowhills).

First instructions follow: “First, you should make the emergency call. It’s best to find the applicable emergency numbers

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in an app prior to starting your tour.” After that it‘s time to collect the group. “It’s important that you don’t fan out into the terrain without a plan. Depending on the number of victims, only a few members of the group head out with an LVS (a device to find people buried in an avalanche) and a probe and start searching. Everyone should only look for one buried person, to make sure all of them are found equally quickly.”

Long probes are used in case the rescuers cannot locate any signals from the persons buried.

Five of us venture out into the ‘avalanche terrain’. The LVS, tuned to receive and supposed to find the corresponding devices worn by those buried under the snow, shows us the direction using several arrows. The closer we come to the victim’s LVS the more arrows disappear, until there is only one left. We approach the people buried under the snow until we are only one metre away. After that, we kneel and keep on searching on the ground, centimetre by centimetre.

Every minute counts. The first victim has been found. Those participants that have been waiting all this time, now arrive with their shovels. “Now you shouldn’t just start shovelling but fan out on the spot,” Stefan advises. “Even if something should happen now, there are still people outside this immediate zone who could get help.” We keep digging in the direction of the person buried. Thankfully, the victim had been trapped in a cavity under snow which is why he was able to continue breathing freely. Two more are dug up and treated within a mere twelve minutes. Three of them had an LVS on them. “Once you have found the victim’s device, please switch it off to make it stop sending a signal to your own LVS devices,” Stefan instructs us.

»YOU HAVE FOUND ALL OF THEM AND ALL OF THEM ARE RESPONSIVE – EXCELLENT JOB!« Stefan Rössler, Bergführer

Step by step. “Stay close to one another and walk step by step!” Slowly, we proceed with our probes. Suddenly, one of us feels something elastic underneath. Once again, the shovels are being brought in. 42 minutes have passed since the avalanche was triggered – an eternity! We carefully check whether the victim is still breathing. Yes! Even victim number five has survived for this person was lucky enough to also have been trapped in a little cavity which allowed him to breathe. Otherwise it would have been too late for him.

Stefan is happy with our performance. “You have found all of them and all of them are responsive – excellent job!”

2018/2019 issue

65

EXERCISEZONE

Case of emergency: Avalanche

“I WAS TOTALLY SHOCKED!” Sophie Schäfer has come to the Arlberg to work and almost instantly came down with freeride fever. To practice, she headed out into the deep snow with a High Zürs Guide in early 2016. Before that, the Innsbruck native received an introduction to safety equipment.

* KEEP ON , SKIING A R DING, O SNOW B , IDING TRY FR E E R N COU IING S S SK CRO

WITH BEST QUALITY EQUIPMENT

aware of the challenges that riding off the official runs presents.

Besides keynote speeches the event offers comprehensive information on safety in the mountains and practical exercises in the terrain. “Personally, I will definitely seize this opportunity to be perfectly prepared for the worst case!”, says Sophia. It goes without saying that Sophia takes her avalanche backpack with LVS device, shovel and probe with her on every run.

A matter of seconds. “It was a perfect day. Fresh powder, sunshine and just a few people on the mountain. It was an awesome feeling to ride the fresh snow. Nevertheless, the guide suddenly instructed us to return to the official ski run,” and just a few seconds later, Sophia could only stand by and watch how a group of skiers were surprised and taken away by an avalanche.

“Once it had come to a rest, my ski guide immediately ran to the site, made the call and set the process in motion.”

In these minutes, the 32-year-old realised that she could have easily been swept away by the avalanche herself and that – in this moment – she had “no idea what to do.” „It’s hard to so quickly implement what you have practised and seen before.“ Sophia Schäfer

Make use of training opportunities. In the end everything went well. Her guide informed Sophia that a Snow & Safety Conference is staged in Zürs every winter. This event brings freeride professionals and beginners together – aimed at making them

... is a passionate freerider and – following her experience with avalanches – has vowed to regularly practice rescue operations.

Snow & Safety Conference

SHOP * SERVICE DEPOT * RENTAL AM SCHLEGELKOPF

SKI, BOARDS, SPORTSWEAR & EQUIPMENT

What is already the 7th Snow & Safety Conference will take place from 30th of November until December 1, 2018 in Zürs in the Arlberg Region. Following the motto ‘Safety in the snow’ experts and winter sports enthusiasts will exchange ideas on how to sensitise people for the challenges that riding in open terrain presents.

ABS | ALPINA | ATK | ATOMIC | BLACK DIAMOND | BODYGLOVE | COLLTEX | DYNAFIT ELAN | EVOC | FALKE | FISCHER | FRTISCHI | HESTRA | HOUDINI | ICEBREAKER

“Correct risk management makes all the difference,” says Lorraine

JULBO | K2 | KÄSTLE | KESSLER | KOHLA | KOMPERDELL | LANGE | LEKI | LÖFFLER

Huber. However, there is no absolute safety. The Lech resident has

MAMMUT | MARKER | MONTURA | NORDICA | NORONA | ORTOVOX

won the Freeride World Tour 2017 and has already participated in

PATAGONIA HAGLÖFS | PIEPS | POC | POMOCA | REUSCH | SALOMON | SCARPA

the Snow & Safety Conference as a workshop instructor.

SCOTT | SMITH | STEREO | THE NORTHFACE | UVEX | VOLANT | VÖLKL | DPS

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JETZT ONLINE RESERVIEREN UNTER W W W . S P O R TA L P. AT

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Controlled blasting The Arlberg region boasts 305 kilometres of regular and 200 kilometres of high-alpine deep snow runs.

Safety is always paramount. 19 avalanche commissions in the municipality of Lech Zürs alone assure that.

Martin Schneider is part of the commisison responsible for Lech’s slopes. He secures ski runs and ski tours.

Mr Schneider, what are the tasks of an avalanche commission?

We serve as expert assessors. In my case, I work for the operating manager of a ski lift business. For it is he who decides whether a run is opened or remains closed. We can use various weather station data and personal observations to work out our expert reports. When in doubt we make hazardous terrain sections safe by artificially triggering an avalanche using blasting.

As expert assessors we also work for the mayor and the district authorities to assess municipal and country roads, respectively.

Why use blasting to trigger avalanches?

By blasting certain sections following snowfall, we relieve those sections in such a way that skiers should no longer be able to trigger many movement. Usually, we blast these avalanches in the morning before the lifts open. After that we decide whether to open the respective route or run or to keep it closed as a precaution.

we have to get up there to do some blasting. Of course the situation might quickly change in the course of the day and during skiing operation, for instance due to wind or heavy temperature variation. Due to the fact that we, as ski guides, are in the terrain the whole day, however, we quickly notice such things and are able to respond immediately.

It is often discussed whether it would be better to completely ban free skiing.

I don’t believe that’s necessary. Nonetheless, we need to do more to sharpen the awareness of skiers. It would be good if the skiers would observe ‘closed’ signs on the runs and ski routes as well as stay away from open terrain if they don‘t have the required skills. Special training and lots of experience are required to correctly assess the avalanche risk. This is where we have to come in.

Athlet: Benjamin Raich

First class skiing SINCE 1925

Lech Zürs is an El Dorado for freeriders. Does that increase the risk of avalanches?

No, as the regular and constant use of the runs actually has a positive effect on the avalanche risk. That said, we see more and more skiers taking to the open terrain who have little to no knowledge of assessing the avalanche risk and are often ill equipped on top of that. This naturally increases the risk.

We also observe that ‘closed’ signs are increasingly ignored.

How often does the avalanche commission meet?

In the morning every one of us analyses the data sent by the recorders at the summit stations. These give us an idea of the temperature variation and wind strengths. When snowfall is in the forecast we get on the phone with a piste machine operator at six o’clock. He can provide us with more information on the amount of fresh snow and the effects of the wind since he has been up there from four o’clock in the morning. Based on this information the commission discusses whether or not

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Martin Schneider ... is a member of the avalanche commission responsible for Lech’s ski runs, a state-certified skiing instructor and a ski guide for Skischule Lech’s group 1 A.

SKISCHULE LECH www.skilech.info

Business activities: Ski, Snowboard, Cross-country, Telemark Courses offered: Group courses, Private courses, Children‘s courses, Children‘s paradise 2018/2019 issue

69

Three colours for the slopes: Since the 1990s the mix between blue,

Sharing the passion Skischule Lech’s skiwear is more than just clothing – it’s almost like a uniform. Those who are allowed to wear it becomes part of a traditional and world renowned team and an on-piste influencer. kiing instructors want to be regarded as role models and strive to live up to this reputation with a corresponding riding technique and suitable clothing. They know the resort like the back of their hand and turn it into their living room in the winter season, sharing their passion for skiing and their love for the mountains with their guests.

Life on skis. All those unforgettable moments with friends on the slopes and that adrenaline rush you get in the terrain require the right clothing that has to become your daily companion on 120 days a season.

New stories are thereby written every day, equipped with gear from skiwear expert Schöffel – from 1998 to 2011 and once again since 2018.

Their daily use turns skiwear into your favourite item. It is part of every new experience and reminds you of those magnificent winter days.

black and yellow has been the trademark of Skischule Lech. This photo was taken in 2007.

Tradition unites. For Skischule Lech’s skiing instructors, it’s more than a job. It’s their calling to explore their home in all its facets together with their guests and make ever new experiences along the way. On skis, snowboards or off-piste, alone or in a group: They always give their all.

Wealth of experience. In its more than 90-year history Skischule Lech was able to gather much experience and knowledge that its partner Schöffel can draw on and continuously takes into account in its product development. Based on this close relationship the company provides the skiing instructors with a way to make a personal statement on the slopes. A partnership that stands for one thing above all: A passion and a love for the mountains – going back generations.

Skischule Lech and Schöffel have been benefiting from each other since 1998: One’s experiences flow into the other’s development and production process.

1996, for instance, saw the optimisation of the length of a jacket’s sleeves and a pair of trousers’ side length.

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»IT’S NO PARTICULAR RUN THAT FASCINATES ME. IT’S RATHER THE ENTIRE WIDE-RANGING RESORT – THE MOST BEAUTIFUL IN AUSTRIA.« Wolfgang Schüssel, former Austrian Chancellor, has been coming to Lech Zürs as a guest for 25 years.

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EXERCISEZONE

A matter of passion!

For Lech resident Philip Waldhart, there is no doubt that his passion is what combines work and leisure! In his role as the Managing Director of Sportalp Lech he turns his passion for skiing into a profession. And with the Lech Jazz Stage, the music lover also expresses his enthusiasm for premium tunes. No wonder then, that his guests quickly turn into friends.

ctually, Philip Waldhart has lots of work. In his family-run business that has been in operation for more than 40 years, he and his employees focus on total perfection and flawless service. This is what makes his customers return.

“We love the fact that some regular customers turn into true friends in the course of years of service, which also confirms that we are doing something right,” says Waldhart.

Personal relationships also characterise the atmosphere between him and his suppliers which is why Sportalp offers many brands outside the mainstream such as Kessler Ski, a Swiss high-tech manufacturer that combines traditional workmanship with stateof-the-art technology. Another example is Stereo Ski from Norway for which Philip Waldhart is the only dealer in Austria. Sportalp Lech also stocks the latest Black Diamond off-piste collection.

Perfect service outside the mainstream. Its special service offerings now also includes the iD4 concept by traditional Hohenems-based brand Kaestle. iD4 guarantees hand-made skis individually tailored to the wishes and requirements of its customers. In just a few days, the customer receives a one-off that has no equal in the world.

The overnight ski service, which is often used by customers, also suits the demand for perfect services outside the mainstream. “In the evening, we pick the skis or snowboards up at the hotel. The next day and freshly prepared, they are delivered to the door,” Philip Waldhart explains. Service Manager Klaus Pertermann knows his stuff. After all, he prepares the ÖSV and DSV pro athletes’ boards for the Boardercross World Cup.

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Philip Waldhart

Closeness is essential. Despite the fact that the Waldharts put a lot of work into their Jazz Stage, sometimes, things are astonishingly easy to manage. At least if personal contact is one of your principles. “The first time, I simply went on the Internet to find my preferred candidates’ contact data and asked them if they were interested in coming to Lech.”

They were – and many others after them too. Today, guests and fans from all over Europe come here. Some have even become regulars, according to Philip Waldhart. This is where work and leisure once again merge for the passionate Lech resident: Because customers and guests value closeness and because of it like to return.

LECH & ZÜRS

In his family-run business, Philip Waldhart (l) has been offering perfect service for more than 40 years. This is what makes his customers return.

... runs together with his wife Anna Sportalp Lech as a family business. Apart from his passion for winter sports, his love for music led him to found the Jazz Stage Lech. The festival is a true family business, too.

Mark the date: The next Lech Jazz Stage is scheduled for 7 to 11 August 2019.

DIE NEUE LA LOUPE APP

DAS BESTE IMMER DABEI.

And on the side? How about organising a Jazz Festival?

With the same passion he applies to his customer service and professional skiing Philip Waldhart manages the monumental task of organising what is already his fifth Lech Jazz Stage in his free time and without getting paid for it. The association that organises this festival essentially consists of Philip Waldhart and his son Laurenz who shares his passion for music. His daugther Lina and Philip Waldhart’s wife Anna complete the family team.

This family character is what artists and guests alike hold in high regard. This is why Philip Waldhart once again Managed to recruit high-calibre musicians such as David Six, the Shahin Novrasli Trio and the Paier Valcic Quartet for 2019’s Lech Jazz Stage.

www.laloupe.com

2018/2019 issue

the unusual magazine

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CULTUREZONE The mountains make you see things from an entirely different perspective. Which is why Lech ZĂźrs am Arlberg is not only a sporting highlight but also a go-to place in terms of culture. Concerts, art events, discussion forums and events: Those who are looking for new perspectives will surely find plenty of inspiration.

Nam, ommoluptam nobis es mo volorei cienditem reserun et et quiam explitatur, quamus, estios aut hilluptaqui acid mi, conecatecae ped excesciet voluptur sinvecid exceprovid que netur Quis atios iduciis audit, si alitasit aces dis quam harum volori odisi sa pernatust fugit ullitincta.

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2018/2019 issue

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Alpine play of light When disco gondolas levitate uphill towards Rüfikopf, panorama restaurants and skiing museums turn into night clubs and gigantic projectors defy the freezing temperatures to project light-art creations onto mountain faces it’s time for ‘Fantastic Gondolas’ in Lech. Once a year, the town’s guests are treated to a multi-media event that has no equal in Lech or anywhere else.

reezing temperatures mark the season opener. Double-digit sub-zero temperatures and several metres of fresh snow make most people want to cuddle in front of their fireplace and instead of going out to party late at night.

But that’s not an option this December evening as it’s once again time for the ‘Fantastic Gondolas’ to hover through the night, marking a multi-media music festival with visual art, DJ gondolas and a genre-spanning musical programme – up to 2,400 metres above sea level.

For this one night, many internationally renowned artists come to Lech. The valley station of Rüfikopfbahn is where it all starts.

Fascinating light projections adorn the buildings and make one thing clear to the guests from afar: They have come to the right place! The first beats reach your ear when you step into the valley station. The volume rises as you climb up to the gondolas.

The rather functional building has also changed visually.

The first light installations light up the impressive steel girders of the cable car system and create a club atmosphere.

And while you are waiting for the next gondola, you can’t help but move your feet with the rythm, feel the deep beats reverberate through your entire body and before you know it you are ready to party.

Up the mountain with all the right grooves. Once the gondola arrives and the doors open, you are treated to something really special. For one night the gondolas of Rüfikopfbahn have been turned into disco gondolas, with a DJ set as well as a sound and lighting system. Accompanied by all the right grooves you are taken up the mountain. Lech’s bright and warm lights are quickly becoming smaller until you feel like you hover freely through the night above illuminated islands while the artists provide the fitting soundtrack.

On top of Rüfikopf, 2,350 metres above sea level. When stepping out of the cable car, the freezing cold gets a hold of you but the panorama restaurant and ski museum have been turned into alpine discotheques for one night and are waiting for party-goers. The main stage, however, is located outside. Artists and guests defy the Arctic temperatures. The atmosphere is just to good to be cold. Even if the beer freezes in your glass.

Gigantic visual art installations turn the mountains into spectacular projection surfaces. Reason enough to inadvertently linger for a moment. “Truly a sight to be seen,” a young lad from Ireland who has come to Lech to ski, comments.

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CULTUREZONE

Event manager Udo Kapeller

»PRESSURE IN YOUR EARS!« Udo Kapeller knows a thing or two about large projects. He has been in business for more than 25 years.

The installed the world’s largest Swatch watch on Vienna’s famous Ferris wheel. He realised the projection of 20 sky-scrapers for the emir of Qatar – the projection equipment alone weighed 260 tonnes. Nevertheless: Even for him, the Fantastic Gondolas is a unique experience every time.

From “cineastic” to “fantastic” This year sees the Fantastic Gondolas hover through the night for the ninth time. Many internationally renowned DJs, bands and artists have already visited Lech to play at this festival. It all started with Dr Christof Murr’s initiative in 2010. The Zürs-based physician not only came up with the idea to combine electronic music with visual art in the gondolas and on the mountains, he also significantly shaped the festival as its curator in the first few years. Back then, experimental animation films were shown inside the large gondolas.

Spectacular light creations on the massif and the Rüfikopfbahn’s valley

An award-winning festival

station.

we pull off here,” says Udo Kapeller.

He expected to see perfectly prepared runs, but this? “No way, man!” _How are they doing it? Under a starry sky you realise the extraordinary nature of this art event with which Lech Zürs am Arlberg marks the opening of the season. “Who do they do this up here,” you ask yourself while gazing at the ever changing images this spectacle of light throws onto the slopes.

And even if you finally want to go back down, the atmosphere in the gondolas is still great. The DJs have tailored their sets perfectly to the course layout. Once you have reached the valley floor, the volume slowly decreases. You have come down!

And start heading back home. Once again, you look back on Rüfikopfbahn which – like the mountains that surround it – have turned into a single work of art for one night. These ‘Fantastic Gondolas’ are simply fantastic!

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For Fantastic Gondolas, internationally renowned DJs and artists flock to Lech Zürs. “Before coming here, they cannot even begin to imagine what

ZEITRAUM

At the Global Event Awards 2018, the ‘Fantastic Gondolas’ team had three reasons to celebrate. Among 150 entries from all over the world, the event was awarded in three different categories: Best Art Event: Best Festival: Best Cultural Event:

1st place 2nd place 3rd place

Mr Kapeller, how does one come up with the idea to turn Rüfikopfbahn’s ‘regular’ gondolas into disco gondolas and projecting gigantic works of light-art onto the mountains 2,400 metres above sea level?

“The idea was developed in Lech. Dr Christof Murr initiated and actively accompanied the event which was called Cineastic Gondolas at first. Back then, experimental animation films were shown inside the large gondolas. Electronic music and light installations were already part of the concept, however.”

Talking about light installations: How do you manage that in these conditions?

“Staging such an event high up in the mountains is a challenge, because very heavy and highly technical equipment has to be brought to the site, in the cold, snow and icy winds.

But we do splash out, mind you. And make no mistake – the

technical design down in the valley, in the Rüfikopfbahn’s entrance area, is the most intensive part. Last year, we installed an artificial intestine there.” [laughs] That is quite something. Do you tell the artists what concepts to use?

“That would limit their imagination. They are supposed to let their creativity reign free in this unique location.”

How do you get such an impressive line-up together? Is it the appeal of the extraordinary?

“That’s definitely one part. But first, you need good contacts in the scene. For example, we have connections to the Ars Electronica and the Transmediale in Berlin. Nevertheless, such an event would not be feasible under normal circumstances, not even financially. We have artists working for a fraction of their usual fees.”

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the Fantastic Gondolas itself is the craziest. We can only start remodelling the mountain restaurant and the gondolas at 4 pm since we cannot disturb skiing operations. Then it really gets down to business, after all, the event is supposed to start punctually at 8 pm.“ And what if the weather doesn‘t play nice?

“There is only one obstacle - the wind! Ice and snow don‘t bother us. But from a wind speed of 80 km/h the gondolas are not allowed to run any more. In such a case, we would switch to the town’s clubs but it wouldn’t be the same. Thankfully, we never had to resort to this ‘plan B’ so far.”

“But by now, everybody is happy when the ‘crazy artists from Vienna’ turn up again.”

Because of your good contacts and the location?

“Yes, but it’s also about the fact that Lech is such an excellent host. The first time we ask artists to perform here they can barely imagine what we are doing here. Spinning records inside gondolas going and high up in the mountains themselves?

But everybody knows hotels like Hotel Post in Lech. Spending the night there is something special even for DJs that are paid 20,000 Euros for a single performance.”

Does that mean that the hotel owners support the event?

“All of Lech supports us in ever respect which is simply awesome! I would like to thank the municipality, Lech Zürs Tourism, the Tourism Committee, the hotel owners and the entire population. I am frequently asked how we manage to stage an event like Fantastic Gondolas. My answer to this is: It is only possible thanks to the support on site. We couldn’t do it without that.”

The event already stands out a bit in the calendar of events of a renowned and tradition-conscious ski resort, doesn‘t it?

“Of course it is a little crazy, there’s no doubt about that! But extraordinary events always have a high marketing value too. It has been a feature of Lech Zürs for some time now that its people are open to new developments. Some of them were a little sceptical in the beginning. But by now, everybody is happy when the ‘crazy artists from Vienna’ turn up again.”

An event that is relaxed and perhaps a bit ‘crazy’ often requires meticulous planning and professional implementation.

How do you experience the festival as the person in charge?

“Our team is on site for about ten days. Of course, the day of

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Don‘t certain artist get cold feet in the gondolas, with them going up and down all the time while they are working?

“Not necessarily, but it is tough doing that for hours on end.

That‘s why the DJs in the gondolas switch hourly. The difference in height also means additional pressure on their ears, on top of that produced by their own music!”

And how about yourself? Do you join the party once the starting signal has been given?

“Some time in the morning, yes. We close the large stage on Rüfikopf at two in the morning. The dismantling then goes on until about four o‘clock. After that, I check if everything is going well in the clubs in town. This is where the event continues, after all.

And that’s when I also join the party. I don‘t sleep from Saturday to Sunday. But that’s normal in this industry. But on Sunday it’s all over for me as well!”

Fantastic Gondolas 2018: 7 to 8 December

SITTING ON THE SUNNY SIDE OF LIFE. Welcome to the sun terrace of the BURG! In Oberlech, surrounded by nature and with views of the impressive mountain landscape.

And in addition to the breathtaking views, you‘ll also be pampered by our service with feel-good cuisine and Austrian culinary delights.

Whether summer or winter, you can rely on us to provide those very special moments of happiness – and we look forward to seeing you!

Lucian Family | Burg Hotel | Oberlech 266 | 6764 Lech am Arlberg | Austria | Tel +43 (0)5583 2291 | Fax -12 | info@burghotel-lech.com | www.burghotel-lech.com

DESIGN LUXUS PUR www.höttges.at

Udo Kapeller ... has been a successful event manager for 25 years. He doesn’t get much sleep during the Fantastic Gondolas event. But that’s normal in this industry.

Internationales Topdesign auf 1.280 m2 in unserem Showroomin Dornbirn.

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MINOTTI . B&B ITALIA . VITRA . CASSINA . MOOOI . WITTMANN . EDRA . POLTRONA FRAU . KNOLL . THONET . ARPER

CULTUREZONE

Of musical genius, lightning quick Dirndl dresses and contemporary philosophers

Dirndl extravaganza on the slopes In cooperation with Kästle, Lech has something truly special in store to bring the skiing season to a fitting close. This event is not about the fastest times or best results: The Kästle Dirndl Ski Day rather invites the ladies to showcase their pretty dirndl dresses on the slopes. For the season finale 2018 the event for the first time also invited the gentlemen to make an appearance in matching lederhosen and take part in a jolly downhill run with folk music and powder snow. But that’s not all: Fun on the mountain is followed by the obligatory aprés ski party. The next Ski Day in colourful traditional dress is scheduled for 6 April 2019.

In full swing The first two weeks of April are devoted to dancing ‘like they used to’ to contemporary tunes. This time, after all, is when everybody in and around Lech Zürs is infected with Tanzcafé Fever which can be put to good use to bring a magificent day of skiing to a fitting end. From swing and jazz to rock ‘n’ roll and boogie woogie or electro swing and pop: The ultimate vintage music festival makes entire ski lodges, hotels and bars shake to the music. Supported by a dreamy Alpine backdrop, singers dressed in 1930s attire or musicians sporting genuine rockabilly looks rock their audience with top-class tunes. No wonder then, that within minutes even the last member of the audience is shaking his hips. 1 to 18 April 2019 will see the next iteration of this event.

Philosophic thoughts against a magnificent backdrop It is one of the most renowned humanist symposia in the German-speaking world: For more than twenty years, Philosophicum Lech has attracted famous contemporary thinkers to meet for a varied and laid-back exchange of ideas. Whether humanities scholars or physicians, they all discuss contemporary socially relevant issues: among themselves and with an interested audience. The Arlberg’s breathtaking Alpine panorama supports every participant with giving their thoughts free reign or take a brake from elaborating and seeing the world from a new perspective high up on one of the many summits. The motto of 2018’s event was “Hell. The Culture of the Unbearable”. 2019’s 23rd Philosophicum Lech takes place from 25 to 29 September and focuses on the topic “The values of the few. Elites and democracy”. www.philosophicum.com

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HIGH TIMES Event calendar December 2018 to October 2019

6.4.2019 Lech / Rüfikopf Rüfi 900 6.4.2019 Lech Zürs 4th Int. KÄSTLE Dirndl Ski Day 12.4.2019 Auenfeldjet Gondolas and Wine

DECEMBER 2018

JANUARY 2019

20.-22.4.2019 Burgplateau Oberlech 24th Oberlech Spring Festival

29.11.-1.12.2018 Lech 12th European Media Summit

1.1.2019 Edelweißplatz Zürs Acoustic Fireworks

28.4.2019 Lech Zürs End of Season

30.11.2018 Lech Zürs am Alrlberg Season Opening

17.1.2019 Zürs The White Ring – The Speed Race

30.11.–1.12.2018 Zürs 7th Snow & Safety Conference

19.1.2019 Rüfikopf Bergstation The White Ring – The Race

1.12.2018 Lech Zürs Snow, Stars & Barbecue

23.1. + 26.1.2019 Lech Zürs Freeride Safety Camp

4.12.2018 Rüfiplatz Lech Advent Concert

26.1.-2.2.2019 Lech Zürs Ski Club Arlberg Week

4.-8.12.2018 Lech Zürs ‘Alrberg Weinberg’ in its new format

FEBRUARY 2019

7.-8.12.2018 Lech Fantastic Gondolas

2.-3.2.2019 Lech Zürs freeridecamps.at

8.-9.12.2018 Zug Zug Christmas Market 11.12.2018 Rüfiplatz Lech Advent Concert 13.12.2018 Lech Zürs Reading of Christmas stories 14.-17.12.2018 Kirchplatz Lech Lech Christmas Market 18.12.2018 Rüfiplatz Lech Advent Concert 20.12.2018 Lech Zürs Reading of Christmas stories 25.12.2018 Zürs Santa Claus is coming to Zürs

2.-15.2.2019 Lech Zürs Meisterstraße 19.-20.2.2019 Lech Women’s FIS Slalom

MARCH 2019

JUNE 2019 19.6.2019 Lech Season Opening 26.6.2019 Golfplatz Zug Arlberg Classic Car Rally golf tournament 27.6.-30.6.2019 Lech Arlberg Classic Car Rally 29.6.-4.7.2019 Lech Summer School

JULY 2019 4.-7.7.2019 Lech Medicinicum 13.7.2019 Lech Village Festival Lech 19.-21.7.2019 Fischteich Zug Anglers’ Festival

9.-15.3.2019 Lech Zürs Meisterstraße

27.7.2019 Lech Lech Musicians’ Day

APRIL 2019

28.7.-2.8.2019 sport.park.lech Football Camp Lech

1.-18.4.2019 Lech Zürs Tanzcafé Arlberg Music Festival

AUGUST 2019 7.-11.8.2019 Postgarage Lech Lech Jazz Festival 11.8.2019 Rüfikopf Lech Laurentius Night 17.8.2019 Lech Zürs The White Ring – The Summer Challenge 22.-25.8.2019 Lech Zürs Grand Arlberg Scootering 24.8.2019 Lech Trans Vorarlberg Triathlon 31.8.-1.9.2019 Lech GoreTex

SEPTEMBER 2019 7.-8.9.2019 Lech 3rd Lech Literature Days 14.9.2019 Golfplatz Lech Best of the Alps Golf Tournament 18.-22.9.2019 Neue Kirche Lech 23nd Philosophicum Lech

OCTOBER 2019 6.10.2018 Lech End of Season

You can find detailed information on all events in our event calendar at www.lechzuers.at/veranstaltungen.

Programme subject to changes.

29.7.-3.8.2019 Neue Kirche Lech 8th Lech Classic Festival

5.-7.4.2019 Zürs 2nd Zürs Street Food Festival 86

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CULTUREZONE

»ABUNDANCE LEADS TO WEARINESS«

»THE MANY ENCOUNTERS BETWEEN MEDICAL PROFESSIONALS AND PHILOSOPHERS SHOW THAT THEY HAVE LOTS TO TALK ABOUT.« Prof. Dr. Wilhelm Schmid, answering the question of what the Medicinicum means to him

Renowned speakers, exciting panel discussions and a varied programme have earned Medicinicum Lech its excellent reputation among experts and laypeople alike. Every year, it highlights pressing topics on health, well-being and quality of life over several days, always with an interdisciplinary and practical approach.

he fifth Medicinicum took place in July 2018 and dealt with the central theme of ‘Indulgence – Addiction – Health. On the Art of Correct and Healthy Indulgence.’ A matter that couldn‘t be more topical and elementary for our quality of life. Why you might ask? Indulgence leads to well-being and health, prolonging and enriching our lives. But when does indulgence turn into a sickening addiction?

Prof. Dr. Wilhelm Schmid, a philosopher and best-selling author, for whom it is already the second speaking assignment at Medicinicum Lech and who deals with this topic in his latest book Selbstfreundschaft – Wie das Leben leichter wird (literally ‘How to like yourself and make your life easier’), and others attempted to answer these questions.

This place radiates the atmosphere and ambience that invites you to engage in discussion.

Mr Schmid, your lecture in Lech was titled Caviar or Asceticism. May we ask why?

Asceticism doesn’t exactly enjoy a good image. And yet it is capable of increasing pleasure. Asceticism is a matter of training. In sports, the role of exercise is well known and it can also be translated to eating or loving. Practice makes perfect.

Caviar, on the other hand, is not important and can left out of our diet easily.

What about yourself: do you prefer caviar or asceticism?

For me, it’s more like coffee or asceticism. [Laughs] And I have made the experience that the restraint I have to exercise with coffee for health reasons is incredibly beneficial to enjoyment.

And what is your book Selbstfreundschaft – Wie das Leben leichter wird (literally ‘How to like yourself and make your life easier’) all about?

Is it possible that people in our modern societies drift more and more into increased narcissism? I would like to suggest how a positive relationship with one’s own self can be established in other ways.

Why is it so important to like oneself?

To be able to also treat other people well and making life easier. Too much ‘me’ can obstruct the path to a happy life. Other people don’t like to help people who are too self-absorbed.

How can I learn to like myself?

Sensuality is a good tool. Our senses allow us to establish a good relationship with ourselves. We can treat ourselves with pleasures of seeing, hearing, smelling, tasting and touching and those who are better at enjoying things are happier in life and can generally deal with themselves better. Such people also have less difficulty with establishing contact with other people.

In your book, you write that indulgence is not possible and reasonable all the time. Why is that?

Because all indulgence involves substances that are used up in the process such as serotonin, dopamine, noradrenalin and endorphins. These can be regenerated but for that, you have to take breaks.

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Medicinicum Lech 2019 will take place from 4 to 7 July.

Its central topic will be the relationship between economy and ecology. If we do not get the greed of the unleashed economy under control, we will face ecological disasters! www.medicinicum.at

Are we coming down with the ‘overindulgence’ of our age?

Abundance leads to weariness and people notice that in themselves when they happen do go too far. When people think that life is always supposed to be jolly they risk to constantly look for the next buzz and never taking a break which is a sure path to addiction.

What insights will take home from 2018’s Medicinum?

Spermidin was completely new to me, I had never heard of that before. According to the latest findings, it helps with cell regeneration which is interesting in terms of the ageing process. It is found in soy beans and matured cheese, which I like to eat anyway. Additionally, the event provided us with the opportunity to experience the effects of barley water. That there is not only theory, but also the opportunity for practical application

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is something I don‘t experience that often at conferences. Said barley water strengthens the immune system. In Great Britain, you can buy it in the supermarket and even the Queen uses it, but I don’t think she buys it in the supermarket herself.

Prof. Dr. Wilhelm Schmid ... has long devoted himself as a philosopher to the topic “The Art of Living”. The Berliner-bychoice also taught at German and international universities on this topic, is giving talks and writes successful books.

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guests, playing music, laughing and having a good time. One could call them pioneers of après ski that the ice and hotel bars of the Arlberg region already practised in a big way back then, says the Museum Manager and laughs.

station to Lech until about 1951,” says Monika Gärtner. This brought a new and lucrative profession to the Arlberg region, at least until the sleigh drivers had to look for a different job when motorised vehicles began to succeed the sleighs.

»SOME 30 VILLAGE RESIDENTS HAVE LOANED US THEIR EARLY MEMENTOS«

It should therefore come as no surprise that the young farmers’ sons were sent off to become ski instructors by their parents once the horses had been sold. Small shops making ski gear and boots also ‘spontaneously sprung up’ in the Arlberg region. “Stretch trousers were practically made overnight for guests who had just arrived. The workshops employed up to ten tailors who frequently had to work night shifts,” Monika Gärtner reports.

Birgit Heinrich, Archiver

Tracking skiing culture on the Arlberg Skiing and the Arlberg have been inextricably linked for more than 100 years. But what traces has skiing left on the region, not only on its runs but in the landscape and in society? The latest exhibition staged by Lechmuseum in the ‘Huber-Hus’ attempts to follow these cultural and historical tracks with an exciting mix of objects and various media. ‘Tracks’, the name of the exhibition stands for itself.

Tourism creates professions. The journey through time continues on the first floor for this is where the actual exhibition awaits to be discovered in several stages. It was initiated by the ski.kultur.arlberg association headed by the municipality’s archiver Birgit Heinrich. Ethnologist Bernhard Tschofen from the University of Zurich, Monika Gärtner, Birgit Heinrich and designer Sabine Maghörndl comprise the exhibition’s organising team.

Instantly, one’s gaze is directed to an impressive old horse-drawn sleigh. “It was used to bring guests from the Langen train

Culture comes in many forms. Room by room, we continue tracing ski culture in the Arlberg region, every one of them following a different theme, highlighting special features. In one of them, visitors learn, for instance, how the pioneers of skiing turned the Arlberg into a laboratory for gear and techniques. Or, how the region became legendary and renowned around the world as a skiing paradise through the big skiing films of the 1920s and 1930s. “It was an entirely new and captivating imagery,” Birgit Heinrich, who has come to the Huber-Hus, opines. Snow and skiing itself, the exhibition presents via a sound installation, allowing visitors to identify “typical sounds such as those produced by ski buckles, edges and lifts.” Naturally, it was important to the organising

etting foot in the 440-year-old Walserhaus in the centre of Lech, one is immediately taken back to times long past.

The originally furnished, timber-lined living and working areas on the ground floor give an idea of how life in the village would have looked like, even just a few decades ago. For before the Arlberg region was discovered by the skiers, Lech had predominantly been a village of farmers.

Homely ambience. And yet, it was mostly local families that brought ski tourism to the village, offering accommodation in their homes, just like “the three Huber brothers, the last members of their family to live in this house,” as Museum Manager Monika Gärtner explains. It was thanks to people like the Hubers that the Arlberg region’s hospitality and homely atmosphere became widely renowned. Up to this day, the region attracts many regular guests. “They come home to their host family,” Monika Gärtner says with a smile.

Even though the simple lodgings have long turned into comfortable hotels and bed and breakfasts, they have retained their homely charm.

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The villagers’ mementos let the history of skiing culture on the Arlberg come to life.

“When ski tourism grew in popularity all the way into the 1960s, spending jovial evenings with the hosts in the parlour after a long day of skiing was very common,” Monika Gärtner reports, sitting at the large parlour table in the Hubers’ former living room. She has placed photos from back then on the table, showing the Huber brothers sitting at this very table with their

Museum Manager Monika Gärtner shows us one of the gems of the Tracks exhibition: This horse-drawn sleigh was used to transport guests in the early 1950s.

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Tracks – An Exhibition on the Culture of Skiing will run until 28 April 2019 in the Lechmuseum Opening hours: Tuesdays, Thursdays and Sundays from 3 to 6 pm Guided tours can be arranged for groups and school by appointment (admission: voluntary contribution) www.lechmuseum.at www.ski.kultur.arlberg.at

Book

Spuren: Skikultur am Arlberg (ISBN 978-3950270662) Tschofen Bernhard, Dettling Sabine, Bregenz, Bertolini Verlag 2014 Available in the Huber-Hus, at Lech Zürs Tourismus, at Servicecenter Lech and in book shops.

he lightness � of celebrating.

team, to also give contemporary witnesses a voice. “Some 30 village residents have loaned us their early mementos,” the municipality’s archiver Birgit Heinrich reports. The objects are being exhibited in a large display cases. “We have also interviewed these people to hear the stories behind the objects and have placed quotes from those interviews in the cases for the visitors to read.”

Everyone’s invited to participate. The organisers had about one year to fill the exhibition with life. ‘Spuren’ starts in the late 19th century and initially ends in the 1960s. “We are still scientifically researching and documenting the years after that,” says Monika Gärtner.

Museum Manager Monika Gärtner (l) and ski.kultur.arlberg Chair and Archiver Birgit Heinrich ... in front of the Huber-Hus which alone

The residents of the Arlberg region and its guests are invited to contribute their bit of skiing culture. “Tell us your story and contribute your mementos,” ski.kultur.arlberg asks on a board in the Huber-Hus. Those who chose to support the association with its further projects receive a cushion with an original Skischule Lech starting number from the 1960s.

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Photos from OctaviaplusKlaus Photo+Film

can tell many a story about the culture of skiing.

Romantik Hotel „Die Krone von Lech“ Familie Pfefferkorn Dorf 13 6764 Lech am Arlberg Österreich Telefon: +43 5583 2551 email@kronelech.at www.kronelech.at 2018/2019 issue

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CULTUREZONE

Lech Literature Days

Language that stirs the soul Alpine spaces have always provided authors and artists with inspiration. In Lech they turn into a reading room once a year. Poetry slammer Lukas Wagner has become the curator and host of the Lech Literature Days in 2018. He makes sure that different types of literature are presented by means of entirely new possibilities in which authors and listeners can meet. What is important to him is to turn language into an experience – from the first to the last second.

“I am convinced that art is only sustainable if one can or wants to identify with it to a certain extent,” says Lukas Wagner (l).

The Literature Days’ programme is therefore a varied mix between poetry slam and literary reading. Here, listeners can fully engage with the texts, the language and the power of words.

Unique natural stage. During the latest poetry slam in 2018 amateur poets, word artists and professional authors from the German-speaking world competed for the audience’s favour with their self-written texts. And all of that in the middle of the Kriegeralpe’s mountain landscape some 2,000 metres above sea level. The Literature Breakfast in the Rüfikopf’s panoramic restaurant with a literary reading by Barbi Marković marked another highlight. The author read experpts from her novel Superheldinnen for which she received the Adelbert von Chamisso Prize 2017, among others.

The Literature Days were rounded off by exciting readings by comedian and author Markus Kozuh and Swiss author Jolanda Spirit-Zünd on top of Rüfikopf.

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“I like this combination,” says Lukas Wagner. For him, language is simply ‘amazingly versatile’. While some listeners are blown away by the interaction with the performers on stage, others simply want to lean back and let the images wash over them.

“The combination between nature, mastery of language and this type of programme all but guarantees a great experience.”

Encounter at eye level. Lukas Wagner himself has been performing as a poetry slammer in Germany, Austria and Switzerland for more than nine years. Over the years he has not only established a network, but also a feeling for what line-up fits what event. He wants to offer a stage to people who are passionate about their work and have dedicated themselves to their art. A stage, for him, is a means to bring people together.

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Schlegelkopf lift 200 m

Oberlech cable car 50 m

Lukas Wagner is convinced. During the Literature Days, in conversations with the audience, he was able to determine the enthusiasm with which the people went out of their ideas.

Important award: The audience decides who will take home the grand

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Breathtaking performances. The level of appreciation from the guests and the event’s partners as well as the openness and hospitality of Lech in general makes one’s heart rejoice, he says with a smile and recalls a cherished memory: “After the premiere of the 2017 Literature Days, we were having dinner with the artists at Burghotel Oberlech. Suddenly, a guest approached us out of nowhere.” He told us how much he had loved the artists’ performances and that he had decided close to midnight to buy a book. ‘Written by whom,’ we wanted to know to which he replied: ‘By all of you!’” That, says Lukas Wagner, was a moment in which he realised that Lech is where quality lives.

skibex.at

Schlosskopf lift 200 m

prize at the Lech Literature Days.

“With the right instinct, you can achieve that performers and guests meet at eye level, which makes age differences disappear an invites them to have a dialogue.”

Experiencing the diversity of language. Poetry-slams, according to Lukas Wagner, are similar to contests aimed to test mastery of language. The performing artists compete against each other. The basis is their interaction with the audience.

For it is the audience that – once the artists have used u their allotted time – decide who will reign victorious in the end. “Those who experience this for the first time quickly find out how diverse language is when listening to various artists on stage,”

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Sowing artistic seeds. In 2018, as the new curator of the Lech Literature Days, he first collected experiences and thoughts on the event’s future orientation. “This year, if you will, we have sowed a seed that is supposed to grow into a gigantic tree over the coming years, bearing modern, artistic fruits in the areas of language arts and literature.”

The next Lech Literature Days will take place from 7 to 8 September 2019. sport.park.lech - The meeting place for athletes The sport.park.lech with its 580 m² offers plenty of space for exercise: Fitness centre with one cardio, strength and free weight area, large aerobics studio, 140 m² sauna area with a relaxation area and panoramic view into nature. Furthermore there is a tennis court, four bowling alleys and sport.park.cafe with delicious vitamin drinks and live football broadcasts. sport.park.lech Strass 456 6764 Lech am Arlberg Tel.: +43 (0) 5583 418 50

www.sport-park-lech.at office@sport-park-lech.at www.facebook.com/sport.park.lech

Opening hours:: Winter: Sun - Fr: 10:00 a.m. – 11:00 p.m.

Sat: 3:00 p.m. – 11:00 p.m.

Summer: Tue – Sun: 03:00 – 10:00 p.m.

Monday: Rest day

Closer to the artists Once a year, truly heavenly music reverberates from the walls of the New Church in Lech, when the Lech Classic Festival wows up to 2,500 guests from near and far. Organiser Marlies Wagner tells us what makes this event so special and what listeners can look forward to in 2019. The Vorarlberg native and classical music expert used to present the ORF TV show “Meister von morgen” and has recruited the best young artists from that time for the Festival.

Ms Wagner, the Lech Classic Festival is known for being particularly close to the artists. Was the New Church in Lech chosen for this reason?

The Church’s interior was actually the main factor when it came to the decision to establish a classical music festival. It is excellently suited as a concert hall in terms of its arrangement and, of course, in terms of its outstanding acoustics. In it, soloists, orchestras, choirs and the audience form a single unit, creating a special interdependence between artist and audience.

What is this special interdependence based on?

Due to their physical proximity, the audience and the musicians meet each other at eye level. Through this closeness, the audience can fully grasp the orchestras’ and soloists’ performances which cannot be achieved in traditional concert halls.

This atmosphere of encounter must be experienced.

All the concerts in the framework of this festival have the character of a gala ...

This country stages a lot of chamber music festivals. They come and go. We have decided to offer a repertoire that significantly differs from chamber music festivals by establishing a festival orchestra and a festival choir. In this spirit, we don’t utilise the common concert pattern of overture – soloist concert – symphony but a sequence of ‘musical highlights’ in the

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form of our gala concerts. Outstanding solo singers and instrumentalists are always accompanied by an orchestra which distinguishes us from large festivals.

What criteria are used to select the artists?

Quality is paramount. Many of the soloists are personal friends or acquaintances which makes working with them easier for all those involved. The musicians that make up the orchestra and choir are individually selected by me. These young professionals are recruited from top European orchestras and love to play in their vacation time. The choir’s members all sing in renowned Viennese choirs.

NO-ONE LOOKS FOR PRODUCTS. WE ALL LOOK FOR SOLUTIONS. CONTENT MARKETING REQUIRES THE COURAGE TO KEEP THE PRODUCT IN THE BACKGROUND.

Would you like to provide us with a little outlook on the next Lech Classic Festival?

The 2019 Festival will be staged under the heading ‘Romantic Journeys’. Among others, we will perform Verdi’s Requiem and Vincenzo Bellini’s Norma, possibly the most beautiful Italian romantic opera ever written. But there will also be surprises. We want to give a unique, highly gifted young violin player a platform for her future career.

The 2019 Lech Classic Festival takes place from 30 July to 3 August.

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www.agentur-contur.com

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MOTORZONE Up to this day, the legend of the Arlberg is strongly shaped by a pioneering spirit. It gave rise to technological milestones as well as unique events such as the Arlberg Classic Car Rally which attracts participants from all over the world. And it always dedicated people who have committed themselves entirely to their passion.

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A rally like no other Experiencing breath-taking Alpine scenery with friends – the Arlberg Classic Car Rally 2018’s motto beautifully captures this motorsports event’s special character. The participating vintage car enthusiasts and drivers know each other as do the guests who spend their summer holidays in Lech Zürs at the foot of Arlberg mountain. Doris Mittwoch, regarded by many as the ‚heart‘ of the event can usually be found in the thick of it, surrounded by roaring engines.

nd yet Doris Mittwoch never loses here composure. She treats all participants of the Arlberg Classic Car Rally with the same warmth, always having a friendly smile on her lips when talking to drivers, guests or journalists and always answering questions expertly and patiently. It comes as no surprise that perfect and appropriate organisation is obligatory when it comes to an event of this calibre. And yet, Lech Zürs adds a little extra.

Among friends. “You can achieve perfect organisation anywhere else but this place offers more: It makes you feel like you‘re part of a family,” reports Doris Mittwoch. The motorsports expert should know, having organised numerous petrol-related events and rallies in Austria and abroad. She has been part of the Arlberg Classic Car Rally team since day one in 2010. “Our deliberate goal was to create a small but outstanding rally. We didn’t want a huge event.” Nevertheless, the entry list contains a whopping 120 teams of drivers with many more having originally applied for a spot. These are highly sought after which led the organising team to award the first 40 percent of spots to first-time participants every year. Doris Mittwoch’s main focus is on personal contact, on site as well as during the run-up to the event. “In the morning, I walk up to every single car. I gladly take that time. We put ‘with friends’ on our banners for a reason, after all.”

The sense of community that runs through the ‚band‘ of drivers exemplifies how amiably the participants and organisers treat each other. Lech Zürs offers the perfect backdrop: During the evening events, the teams can exchange their experiences behind the wheel in a relaxed atmosphere. The experts love to talk shop and enjoy the high-class culinary offers and atmospheric programme together with all other guests. “This year, for instance, we invited the participants to Rud-Alpe to incorporate that all-important local flair even more strongly,” says Doris Mittwoch.

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Unique Alpine panorama. Apart from all that welcoming atmosphere, the drivers are most impressed by the rally’s stages that lead them through truly breathtaking scenery. From taking a lunch break with a magnificent view of Zugspitze mountain to approaching the majestic Säntis on the stage running through the Appenzeller Land region: “What can I say? This place is simply amazing,” says Doris Mittwoch, admitting that she never gets tired of the region’s Alpine panorama. “Being able to set up such a rally is a great experience for me and my team. And our good spirits and joy are transferred to the guests.”

»BEING ABLE TO SET UP SUCH A RALLY IS A GREAT EXPERIENCE FOR OUR TEAM.« Doris Mittwoch Stages running through breathtaking scenery await the drivers.

Marcel Drexel, the event’s new manager seeks to further strengthen this spirit. The 27-year-old took over from Michael Junginger in 2018. 2019 will mark the tenth anniversary of the Classic Car Rally and the team will surely think of something truly special to mark the occasion. “Our heads are bursting with ideas for our anniversary and we are already planning at full steam. As soon as one event is completed, the focus shifts to the next one, you know.”

2018 Arlberg Classic Car Rally – the results are in!

123 teams from 14 countries participated.

Cars from 37 different brands, dating from 1925 to 1975, were lined up on the starting line.

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“VORARLBERGERIN” on tour Two female readers of Vorarlbergerin magazine could hardly believe their luck: They had won a spot on the highly coveted entry list of this year’s Arlberg Classic Car Rally. Cornelia Ammann, the magazine’s director and Editor Margot Uccia also took part in a Mercedes 500 1985 and gave the professionals a run for their money as early as the second day.

Margot, you were here last year, reporting on the Arlberg Classic Car Rally for Vorarlbergerin. This year, you guys are participating yourselves.

Margot Uccia: : Last year, Doris Mittwoch suggested to me to become part of a team to experience the rally up close from beginning to end and collect the impressions that constitute its special appeal. I went right up to Conny and asked her if she wanted to form a team.

Tomorrow is the rally’s last day. What do you have planned for the last leg?

Cornelia Ammann: Of course, we will once more go over the road book tonight to make sure we are perfectly prepared. It’s a lot about speed but also skills. The more serious you take the tasks the more exciting it gets.

Margot Uccia: And of course, we are can’t wait for the big sendoff event tomorrow. We‘ve met so many nice people in such a short time that we have to celebrate this with a fitting farewell.

Nothing is more powerful then the right idea at the right time

Will you be back for the tenth anniversary next year?

Cornelia Ammann: Yes, absolutely! We have both been bitten by the racing bug.

We help

How long did it take you to make a decision?

Cornelia Ammann: We don’t have to think long when it comes to pretty things! What’s more, it’s really easy to take part, even as a beginner. The whole rally is extremely well organised and the instructions are perfect. You quickly become part of the community of drivers, making that genuine ‚rally feeling‘ manifest quickly.

you

with that

Which is not to be underestimated. Just today, you spent five and a half hours in the car.

Cornelia Ammann: That’s true, but it was a joy and entirely free from overzealousness! We arrived just as relaxed as we left. This is supposed to be fun, after all. But make no mistake: Despite the fact we were non-points-scoring participants, we did become a little competitive every now and then.

Margot Uccia: After all, you don‘t just drive from A to B, but have to complete regularity stages, for instance. Even small deviations result in points deductions. But we did pretty well together, I think.

Cornelia Ammann (r) and Margot Uccia

How did you go about dividing the tasks?

Cornelia Ammann: Margot sits behind the wheel and I hold the road book in my role as co-driver.

Margot Uccia: And that’s an important task! Conny tells me where I have to go. And as a driver, you have to be able to trust these instructions.

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... report on the finer things in life for the VORARLBERGERIN magazine This is why they

LED-UV-Print | High-Grade Finishings | Shop-Solutions | Translation Management

have a strong connection with Lech, but their participation in the Classic Car Rally 2018 was a premiere for both ladies.

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Prince Leopold behind the wheel of the BMW 3.0 CSL.The great-grandson of Ludwig I came to Lech

Prince Leopold of Bavaria:

Zürs for the first time to participate in the Arlberg Classic Car Rally.

His Royal Highness drives a BMW ing Ludwig I’s great-grandson is descended from the Wittelsbachs, a more than 800-year-old noble family, and yet only ever had race cars in mind. He gained his first experience of driving a car on the chauffeur’s lap, turning the wheel of a VW Beetle. Later, against the wishes of his family, Prince Leopold of Bavaria actually pursued a career as a race car driver. Today, he serves as a brand ambassador for BMW Classic.

Prince Leopold, is this your first time in Lech Zürs?

Yeah, it‘s hard to believe, but it‘s true.

You are piloting a BMW 3.0 CSL 1973. How do you like the Arlberg Classic Car Rally so far?

I love it! It’s simply a joy being able to drive these fantastic cars on roads as magnificent as these.

Your family has a deep connection to Austria, after all.

Yes, and a highly personal one, too. Today, we passed the town

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of Hinterhornbach, a place I remember well as we used to accompany our grandfather there when he went there to hunt.

Today, I took a photo of the house we used to stay in. 65 years had passed since I had last stayed there. That was a deeply emotional moment for me.

May we hope to see you on the entry list again next year?

That depends on what BMW decides. I would personally be thrilled to once again participate and I will never forget what a breathtakingly beautiful event the Arlberg Classic Car Rally is.

There‘s no such thing anywhere else?

Of course there are similar events. But it’s the passion of the people, the perfect organisation and the glorious landscape that makes Lech Zürs special! The people here understand how tourism should ideally look like, starting with how friendly and courteously one is always treated here. The guests simply feel great here and that makes them want to come back, myself being the best example.

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A world first in Lech Zürs: August 2018 saw the inception of the world’s highest scooter meeting – the Grand Arlberg Scootering. This new event is sure to ‘power to’ a special place in the international scooter scene in the coming years. Organisers Nicole Egger and Franz Schmalzl, at least, are convinced of this.

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Magnificent rides and a full programme: Vespa and scooter enthusiasts met in Lech Zürs 1,450 metres above sea level.

or four days, Lech and its mountains are firmly in the grasp of some 300 Vespa and scooter drivers from all over Europe. The Grand Arlberg Trophy, a two-day scooter rally, during which 100 participants determined their superior in regularity and stamped runs, special stages and a test of skills marked the centre piece of their meeting. The winner received a trophy made from genuine quartz.

Something for every taste. On top of that, the Vespa and scooter aficionados were able to enjoy leisurely rides into the Alps on their neat and lovingly decorated vehicles. Live music and performance art shows as well as scooter acrobats completed the framework programme. “Some riders only want to enjoy such a meeting, others want to spend as much time on the road as possible and others still want to return home as winners. My goal was to offer our participants as many incentives as possible to shape their time here to their liking,” says Franz Schmalzl about the reason behind the comprehensive programme of Lech‘s first scooter meeting.

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For enthusiasts by enthusiasts. The experienced organisers have themselves been riding Vespas since they were teenagers.

Today, they are the proud owners of an impressive collection of vehicles from the 1950s and 1960s which they alternately use on the road. Franz Schmalzl quickly realised that a scooter meeting would work well even in Lech. “Lech offers a perfect backdrop.

It’s a fantastic region offering outstanding hospitality and an ideal infrastructure,” he summarises its advantages.

The first iteration of the Grand Arlberg Scootering attracted riders from seven nations who went at it with full enthusiasm: “Thank you for the magic of Lech, it was awesome,” one participant, Klaus Altenhofer, wrote to the organisers.

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2018/2019 issue

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Scooters to Arlberg

BA H N SCHLOSSKCOHPFB A H N OBERLE

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Series: Arlberg Pioneers | Michael Manhart

The “Snow Pope” of Lech He’s always been a restless character, Michael Manhart admits. Visiting the ‘Snow Pope of Lech’ in his realm, one might be forgiven to doubt that. Despite the fact that he is surrounded by blueprints, files and notes in his spacious office, he seems to be well-balanced, as they say. Only when Manhart starts talking about his eventful life, it becomes clear that stagnation is a word not found in his vocabulary.

ne could say that Michael Manhart is driven by his own passion, listing his hobby of hunting as an early example. “But not because of shooting guns. I also wanted to watch the animals. Study them, understand the game and its social behaviour.” This drive to observe and comprehend things and subsequently create something new, like his snow cannon, is still with him.

His father had been born in Carinthia yet worked for BASF in Ludwigshafen in Germany his entire life. This is why Michael Manhart was born in nearby Heidelberg. However, he attributes the fact that – at 76 – he is still an active cable car operator, to his grandfather. Sepp Bildstein had not only been a legendary and successful skier but is also regarded as a pioneer of ski lift construction in Austria as he had been responsible for the construction of 15 ski lifts in the Lech Zürs area. Some of them remain part of the White Ring Race – which was also initiated by Bildstein – to this day.

Of cable car DNA and one’s own slow pace. “The cable car DNA is in our family’s blood,” says Manhart. Despite that, he will one day have to deal with letting go, when it becomes time to pass the business on to someone else so that he might have more time for all the other important things of the life, besides work. For this year he is planning a time-out in Africa with his grandchildren. Talking about it, it sounds like leisure time is so valuable to him because he doesn’t get much. Time for people who are close to this restless soul.

In the same matter-of-fact way he uses to describe himself as

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restless, Manhart also says of himself: “Deep inside, I‘m a very laid-back person. And back when I was a teenager, I was even rather lazy. But at one point, I said to myself that I have to get a move on, so I enrolled in mechanical engineering at Stuttgart University and started studying hard to minimise the risk of failing at exams. And then I suddenly became a celebrity.” [laughs] Blowing the competition out of the water with his selfbuilt snow cannon! What might sound a lot like self-praise if it came from any other person’s lips appears factual and obvious if uttered by Michael Manhart, possibly because, even at a young age, he impressed many with his deeds that were in no way inferior to his words. “I spent the winter of 1972/1973 in the US and Western Canada. There, I explored how making snow works.” He was immediately convinced of the idea of ensuring snow-covered runs all winter using technology. But it wasn’t the technology itself. “I saw how these cannons worked and started thinking how one could improve them. Their machines were making bad snow and caused lots of noise!”

So he simply started tinkering himself. “I built my first cannon in my garage and it worked flawlessly from the beginning. And not only that, it actually performed twice as well as the existing products!” Backed by heaps of self-confidence, Manhart once more headed for Canada in 1986. “I left Austria with the Arlberg Jet in my luggage. There, my machine outclassed the competition in a snow cannon competition which led to the Arlberg Jet being chosen to provide snow for the Olympic Winter Games in Calgary.”

»I DON’T BELIEVE IN ANYTHING. BUT I WANT TO KNOW AND SEE EVERYTHING!«

Michael Manhart on … ... determination: “If I have a goal in mind, I‘ll pursue it! Regardless of the opposition.” ... skiing as an expensive leisure time activity:

The Arlberg Jet

“In reality, the skiing passes are far too cheap. By comparison, Lech Zürs is rather expensive but it also offers high-quality skiing which requires corresponding efforts that, of course, cost money.”

The idea of a compressed air cannon near

... economic success:

the ground was essentially based on flow observations. Prior to the 1988 Olympic Winter Games in Calgary Manhart entered his development in a competition at which he outclassed the competition and landed Michael Manhart explains how his snow cannon test bench works. Even here, he

the exclusive contract to provide snow to

won’t part with his beloved “stinky noodles”.

the Games.

The goal is guaranteed snow cover. Manhart was hardly surprised that “the Arlberg Jet simply worked better. I am blessed with a very good imagination. What happens inside the snow cannon appears like a film in front of my mind’s eye. And I implement it exactly the way I see it.” Apart from his success, his competition also confirmed the superiority of his invention, trying to copy Manhart’s system. “But they never managed to.

And when a copy ever came close to the original, I simply ‘fine tuned’ the cannon to once again leave my imitators behind.”

It’s hardly surprising that, with his plans on how to make snow and the necessary, self-developed technology found an open ear at home. Or did he? “As if! In Austria, I had to push the idea of making snow through against heavy resistance. In the US, I had not only seen how to make snow but also how important it was for tourism. In Michigan, they had let the snow cannons run whether they needed snow or not, just to show the guests that they were MAKING snow and that they were able to come any day since they would always find the runs to be covered with snow. The key word was guaranteed snow cover!”

The Jet wows its critics. Convincing people at home turned out more difficult than he had thought, Manhart reports, and one can sense that he is thinking of many a battle he needed to fight to reach his goal. “The fight over making snow was sympto-

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matic for the time. I was convinced that we needed snow making systems but the people of Lech were sceptical. When I started experimenting with my system in 1973, many simply couldn’t imagine what it would be good for.”

Manhart, however, was convinced of his idea. Even as a young lad, he had often witnessed how the snow would disappear at the bottom of the mountain as early as March. “I remember well that I sometimes had to haul my skis down the mountain as a kid, uttering curses all along.” This memory and his experiences in the US solidified his belief, so he worked tirelessly to convince his critics. “When I showed them one snow cannon in action, they said it wouldn’t make a difference. So I got two more and they saw how much snow could be produced.

And then they started thinking about how much snow could be produced with ten snow cannons. Or even 20?”

“I don‘t care about money. Of course, one has to make money and it is nice to have it. But I won’t work any harder for money. Money has never dominated my life. Technology and nature have.” ... his Scottish highland cattle: “They are magnificent animals They eat the long grass that would otherwise work like a slipway for avalanches in the winter. With their hooves, they create steps in the ground that serve as abutments for the snow, further stabilising the snow cover.” ... his academic title of “Technischer Rat”: “A highly valuable commodity in Austria that opens many doors in Vienna and allows you to meet ministers and presidents! I was awarded this title at 50 despite the fact that it is usually a sign of old age.”

Different times, better technology. Today, skiing would be unthinkable without snow making and not just in Lech. The guaranteed snow cover mentioned before plays an important role which also has something to do with the guests’ changing behaviour. “Back in the day, the people would come here for three weeks at a time. They would plan and book their skiing holidays far in advance. Today, our guests book at shorter notice and don’t stay nearly as long.

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OBEX SPIN

NEWS

The “snow pope of Lech” holding his invention, the famous Arlberg Jet. Manhart has been campaigning for snow making for decades.

One week is considered a long stay. And having no snow on the runs can then become a problem.”

However, Michael Manhart’s pioneering spirit didn’t stop at snow making. Many skiing-related innovations, developments and improvements were based on his ideas. In the process, he has always asserted himself against common conceptions, for instance coming up with a fully-automated blasting system that allows for controlled avalanche triggering. Because of his snow cannons, he operates Austria’s largest compressed air system. He got a canopy system for chair lifts on the way and developed the first chair lift with heated seats. And on top of it all, he keeps a herd of Scottish Highland Cattle that have a positive effect on the vegetation on the Arlberg’s slopes, thus preventing snow slides.

Michael Manhart ... born on 27 April 1942 in Heidelberg (snow was falling outside). Grew up a member of the Bildstein-Schneider cable car family in Lech.

And yet, the entrepreneur Michael Manhart is never solely concerned with economic success. He always focusses on the big picture. He attempts to grasp it, capture it and comprehend it for an insatiable thirst for knowledge is as much a part of Michael Manhart as his pioneering spirit. “I don’t believe in anything,” he summarises his personality. “But I want to know everything!”

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Shareholder in Skilifte Lech Ing. Bildstein Gesellschaft m.b.H. since 1975, general manager of Skilifte Lech since 1984.

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PLEASUREZONE No holidays without relaxation. This is why Lech ZĂźrs am Arlberg stands for deceleration and offers time and room for the pretty things in life. With its excellent chefs, extraordinary wine tasting events and impressive herbal discovery hikes, the region pampers its guests on many different levels.

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PLEASUREZONE

In Lech, gondolas turn into wine parlours ...

... And highly creative menus are served in its 21 award-winning restaurants.

Lech Zürs, an international gourmet village:

Serving up culinary delights The tourism region of Lech Zürs is home to just about 1,600 inhabitants and yet in more than one respect rivals even the largest metropolises in the world. Winter sports enthusiasts and culture aficionados from all over the world are not the only ones who get their money’s worth at the foot of Arlberg mountain: Lovers of culinary pleasures will find the world’s highest density of Gault Millau toques in this ‘international gourmet village’, as one critic with the Falstaff Gourmet Club has once dubbed Lech Zürs.

he village’s top chefs are real masters at uniting international cuisines and regional delicacies in perfect harmony, once again merging tradition with modernity.

The Arlberg’s landscape yields numerous culinary treasures that find their way into the regional cuisine, with its Alpine meadows, for instance, producing 200 blossoms, plants and roots that the village‘s award-winning chefs incorporate into their creations. Culinary pleasure in Lech Zurs has always been associated with one name, namely that of the “vo:dô” (Vorarlberg dialect for “from here”) network which was founded

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by farmers as well as restaurant and hotel owners with the aim of pampering guests with high-quality local products. This name stands for quality, regionalism and sustainability.

Grape meets toque. What would award-winning food be without this world’s fine wines? This is another area where the region does not disappoint: With its traditional annual Arlberg Weinberg event, Lech Zürs celebrates the start of the winter season in a truly special way. In the course of this event, more than 50 award-winning winegrowers from all

over the world come to the Arlberg, where they are met by wine lovers, local top restaurant owners and many top producers from all of Vorarlberg. Just in time for the skiing season 2018/2019 this “summit of indulgence” takes place in a new setting: Visitors can look forward to wine tastings with internationally renowned winegrowers in the evenings and – the event’s highlight – an open kitchen party with award-winning chefs in the hotels of Lech Zürs.

Arlberg Weinberg: 4.-8. December 2018 Programme Tue – Sat: Evening event with internationally renowned winegrowers in the establishments.

Fri afternoon: Sparkling wine tasting / gin and

When gondolas turn into wine bars. The gondolas of the Auenfeldjet offer yet another opportunity to taste some fine wines in an extraordinary ambience, when 25 of them turn into wine parlours towards the end of the season. Every year the day of Gondolas and Wine brings top winegrowers from all over Austria to the Arlberg. During every run up the mountain, they have half an hour to present their best vintages to the guests in an exclusive atmosphere, with the grape juices being accompanied by typical snacks such as bread, cheese and sausages. But there is still more to come: In the evening, the participants are furthermore treated to an exquisite 6-course menu at the ‘Krone von Lech’ romantic hotel, naturally including matching wine provided by the winegrowers.

spirits mile from Krone to Hus 8. www.lechzuers.com/veranstaltungen

Wine and Gondolas on the Arlberg: 12. April 2019 Start: Auenfeldjet halfway station / Weibermahdbahn in Lech www.lechzuers.com/veranstaltungen

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PR PLEASUREZONE

Weinviertel DAC is Lech Zürs am Arlberg’s official Festive Wine

Finger-food delicacies In April 2019, the food trucks will once again roll into Zürs to treat its guests with delicacies from around the world. The highest street food festival in the world’s second edition will take place directly below Flexenbahn and offer culinary creations to take away – before, after or while skiing.

ech Zürs am Arlberg and the Weinviertel region have been partners for more than 20 years. The core element in this partnership is Lech’s Festival Wine which is being selected by an international panel of experts every year.

Representatives from partner towns Beaver Creek, Kampen / Sylt and Hakuba Happo / Japan select the best Weinviertel DAC and Zweigelt as well as red wine Cuvée. The winning wines are then served by the partner regions’ restaurants and on special occasions.

Lech Festival Wine. This unique project was initiated in 1994 by leading hotel owners in Lech together with Generali Probus winemakers’ initiative. More than 1,000 Weinviertel winemakers are invited to submit their creations and Lech’s Festival Wine is selected in the course of two blind tastings.

The favourits for the final tasting in Lech are determined in the spring in the winegrowing city of Retz. In 2018, Norbert Bauer winery from Jetzelsdorf convinced the panel with its Weinviertel DAC 2017 called Alte Rebe Ried Diermannsee. Lech’s Festival Wine will commemorate a truly special anniversary next year: 150 years of Japan-Austria relations.

Weinviertel DAC – One region. One wine. Weinviertel DAC’s success cannot be doubted. After all, it’s Austria’s first regionally typical wine which means it puts its origin and taste profile above its grape variety. Only wines that conform with this defined taste profile are allowed to carry this origin in their name. In the Weinviertel region, Grüner Veltliner is the grape variety most commonly grown which meant it was a l gical step to make this popular grape variety the figurehead of the Austria’s largest wine growing region. Its special climate and soil give Grüner Veltliner its special flavour. Weinviertel DAC should taste fruity, peppery and fresh!

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2017 saw the premiere of Zürs’ Street Food Festival. Many mobile cooking specialists took to the streets, offering Zürs’ guests exotic delicacies from around the globe. Its next edit on will take place from 6 to 7 April 2019, with an even wider international selection and – thanks to its new date in the spring – might even be held in glorious sunshine in front of a unique Alpine backdrop.

Weinviertel DAC Reserve – top-level wine culture. This wine represents the strength of the Weinviertel region and embodies highest levels of quality which are at the core of all of its businesses. Weinviertel DAC Reserve stands for a creamy texture, a complex, mature taste and a strong bouquet. It is exclusively pressed from the prettiest and ripest Grüner Veltliner grapes and tastes and smells like only a great white wine can.

Weinviertel DAC or Weinviertel DAC Reserve are top Veltliner wines whose typical origin and quality is guaranteed and that are rightly considered to be one of the best Austrian creations on the shelves.

Weinviertel DAC brings pepper to the table. Good wine and good food are inextricably linked. What sounds straight-forward presents a difficult challenge to some when it comes to practical application. Thankfully, epicures can rely on the judgement of an experienced sommelier. The latter have a sweet spot for Weinviertel DAC. Its spicy and fruity aroma reminiscent of green pepper and its harmonious fruit acidity make it an ideal wine to have with food. Thus, it manages what other wines can only dream about: To master the balancing act between going with both a crunchy Viennese Schnitzel and a light asparagus dish, with luxurious award-winning menus and savoury barbecue dinners alike. In the form of the full-bodied Weinviertel DAC Reserve, this wine with its typical ‘pepperiness’ is also popularly served with Asian or fusion cooking.

As a regionally typical wine from Austria’s largest vineyard Weinviertel DAC goes with the most diverse delicacies. www.weinvierteldac.at

The April date also allowed its organisers to team up with Tanzcafé Arlerg, a vintage music festival taking place at the same time in the early weeks of April around Lech Zürs.

Thus, the street food will be served with high-quality tunes as a bonus. The musical portfolio of bands and acts ranges from swing to rockabilly and electro.

Gastronomic discovery tour. Usually street food is served in such a way that you can eat the dishes immediately and without using cutlery. Often, the vendors offer dishes that are typical for their regions. Zürs’ Festival, however, focusses on diversity and international cuisine garnished with exotic highlights.

Last year, the offerings included “Wild Stuff” burgers prepared with deer meat to “stinky pig fries” to premium pulled pork that spends more than 20 hours in the pot to simmer to perfection. Thus, the visitors’ palates were taken on a culinary discovery tour!

Cooking at high altitude. For the cooks, however, Zürs’ Street Food Festival represents a reach challenge. Apart from organisational difficulties, that need to be dealt with anyway, they are tasked with taking into account that their customers’ sense of taste is affected by the high altitude of 1,700 metres above sea level.

The mobile chefs need to adapt the cooking time of their dishes in such a way that everything gets done perfectly and that the flavours can truly come out. Enjoy!

April 2019 will see the event’s second edition. Further information at www.lechzuers.com/veranstaltungen.

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PLEASUREZONE

MILENA, OR AN UNSATIABLE ZEST FOR COOKING The story of a young chef who went far but stayed close.

ilena Broger is one lucky young woman. Not only has she realized early in her life that she loves to cook, she was also smart enough to turn her passion into a profession. „Well, I actually can’t take much credit for all that,” she says, “cooking and eating have just always played a major role in our family.” Milena, 24 years young, was born and raised in the picturesque Bregenzerwald valley in Austria’s very west, where she stumbled across one of her father’s cookbooks when she was 13 – a decisive moment in her life. Mesmerized by the beautiful pictures of even more beautiful dishes, her initial curiosity soon turned into an all-consuming passion for a very basic, yet existential task: cooking. “Every human being needs to eat, and what would eating be without cooking?”

Milena loves to get lost in the moment, to not think about tomorrow, the day after tomorrow, let alone yesterday. Immersing herself into the kitchens of places like Taiwan and Japan has shaped her mindset and inspired her. “The idea of only living in the now is something I want to nurture and solidify and hold onto also in the future,” Milena says firmly.

Culinary experiments. Milena was offered the job for a period of four months, and she happily accepted. “Taking full responsibility for a kitchen in a place like this is an offer you don’t refuse,” she says, calling it the most fertile ground for growing and developing her career and cooking style. Here she can perfect all the techniques and tricks of her trade and the time management that is so essential in a professional kitchen - while still having room for culinary creativity.

Living the moment: Milena is able to loose herself in her cooking.

Travelling also allows her to focus on practising her craft hands-on and free from self-imposed pressure or expectations of others. It opens the opportunity to reinvent herself as a chef and to differentiate between what others want from her vs. what she wants for herself.

Before her first trip to Asia, Milena, the young cook, was convinced she would have to work her way up the traditional hierarchic ladder of another chef’s kitchen before maybe one day being allowed to follow her own style of cooking. But then she saw in the kitchens of other cultures that there are other approaches as well, and so she now happily swims against the tide, anchoring here and there, always on the lookout for her very own kitchen style.

For now, Milena’s path has led her back to Austria, to a special little place at the end of an old toll road in the tiny village of Zug am Arlberg. In an original Walser house, one of the last of its kind in the region, built by the very first settlers at the Arlberg, the Walser people, she runs the kitchen of the “Klösterle” restaurant, world-famous for its fondue and grosses pieces (grosse pièce: a large piece of meat served as the main dish of a classical menu).

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As someone who is always up for a challenge, she strives to not only meet the wishes and expectations of her guest but to exceed them. To this end, Milena uses the products of local farmers, hunters and producers with great openness. On the menu you might, for example, find chamois wrapped in strudel dough, smoked semolina squares, trout from the local fish pond with kale or rye risotto with local cheese, home made soured cream and boiled calf’s tongue. For dessert, guests may have curd dumplings stuffed with Sig (caramelised whey, a local staple) or Polsterzipfel (a traditional dessert with deep fried pockets of dough filled with jam), served with honey ice cream and whipped hay cream. Traditional ingredients, presented by Milena in a new, surprising way.

»IF I WOULD ONLY COOK AT HOME, I WOULD FEEL LIKE A HORSE WITH BLINKERS.« To Milena, getting in touch with other cultures and cuisines and being aware of one’s own roots and traditions is equally important. While old traditions and practices are being neglected also in the kitchens of today, while we happily import all kinds of goods from all over the world, Milena likes to follow a different approach: She takes a step back and looks at old

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»TRADITION KEEPS US GROUNDED.«

recipes from times when ingredients had to be sourced locally.

To her, that’s much more exciting than using “vegetables that would never grow on our soil here”. The young chef also sees it as part of her professional responsibility to prevent traditional ways of preparing meals from falling into oblivion. She does, however, also like to break and re-interpret traditions. “I don’t think we have to follow traditions religiously,” she says.

Tradition reinterpreted. Her open-mindedness and easy-going personality have made it easy for Milena to adapt to the world of professional chefs and she has never really been bothered by gender-related tensions that occur in many workplaces and particularly in professional kitchens, she says. “Of course the world of cooking is dominated by men,” she explains, “but to me that’s more of a motor driving me to perform even better.” More than once her knowledge and skills have been underestimated by male colleagues but Milena is a team player who insists she likes to work with both men and women.

Particularly when it comes to time-consuming tasks like plating elaborate dishes, she is happy to have helping hands. “I’m just not patient enough for stuff like that,” she says, laughingly.

Cooking is Miss Broger’s life, and creating awareness for the practical sides of her job – and for what finally lands on our plates - is her passion. It is both hobby and profession, her

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Traditional ingredients and recipes play a big role in Milena’s cooking – even though she also likes to combine them with new things.

anchor and her comfort zone. In her eyes, this is what cooking should be for everyone, “and not just another stressful chore we have to do.” So Milena keeps on cooking and recharging her batteries at the Klösterle. And then, when summer comes, she will be ready for her next adventure, out somewhere in this world.

The text has originally been published at Best of the Alps at www.bestofthealps.com. Authors: Robert Maruna, friendship.is, Photos: Florian Lechner

TRUST FIVE SIMPLE LETTERS OF GREAT SIGNIFICANCE AUTHENTICITY WITH PERSONALITY: WWW.PT-TRUST.COM

PLEASUREZONE

Ancient knowledge with a modern twist

Alpine herbalism – an excerpt The ranges at higher elevations (the ‘alpine range’) surrounding Lech Zürs are mainly home to the following medicianl herbs:

Those who hike with Veronika Walch will soon change their perspective and see the wild herbs growing by the wayside through different eyes. During her guided tours and in her courses, she passes her knowledge on to residents and guests alike. Visiting the Lech Zürs’ herbalist.

he Notchleaf Willow is her latest discovery. Veronika Walch carefully takes a branch of this shrub in her hand. “See these seeds? When they pop up they expose a healing batting.” Among others, it is supposed to help with ulcerated legs.

It is ancient, all but forgotten knowledge like this that fascinates Veronika Walch about her work. Some years ago she started training as a herbal pedagogue. The training took exactly one year – the same as the growing cycle. “And yet there are so many plants that I still feel like I don‘t know much at all,” she says. Most of the many participants in her herbal hikes and courses will probably disagree. The demand increases year after year and the Herbal Workshop in Lech am Arlberg constantly extends its offerings. It now ranges from themed tours to cosmetics and cooking classes to special offers for children.

Masterwort – or the ‘Queen of the Alps’. An ancient medicinal herbs used by farmers to cure toothache and homesickness, has an anti-bacterial effect.

Today Veronika Walch shares her knowledge with holiday-makers and guests. How is a wild herb tincture made? (With alcohol.) And an oxymel? (With honey and vinegar.) What’s the best way to dry herbs? (In circulating air.) What helps with a grazed knee? (A marigold ointment.) Veronika is the go-to person to answer questions such as these.

Alpine leek – looks similar to bear leek, smells strongly when in bloom. A plant from the leek family that is supposed to promote blood thinning, also has an anti-bacterial effect.

Tinctures, rose water, marigold ointments: In her herbal workshop, Veronika Walch produces a lot of things herself.

Recharge your batteries at this ‘place of power’. The popular herbal exploration tours usually last two to three hours and run from Lech’s centre towards the outdoor pool. Groups only seldom cover more than a few kilometres for there is a lot to discover. Shortly before the bridge over a dreamy little torrent the herbalist takes a break at a clearing she calls her ‘place of power’. This is where she tells her guests: “Some of you carry luggage, even if you don’t have it with you today.

This is where you can put it down.”

»A PHARMACOPEIA EXISTED IN EVERY MEADOW, FOREST, ON EVERY MOUNTAIN AND EVERY HILL.« Paracelsus Alpine Lady’s Mantle for grandma. Veronika Walch opened her Herbal Workshop one year ago but her passion for the topic goes back further than that. “Our grandma would tell us to get some Alpine Lady’s Mangle – THE herbal remedy for women.”

The plant is said to help ‘silver-haired women’, meaning with menopausal symptoms. Many years later Veronika Walch met alpine herdswoman Franziska in Bürstegg. She was looking for a herb to cure an ailing lamb. This was yet another inspiration for the prospective herbal expert to concern herself even more closely with the natural healing powers of plants.

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Alpine lady’s mantle – loves to grow on rocks. Used for many women‘s ailments such as menopausal and menstrual problems.

Just like her ‘place of power’ Veronika Walch thinks that every plant harbours a special energy, even the humble bellflower that doesn’t even have any healing powers but proves to be particularly sturdy despite its delicateness. Does Veronika have a favourite herb? Yes, it’s blood root. If one cuts its root, contact with oxygen makes it turn red. Thanks to its many polyphenols the herb also has a haemostatic effect. Her second favourite is the great yellow gentian. She gives her 92-year-old mother a tincture from what is probably the world‘s bitterest plant when she lacks strength: “That always gets her up on her feet.”

Herbal Exploration Hikes Holders of a Lech Card can participate in Veronika Walch’s Herbal Exploration Hike. The certified herbal pedagogue and hiking tour guide will introduce you to the exciting world of Lech’s mountain herbs. With her, you will be able to sense and experience nature with all your senses, you will conquer the meadows and learn much about herbs and medicinal plants. Lech’s magnificent mountains are home to many herbs that harbour true secrets. During her Herbal Exploration Hikes, Veronika Walch tells the participants stories and customs related to the herbs, their effects and use.

More at www.mylechcard.de

2018/2019 issue

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Hot games for cold winter nights Three of traditional Austrian games publisher Piatnik’s best-known board games are now available in new designs. Party classic “Activity” adds a rubber doll with a full beard to the action while the latest version of “Pass the Bomb” challenges wordsmiths and the players’ dexterity alike. Austrian board game legend “DKT” is furthermore given a new name, “The Criminal Talent”. Exciting game nights with your family and friends over the comin weeks are thus guaranteed.

“Activity”: Now including Horst With 14 versions and more than eight million copies sold, “Activity” is one of the classics among the party games. Henceforth, it features a new player: Horst is an almost life-size inflatable rubber doll with a full beard, sunglasses, chest hair and a figure-accentuating shirt ready to have some action with the players. Aiding the person who is tasked with explaining brain-twisting and hilarious term, he visualises them using his whole body until his fellow players can‘t stop laughing any more. However: The player only has one minute to explain the respective term for Horst changes his partners faster than his printed-on tennis socks.

Once all the sand has run through the hourglass, it’s the next player’s turn to team up with Horst and try their hand at pantomime.

And then it went BOOM “Pass the Bomb” is now available in a “Family Edition” challenging the players’ vocabulary and dexterity. The principle remains the same: In a circle, the players perform tasks and pass a ticking “bomb” along. The player in whose hands the bomb “goes off” loses the round. Sometimes the challenge is about association, the next one might involve rhyming. Or the player might be tasked with putting a worm together from puzzle pieces or making a ball hop into a cup.

NEWSFLASH New events for passionate runners

Christmas feeling

All trail runners, mountain runners and hikers should mark 17 August 2019 in their calendars. This day marks the first edition of the “Sommer Trailchallenge” on the route of the “White Ring”.

Lech Zürs gets into the holiday spirit when Chrismas draws near. On 8 and 9 December, Zug’s Christmas Market invites visitors to a romantic stroll – Lech’s opens its gates between 14 and 17 December. On 25 December, no other than Santa Claus himself comes to the region, looking forward to meet all its little guests.

Hiking trail for knowledge seekers

Amateur star gazing night

Another new addition to Lech Zürs’ portfolio is the Arlenzauberweg. This natural exploration trail at Schlegelkopf provides children and adults with answers to many questions surrounding Arlberg: Why is snow white? What type of gentian is used to make Schnapps and what plants are indicators of weather changes? You can find the entire trail description at www.lech-zuers.at/ arlenzauberweg.

Every year between 9 and 14 August, many shooting stars can be seen on top of Rüfikopf, high in the mountains. An expert explains the various constellations with background music. In addition, guests can make a sealed wish with every shooting star they see – to check after a year whether it has been fulfilled.

DKT becomes “criminal” Austria’s famous economy board game DKT now comes in a new funny version. “Economic talent” turns into “criminal talent” making the players encounter hilarious situations on the board. First, they might engage in somewhat honest business with Jackpot Charlie from the betting centre or Silikon Walli from the beauty salon. Alas at the end of every move, dark blackmailers are deployed who move from business to business to collect protection money. Provided, that is, that you are not already in jail or worse: Got caught by the revenue services.

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6800 Feldkirch-Nofels +43 5522 76615 praxis@drburger.at www.drburger.at

Publisher: Lech Zürs Tourism GmbH, Dorf 2, 6764 Lech am Arlberg Tel. +43 5583 2161-0, info@lech-zuers.at, www.lech-zuers.at

Marketingmitteilung im Sinne des Wertpapieraufsichtsgesetzes.

More Safety and Comfort.

Your Transfer to Lech Zürs.

Media owner and publisher: CONTUR GmbH & Co KG, Karlstraße 16, 88212 Ravensburg, Germany Project management: Fabienne Kienreich (Lech Zürs Tourism, PR/press) Michael Dünser (CONTUR) Project coordination: Svenja Hemme (CONTUR) Editorial: Michael Dünser (CONTUR), Jessica Behrens (CONTUR), Katrin Krause (CONTUR), Peter Meisterhans (CONTUR), Selina Rölle (CONTUR), Robert Maruna (friendship.is), Petra Lipski Art director/Layout: Benjamin Müller (CONTUR), Thomas Hepberger (Silberball Bregenz) Image processing: Lisa Dünser Translation: David Vitan, Bluenose Translations Inc. Printing: Holzer Druck und Medien, Weiler, Germany Publication date: November 2018 Rights: Any reproduction, also in form of excerpts, only with explicit authorization of Lech Zürs Tourism and statement of source.

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Title: Graphics: Markus Fetz (www.markusfetz.com) 3: Text: Jessica Behrens | Graphics: Benjamin Müller 4-5: Text: Thomas Vašek | Photo: Stefanie Füssenich 9: Photo: Florian Lechner 10-19: Text: Jessica Behrens | Photos: Lisa Dünser, Bernadette Otter 20-21: Text: Michael Dünser | Photos: Maria Burtscher, Lisa Dünser, Bernd Eisenschink 27-29: Text: Jessica Behrens | Photos: Maria Muxel, Bernadette Otter 31-32: Text: Peter Meisterhans | Photos: Florian Lechner 34-35: Text: Jessica Behrens | Photo: Maria Muxel 36-39: Text: Peter Meisterhans | Photos: Florian Holzherr, Maria Muxel 40-43: Text: Michael Dünser | Photos: Büro Dr. Wolfgang Schüssel 44-45: Text: Jessica Behrens | Photo: Daniel Kocher 46: Graphics: Cornelia Bachträgl 47-50: Text: Katrin Krause | Photos: Daniel Kocher, Lisa Dünser 51: Text: Selina Rölle | Graphics: Cornelia Bachträgl 52-53: Photo: Daniel Zangerl 54-56: Text: Peter Meisterhans | Photos: Christoph Schöch 57: Graphics: Thomas Hepberger 58-63: Text: Jessica Behrens | Photos: Bernadette Otter, Ski Arlberg, Lisa Dünser, Jasmin Berchtold | Graphics: Lech Zürs Tourismus 64-68: Text: Katrin Krause | Photos: Bernadette Otter, Lech Zürs Tourismus 68-69: Text: Jessica Behrens | Photos: ©Skischule Lech, ©Schöffel – Michael Müller (michaelmuellerfotografie.com) 72-73: Photo: Sepp Mallaun 74-75: Text: Peter Meisterhans | Photos: logo: werbeagentur, Michael Moosbrugger 76-77: Text: Jessica Behrens | Photo: J-Konrad-Schmidt 78-82: Text: Peter Meisterhans | Photos: J-Konrad-Schmidt, Bernadette Otter 84-85: Text: Katrin Krause | Photos: Bernadette Otter, Kästle Ski, Florian Lechner 86-87: Foto: shutterstock 88-89: Text: Katrin Krause | Photos: Bernadette Otter, ©Heike Steinweg – Suhrkamp Verlag 90-92: Text: Katrin Krause | Photos: Lisa Dünser 95-96: Text: Katrin Krause | Photos: Andreas Hechenberger, Bernadette Otter 98: Text: Katrin Krause | Photo: Daniel Zangerl 100-101: Text: Jessica Behrens | Photo: Christoph Schöch 102-106: Text: Peter Meisterhans | Photos: Christoph Schöch, Bernadette Otter 108: Text: Katrin Krause | Photos: Bernadette Otter 110-114: Text: Peter Meisterhans | Photos: Florian Lechner 116-117: Text: Jessica Behrens | Photo: Florian Lechner 118-119: Text: Katrin Krause | Photos: Daniel Zangerl, Florian Lechner 120: Photo: Regionales Weinkomitee Weinviertel/Anna Stöcher 121: Text: Peter Meisterhans | Photos: Katrin Stark 122-124: Text: Robert Maruna, friendship.is | Photos: Florian Lechner 126-127: Text: Petra Lipski | Photos: Lisa Dünser 129: Text: Lech Zürs Tourismus

Staufenblick, Dornbirn

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2018/2019 issue www.hypovbg.at

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