Semi-Final Week on the Streif and Ganslern
One week before the first Downhill training run gets underway, the Hahnenkamm resembles a buzzing beehive. Work is ongoing nonstop, from the start area right down to the finish.
Monday, 12 January marked the start of what is known as ‘semi-final week’ on the Streif and Ganslern – the crucial week before actual Race Week. It’s all systems go right now to get the two racecourses and two stadiums ready for the Hahnenkamm Races.
As the week gets underway, three piste machines operated by Bergbahn Kitzbühel are hard at work on the racecourses – two on the Streif and one on the Ganslern. The goal is the same: to either remove fresh snow from the racing line or bind it together with the existing artificial snow. Water is added to achieve a denser, more workable snow consistency.
The safety team is working flat out this Monday morning. They are tasked with installing the airfences, which weigh up to 140 kg each. No mean feat on the steep and slippery terrain directly alongside the jump line. Yet Safety Chief Tom Voithofer remains his usual unruffled self. “Conditions are excellent for working this year – we have sufficient snow and the fresh snow really helps us in the fall zones,” he says. Since 2 January, he and his team of up to 30 people have been installing, assembling and securing safety equipment. “Twenty-five men are working on the Downhill course, up to four on the entry section on the Ochsalm, and three are out and about on ski-doos.”
By the time the first Downhill training run takes place, four kilometres of A-netting and 17 kilometres of B-netting will have been installed, along with 180 impact protection mats and 180 airfence units. There will certainly be no complaints if, from 26 January onwards, everything can be dismantled again without their use ever being required during the races.
Tickets for the races are available exclusively via the webshop. There will be no on-site ticket sales.
