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Ah yes…………fond memories.

Naked rodeling from the Obersalzberg down the rodelbahn to the skating rink and Gasthaus at the bottom.

Having shoveled out the driveway on Watzmanstr in the Strub so you could drive to work, only having the Street Department come along with their snow blower and cover not only the freshly shoveled drive but bury your car as well.

Newbie’s staying at the Skytop and having their cars crushed when the snow slid from the roof on top of their car.

Best memory of all:  SFC Patterson (Logistics NCO from Strub) had his sister visit from Texas during Christmas 1973.  She had never been sled riding before, so we talked her into going up past the Walker to sled the hill.   From the starting point it looked like a normal hill to sled.   She had no idea it was the start of the rodelbahn.   We told her how to hold the rope in her hand and keep her feet in the loop of the sled runners.  We pushed her off and down she went.  Towards the bottom of the first hill the run takes a sharp right and then drops.  All you could hear, echoing through the valley, was OH SHHHHHHHHHHHHIT!.

We met with her at the bottom and took her to the Gasthaus and bought her a gluewein.  After a couple of those she was ready to go up and take the run again.

A cold walk from the Strub down the hill and up the hill past the Hof to the Weinerwald for chicken and beer.

The stop and go lights on the ski/rodelbahn between Hinterbrand and the Alpine Inn.

Let’s do it again.  Just one more time.

JIM

That’s funny!!

I would like to see some of those pictures; I bet they are a hoot! I look at all the grip and grin shots of me posing next to my ski groups and its so funny. As a civilian working for AFRC as a ski instructor the memories are as good as when I was a military guy. And by far, I can remember the rodeling paths from the Oversalzberg down. But the best rodeling was when you would take from the Walker to the Hinterbrand lodge, take that route down, and end up damn near the Alpine Lodge. During the early 80's the Alpine was closed. But in the early to mid to late 70's they always kept the bar open. So we always had a private group and since I used to work there in the summer's it was almost like I owned the place. The hot chocolate and peppermint schnapps drink was made while I was still on active duty. I remember all thee daughter's of Major's and Colonels who surrendered to the Snow Plow, that and jager-tea! That was my favorite, three or four different schnapps in a hot tea! When it was cold and you about froze your kohonies off, it was the Jager-tea that brought you back from Hyperthermia.

But my favorite all time experience was in 1973, when Bill Wilson (Bilbo) Roberto and a bunch of our crew, decided to ski the backside of the Jenner at 10 pm at night. Bill used to work there so he arranged for the lift to work while we went up via the mid station. It was a full moon and the snow was the best of the entire year. We got to the top, and skied down. Amazingly no one got hurt, we were all totally spent, but god was it fun. Tired and spent, it was super. We all ended up at the Hobelbank to celebrate and brag about our doing the back side.

I remember Roberto (Boland) wreaking his car because he slid off the road afterwards. He claimed it was a deer that made him slid off the road but I’m betting it was a jager tea or maybe the B-gaden beer!. ….

While you guys are all having fun in Colorado Erika and I with my older son (Max) will be visiting B'garden January 25-Feb 7, 2008.

Might even do some skiing at the Jenner... but will be thinking of all those old times. But first, I will be going out after the 3rd Jan to El Paso to complete my duty of 7 months there in Ft. Bliss, then I get to retire after 35 years. Its time.

Bill