A guest in the Black Forest

On 25.02.2011 the time had come. Red Bull rocked the tranquil ski resort of Feldberg and provided an unforgettable winter sports event.

The aim was to determine the “King of Bob 2011” on the Feldberg.

In the early afternoon, the Hummer, which had been converted into a mobile DJ booth with a sound system, was brought into position and the DJ provided the sound for the valley station. Many riders and tourists were already on site and partied with Hot Red Bull or in the Red Bull umbrella bar.

The race track was prepared the day before by the Ammertal Zipflbob Club, together with the Red Bull team and the Feldberg mountain railroads.
Hours of snow were spent on the track to create the steep bends and chicanes. At plus temperatures and without a snowmaking system, this was quite an achievement!

Many mini bob fans from all over Germany, Austria, Holland and even Peru wanted to take part in the race. However, the international field was limited to 85 starters. So the motto was first come first serve.

Four riders competed against each other in a knockout system, with only the two fastest riders progressing to the next round.

In exciting and sometimes very close races, even Zipflbob professionals were knocked out of the race by amateurs and newcomers – an event with absolute equality of opportunity.

There were no separate classes, girls and boys competed directly against each other. The best girl, Sonja Reichenegger from Innsbruck, was narrowly eliminated in the quarter-finals.

Joachim Kuner from Freiburg proved that the Zipflbob sport is not just for the “young guns”; at 46, he was the oldest starter in the field.

After almost 2 hours and 6 runs, the time had come. The best 4 zipflbob riders from the previous runs faced each other in the final with their plastic sleds.

Michael Aumer, Andreas Rehle, Stefan Aumer and Thomas Strasser made it to the final.
The spectators at the finish line were eager to do the La Ola wave and join in the excitement. The Red Bull presenter and Stefan Vogt from the Ammertal Zipflbob Club commented on the exciting minutes.

Then the time had finally come. Race control gave the go-ahead for the final and the four finalists catapulted off the start ramp.

Curve after curve, they didn’t give each other an inch, but in the last few meters Michael Aumer from Sandsbach from the Zipflbobverein Oberglaim was able to win the race and take the title “King of Bob 2011”.
All the finalists were greeted at the finish line with a big roar and a La Ola wave.

The winners have been decided.

In the group ranking
1. Zipflbobverein Oberglaim
2. Allgäuer Zipflracer
3. Tecstage
4. Porno Bulls

In the individual classification
1. Aumer Michael – 21 years – from Sandsbach – Zipflbobverein Oberglaim
2. Rehle Andreas – 23 years – from Immenstadt – Allgäuer Zipflbracer
3. Aumer Stefan – 18 years – from Sandsbach – Zipflbobverein Oberglaim
4. Strasser Thomas – 34 – from Innsbruck (Austria)

The winners were duly celebrated. They were presented with the now legendary miniature mini bob in gold, silver and bronze, as well as many other prizes generously provided by sponsors Red Bull and Alpina. For example, the finalists received ski helmets, sunglasses and ski goggles.

The winners of the group ranking also received a DTM weekend for 4 people at the Hockenheimring. The winner of the individual classification, Micheal Aumer, received 2 tickets for the Formula 1 event at the Nürburgring.

A big thank you to all the organizers, sponsors and hard-working helpers who made this event possible.

You have done a great job!