Nature, soft forest floors, buzzing insects and birdsong. Anyone who lives in Saiga Hans and walks out of the front door is in the middle of paradise – in this case in the Kobernausserwald. An experience that three young men have every day and that they want to share with the (running) world. That’s why Max Schrattenecker (24), Tobias Salhofer (24) and Michael Lindlbauer (28) are organizing the first Saiga Hanser Woidlauf on Sunday, September 18th. The idea had been buzzing around in the Innviertler people’s heads for a long time, but the pandemic years put a brake on their plans. Provisionally. Because now the enthusiastic runners are full of energy so that the premiere of their run inspires as many others as possible.
Mayor Konrad Nagl was one of the first to hear about the forest run idea and approved of it. “He gave us tips and advised us to set up our own section,” remembers Max Schrattenecker. Said and done. However, that was just the beginning. “Only now are we realizing how much effort it takes to set up an event like this without any previous knowledge. But luckily we know a lot of people from the scene who give us advice,” says Tobias Salhofer, who works with Roman Breckner, among others , organizer of the Mattighofner city run for many years, keeps in touch. Conversations like these and several brainstorming rounds resulted in to-do lists that the three guys are now working through step by step.
90 percent nature
It is already certain that there will be children’s competitions (starting at 9 a.m.), a cross-country run (11 kilometers and 300 meters in altitude) and a leisurely run including Nordic walking competition (6.2 kilometers, 130 meters in altitude). The latter will start at 10.30 a.m. “We sort of jigsaw the routes together. We know many sections from our own running laps. We used this to create the final route, which leads to and from the sports field in Saiga Hans,” explains Michael Lindlbauer. It was important for the organizers to have as high a proportion of forest paths as possible (it has become about 90 percent) and some meters of altitude. “There are already enough flat runs on asphalt roads. We wanted something different. In addition, the route characterizes our homeland. It just goes up and down all the time,” says Schrattenecker.
The route signage should also match the region. “We’ll probably do that with signs in dialect. For example, if we go through the ‘Spiaßmoia’ nature reserve,” explains Lindlbauer. The event should also stand out from the rest in other areas. “If it’s possible, we’d like to have medals made of wood. Also, for ecological reasons, we don’t have starting bags. We won’t buy the trophies for the children new either, but second-hand. There are great prizes to be won. There are also rewards the three largest groups that start with us,” says Tobias Salhofer.
How many runners there will actually be on September 18 cannot yet be estimated. The three young men have already become active so that there will be plenty of it. Among other things, at the city run in Mattighofen. “First we ran, then we distributed flyers and at the award ceremony I grabbed the microphone and told people that we were having a Woid Run in September,” says Max Schrattenecker. Something similar is also planned for the next few weeks.
The people of the Innviertel are mainly supported by the football club in Saiga Hans, for which they used to play football themselves. “We still have good contact with the players and officials. We are friends with many of them. That’s why we’re very happy that they help us with entertaining the runners and guests and other things,” says Michael Lindlbauer. What particularly pleases him and his colleagues is “that many have volunteered to help. That’s also the nice thing about Saiga Hans.”
Registration for the first Woidlauf in Saiga Hans is already possible online at www.racerresults.com.
Source: Nachrichten
