Fly, Eddie, Fly

Oberstdorf is not just a holiday paradise embedded in the Alps of the Allgäu. Here, in this remote southernmost village of Germany you’ll find the famous Heini Klopfer ski jump – a ski flying hill and the second largest ski jump in the world. If you are plucky enough you can ride a unique diagonal elevator to the top of the Heini-Klopfer-Skiflugschanze. Cheer up! Nowadays, Bosch takes care of safety and security at this ski jump.

Oberstdorf may be some kind of a magical place for plasterer Michael Edwards, better known as Eddie "The Eagle". At least he started his career as ski-jumper 1986 in Oberstdorf, when he participated at the World Cup. One year later he first represented Great Britain at the 1987 World Championships, and was ranked 67th in the world. This performance qualified him, as the sole British applicant, for the 1988 Winter Olympics ski jumping competition.

 Photo: Bill Herriot/CNS

It's over 20 years since ski-jumper Eddie "The Eagle" Edwards soared to glorious failure at the 1988 Winter Olympics. The older of us may recall raising the Labatt Blue glass (despite the own nationality) to Michael “Eddie the Eagle” Edwards, the British ski jumper with the Hubble-telescope specs, massive underbite, and permanent grin. Though many thought he was too tall, too heavy, and too old, Edwards got to the Calgary Games through determination and his unmatched enthusiasm. Despite finishing 58th out of 58, Edwards embodied the Olympic spirit for millions of viewers.

 Photo: Bosch

These days, Bosch Security Systems managed to draw the attention to Oberstdorf again – besides the FIS Alpine Ski World Championships in Garmisch-Partenkirchen, which was officially opened yesterday by FIS president Gian Franco Kasper accompanied with an spectacular opening ceremony. Bosch has developed and implemented a comprehensive security concept for the Heini Klopfer ski jump in Oberstdorf. The concept comprises protection against fire, intrusion detection technology and video surveillance at the ski jump itself as well as in the mountain and valley stations of its chair lift. Reaching a height of 207 meters, the Heini Klopfer ski jump is one of the six largest in the world. It is architecturally unique and represents an extraordinary structural feat, since it is anchored into the mountain at the height of the takeoff platform only using rock bolts.

Photo: Bosch

At the ski jump itself and in the mountain and valley stations, fire detectors from Bosch’s the 420 series were installed, which are connected to the control panel via the cableway’s existing control wires using two-wire converters. The intrusion detection system’s dual-technology motion detectors are also connected to this NZ 300 LSN universal control panel, so that the operator has an integrated and easy-to-use system. An ISDN module integrated into the control panel enables the remote transmission of alarms to the operator as well as the remote parameterization of the system.

 Photo: Bosch

The fire and intrusion detection system is complemented by a system for video surveillance with cameras in the mountain and valley stations as well as on the ski jump itself. One camera surveys the cash register area in the valley station in particular, and helps to protect employees who are changing money at the tills as well as providing a more complete record in the event of burglary or vandalism. The camera images are recorded centrally on a Divar MR digital video recorder. These images, too, are transmitted via the cableway’s control wires, so that no additional infrastructure had to be created.

Mr. Edwards returned to Oberstdorf in 2004 when the ski jump Schattenbergschanze was inaugurated after being rebuild. It is said that this was his last jump. Edwards was the best ski-jumper in the United Kingdom, setting a British record of 73.5 m in one of his Calgary jumps in 1988. At the closing ceremony, the president of the Organizing Committee, Frank King, seemed to single out Edwards for his contribution: "At these Games, some competitors have won gold, some have broken records, and some of you have even soared like an eagle." At that moment, 100,000 people in the stadium roared "Eddie! Eddie!". It was the first time in the history of the games that an individual athlete had been mentioned in the closing speech.

 

Comments

[gros seins]

You're indeed right on this blog!!!

[annapurna circuit]

Oberstdorf is an excellent place for people who are into the ski sport. I have seen a couple of video from this place with people skiing. It was simply breathtaking!