Hertler Wins Run to the Hills
Patrick Aldinger and Sebastian Hertler battled it out in the finals. Photo GSA
Oberwang, Austria- Sebastian Hertler was the winner in Downhill Skateboarding at the Run to the Hills race. The event was Round #4 of the 2009 Koenig der Berge Cup (King of the Hills Cup).
In the 2-man Final, Patrick Aldlinger faced his mentor Sebastian Hertler in a head to head match. Hertler lead the youngster down the entire course to earn his 3rd win of the 2009 Koenig der Berge Cup Series. The Consolation Final was a fight between the two Hackbrett teammates, Max Stamler (AUT) and Tom Damman (GER). Damman ended up crashing out effectively handing the heat race victory to Stamler who earned the 3rd place. The IGSA Regional race was held September 5-6 in Oberwang, Austria.
After a stormy Friday night, practice started Saturday at 10 am on a dry road. The slippery surface of the track made it really hard for the riders to find the perfect line on the80 km/h speed section that is followed by four tight hairpins.
At 1:00 pm the racers got ready for qualifying. German young-gun Patrick Aldlinger dominated downhill Skateboard qualifying. In Classic Luge, Dr. Michael Serek demonstrated his abilities by posting the fastest qualifying time without taking a single practice run. After qualifying, some another free riding session was held. The first day ended with a traditional “Brettljause” (cold dinner) that was included in the entry fee followed by a wild party with locals in the event tent.
Sunday morning started with a practice session. Gravity Bike and Downhill Skateboarding had their preliminary races first followed by Street Luge and Classic Luge. The final heats of each discipline were saved for the big showdown at the end of the day.
David Stinton won in Gravity Bike. Photo GSA
David Stinton (GBR), who also dominated Eastbourne’s World Cup Gravity Bike competition two weeks ago, once again showed his skills and took the win for England.
Michael Mueller braking hard for the first hairpin at the end of the speed section. Photo GSA
Street Luge was dominated the entire weekend by Michael Mueller (AUT) who defended his #1 qualifying position by winning the race. He was followed in 2nd place by Alex Frischauf (AUT) and Martin Witzigman (GER) in 3rd.
Classic Luge Podium: 2nd Alex Frischauf, 1st Dr. Michael Serek, 3rd Robert Richter. Photo GSAEndFragment
The Classic Luge Finals took place last. In the Consolation Final, Robert Richter (AUT) and Daniel Tuschel (AUT) fought from the start till the finish line. They were swapping the lead through each of the four hairpins. Finally it was Richter who managed to cross the line first with a lead of only 20 cm.
In the Classic Luge Final, Michael Serek managed a wire-to-wire win once again. He beat Alex Frischauf, who raced the whole day with a broken rib suffered in a wipe out during his 2nd Gravity Bike qualifying run.
Run For the Hills
Sep 5-6, 2009
Oberwang, Austria
IGSA Regional
Final Results
Downhill Skateboarding
1. Sebastian Hertler, Germany
2. Patrick Aldinger, Germany
3. Max Stamler, Austria
4. Tom Damman, Germany
5. Gregor Petzl, Germany
6. Michael Serek, Austria
7. Philipp Zdrenka, Germany
8. Daniel Grugel, Germany
9. Robert Richter, Austria
10. Peter Duma, Poland
11. Korbinian Orth, Germany
12. Sophie Friedel, Germany
Classic Luge
1. Michael Serek, Austria
2. Alex Frischauf, Austria
3. Robert Richter, Austria
4. Daniel Tuschel, Austria
5. Sascha Sobot, Austria
6. Cornelia Dworak, Austria
Street Luge
1. Michael Muller, Austria
2. Alex Frischauf, Austria
3. Martin Witzigmann, Germany
Gravity Bike
1. David Stinton, United Kingdom
2. Alex Frischauf, Austria
Inline Board
1. Robert Richter, Austria