Flachauwinkl-Shuttleberg "Absolut Park" Claims Pinnacle Of Snowsports
The absolute pinnacle of snow parks has long been the activity at the " Absolut Park " at Flachauwinkl-Shuttleberg. This is where Anna Gasser discovered her passion for conjuring up perfect somersaults and twists in the air. But when you talk about the park here in the Salzburger Sportwelt, no one under 30 thinks of picking flowers. Absolutely not. One could also ponder: tables instead of benches, rails instead of bikes, or even kickers instead of kicking.
Exactly 25 years ago, the snow park began here. This winter, the celebrations will be marked by numerous events. Josef Harml Jr., or Sepp for short, was there from the very beginning. As a snowboarder, he encouraged the family's sparsely visited drag lift to be revitalized in this way. The exercise was a success: Today, the comfortable "Absolut Shuttle" is in use, and has amassed a million rides on the approximately 130 days the lift is in operation. Since 2006, the Chillhaus has been the central culmination of the rider activity. A shelter with a difference, with a ramp and bouldering facility, especially when the weather isn't cooperating. Up top, the cold and hot water dispensers are in full use, as there's no obligation to buy! The surrounding huts are happy, the terraces are lively, and the action on the countless kickers represents a circus-like program.
THE JUMPERS HAVE ENDLESS ENERGY. The great thing is, they don't have to use it sparingly. The park operators are different, because building them is extremely complex. Most of the obstacles are constructed from snow, which mainly comes from the snow cannons. Maintaining the parks also requires a great deal of dedication. The mostly young visitors to these parks are elated, but never depressed. After all, it's called a fun park. Even if the fun can sometimes lead to being taken away with a serious injury.
The idea of going higher and further is over for some time now. At some point, the obstacle threshold was literally reached. The current theme is clearly variety: This means that in addition to the unchanged extreme kickers and rails, there is increasing thought being given to building lines specifically for beginners and those who have not yet fully taken off. By separating them according to different needs, fun slopes are continuing to be very popular. They can be built as part of snow and fun parks or independently at the edge of wide slopes. A roundabout is a must, a 360-degree turn that ends in a small tunnel. Because it's not just boys and girls who should have fun on their flying boards; these are facilities that older people can also venture out on.
THE "SOFT VARIANT" was born because ski instructors liked to let their little ones ski down the cross courses to their delight. That wasn't the idea, and cross courses are now almost exclusively found in towns with cross races. After the pioneers, the development was almost like an avalanche. There are now new fun slopes on the Kaunertal Glacier in the middle of the ski area. And there are three new cross courses in three places: on the Wiedersberger Horn in the Alpbach-Wildschönau ski jewel, and Berta's Familycross on the north side of Fieser in the Fiss-Serfaus ski area, where a varied mix of jumps will get your heart racing, along with dizzying wave runs and cool banked turns. And in the Montafon, there are fun lines for families, specifically Golmi's Wilde Welt and Golmine's Wellengarten .
The quality of these slopes increases with the depth of snow. Of course, they aren't as spectacular everywhere as in Zell am See. The Schmitten Funslope is 1,300m long and, as far as we know, one of the longest in the world. In addition to banked turns, waves, jumps, boxes, and two snails, the unique route through the forest, reminiscent of the beloved "Waldwegerl" (forest path), is a highlight of the fun slopes. To add further sensory impressions, the fun slope has been enhanced with sound elements such as the Sound Speed Booster or Sound Slopies. In some places, one variant is simply called a "wave slope." One could also argue that if not all slopes were planed smooth, but some were left unprepared, these innovations would be unnecessary. But there is also a question of safety, i.e. insurance and lawsuits. The center of this young activity are and will remain the fun parks with their kickers of varying heights, rails, and boxes. Hinterstoder can perhaps be seen as an indication that the heyday of the parks is over: Because the area announces: “No more snow park!”
You just have to be able to do it. That also applies to the easier of the countless lines. A special feature here is the Absolut School. It's actually a completely normal ski and snowboard school, but six of the instructors are freeski and freestyle specialists. There are also local kids camps at half price. The Absolut Park also seems to be the perfect base for future high-flyers, as Olympic champion Anna Gasser made her first jumps here and remains loyal to the Absolut Park. " It's important that people can board or ski safely before they head into the park ," emphasizes Sepp.
FIRST THE WORK, then the fun. Hardly anyone thinks of that when they see the halfpipes and jumps that have been moving from the edges of the slopes to the center for over a decade, long since transformed into complete snow or fun parks. On the Kitzsteinhorn, six permanent shapers are responsible for maintaining the three parks, along with caterpillar drivers and helpers. Because the glacier is flowing, the obstacles have to be replaced regularly. The art of proper design is, above all, calculating the correct take-off angle. Only routine helps here. After all, the top priority in the fun park is and remains maintaining a high level of safety.
