The Sommerrodelbahn Peterberg with Kids: Travel Savvy Mom

Sidetracked! Sommerrodelbahn

August 30th, 2009 | by Kayt Sukel 4 comments

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side·track (sīd´trăk): n. 1. A diversion from the main course. 2. A detour taken with children that you would never, ever take without them.
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Who:
The whole speed-loving fam-damn-ily. As in, Chet, me and his Dad.

What:
The Sommerrodelbahn Peterberg. What is a sommerrodelbahn, you may ask? The direct translation is something like “summer toboggan run.” But that doesn’t give you the true idea of the rodelbahn. Not even close. Intead imagine a big mountain ski slope. Now consider what one might do with that ski slope during the summer months. If your imagination leads you to the idea of throwing a curvy metal bobsled track on it and allow folks to luge on down at mach 10, you have the basic idea. It’s fast. It’s furious. It’s fun! And there’s one just a hop, jump and skip from my house in Braunshausen, Saarland, Germany.

Why:
Okay, I have to come clean here. This may not technically fit in the sidetracked theme. Because the sommerrodelbahn is the kind of thing you say you are taking your kids to because you really want to do it yourself. They are an excuse. But don’t get me wrong – the kids love it – although, we were a little worried that Chet might be as keen on it now that he’s entered his imagination-powered the-world-is-scary phase – but it’s still the kind of thing that you might consider going to on your own provided you could find a babysitter during daylight hours.

The Low Point:
Two low points. First, the wait. You are towed up the side of the slope on your sled s-l-o-w-l-y. The ride up itself is actually quite pleasant. But since there has to be at least 20 meters between each sled, that means that the line at the bottom to actually get on a sled can get quite stacked up. This leads to the second low point. That would be the slowpokes. Each sled has its own brake so you can slow down if you feel the need (though it’s never really necessary – you go fast, but not fast enough that you actually need to brake unless someone is right in front of you). So when you get behind someone going as slowly as possible down the hill, it’s a little frustrating. And honestly, is there anything more disheartening than a 16-year-old boy that feels the need to brake all the way down a fantastic ride? I mean, what does that say about the world and the way we are raising our children?!

The High Point:
When everyone can just let go and take the ride at full throttle, it is a blast! It whips you around and turns you about and goes fast, fast, fast. You can see it in all it’s glory (from the perspective of my sneaker) below. Yes, that’s me squealing. And I’m only braking because Chet and his Dad were wussing out in front of me. Apologies for any motion sickness the movie causes – I held my Flip camera as steady as I was able!

The Kid’s Take:
Chet loved it. I can think of no bigger hit, honestly. He took turns riding with me and his Dad – and another high point for me was when, behind a very slow sled, Chet started yelling, “Hey, go faster! Get out of the way!”

The Bottom Line:
Go. Now, if you can. And when you do? I implore you – go fast. Please go fast. It’s a great way to spend a lovely summer afternoon with the family – and if you do the rodelbahn as you were meant to, you won’t cause my child to start screaming that you are a slowpoke and need to hurry up and get out of his way.