What is skijoring actually?
02/03/2020
In skijoring, skiers are pulled at top speed by a car over a snow and ice slope.
Skijoring dates back to the 1928 Winter Olympics in St. Moritz. Back then, skiers were harnessed behind riderless horses for the first time. Skijoring became a cult sport and soon spread to motor sports. In Zell am See, motorized racing tandems were already driving over the ice ten years later. And soon after, the first ice races for motorcycles and cars of all classes took place.
These two pictures show a small sample of skijoring at the GP Ice Race in Zell am See from back then and today. One is pulled by the DKW and the other by the Formula E. The speed is the small difference. However, the material has also changed a lot over the 64 years. From the DKW and the wooden skis without any safety bindings from 1958 to the electric Formula racing car and high-tech skis. In any case, it was great fun for participants and spectators alike, who stood at the edge of the piste in droves and applauded enthusiastically.
However, it was Team 129, a Porsche 356 with an acrobatic parascier on a long rope, that earned the biggest applause in Zell am See.
A magnificent spectacle, almost without end, continued in Zell am See deep into the Saturday evening and once again offered motorsport you could touch. And lo and behold, an extremely large number of young people were also fascinated by the event and enthusiastically persevered in the cold for many hours.
A detailed report on this interesting event will follow.
