Innsbruck

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Written by Roger Scott and Hal Cantril,
Trip Leaders

   The trip to Innsbruck started in a celebratory mood on the bus to Washington Dulles, when Mandy Pommerenke and Tracy Krug unveiled a cake honoring Roger Pommerenke’s very recent retirement from GE. Roger couldn’t think of a better way to start his retirement than skiing in Austria. On the way from Munich to Innsbruck, we had some entertainment, as Mandy was unable to open the rest room door from the inside. The door also resisted the best efforts of four engineers (on the outside), who shall remain nameless. The bus driver finally had to stop the bus and solve the crisis, to the merriment of the group.

    On arrival in Innsbruck there was good news and bad news. The good news was plenty of snow, but the bad news was very poor visibility due to fog. There were reports that it would clear by morning. Unfortunately, that was not the case, as all the areas were blanketed with fog on Sunday. Spills were more common than normal, as all but the best skiers had difficulty. Tracy even had a chance to try out her new helmet when she took a header off the slope at Axamer. Monday morning, however, dawned bright and clear, heralding the beautiful weather that we were to experience the rest of the trip. The trip leaders were not reluctant to accept full credit for this weather.

    There are several ski areas to choose from at Innsbruck and most of them have slopes of all degrees of difficulty. The most popular though, was the Stubaier Glacier, which peaked at close to 11,000 feet. Some of the skiers took a run that was 6.3 miles long with 5000 feet of vertical drop. Also, many of the people took advantage of side trips to Bolzano, Salzburg, Swarovski’s Crystal World, and Neuschwanstein, as well as ski trips to St. Anton and Kitzbuhel.

    The only casualty occurred on Tuesday, when Barbara Nemura sustained a fracture to her lower right leg. She remained in good spirits however, and we were able to make arrangements for her and Ron to return home on Friday. (I am sure she would appreciate hearing from club members). There were other minor exciting moments like Art losing his wallet. With Amy Richardson’s assistance, it was found, intact, at the bus company.

    Many attended the "Tyrolean Party", Wednesday night, complete with band and dancers. Mandy, Susan Burr, Cam Murchison and Mike Hadbavny had a chance to demonstrate their beer-drinking prowess on stage. Although they all tried, they were clearly eclipsed by a gal from Rochester, Minn. who drained the one-liter mug in one prolonged gulp. After littering the stage with wood chips, four male dancers selected four women from the audience, including Tracy, to dance on stage. At the conclusion of the dance, the gals were all given brooms and dustpans by the men. Evidently women’s lib has not yet penetrated the Tyrol. Come see us at the next ski club meeting wearing our Tyrolean hats!

    On Saturday AM we departed on the four-hour ride to Mestre near Venice, and the Hotel Bologna. The ancient city of Venice, with its Grand Canal bustling with water taxis, gondolas and other craft, its narrow streets loaded with shops and restaurants, is a very unique scene. Everyone saw St. Marks Square and the magnificent St. Marks Cathedral and probably most toured the Ducal Palace, nearby. A few took gondola rides. There were so many other points of interest that we couldn’t cover them all in two and one half days.

    Tuesday morning we departed our hotel for the Venice Airport and an uneventful trip home. From all reports, a good time was enjoyed by all. Some people even had so much fun shopping and sightseeing that they never did ski!

	Innsbruck March 1 - 7, 2002

Axamer	Stubai Gletscher	Roger Scott at Axamer

Barbara Nemura broke her leg at Axamer	Tyrolean Party Dancers	Richard Krug, Kazuko Yoneyama, Roger Scott, Chris Nuckols, Dide, Martha Lacy, Frank Cook, Hal Cantril, Tracy Krug

Surprise party for Roger Pommerenke after the bus left Roanoke (he just retired from GE)	There was a party every night	Party animal Susan

	Venice March 7-9, 2002

Grand Canal	Mike and Eleen Hadbavny, waitress, Bob Fetter, Mandy Pommerenke enjoy great food!	St Marks Square