While the weather is warming up, the rain is showing up at walks on a regular basis. Don’t let this get in the way of a good volksmarch; just pack a dry pair of socks and an extra pair of shoes in case you get wet. This is another holiday weekend across Europe, so there will be plenty of walks Monday, too.
The Stuttgart German-American Wandering Club will be out in force at the Betzweiler-Wälde event Sunday and Monday. This is another one of its Stammtisch events, where the club stakes out a table at the start hall and proudly flies its flag. This is an open invitation for walkers to come over and join them. The event starts Sunday between 11 a.m. and 4 p.m. and Monday from 6 a.m. until 1 p.m. The prize is a B-medal. Last year the club offered a multi-function knife and maybe, if you’re lucky, you can still get one.
Wednesday in Dürrn will be another Stammtisch event. This walk takes place between 1 and 6 p.m. Look for the blue flag of the Stuttgart club and introduce yourself.
Since we are talking about Stuttgart club, mark your calendars for its big walking event July 27-28. There will be a stroller-friendly six-kilometer course as well as 12- and 20-kilometer trails that will navigate the hills and dales of Stuttgart.
With more than two months remaining, surely you can find at least a few hours to volunteer at this event or on the day before or after. If so, please contact Melissa Rodeffer at volunteers@sgawc.org.
Back to this weekend, another good walk will be in Beaufort, Luxembourg. This event is split between Saturday and Monday. The start hall will not be open Sunday.
Walkers in the Kaiserslautern Military Community might find the walk in Wustweiler convenient. This is another Sunday and Monday event, with the doors of the start hall opening at 6:30 a.m. for you early birds.
In other news, we recently received an email from Brad Crandall of the Ramstein Roadrunners, who told us that the Roadrunners’ big walk on May 4 and 5 was a big success. He reported about 1200 walkers participated, including a lot of first-time walkers who were trying out the sport of volksmarching. He added, “The weather was drizzly and gray on early Saturday, but by Sunday morning it was gorgeous.”
Brad also says, “I would like to thank all of our officers and directors for their work year-round and our volunteers for their efforts in making the event a success. We had a number of volunteers and new members that had never done a walk before, so it was quite an experience for them. The German club in Miesau and a number of former Heidelberg International Wandering Club members (now members of the Roadrunners) also contributed to our success by bringing their experience in volksmarching to the event.”
We tip our hats to all of the Roadrunners, old and new, as well as any other volunteers who helped host this event.
Margraten after-action report: After a pretty good downpour the night before, Bob drove to Sint Geertruid, the Netherlands, to do the 60th Anniversary Margratentocht. He met Rob and Cath Floyd from the Heidelberg International Wandering Club at the start hall and soon they were walking through the rolling hills of southern Holland. The route took us past the American Cemetery in Margraten, so we took a brief detour to visit this hallowed ground, where more than 8,000 American service members from World War II are buried. Soon, we were back on the trail and returned to the start hall. After getting our books stamped and a couple of beverages, it was time for the Floyds to head off on the next leg of their journey. It was nice to walk and talk with these two avid walkers and catch up on current events in the volksmarch world. One of the many topics discussed was the last Kiddie Volksmarch hosted by the HIWC. The club was hoping for a large turnout but rain and wind put a damper on the event. (Pun intended!) Only about 50 people participated due to the lousy weather. Kudos to those who did brave the elements to introduce volksmarching to the youngsters. Young walkers are the future of this sport, and we must engage them at every opportunity. Perhaps the new Wiesbaden club will continue with this program.
While at Sint Geertruid, we were able to briefly chat with volksmarch enthusiast Tina Kracke. This event was Tina’s last European volksmarch before returning to the U.S. We hope she finds plenty of walks at her next assignment.
Email volksmarch information to two.walkers@yahoo.com. Mail brochures to Bob and Lorraine Huffaker, CMR 460, Box 278, APO AE 09752.
