Extreme inline liner adventure: 1400 km from Passau to Sylt!

Extreme inline liner adventure: 1400 km from Passau to Sylt!

The inline adventure “Ultra Skate Challenge” has been rolling in Germany for days and started its sixth stage on Friday. Fourteen extreme athletes are on a remarkable tour from Passau to Sylt, covering a total of an impressive 1,400 kilometers. The route runs along cycle paths and side roads with little traffic, which makes this challenge not only a sporting event, but also an exploratory journey through the idyllic German countryside. Last Friday the stage led over 90 kilometers from Bad Brückenau to the Hessen Hotelpark in Hohenroda. The Wartburg district was also crossed, which offered the athletes new challenges when they entered this area near Motzlar and rode on the Ulstertal cycle path towards East Hesse.

Bernd Gutöhrlein, a 66-year-old mechanical engineer from Ludwigsburg, is one of the participants and can look back on an impressive history in extreme sports. He has been taking part in the Ultra Skate Challenge since 2013 and discovered his passion for inline skating around thirty years ago. "It's a real challenge to complete the route from Passau to List on Sylt. The route was researched in advance so that there are no surprises," he says. The athlete covers over 100 kilometers every day while a support vehicle transports the luggage.

A high standard of fitness

The entire tour from Passau to List is around 1500 kilometers. The participants have already mastered some marathon-like routes during their previous challenges, including from the Swiss border to Usedom and from Lyon to Amsterdam. “It is the solidarity and the joy of sport that always drives us,” continued Gutöhrlein. The skaters will tackle the last 40 kilometers on Sylt on August 16th before taking the ferry from Cuxhaven to the island, as only trains run on the dam.

Sylt in particular offers ideal conditions not only for skaters, but also for many other sports. With its 40 kilometers of sandy beaches, the island is a popular spot for surfing and windsurfing activities. Everything a sporty heart desires can be found here, from kite surfing to surfing. This diversity attracts numerous athletes and has cemented the island's reputation as a sporting hotspot.

The fascination of inline skating

In Cologne, where inline skating is also very popular, the athletes have strong support. With the Kap 686 skate park on the banks of the Rhine, the city offers an attractive playground for skaters of all ages. The enthusiasm for the sport is reflected in the growing number of visitors to the parks. Combined with the numerous events organized in German cities, inline skating remains an exciting hobby that fascinates many.

Bernd Gutöhrlein has skated an estimated 70,000 kilometers in the last few years and is now dreaming of a challenge that is tough: a route from Vancouver to New York, which at around 3,700 kilometers is not exactly small. With his thirst for adventure and unquenchable thirst for sporting challenges, he remains an example for everyone who wants to live and experience the sport of inline skating with passion.

The Ultra Skate Challenge is not only a test of physical endurance, but also a celebration of community spirit among skaters and a demonstration of how much fun outdoor sports can be. It remains to be hoped that the challenge will bring all participants to their destination safely and that they will take away beautiful memories for the future.

Find out about the participants' exciting journey on the website of in southern Thuringia and shz.de, which accompany the unique events of this challenge. Anyone who would like to find out more about sports culture in Germany should take a look at Goethe.de where the diversity and fascination of sport are discussed.