“Whatcha call that thanger?”
Rodel • /ˈroːdl/
A long-distance, steerable gravity sled.
“Looks heckin fun. Yer sayin it steers?”
Shore am. Most simply by sitting comfortably and gently tugging on the reins, just like riding a horse - an action akin to lifting a foot whilst skiing to engage a turn in that direction.
Proper racing technique, however, utilizes all four limbs to perform different actions simultaneously: pull hand reins and press foot horn from the outside of the turn; feather the drag hand and balance/brake foot on the inside. Stopping is performed by planting the feet flat (wearing metal cleats) and lifting the front of the sled to dig the tails. Hockey stops are achieved simply putting your hips into a turn.
Like all things worth doing, there is a learning curve, just not a steep one. Anybody can rodel, most everybody likes it, and it’s relatively easy to master - depending on your appetite for speed.
Rodeling, or rodeln, takes place on dedicated rodelbahn or schlittelweg either at a ski resort or by visiting one of the many rodelhütte scattered throughout the Alps.
Access is by cable car, gondola, train, funicular, snow taxi, cog railway, chair lift, snow cat, bus, or foot. Some are only open at night, others weekends, certain nights a week or for special events. Rodelers often share the slopes with everybody else.
The Big Pintenfritz in Switzerland descends five thousand feet over nearly ten miles, noodling past multiple rodelhütte along the way. After 30 minutes on the gondola and 2.5 hours of walking, one is treated to an awe-inspiring sight as they plunk down on their sled. Some sections are a bit exciting, and the ride seems to go on forever..
Rodelhütte, sprinkled basically everywhere in the Alps, are fantastically quaint and cozy destinations where one can enjoy tris di knödel, strudel, a glass of wine and a latté before schlitten through the woods.
The Rotwand at Croda Rossa, among the finest rodelbahn.
“Them’n Euros like racing...”
You betcha they do. At one end of the spectrum is hornschlitten , which is absolutely nuts, and at the other is “natural track luge”, the slightly underwhelming cousin to the Olympic event (lacks creativity, adventure, and objective hazards).