New world record!

Morgenstern & Gabalier “blow” through Lapland

Thomas Morgenstern is once again "the best in the world" ...

(Bild: © Peter Podpera, Vienna 2023)

Friends and patrons of brass music - with a difference! With selected leaf blowers in their luggage, folk rock'n'roller Andreas Gabalier and three-time Olympic champion Thomas Morgenstern set off for Lapland to set what is probably the most bizarre world record of the year ...

A perfectly normal Tuesday morning in Arjeplog in northern Sweden ... Former ski jumping star Thomas Morgenstern raced down a specially prepared slope at an incredible 74 km/h on Tuesday. Powered solely by a total of twelve Einhell leaf blowers, combined into a so-called Rocketsuit.

The twelve garden tools accelerated the test subjects to top speed on runners.

(Bild: © Peter Podpera, Vienna 2023)

From the left: Thomas Morgenstern on the runway with Einhell board member Dr. Markus Thannhuber, the managing director of Einhell subsidiary VanHans, Lukas Steiner-Bauer, and Andreas Gabalier

(Bild: © Peter Podpera, Vienna 2023)

The duo set the record with this jetpack-like appendage. To do so, the pair drove along a specially prepared 1.2-kilometer ice track on Lake Uddjaure.

(Bild: © Peter Podpera, Vienna 2023)

A Styrian Rocky
What sounds like a winter mirage was actually the amusing idea of Andreas Gabalier and skiing ace Nicole Schmidhofer (although she had to be replaced by fellow athlete Morgenstern at short notice). They wanted to set a new speed record and did so - at least Morgenstern did!

Gabalier, still suffering from a recent ice hockey injury to his knee, "only" managed 57 kilometers per hour and three spectacular falls at full speed. However, he survived these well secured and quoted Rocky Balboa afterwards: "The winner is not the one who wins, but the one who keeps getting up!" ...

Ouch: The musician crashed three times at over 50 km/h!

(Bild: © Peter Podpera, Vienna 2023 VANHANS)

Thanks to the protective equipment, the Styrian didn't suffer any serious injuries.

(Bild: © Peter Podpera, Vienna 2023 VANHANS)

Gabalier takes it with humor and is helped up by the adventurous team.

(Bild: © Peter Podpera, Vienna 2023 VANHANS)

With a reward from the very top
There was no competition between the two top dogs, even though they were not familiar with each other beforehand. Nevertheless, it was quickly "like love at first sight, two Schmäh brothers".

"It was one of the craziest adventures of my life - and also one of the most difficult: just lifting the 37 kilogram 'Rocketsuit' and staying on track on skates with the surprisingly powerful leaf blower drive was a real challenge. But in the end you can say: Andreas and I rocked it together!" says Thomas Morgenstern.

It was brotherly "love at first sight"!

(Bild: © Peter Podpera, Vienna 2023)

At the end of the trip, the entire group was once again rewarded by Mother Hulda with a very special natural spectacle. As the world record party kicked off on the shores of the 250-square-kilometer Lake Uddjaure, the Northern Lights appeared in the sky.

The two were rewarded for their efforts by Mother Nature.

(Bild: (c) VANHANS)

A very special moment for Gabalier: "That was on my bucket list. It makes you realize what a small cog you are in this gigantic universe."