"No longer in keeping with the times"

New plans! Surf Opening leaves Neusiedl

The Surf Opening is being put on a new footing and is leaving Neusiedl.

(Bild: GEPA pictures)

The Surf Opening, which has opened the surfing season on Lake Neusiedl at the end of April and beginning of May in recent years, is leaving Neusiedl and repositioning itself.

Next year, it will take place at several different locations. Organizer Gerhard Polak confirmed media reports on Monday in response to an APA inquiry that he no longer believes it is "in keeping with the times" to hold such a large event in one location.

The CO2 emissions were high with the previous format - for example, because many visitors came by car and the infrastructure had to be set up separately for a party with thousands of guests. "It was done once and it was nice, but it's no longer up to date," said Polak, who has taken over the organization from Georg Kloibhofer after a four-year break. With the new format, he wants to keep CO2 emissions as low as possible, no longer have to do a lot of set-up work and transport as few people as possible to a specific location.

"Water sports" instead of a party
The new Surf Opening will therefore take place at numerous different locations throughout Austria, where one form of surfing or another will be offered. This should allow visitors to celebrate "where there is already something" with less travel, said Polak. For him, it's not just about the big party, but about "bringing people to water sports". Interested people who want to get to know and try out the sport and beginners are the main target group. The event will no longer be aimed so much at "party people", says Polak.

(Bild: © Florian Schoeny)

After the coronavirus crisis and inflation, an event like this is no longer financially viable. "There will never be anything like it again and there can never be again." Another argument against Lake Neusiedl as the only fixed location was its fluctuating water level. After all, "every five years I might not know whether there is any water at all", said Polak.

(Bild: Christian Steinbrenner)

The organizer will announce where the Surf Opening 2025 will take place in January. That there will also be an event at Lake Neusiedl, most likely in Podersdorf, is not out of the question. However, Burgenland Tourism has not yet shown any interest in this. In response to an APA inquiry, the latter referred to the Lake Opening, which it initiated to celebrate the start of summer in the communities around Lake Neusiedl and Lake Neufeld. Part of this was also the Surf Opening in Neusiedl, which will continue to be organized by another event organizer. According to Burgenland Tourismus, new concepts and approaches have been developed by event partners Daniel Hupfer and Mike Piechura. "The home of surfing and sailing is Lake Neusiedl. The Lake Opening will keep it that way," emphasized Managing Director Dietmar Tunkel.