Young talents take part

Schnalzer let Goaßln pop on the green meadow

Concentrating on training: Loig III prepares for the community snaltz.

(Bild: Tschepp Markus)

Actually, they are supposed to chase away the winter. Now the Goaßln are popping on the green meadow in the stronghold of Wals. This year, the Loiger Passen are the hosts of the big community Goaßlzen. They are also thinking of the next generation.

At the age of four, little Magdalena has already got the hang of it. The Goaßl turns, it bangs, even if it is perhaps still a little too subtle. She is the youngest of the Loiger Schnalzern.

"The earlier, the better," says Patrick Sturm, chairman of the Pass in Loig, from his own experience. He himself elicited his first sounds from the Goaßl at the age of seven. And a real Walser never puts it down.

Rehearsals for the Schnalzer always start on St. Stephen's Day. The adult Pass Loig III then lines up at the Schnalzerstüberl several times a week. "Oane, zwoa, drei, dahi geht's!" - Christoph Sturm from Loig III gives the command with concentration. This year he has moved to the front of the line-up, because the woman in charge is expecting a baby.

Magdalena is the youngest Schnalzer in Loig at the age of four.

(Bild: Tschepp Markus)

There is also plenty of new blood in the small district: "Some of the club members alone are becoming parents. So it's clear that there will be new Schnalzer," laughs chairman Sturm.

Proper Goaßl-Knall needs to be skillful
During training, every pass is recorded and then analyzed. Possible sources of error: "Someone can sometimes have a quiet bump because they don't make the right swing. The distance to the person in front may also not be quite right," explains the chairman. The Loigers don't need strength training. A few exercises before going out onto the field are enough. Which ones? "It depends on your age," they laugh.

Proper care of the Goaßln is important. "They are lubricated with grease," says Aufdraher Sturm. And the driving string at the tip is changed regularly.

At the same time, preparations are now underway for the community schnalzen on February 9 in Loig. The Schnalzer are responsible for the catering. Weather wish: "Snow, which we were supposed to drive away."