Black Forest Super - 2023 fully booked
The lights slowly go out. However, this is purely descriptive, because the mood of the men and women on this climb is as steep as the route. The sun emerges from behind mountain ridges and treetops, and despite the weather forecast, there is a surprising amount of it to be seen. Dawn brings country road 130 out of the darkness. Simon Jesser has a smile on his face. "That was easier than I thought," says the 25-year-old student teacher from Freiburg.
This is the first time that Jesser has attempted a cycling event, instigated by a friend. And what he has undertaken! A whole day of cranking through the Black Forest, 255 kilometres, relentlessly up and down - and he wants to be back in Münstertal before the checkpoint closes at 10 p.m. to secure the certificate with the golden seal.
It's no exaggeration: on this Sunday in August, Simon Jesser will be tackling one of the toughest tests that organised cycling in Germany has to offer. He may be riding unaccompanied, as his friend only gave him the idea, but he won't feel alone. 940 people start very early on this late summer's day at the "Schwarzwald Super!", which until recently was an insider tip and is fully booked for 2023.
Black Forest Super - Community-Treff
It is an event that not only demands performance, but also invites self-realisation: "Schwarzwald Super!" is not a race, there is no timekeeping, it is a particularly tough cycling marathon - but at the same time it is also a community get-together and a culinary antithesis to all the performance events in the calendar. With an open mind, it invites you to ask questions. What kind of sport do you do, do you want to do? This day in the saddle feels different from most others. Because the marathon, which offers a choice of three routes, combines top physical performance with extended breaks, moments of enjoyment and recovery.
In the afternoon before the start, it looks like a class reunion in front of the Belchenhalle in tranquil Münstertal. It's hot and humid and the sun is shining on this afternoon. The beer benches are well occupied, children are selling lemonade and non-alcoholic beer at the drinks stand, men and women are falling into each other's arms. Johannes Kratzert admits that he is a little envious, because the weekend is pure stress for the organiser.
Ten years ago, Kratzert and a friend had actually only pursued the idea of organising something like the Italian "Eroica", i.e. a leisure cycling event, in Germany. "We just loved it: beautiful routes, local food and a relaxed atmosphere," remembers Kratzert.
Black Forest Super - Camping or gym
Instead of the iconic gravel roads in Tuscany, the Black Forest offers another advantage that Kratzert and his team mate appreciate: the mountains, which can be combined at will and with little road traffic. "I prefer to plan routes," says Kratzert, "and it turns out that most people find the particularly long routes appealing."
"Schwarzwald Super!" has been around since 2014, when Kratzert started out with around 30 people from Freiburg, but since 2016 the event has been held in Münstertal, as the local tourism association recognised its potential. Good for the organisers, who now operate as a registered association and get 70 helpers on the move during the event weekend, as there are parking spaces and two gyms in Münstertal where the starters can store their bikes and spend the night on mats. Numerous riders do this, while many others set up camp in the neighbouring car park.
Like at a school party
Jutta Hellstern and Stefan Schwarz, 48 and 49 years old, have been part of the "Schwarzwald Super!" community since the very beginning. They always say hello to other participants who go to register. They first took part in 2015. "Back then, we saw an advert in an alternative shop and signed up," says Schwarz, "that day there was an atmosphere like at a school party, everyone was mega friendly - and at the same time, everyone is at a level where they want to work out hard."
Back then, the two of them dared to tackle the most difficult of the distances on offer and passed. "Since then, we've tried it every year and have almost always won gold," reports Jutta Hellstern. "What really makes it special is that you drink coffee and eat Knöpfle together with the people you know," says Stefan Schwarz, a model athlete who gets by without performance data - and his partner adds: "You see them here once a year."
The big get-together was a night ago, Stefan Schwarz and Jutta Hellstern have long since cycled over the first mountains in a good mood, the long Way of the Cross and the quite strenuous climb to the viewpoint on the Hochblauen at an altitude of 1160 metres; like the other participants, they had breakfast of muesli and cake at the Kurhaus in Badenweiler and collected stamps for their scorecard there, as well as at a box at the top of the second mountain classification. Just like at an RTF, the participants in the "Schwarzwald Super!" carry these paper sheets with them; those aiming for the gold award at the end have to collect twelve stamps.
Black Forest Super - Roadworthy despite injuries
The sun comes out, the thunderstorm announcements are no longer necessary. After the second refreshment stop, Simon Jesser has made the acquaintance of a new friend on the course. The two of them roll towards the fourth climb of the day, shortly after the participants in the bronze round have been led off. The route climbs past orchards, cow pastures and through small villages.
On the way to Gersberg, Clemens Dold tells us that he is travelling on his wife's bike today - "saddle down and off you go"; the 67-year-old collided with a car in Haslach, his home town, almost a fortnight ago, destroying his racing bike, but despite a few injuries he is still fit to ride, with a plaster still stuck to his left elbow.
Conversation on a long day, with a mixture of Baden, Swabian, North and West German accents, English and Dutch can also be heard from time to time. Small groups form on the ups and downs of the challenging terrain; larger groups hardly ever form on the route - but they do at the refreshment stops.
Black Forest Super - Breathtaking rock formations
At the third stop, after the extremely tough climb up to the Hornberg, Jesser and Clemens Dold, together with his 33-year-old son Norman, roll up to the clubhouse of the Bad Säckingen Ski Club, which operates a lift here in winter. The men and women are lined up waiting for their portion of ravioli with potato salad on paper plates, accompanied by water, apple juice or an alternative cola. It's a leisurely pace, athletes lie on the grass next to the lift, father and son Dold have time for a chat.
The son, a secondary school teacher, was made aware of "Schwarzwald Super!" a few years ago by a former fellow student. He then passed the gold distance twice before taking his father, a pensioner with experience as a long-distance runner, with him on the test this time. The two of them opted for the silver distance. "We know the Black Forest, but there are definitely a lot of sections here that you wouldn't otherwise come across," says Clemens Dold.
One example is the Wehratal, in the very south of the Black Forest, a breathtaking gorge with lots of greenery and sublime rock formations. Clemens Dold has worked hard to complete the 4500 metres in altitude on the Silver Tour. "As a pensioner, I have the time, so I've ridden mountains, mountains, mountains," he says. If you come from the Black Forest, you certainly have an advantage in terms of preparation.
Culinary challenge
If you're riding the Silver Tour, you've passed a psychologically important point at the station in Herrischried. This is followed by two more eating and drinking stops - which makes it easier to get through the afternoon, even if you are in a weakened state, while the temperatures rise towards 30 degrees and there are still many a steep section to conquer. Postcard impressions are mixed with cramp passages and plenty of opportunity to take a deep breath. "The distance between the stations is short, it's not easy to eat so much," said organiser Johannes Kratzert the evening before.
At the barn-like festival hall in Ehrsberg, a number of men and women are already sitting on the benches with bottles of beer, accompanied not only by Black Forest kirsch and other cakes, but also brägele, i.e. potatoes from the paella pan. Just twelve kilometres further on, the next buffet awaits the riders, and with vegan ice cream such as peach and mint, muesli and Hungarian ragout, it's easy to forget to get your stamp for the certificate. For Simon Jesser, the distances remain sporty, on the long gold lap it's all about defying the heat on the additional climbs.
Jesser has had a change of clothes, his girlfriend has travelled from Freiburg to meet him, packed his thicker clothes and presented him with a summery outfit. For him and the other 154 participants on the Gold Route, the gruelling northern loop is still on the programme, with Thurner and the long, sometimes extremely steep climb to Schauinsland, it's getting towards the limit - but of course there is also a refreshment stop on this route.
Looking forward to the wellness hotel
The fact that self-conquest and enjoyment, pride and suffering are closely linked is evident for everyone on the final climb. The gold riders come from the other side to the crossroads at the top of the Schauinsland, the sun is now blazing down on Badenland, and silver and bronze participants struggle up the long, monotonous last climb from Todtnau with very little shade, often accompanied by impatient motorists - one of the few places with a lot of traffic. One last chance acquaintance for the author is a moaning man in his early forties from Düsseldorf, who has been given the gift of participation by his girlfriend.
For the flatland rider, the shortest distance is enough and he is already looking forward to the two days in the wellness hotel that he will spend afterwards. He clings to the conversation with the other rider on this mountain. He takes a break at the top of the last pass, while others gather once again and roll down the steep mountain into the Münstertal valley.
A few hours later, Simon Jesser will also roll past here and the lights will come on again. "I found a nice companion and we struggled through the last 160 kilometres together," reports the student from Freiburg afterwards. "It was a real community moment, just finding each other along the way." Jesser believes he would not have made it to gold on his own. But at around 9.40 pm, he held his certificate in his hand.
More about Black Forest Super!
The start and finish of the "Schwarzwald Super!" is in the municipality of Münstertal, around 25 kilometres south of Freiburg im Breisgau. There are three different route lengths on offer, this year they lead over 110 km (bronze, 3100 metres in altitude), 165 km (silver, 4500 metres in altitude) and 255 km (gold, 6800 metres in altitude).
The start times between 5.30 am and 8.00 am depend on the length of the route. As the route is divided into loops, you can decide along the way whether you want to shorten or lengthen the route. There are six refreshment stops along the way on the longest loop. Participation fee 2023 between 75 and 95 euros, depending on the date of registration.
