The Rodelbahn

It was the Saturday of the singles retreat. I had already bypassed the indoor wall climbing on Friday night. I knew that the Rodelbahn was a must in order to hold my head up in front of my peers.

The Rodelbahn. Florine noticed the lift going up the mountain as we approached. It looked steep and I began to have second thoughts. Dave kept calling it a “suicidal run down a mountain.” We all paid and then got in line. I took a deep breath and got in the contraption, kind of like a sled, and headed up the mountain straight into the blazing sun. I could feel the burn on my arms and knew I was in for some major sunburn. The ride up lasted about 5 minutes. Then I jumped out to the right, circled a building, and stood in another line to fly down the mountain. Let me say, the view was gorgeous of the valley village and the landscape. An ice cream stand, a small restaurant, and Biertische were situated under some lovely shade trees. It was very "gemutlich", or cozy for conversation.

I took a deep breath and climbed in my sled. I figured out that I was in control of the speed and the brakes. The route went winding down the mountain for a kilometer and a half. Pushing forward on the controls let me go faster. I hollered like Tarzan…or maybe Jane. It wasn’t scary. It was just fun like the thrill of speeding down a hill on your bike with the wind in your face and a crazy feeling bubbling up inside you. I screamed again.

Michelle and Carla zoomed in behind me. We all were laughing and whooping and saying, “Let’s go again!” So we got in line once more. I ended up doing it four times. Each time, the zing and the zang of careening down the slide while being perfectly in control caused an addiction. I was addicted to this crazy thing.
The only part missing from the sled was a bug screen....I almost swallowed a fly or two. Keep your mouth closed, please. The two and a half hours passed too quickly....I honestly could've stayed longer, but a meal was waiting and the preacher had another sermon to preach. I guess one can have to much of a good thing. So, everything in moderation and in balence. A little fun...a little preaching...it combined into a great weekend.