Introducing the organisational team

Who actually organises the OETZ TROPHY – Extreme Kayak Championship? Is the OETZ TROPHY a slimmed down remake of an outdated kayak event? Maybe you have already asked yourself this or something similar, so we would like to introduce ourselves – the people behind the OETZ TROPHY – and our motivation.

We, the team of the SOURCE TO SEA kayak school, decided about two years ago to bring extreme kayak racing back to the Ötztal. The Ötztaler Ache is our home river, we spend every autumn in the Ötztal valley, and we think that the Wellerbrücke section deserves to have a race because it is so beautiful! After extensive brainstorming, numerous discussions with athletes and the important players in the Ötztal, we quickly realised that if we wanted another race to happen on the Wellerbrücke, then we would have to organise it ourselves.

So the team, consisting of Luca, Bernie, Marieke and Anne (sorted by size), have been working non-stop for quite some time now to organise the event. One thing was clear to us from the very beginning: the OETZ TROPHY should be an event organised by kayakers for kayakers. We want to develop the race further and already have big plans for future races, however, in order not to overextend ourselves, we have decided to keep things simple for this year. The race track won’t differ significantly from the old familiar race track. Likewise, the date for the race was intentionally set for the beginning of October, so that for planning purposes, we could be as certain as possible on what the water level will be.

Next year, the race course and the date might change, but more on that after the successful first edition of the OETZ TROPHY – Extreme Kayak Championships.

That’s us:

Luca Daprà brings a lot of experience with him – in organising kayak races, in white water and on safety issues. Having grown up in canoe slalom, Luca has been fully focused on whitewater sports for many years. He gives kayak courses, specialising in technique, river running and safety in white water and on the side, he is active in mountain rescue and is an accomplished alpinist.

Bernie Steidl is good at starting projects. One of his bigger ones was the founding of SOURCE TO SEA in 2009. Besides kayaking and giving courses, he is fortunately also very good at making phone calls to authorities.

Anne Steinkogler supports the organisation of the OETZ TROPHY with her talent for graphic and communication work – without her you would never have seen us. We are very grateful that we can still send her work orders at half past eleven in the evening.

Marieke Vogt usually disagrees, but she is still allowed to be part of the team. If the homepage has a bug, she probably put it in. She is also organising the Rivers Day, which will take place on Sunday.