Südtiroler Ritterspiele 2023

[Gabriel_GER]

Date: August 19 and 20. 2023
Weather: Sunny blue sky with a few white clouds, 98.6°F
Destination: Schluderns

So... that took a while.

Well, after the little break at Altfinstermünz we drove on, crossing the Italian border into Südtirol and soon after we arrived at out destination: 

The Südtiroler Ritterspiele, held near the little village called Schluderns. 

Same like last year I went there with my good friend who celebrates her birthday there. 

As it was already late afternoon, we set up the cars and her tent for the night and then just had a litte short stroll over the fare. ... Did I get my roof tent? No. 

And I'm kinda glad I did not. (More on that later.) I slept sweet and sound in the back of my car, woke up relaxed and prepared breakfast and after some time a litte, 

sad, shivering zombie arrived at my car. My friend had a downright horrible night in her tent. Cold, damp, many noises from the outside... she was NOT happy. 

I managed to lighten her up substantially with coffee, tea, orange juice and a hearty breakfast, and even happier when I offered her to sleep the next night in my car and I do a little "tent time". 

We spent an amazing day at the fare, checking out all the booths and tasting lots of tasty treats.

So there came my night in the tent... and it was really bad. As hot the days as cold the nights in those mountain valleys. 

It was really cold, really damp and yes... you could hear even the faintest sound from outside. 

So that brings me to a little interlude as it gave me some thought on my the "roof tent" plans.

I don't think you could ever achieve the "in car" level of comfort with a roof tent. It's warm, dry, quiet and for anybody that cares: save. 

Sure. I can eliminate the cold, uneven and damp ground due to the fact that I would have the tent on the roof of my car... BUT I could not eliminate the cold air and the noises. 

And thinking further: Next time there might be a thunderstorm, heavy rain and wind or even a hailstorm. All quite common in those parts. Inside my car I simply don't care about that. 

Outside, in a roof tent... I doubt I'd have such a great time. So my new plan is to get some extra storage space on my roof and transform my back seat row to be completely removable, 

which would give me all the space I need to quickly set up a comfy and spacious sleeping space. Any thoughts? Am I overcritical towards the roof tent now? Please let me know.

But back to the "Ritterspiele". 

Breakfast cheered me right up and seeing my friend happy and relaxed after a good night's rest in my car made me very happy. 

We spent the next hours shopping for some souvenirs and enjoyed more delicious food. Nearing afternoon we decided to pack up and drive back to Munich. 

It was a great time, fantastic weather, friendly, helpful people all around, amazing food and really nice things to shop for. 

We made a litte stop at Haidersee, enjoyed the view and ... back to Munich it was.

So let's see if a actually manage to do the car modifications this winter.

Have a great time all of you!

Gabriel

[rockbrain]

Beautiful shots as always. A lot of armor and weapons around. Did the participants do battle?

[liveoak]

Worth the wait Gabriel, and it's most obvious, you just need a van !
Tom & I camped in our van for many years- heater in the winter, air con in the summer- most comfortable.

Tom built a removable king size bed in it.
Ours was a large Ford E350, but even a mini van would work.

We thought about a roof tent once - only problem is that if you want to explore an area while camping,
you have to pack it up every day to use the car - too annoying.
The van lets you pull up, climb in the back & relax ! Highly recommend.

Looks like the festival was fun - thanks for sharing.
Patty

[jasoninsd]

Gabriel, thank you once again!

I would have been in 7th heaven being there. What a blast!!

[Gabriel_GER]

Sept 28, 2023 18:24:42 GMT -5 rockbrain said:

Beautiful shots as always. A lot of armor and weapons around. Did the participants do battle?

Hell yes!

There actually was a full contact Buhurt Europe-Cup held at the fare. Was al lot of fun!

[Gabriel_GER]

Sept 28, 2023 21:23:53 GMT -5 liveoak said:

Worth the wait Gabriel, and it's most obvious, you just need a van !
Tom & I camped in our van for many years- heater in the winter, air con in the summer- most comfortable.

Tom built a removable king size bed in it.
Ours was a large Ford E350, but even a mini van would work.

We thought about a roof tent once - only problem is that if you want to explore an area while camping,
you have to pack it up every day to use the car - too annoying.
The van lets you pull up, climb in the back & relax ! Highly recommend.

Looks like the festival was fun - thanks for sharing.
Patty

Thanks for the feedback!

I drive an Opel Combo D (4th. gen.) which would qualify as a mini van. Looking to get that converted to having all the "back space" nice even, flat and free. So when I want to "bed ready" the car I would just trow down a fitting topper, sheet, pillow and bed covers... done. All packed away nicely in my roof storage.

[Gabriel_GER]

Sept 29, 2023 21:26:23 GMT -5 jasoninsd said:

Gabriel, thank you once again!

I would have been in 7th heaven being there. What a blast!!

Ah it quite was a blast.

Already looking forward to the next time.

[pebblesky]

What a beautiful day!

[liveoak]

Sept 30, 2023 14:42:24 GMT -5 Gabriel_GER said:

Thanks for the feedback!

I drive an Opel Combo D (4th. gen.) which would qualify as a mini van. Looking to get that converted to having all the "back space" nice even, flat and free. So when I want to "bed ready" the car I would just trow down a fitting topper, sheet, pillow and bed covers... done. All packed away nicely in my roof storage.

Gabriel, the trick is to built a platform in the back of your mini van.

Removable can be good.

Ours was just plywood that sat on 2X frame on walls.

But you likely have a nicer vehicle & probably wouldn't secure to wall- so you need legs.

Advantage of platform, is that you can store all your crap camping supplies underneath, 

either while you're sleeping OR when transporting other stuff.

You can do it, just a little carpentry.

You already have the mini-van !

Plenty of ideas out there :

mobiles-bett.de/en/opel-combo-d-en/

Get to work and report back already

Patty

[Gabriel_GER]

Oct 1, 2023 6:19:07 GMT -5 liveoak said:

Sept 30, 2023 14:42:24 GMT -5 Gabriel_GER said:

Thanks for the feedback!

I drive an Opel Combo D (4th. gen.) which would qualify as a mini van. Looking to get that converted to having all the "back space" nice even, flat and free. So when I want to "bed ready" the car I would just trow down a fitting topper, sheet, pillow and bed covers... done. All packed away nicely in my roof storage.

Gabriel, the trick is to built a platform in the back of your mini van.

Removable can be good.

Ours was just plywood that sat on 2X frame on walls.

But you likely have a nicer vehicle & probably wouldn't secure to wall- so you need legs.

Advantage of platform, is that you can store all your crap camping supplies underneath, 

either while you're sleeping OR when transporting other stuff.

You can do it, just a little carpentry.

You already have the mini-van !

Plenty of ideas out there :

mobiles-bett.de/en/opel-combo-d-en/

Get to work and report back already

Patty

YES! I shall! And thanks for the research!

[wargrafix]

Looks amazing! And that is one hell of a view. Thank you for sharing