Customs Folkloristic showdown at the Bollenwees mountain lodge in Appenzell
At the Bollenwees mountain inn near Brülisau, Appenzell Innerrhoden, locals and guests competed in stone throwing at the traditional "Bollenwees-Stobete" on Monday. The winner of the Unspunnen Festival also took part.
29.07.2024, 22:41
SDA
One of the highlights of the two-day event at 1471 meters above sea level on Monday was a stone throwing competition for everyone.
In the "Bollewöffe", men and women competed in the old alpine dairy tradition of hurling a 20-kilogram stone from the adjacent Fählensee lake as far as possible through the air. There were no restrictions on throwing technique.
Dairy competition returns
The "Bollenwees-Stobete" takes place at the end of July. The focus is on folklore with yodelling, string music, traditional costumes and dancing. According to the organizers, the Appenzell tradition can be experienced "unadorned and up close".
"Alpstobete" have long since developed into a cultural asset in the Appenzell region and are based on the herdsmen visiting each other in their parlors during the alpine summer. The sporting part of these festivals, such as stone throwing or wrestling, fell into oblivion over time, but has been revived in recent years.
On Monday, Urs Hutmacher was one of the 70 or so stone throwers who took part. At last year's Unspunnen Festival near Interlaken, he pushed the 83.5-kilogram boulder to a record height of 3.98 meters.
At 20 kilograms, the comparatively light stone on the Bollenwees was thrown by the man from the Zurich Oberland over seven meters. This meant he was as good as certain of his third consecutive victory on the Appenzeller Alp on Monday evening before the final round.
