August 20, 2009 09:49 by
Seth
Ahhhh Switzerland. My home away from home. I always forget how amazing the Alps are in summertime.
Pulling away from the Zurich airport I got my little Citroen rental up to speed and pretty much kept it there everywhere I went during a busy four days. Driving in Europe has always been one of my favorite parts of life on the road.
My first task was to find my way to Braunwald, check out the Glarnerland valley and find my friend Martin Babler. When I was more or less at the turnoff from the highway to Glarus I stopped at the Glarnerland Raststadt for a severe jet lag nap. Two hours later I awoke in my driver’s seat and wandered inside to enjoy the unbelievable highway food stop cuisine that the Swiss provide in abundance. A fresh blueberry shake and my first favorite Swiss salami sando of the trip and I was back on my way exploring the narrow little country roads of the Glarnerland. Now when I say narrow, it feels crowded on the street when a motorcycle approaches, and at times you have to straight-up stop for things larger then a VW. But when the streets are all yours at night it reminds me of the driving scenes from A Clockwork Orange (minus the ultra violence of course) and they are so much fun.
So with the Braunwald Bahnhof located I cruised halfway back to the little village of Mollis and awaited a call from Martin who was in an afternoon meeting. I parked in a lot with a beautiful mountain view to read A Champions Mind by Pete Sampras. Below me the local kinder practiced soccer. The Swiss trains flew by (no doubt on time). The cows rung their bells as they sampled the fine looking grass and Switzerland was in the process of being how it is - idyllic.
I got Martin's call and he sounded as though he hadn't spoken english since I saw him in Alaska last April. I struggled through some directions and eventually found him waving with a massive smile on the road side.
Being welcomed into the Babler family home was an experience in and of itself. Of the six kids (all grown) five are living at home and all I can say is the parents have reason to be proud. The oldest works as a helicopter pilot and paraglide instructor, the next is finishing studies to be a doctor, Martin is an award winning cinematographer, commercial producer and part time gymnast training the local kids, the next youngest is employed as a dancer by the ballet, next is a music composer who makes all the original scores for Martin's movies and doubles as a filmer as well, and the youngest is finishing her university studies. Wow.
After a traditional Swiss dinner lead we headed out to a local pub where I caught up with two old friends from Glarus who are retired world cuppers. The next morning we had a wonderful breakfast and made the drive to catch the train up the mountain to Braunwald and the Kessler factory, where I would get to work designing the boards that I’ll ride all the way to Vancouver…