Find your place in the track:
Depending on your skating abilities you should chose your place in the treck:
If you are a slow skater: Start at the front of the treck and fall behind gradually.
If you are a fast skater: Start at the end of the treck and catch up. But please respect
the safety of those whom you overtake.
Become visible:
If you intend to skate back home/to your hotel, residence or friends’ flat
from the “Munich Blade-Night”, then flashing lights are a good idea.
They promptly change your status from I-wear-the-Lord-of-the-Rings to lighthouse.
Food supply:
Most certainly you will not starve during the 1.5 - 2 hours of the “Munich Blade-Night”,
but you can refill all the calories you burnt during the work-out quickly at the
food booths in the event area afterwards.
Use public transportation:
It is very advisable and cheap to come to the starting area by public transportation
– if you
are not skating to it. Parking space is scarce close to the starting area.
But be aware: Skating is not allowed in the Munich public
transportation system. Please avoid embarrassing discussions with the public
transportation patrols and take an extra pair of shoes with you.
Don’t exaggerate:
If for any reason you feel that you cannot finish the Munich Bladenight, then stop.
Don’t force yourself to go on. Ask a bladeguard for assistance, how to come back to
the event area. Using the underground line to get back to your home/hotel/the starting
area is preferable,
because surface traffic might be blocked by the skater treck. Metro stations have widely
visible white U signs on blue ground. If you can't spot one, ask one of the bladeguards
or some friendly indigenous people for assistance.
Skate&Brake Check:
You are not sure, if you are skating well enough for the Munich-Bladenight? Come to
the Skate&Brake check in the starting area. Between 19:30 and 20:30 officially
licensed skate trainers check your skating&braking abilities. This service is free
of charge!
Blade Nights for children?:
Babys and small children:
I have seen some skaters pushing baby carriages or strollers
on the tour. It's not
explicitely forbidden, but in my personal view I have some doubts that this is really
fun for the little one. The absolute minimum should be to put a helmet on the head of
the passenger no matter if s/he is sleeping or not.
Don't underestimate the danger to overturn the vehicle. You might
severly injure your pretious one.
Kindergarten children (3-6):
For transport in carriages see above. To make them skating the whole track is nonsense,
in my humble opinion. Take them with you to the action areas in the event zone during
the Family Blade Nights, and be patient. They will detect this beautiful sport soon
enough.
School children (6-14):
My advice is to refrain from taking them with you during the night. Instead
feed them with the hope for a Family Blade Night, which are in fact are not during the
night, but in the afternoon. In 2008 there will be one probably on 12 of May (update/confirmation expected soon). If you are interested in the
happiness of your sprout, check in advance that your beloved is able and motivated
to skate for at least one hour without a break (this is
usually not the case for children younger than 10 years). Let him/her do the tour only
if this is the case. Otherwise you are doing your familial
relations no favour.
