I’ve just recently confirmed arrangements to move from south-east England (UK), where I grew up, across to Germany at the end of February 2015
I’ll be moving in with my other half (who grew up in Hamburg), in Luebeck (or Stockelsdorf to be precise).
Feeling pretty good about this with all the deutsche dominating most of the age groups across tri at the moment and a few pro’s not doing too bad.
However, I don’t know much about the area or really know anyone. Any ST’ers in the area?
I know that there is a 50m pool nearby and a running track, but would be good to get to know people, find out the best places to ride/ run and find some decent groups to train with and where the best bike workshops are…
It’s not the best timing at the end of Feb, so close to the beginning of the season, so I’m hoping for a seamless transition!
I used to live down the other end, outside Munich (much better imho ;-)). The sports facilities in Germany are generally much better than the UK; pools are often 50m too. The one thing Germans don’t seem to be big into like in the UK, is lane swimming. My local pools (50 & 25) in Erding never had lane sessions, only the occasional ‘sportliche schwimmer’ lane - which I would bunk off work to co-incide with. That said, a bigger city like Lübeck might have a few more options. My favourite time to swim in Summer was when it was raining hard - as I’d often have an outdoor 50m pool to myself at lunchtime.
The roads, you’ll love those; much better than the UK as they’re designed to withstand the winter. One other tip would be to have a look at the Toytown Germany website and the Forum for that area; it’s for English speakers, and I met up with a few expats from various places in Munich through that. That said, with a German GF you’re more likely to go native; whereas I’m married to a Brit and was working in a multinational environment.
I live(d) in the south of Germany as well so I can’t guarantee it is the same in the North, but the club and racing scenes are great in Germany. Would make sure to join the one recommended by Jorgan or any other you might find. Similar to the club football league system there is a set of triathlon leagues throughout Germany and in Baden-Württemberg that included a first, second and third league plus separate ones for seniors (40+), women and youth respectively. The racing is usually draft-legal and as part of the season series there was usually a TTT race plus an ITT. Doing the league races is of course not mandatory, but is great fun.
Even if you choose not to participate in the racing the training possibilities look promising. I see on the website that they offer year-round swimming, a weekly ride in the summer, mountain biking (presumably also in the winter), weekly track workout year-round plus a weekly brick workout in the summer.
I have lived in various places throughout Germany (although never in Hamburg), and find the triathlon / endurance sport scene to be very good and quite competitive. Echoing the others, find a local club to train with. This serves at least two useful purposes. First, they usually offer a structured training schedule. Second, it can be a great way to meet new people.
As far as Hamburg is concerned, it is a great city! The roads and bike paths tend to be good for riding. Open water swimming opportunities are also pretty good (though usually a little cold). The only thing really missing are hills for running and biking, but I am sure the locals know of an incline or two.
Finally, how is your German? Obviously, one can get by without knowing much, but the interaction with others is different ( but not necessarily in a bad way). And if you do know some German, then you will pick up the local dialect pretty quickly (especially if your partner is from there).
If you have other questions, feel free to ask.
Ciao
