With the help of the new link between Zürs and Stuben/Rauz, skiers can easily reach all resorts at the Arlberg on skis. That will make the Arlberg skiing area the largest contiguous skiing area in Austria!

Skiing on the Arlberg will then be even more fun! The new cableway link on the Vorarlberg side of the Arlberg, between Zürs and Stuben/Rauz, as well as the new cableways to be constructed in 2016 – the Trittkopfbahn I and II and Albonabahn II cableways – involving a total investment of EUR 45 million, are closing the loop. From Zürs, Trittkopfbahn I leads to the new intermediate station, from where skiers may either continue to the new top station of Trittkopfbahn II or use the new Flexenbahn to carry on to Alpe Rauz in Stuben. From here, the other new cableway, Albonabahn II, will invite skiers to continue to Stuben. In addition, skiers starting out from Alpe Rauz can conveniently explore the St. Christoph and St. Anton skiing areas. This means that all resorts of the Arlberg skiing area – St. Anton and St. Christoph, Stuben, Zürs, Lech, Oberlech as well as Schröcken and Warth – will be easily and comfortably accessible on skis. With the new cableway link, skiers on the Arlberg – Austria’s largest contiguous skiing area – will have easy access to a total of 305 km of downhill slopes and 87 lifts and cableways. This guarantees an incredible dimension of skiing fun!

The new Flexenbahn will be operated by Flexenbahn GmbH, which is owned by Stubner Fremdenverkehrs-GmbH and Ski Zürs AG in equal share. The new cableway is a single circulating cable system with 47 cabins for 10 persons each. This means that, with a travel time of about 6 minutes, the cableway can transport up to 2,400 persons per hour. The Flexenbahn runs high above the Flexenpass road, covering a distance of almost 1.8 kilometres and an altitude difference of over 562 metres. Each of the comfortably fitted out cabins has large panorama panes, offering an unobstructed view into the Klostertal valley and towards the Arlberg pass / St. Christoph – a breathtaking landscape.

The new Flexenbahn is not only a great asset for skiers, the environment also benefits from many advantages. Because when the new cableway opens, the number of daily bus trips between Zürs and Stuben/Alpe Rauz via the Flexengallery will be reduced by 120. In addition, the amenity of the resorts will be improved as fewer cars will come directly to the villages. Furthermore, the time needed to travel will be reduced, depending on the route of travel, so that each individual skier will make a contribution to environmental protection.

The whole construction project, including all new cableways, was planned in great detail and with the utmost care; in the first stage, the new cableway for the practice run in Zürs was built in the summer of 2015. This will be followed by the construction of Trittkopfbahn I and II in Zürs and the new Albonabahn II in Stuben/Rauz. The new Flexenbahn will be created in the same phase, but no new pistes. In this way the natural beauty of the landscape will be preserved.

The mountain world of the Arlberg is unique, and has been fascinating people for centuries. But it is also rough, and life up there between the imposing mountain peaks has always demanded courage, innovative strength and a sense of community. Well-endowed with these qualities, the people at the Arlberg have always seized opportunities and made use of the possibilities offered to them by the mountains. It is no surprise then that the Arlberg has been home to many skiing pioneers and famous skiing stars since the 19th century. Together, they made the Arlberg skiing region the “cradle of alpine skiing” and laid the foundations for a successful future.

At the turn of the previous century, when skiers conquered all areas of the Arlberg and people were gripped by skiing fever, it came to pass that six friends formed the world’s first skiing club at the Hospiz Hotel in St. Christoph. The history of the formation of Ski Club Arlberg started when six skiing enthusiasts talked about the ski tours organised by Viktor Sohm. He was a pioneer who ran the first ski course in Zürs am Arlberg in 1906. One of those he instructed in skiing was a boy from Stuben am Arlberg, who later became a very big skiing star – Hannes Schneider, at his time “Europe’s fastest skier”, and who revolutionised skiing with his world-famous Arlberg technique and even made skiing suitable for filming. This is how Hannes Schneider acquired worldwide fame, starring in numerous skiing films. Another brave pioneer was Pastor Müller from Warth. Around 1894, he was one of the first skiers, practicing secretly under the cover of darkness for fear of being ridiculed during his first attempts at mastering the Nordic boards, in order to help him cover the distance across the Auenfeld to Lech. Many skiing stars followed in the footsteps of this – and numerous other – pioneers, one of them being Egon Zimmermann. In 1962 he became World Champion in the giant slalom, and two years later won Olympic Gold in downhill skiing. Like the recently very successful international ski racer, Mario Matt, Egon Zimmermann is a member of Ski Club Arlberg. Mario Matt has 14 World Cup Race victories and two World Champion titles in slalom to his name, and completed his tally with an Olympic Gold medal in 2014.

The list of other pioneers and ski stars at the Arlberg is long, their contributions and capabilities are manifold, and their stories unique. However, all these people have one thing in common: a love of skiing and a love of the Arlberg. Together they have made the Arlberg into a legend known all over the world. Together, they have written history. With the opening of the new Flexenbahn cableway, and hence the option of easily exploring the entire Arlberg on skis, the time is right to write new history – with old and new skiing stars. In their honour, a new spectacular skiing run – the “Run of Fame” – will be created following the link between Zürs and Stuben/Rauz in addition to the already popular and legendary skiing runs and downhill pistes in the Arlberg skiing area, such as “The White Ring” in Lech Zürs, the “Tannberg Ring” in Warth-Schröcken and the longest downhill piste at the Arlberg, in St. Anton, named “The White Thrill”!

The “Run of Fame” boosts the skiing experience to a maximum of 65 downhill skiing kilometres and an incredible altitude difference of 18,000 metres. The skiing run leads across the Arlberg and through the entire Arlberg skiing area. It covers the entire dimension of the now fully connected skiing area – from Warth in the north via Lech Zürs with the new Flexenbahn to St. Anton/Rendl in the south – the entire Arlberg skiing area will be covered. An average skier will need almost a full day to cover the entire run via the Arlberg, from Warth to St. Anton/Rendl and back again. Skiers can enter the “Run of Fame” at almost any point in the skiing area; the necessary information will be displayed at appropriate points along the “Run of Fame”. The logo of the skiing run will accompany skiers on their tour, as do the “Run of Fame” stars, the stars in honour of the Arlberg skiing stars. This makes the new skiing run into an unforgettable experience between the altitudes of 1,500 m (Warth-Steffisalpbahn cableway) and 2,645 m (St. Anton/Rendl-Rifflbahn II cableway).

With the opening of the “Run of Fame” ski run, history at the Arlberg will be continued in the true sense of the meaning – inspired by the famous film by Hannes Schneider, “The White Thrill”, Ski Arlberg is organising an annual “Hunt of Fame”. As in the film, an accomplished and known skier will act as the fox in this modern “fox hunt”. With a real fox tail tied to him, this skier will be pursued by many “hunters” drawn by lots. The person who succeeds in discovering the fox and wrenching the fox tail from him can retain the valuable golden fox tail and, in addition, will acquire eternal fame; the name of the winner of the “Hunt of Fame” will be entered on the “Hunt of Fame” board at the intermediate station of the two Trittkopfbahn cableways!