Spree driving

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17th Spree Street 2014 in Neu Zittau.
17th Spree Street 2014 in Neu Zittau.
17th Spree Street 2014 in Neu Zittau.

As Spree driving an annual event in the spring on the will Spree between Neu Zittau and Erkner referred reflecting a folk festival character has reached.

The Spree drifting was carried out for the first time in 1996. At first it always took place on the first weekend in April, but the Saturday of the Easter weekend quickly became the regular date . The train starts at lunchtime at the Spree bridge in Neu Zittau. In the center of the 50 to 200 participants who are in wetsuits venture into the cold Spree and move downstream direction Erkner. The drivers can use the Spree flow at two meters per second for most of the 4.8 kilometer stretch. However, the last 900 meters over the Dämeritzsee to the Erkner lido must be swum without a supporting current. They are accompanied by mostly colorfully decorated boats, rafts and other water-compatible structures and swimming aids, which brings together a colorful train. This impression is supported by the fact that many of the participants are in costumes. The speed at which the route, which is lined with up to 5000 spectators, is covered does not matter, there is no competition for leading positions or fast times on the way. The most famous participant was the former Brandenburg Minister Regine Hildebrandt .

In the Erkner lido, where further Easter celebrations including an Easter bonfire and fireworks are held until late at night , the participants receive a medal or a certificate for their participation, the guides of the most interesting companions receive a prize in the form of a small tree trunk with beaver tracks. The beaver is the mascot of the organization club, the diving club Biber Erkner, founded in 1999 . The fire brigades from Erkner, Grünheide , Woltersdorf and Schöneiche as well as the technical relief organization ensure safety on the route .

In 2010 the event was canceled because the organizing association was unable to organize an event of this size and also to absorb the dangers that it entails. In particular, the alcohol consumption of some of the participants, who ended up having to swim 900 meters across the Dämmeritzsee without a supporting current, caused problems. In 2013 the 16th Spree drift had to be shortened due to the weather conditions (water temperature of two and a half degrees).

Since 2002 there has been another Spree driving in Lübben , which is organized by the German Red Cross .

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