The Bergwacht Benediktbeuern has had a new management duo for two months: Manuel Guglhör and Magnus Bierling are in charge of the standby team.
In addition to the operations, the focus is on the new construction of the depot.
Benediktbeuern
- On-call manager Manuel Guglhör (34) and his deputy Magnus Bierling (36) succeeded Markus Schambeck (50) and Christian Kellner (55) in April.
You had led the Benediktbeuern mountain rescue service for almost 20 years.
Guglhör grew up in Benediktbeuern and now works as a development manager for mechanical engineering in Geretsried. The father of the family lives in the village with his wife and two children and joined the mountain rescue service at the age of 16. There he worked as a youth leader, as a summer / winter trainer and as an air rescue trainer. “I appreciate the shared experience at the mountain rescue service,” says the 34-year-old. The passionate ski racer was also part of the cross-country skiing team of the Bavarian Ski Association in earlier years.
Bierling grew up in Seehausen on the Staffelsee and therefore knows the mountains in Werdenfels and the Ammergau Alps very well.
His résumé is unusual: Bierling spent four years in the navy with the training ship Gorch Fock at sea.
Today the 36-year-old lives in Bad Heilbrunn with his wife and four children.
Bierling is a trained cook, now works as a chemical laboratory assistant at Roche in Penzberg and is currently further qualifying as a biotechnologist.
He joined the mountain rescue service at the age of 24 and was the operations manager.
Large area of application
What Guglhör and Bierling have in common is not only the friendship they have developed through their families, but also the “cool camaraderie” at the mountain rescue service. "With people from all age groups and professions, the mountain rescue service is a cross-section of society," say the two of them. They all have one thing in common: volunteering in their free time to help others.
The operational area of the Benediktbeuern mountain rescue service stretches from the Bad Heilbrunn climbing garden over the Benediktenwand to the Pessenbacher Höhe and includes not only the mountains but also the Loisach-Kochelsee Moor. In the east and south it borders directly on the areas of responsibility of the mountain rescue services of Bad Tölz, Lenggries, Penzberg and Kochel. The two new leaders assure that there is no competition. "On the contrary, we often cooperate closely with the neighboring mountain rescue services from the Hochland region," says Guglhör. Each organization brings its particular local knowledge of the terrain and also its special equipment, such as the Penzberg readiness, a powerful drone for search missions.
In the Benediktbeurer operational area there are no mountain railways and therefore hardly any poorly equipped half-shoe tourists.
Anyone who gets into an emergency situation there has actually not done anything wrong, just simply had bad luck.
Challenge: Depot has to be enlarged
What work do you particularly remember in recent years?
“That was a lengthy night search in the pouring rain in the area of the Probstenwand,” recalls Guglhör.
Together with the Lenggries mountain rescue service, an elderly hiker who was in need of health problems was rescued after an extensive search and made it to the Tutzinger hut in the arduous transport on a prone basis, where "a great hut host" took care of the completely soaked and exhausted rescue team at his own expense in the morning at 5 o'clock.
And what is your greatest challenge in the near future?
For Guglhör and Bierling the answer is clear: "The renovation and expansion of our mountain rescue station on Windpässelweg." The construction project will not only be delayed because of the current construction crisis.
"There is also a large funding gap that we can only close with donations."
However, it is gratifying that many people are interested in the mountain rescue service.
There are currently 49 active people, including 14 young people aged 16 and over, who are doing their training.
Four new contenders have just recently joined the team.
(Rainer Bannier)
Bad Tölz newsletter:
Everything from your region! Our brand new Bad Tölz newsletter informs you regularly about all the important stories from the Bad Tölz region - including all the news about the corona crisis in your community. Sign up here.