Landlord underestimates Guiching's maypole thieves

Created: 04/12/2022, 21:00

By: Hanna von Prittwitz

A proud and successful crowd: the Guiching Maypole Thieves with their 30 meter long tree from Sendling.

© Roland Schrafstetter

The tree had just been taken out of the forest.

This is probably why the innkeeper at the Augustiner in Sendling let his guard down a bit: the Guiching maypole thieves stole the maypole early on Monday morning.

Gilching

- "You have your insiders there," reveals Klaus Schmitt from the Guiching Maypole Thieves.

In any case, maypole boss Michael Fenz knew very early on about the maypole in the Augustiner Schützengarten in Sendling, which was only brought to the beer garden on Sunday.

So quickly no one could see how the barrel was stolen.

On the night of Monday, around 1 a.m., the Guiching maypole thieves moved out with vehicles and tractors in the direction of Sendling.

"A few of us had spied on the situation beforehand," reveals Schmitt.

During a visit to the large beer garden, the 30 meter long tree between two taverns was noticed.

"We then entered the beer garden from two sides," reports Schmitt.

It took around 40 men to put the murder tree on a trailer, before the thieves had to carry it about 400 meters out of the garden.

"We had to get there quite a bit." Only the cook and the landlord were in the building.

"But they didn't get out." In that case it would have worked out if one of them had put their hand on the tree.

"Then the tree would have stayed." But as it was, we headed home to Gilching, secured by two emergency vehicles from the Gilching volunteer fire brigade, which had been waiting in a side street.

At home, the thieves brought the tree to safety.

Schmitt didn't want to reveal exactly where, of course.

Around three or four o'clock the thieves were back in their beds.

Since May 1 is not far off and the innkeeper still wants to prepare his tree for the big festival, six maypole thieves started negotiations on Monday.

"We agreed on beer and snacks for everyone," says Schmitt.

The tree will be returned this week.

"Because of the overlap with Easter, the party for the release will not take place until mid-May," reveals Schmitt.

And admits that a deal with an innkeeper is of course particularly interesting.

Because in such a large inn as the Augustiner Schützengarten in Zielstattstraße 6 - the beer garden holds around 3000 people - there is probably not much haggling over every beer when the release is officially handed over.

The landlord did not expect that the maypole thieves would strike on the first night and was surprised.

The Guiching Maibaum Thieves are a loose association.

"We're not a club," says Schmitt.

"But when a tree goes, word gets around quickly, and a lot of people always come together and do it." And are happy about the replacement party.

Since the Gilchinger are of course also putting up a tree this year (we reported), a security team is also required there these days.

Exactly where the tree is guarded is of course also a secret.