GstaadLife

A bizarre scene awaited us last weekend at the Arnensee. The water level of the Arnensee is at an unprecedented low right now, some six meters below normal. This has forced Romande Energie to stop using water for energy production. It's still a magnificent place to go to, hike around and enjoy a picnic or some delicious trout at the restaurant, even if the muddy exposed lake-bed does stink a bit. One thing though: if the energy companies can't do hydro because water levels are too low, the Swiss have just canceled nuclear, and planning permissions for wind farms are perentially rejected, just how do the Swiss think all their future energy needs are going to be served?!

Good news for horse back riders - the Gruben-Saali winter riding path has been open since January 1 2011.  Let's hope we get a bit more snow to keep it that way.

Temperatures were just above 0 but that did not stop 92 participants from taking up the challenge of the steep road to Arnensee last weekend October 17. The fastest of them, Martin von Känel (Reichenbach) (above) did the 7km, 397m climb in 37 minutes and 6 seconds.

Did you know that there are 18 public places where you can barbecue in Gstaad-Saanenland? They are run by Gstaad Saanenland Tourismus, don't cost anything, and you do not have to sign up for them in advance. You just have to be the first there. So pack your Bratwurst and head out to one of these beautiful spots: GL.com recommends the ones around Arnensee and Lauenensee.

Way back when we began this website, GL.com would spend quite a lot of time reporting the exploits of the Gstaad Automobile Club. There were two Transafricaine rallies from Paris to Dakar, another trans-asian one for charity from St Petersburg to Beijing, a day of classic endurance racing at the Nürburgring, a day of classic formula one in Monaco, a couple of local rallies in collaboration with the Gstaad Yacht Club, a couple of winter driving courses, and more than a few fun cocktail evenings. During this time GAC has evolved, not so much in member numbers -- the club remains strictly invitation-only -- but more in terms of its place on the local car scene, with December 2007 seeing the opening of a new clubhouse in Feutersoey. This summer there has been another big step for GAC with the formalization of its modern endurance racing team. Sure there were always a few club members such as Stanislas de Sadeleer and Karim Ojjeh (pictured center above) who were regulars on the grand European circuits, racing everything from classic Formula 1 to the modern prototype endurance racing of the Le Mans Series (pictured below).

But this year the prototypers got serious...with a brand new car and team setup, the addition of professional driver Phillip Peter (pictured left above), results that see them doing fantastically in the standings for a rookie team, and a shiny new website to keep up with the all the action.

The site is great, chock full of background info, race stats, exclusive photos and video, and, our personal favorite, the journal-style cockpit accounts of the races like this one from Karim Ojjeh. The Gstaad Auto Club endurance team's next race is the big one, the 24 Heures du Mans from June 13-14, and you can follow all the action on Eurosport, MotorsTV and of course at www.gac-racingteam.com.

Top: From left to right, Phillip Peter, Karim Ojjeh, and Claude-Yves Gosselin contemplate a day's racing at this year's LM P2 season-opener in Barcelona.

2nd and 3rd from top: the GAC team's Zytek 07S car, unveiled to the public at a cocktail in Feutersoey just before Christmas 2008.

The Gastroführer guide-bleu.ch includes 2500 restaurant tips, detailed evaluation of restaurants, shopping tips for gourmets and a listing of 'Spitzenköchen' (superior chefs). In this year's edition Gstaad-Saanenland is mentioned 25 times.

It is up to the businesses themselves to decide whether they want to be included in the guide or not. If they do, they have to pay a fee (SFr 450) which buys them the privilege of a surprise visit by an anonymous person.

Saanen hospital is to be renovated and from December 2009 will offer general surgery, internal medicine and, once again, gynocology/obstetrics.

Following the recent decision not to build a hospital in Saanenmöser (see No new hospital in Saanenmöser) but to instead continue operating two hospitals in both Saanen and Zweisimmen as health centers, there remained question about where acute care would take place. Well, now the decision has been made and we are very happy to announce that Saanen hospital has been deemed the best location for general surgery, internal medicine and gynocology/obstetrics. Details of the new facilities will be announced by the end of January 2009 and it is planned to have everything up and running by December 2009. Zweisimmen will be turned into a health center for the elderly.

Back in August, some boffins from Crewe UK spent a day in Gstaad. Their mission was to approve the certification of Auto Mark Gstaad carroserie as an official Bentley repair center for body and paintwork. As our GL.com Bentley drivers are well aware, a ding to the coachwork previously required a schlep down to Geneva or Zurich for repairs in order not to void the warranty. And while Pichler in Feutersoey remains the region's only official venue to actually purchase and service a Bentley, it's nice to know that when those 560 horses get away from you on the ice and snow, that there's someone local who can make it all right again.

Previously: In the GstaadLife Garage: Bentley Continental GT