Markus Reiterberger is really tearing it up at the Schleizer Dreieck. The IDM Superbike leader from Team BCC-alpha-Van Zon-BMW not only left the competition trailing by several tenths of a second in free practice, but also treated his fan club to plenty of drinks. The Bavarian from Obing drove the 7.5-ton truck loaded with the precious cargo to the racetrack himself.
Markus Reiterberger holds the track record at the Schleizer Dreieck. It’s his favorite track, as he himself says. He loves Buchhübel, Seng, and the whole atmosphere surrounding them. Fifty members of the “1st Official Markus Reiterberger Fan Club” followed him to Thuringia. The Stein Brewery loaded the 7.5-ton truck with beverages. The fact that the shipment arrived intact borders on a miracle. Reiti recounts: “We had two flat tires along the way. About 120 km before Schleiz, the inner tube of the dual tire blew out. I called roadside assistance, but they couldn’t help us. Using a repurposed pipe extension from my father, we managed to mount a spare tire ourselves. Fifty kilometers further on, the next tire blew out. We really had to get creative. Since we wouldn’t have gotten anything for the old beauty, we chugged along very slowly to Schleiz. My mechanic has since found a replacement, and a new tire will be mounted on the truck by Monday.”
Now the three-time IDM champion has finally arrived at his “green living room” and is slowly relaxing. “I was really stressed out leading up to this,” he admits. “There was so much to organize—we have tons of guests and a merch stand. The preparations were extremely demanding. I’m glad that I can now hop on my prepped bike and just ride off, and that everything went so well right away in free practice. The BMW is already in brutally good shape.”