28th National Competition Youth and Mountains

Idrija hosted the 28th National Competition Youth and Mountains on Saturday, January 21, 2017, the most established mountaineering competition for young people testing knowledge, skills, and experiences from all areas and forms of mountaineering activities. In the oldest Slovenian mining town, the elementary school victory was celebrated by Obriti orli from Trzin, who left behind Mount M.U.N.T. from Črnuče and Pretkani gamse from Bled; in the high school category, the top three places were taken by local teams: Gorske zjale, Planinski muhi, and Dva strašna majstra.



Youth and Mountains, which is both a knowledge competition and a sports competition since mountaineering equally combines both elements, is intended for elementary school students from 6th to 9th grade; this year, a similar challenge for high school students was held for the second time. One of the most important competitions for popularizing mountaineering and respectful attitude towards nature is also an opportunity for socializing and getting to know young mountaineers from all over Slovenia, who already demonstrated a lot of knowledge at the regional competitions in November 2016 in Litija, Griže, and Črni vrh above Idrija. In the town of last year's winners, where the Saturday atmosphere was marked by enviable mountaineering knowledge and exuberant joy of 114 competitors, the 28th national MIG Idrija competition was organized by the Alpine Association of Slovenia, PZS Youth Commission, Planica Institute of Sport of RS, Mountaineering Association Idrija, and Idrija Elementary School.



In the spirit of mountaineering and connection, music and dance, the competitive wheel was set in motion with a cultural program by members of the youth section of PD Idrija and students of OŠ Idrija; the competitors were greeted by PD Idrija President Nace Breitenberger, Mayor of Idrija Municipality Bojan Sever, PZS President Bojan Rotovnik, Head of PZS Youth Commission Barbara Bajcer, Head of PD Idrija youth section Katarina Bončina, competition coordinator Brigita Čeh, and President of the Inter-Association Committee PD Posočje Gregor Rupnik; they were also visited by a surprise guest - mountain biker Tanja Žakelj.



Four-member elementary school teams and two-member high school teams started the competition in the morning with tests of mountaineering knowledge, which the youth acquired in mountaineering clubs and through mountaineering activities. Six best teams qualified for the final part of the national competition for elementary school, where in a quiz format they answered questions from Mountaineering School and additional material on the Idrija-Cerkno hills, use of defibrillator, and youth work in mountaineering organization, and also had to demonstrate practical knowledge from orientation, first aid, and general mountaineering.



21 teams competed for the title of national champions in the elementary school category, with the top six in a live final that was a tough knowledge challenge for all present. The final trials crowned Obriti orli (PD Onger Trzin, OŠ Trzin) as new national champions, Mount M.U.N.T. (OŠ Črnuče) took second place in the superfinal, and Pretkani gamsi (PD Bled, OŠ prof. dr. Josipa Plemlja Bled) third. Fourth place went to Slivniški svizci junior (PD and OŠ Slivnica pri Celju), fifth to Gorski petelini (PD and OŠ Tržič), and sixth to Nepredvidljivi (PD Dobrovlje-Braslovče, OŠ Braslovče).



Elementary school winners Maksi Pavšek, Tim Jovan, Brin Tomc, and Nejc Gerkšič, who formed the Obriti orli team, were extremely happy with the national champions title in Youth and Mountains, with which they surprised even themselves: "Last year we didn't even qualify for the national competition, so we are really surprised. Even our mentor wasn't fully convinced we could succeed, but now we proved we can win. Every year we go to mountaineering camp, every week we have a mountaineering club, our mentor also prepared materials for us. This year we prepared more and enriched the team with member Maksi, and team cohesion, good tactics, and luck helped us to victory." Their mentor Jaka Peternel was proud of his wards' success: "The children went on many mountaineering hikes, also to camp in summer and winter camping, to come into contact with nature and mountain environment and get a feel for movement in the mountains. They attend mountaineering club, we've been meeting weekly for three years, and now they've learned enough to know the most; good mood, hard work, and team were key to success, because without a team there's nothing."



At the second Youth and Mountains competition for high school students, 15 high school teams competed this year. The top six demonstrated knowledge of mountaineering equipment, first aid, and general mountaineering through more difficult practical tasks in a separate final. Once again, the locals from PD Idrija were unbeatable with the winning duo Gorske zjale, Planinskima muhama in second, and Dvema strašnima majstroma in third. Fourth place went to Trzin 1 team (PD Onger Trzin), fifth to Diagonalistoma (PD Idrija), and sixth to Loden 1 team (PD Domžale).



The high school accolades were the result of long-term work, as winners Klara Kavčič and Barbara Čibej, who named themselves Gorske zjale, were members of elementary school national champions last year and three years ago, and this time they also beat their former teammates: "We are not competitors with other participants, but friends, so we would wish victory to everyone. We also gather mountaineering knowledge together, we do a lot practically, so we did well on the practical tasks in the final - ice axe arrest, defibrillator resuscitation, and knots. The added value of the competition is that we learn for life and the knowledge will serve us well in the future," said the young mountaineers, who, like all other teams from PD Idrija, were trained under the watchful eye of mentor Nace Breitenberger, President of PD Idrija, who emphasized: "Key is constant and long-term work with young mountaineers, as all have been in mountaineering ranks for many years, both in the club and with their families. For me, the most important is the team spirit that this competition encourages, as per the good old mountaineering tradition, children collaborate - in pairs or quartets striving for the same goal, which is an investment for life."



The authors of the questions seeking useful mountaineering knowledge were PZS mountain guide Urška Trček and mountaineering education instructor Franc Kadiš. The best teams were awarded with a mountaineering camp at the Mountaineering Education Center Bavšica or weekend packages in various mountain huts, trophies and medals, and all participants with practical prizes. The victory in the art-literary competition titled Škrat Perkmandelc enchants a better world went to the team Zobl, zobl pa lük from Ljutomer.