FreestyleXtreme Magazine Issue 7 | Page 34

© NAIM CHIDIAC/RED BULL CONTENT POOL

Gone
Walkabout
with Steve Sommerfeld
Looking for
a new home!
It’s hard enough moving house in your
own country, but to move abroad is
definitely a noodle-scratcher in terms
of planning, costs and what you hope
to get out of it. After spending last year
in Europe on an extended working
holiday; living out of a suitcase in the
trusty ‘Danke Danke Bus’ (96’ VW
Transporter Van) and the spare room at
our friends Soeren and Steffi’s place in
Berlin, we tried to convince ourselves
we weren’t officially living in Europe.
A year on, and it’s finally time to admit
that we are actually living in Europe
an d now in need of somewhere more
permanent to live! With that settled,
we went straight back to Australia for
a holiday!

spent our first few weeks back home
being tourist guides, and with crocodile
encounters, kangaroos, koalas, wild
dolphins and rally driving through the
bush, we really tried to give them the
full ‘Aussie Outback Experience’. It was
awesome for me too, as I actually got
to see Australia from a tourist’s point of
view. One of the best days for me was
meeting up with my best friend I grew
up with, Nathan Connors, for a spot of
clay pigeon shooting. It was the first
time for all of us, and damn we had
some fun with the shotguns, pistols
and .308! I think I had the best ratio
of 6 from 7, however Soeren definitely
looked the best holding a gun haha.

Moving to our new home –
Rödental, Germany

After one year in Europe, we finally flew
back to Oz for a five week holiday to
see friends and family. As our house
in Brisbane was still being rented out,
we went to my mum’s home on the
old family farm. February’s the hottest
month of the year back home. It’s funny
to think, only a few days earlier we
were in snowy Austria and now it’s 35
degrees Celsius with 99% humidity welcome home! So first things first; a
dip in the pool with a Bundy Rum!

In no time at all, the five weeks were
up, and it was time to pack our bags
and head back to Europe. In my head,
I knew I was going to move back for
at least a year, maybe two… heck
maybe three or four, but at this stage
we still didn’t have anywhere to live!
Our options were to live in Berlin where
I could ride with Kai Haase or rent
an apartment from the now retired
German FMX rider, Fabian Bauersachs
in a small village in the middle of
Germany called Rödental. After a bit of
indecision we decided to jump in and
go with the small village idea! I have
always thought how cool it would be
to live in rural Germany. The apartment
Rödental, North Bavaria looks out onto
a huge old castle and Fabian’s ramps
and MX track are only two minutes up
the road!

For the first 3 weeks our friends Soeren
and Steffi from NOTJ would be coming
down-under for a holiday and staying
with us on the farm. This meant we

The seed was sown, and we were
moving to Rödental! But first it was
time for Night of the Jumps and I was
in need of a new visa!

© NAIM CHIDIAC/RED BULL CONTENT POOL

Back to my hometown! – Tiaro,
Australia

34 | FreestyleXtreme.com