The 2017 Lagler Fly & Sand in Germany has come & gone but here are some great photographic memories I took for you to enjoy thru the lens of my Canon 1DX camera.....so I hope you enjoy!
I would personally like to thank Lagler of Germany, Palo Duro of Denver, CO, Karl Lagler, Marc Schulz, Jeff Fairbanks, the NWFA, as well as all the other hardwood flooring "professionals" who were present on this once in a lifetime trip to Germany! Most of us never even met or even knew each other before this great trip ever took place. But now we feel like we've known each other for a lifetime! I am truly blessed to have experienced this & bonded with you guys (& girls)....next stop TAMPA!!!
Once we arrived in Frankfurt, Germany we then met up with Marc Schulz of Lagler Germany & Jeff Fairbanks from Palo Duro in Denver, CO where we were all introduced to one other. Myself coming from New York & my partner from South Florida, we had an opportunity to meet some other great guys & gals from all parts of the country such as California, New Mexico, Delaware, Arizona, Missouri, Colorado & Central Florida.
Our 5 day trip started out with some sightseeing on a tour at the Heidelberg Castle. The castle was built in 1214 & today is still one of the most popular visited spots in all of Germany. Following the tour we then visited the Town Square where we got a chance to shop while enjoying some local cuisine & German beer! Since it was our first night there Marc & Jeff decided to keep it simple & "chauffeur" us to the local restaurant since there is no Uber in Germany! Rather than a DeLorean producing 1.21 gigawatts @ 88mph, these two used their Mercedes for time travel which felt like 188mph....man was that fast!
Day 2 started for me waking up early at our hotel, the Gastehaus Kraft Hotel in Lauffen, & enjoying a breathtaking walk of their winery while enjoying some local coffee & a Cuban Cohiba cigar! The group then traveled to Stuttgart to visit the Mercedes Benz Museum which documents 120 years of motorsport along with a brief stop at the Porsche Museum. The evening followed with an amazing dinner at a winery in Leingarten.
Day 3 featured an in depth tour of Lagler's plant in Guglingen. It was founded in 1956 by Eugen Lagler & currently employs a number of highly trained workers. Eugen's son, Karl Lagler was along with us sharing the history of the Hummel & how it came to be what it is today! But be careful, Karl himself is not at all fond of being in pictures! After the guided tour of the factory, Marc then went over some common maintenance issues for the Hummel, Trio, Flip & Single Buffer.
On day 4 we hit the classroom for some instruction with the afternoon then focusing on some hands-on learning. I decided to put my camera away on this day! We all had an opportunity to try many of Lagler's machines & sanded a floor from start to finish. In our group we also discussed many things & all completed our Premium Sanding Training (PST) with our signed certificates & little "Golden Hummels!" This was our final evening which again included a group dinner, this time into the town of Bietigheim. Our dinner was then followed by a walking tour of this historic town whilst some of us, including myself, sipping out of a two & a half liter souvenir growler! Our night concluded with a trip to the local bar where we listened to music, talked, played darts, shot pool & of course what other than endless drinks & shots! Most of us like myself ended up walking back to the hotel where some "claimed" to find the LOBA bird....but most of us aren't so sure!!!!!