The devil in person: Krampustreiben in Seefeld

For all (lucky) people who have never met the Krampus and do not know him: The Krampus is a centuries-old custom from the Alpine region. He is the companion of St. Nicholas and is supposed to punish the bad children as a scary adversary. He wears creepy skins, a scary larva (mask) and always has a rod with him, by which one would rather not be caught. With his hideous appearance he reminds of the devil. The custom of the Krampus belongs to the Advent customs and varies throughout the Alpine region. In our region it begins at the end of November and lasts until St. Nicholas Day.

"I remember my first Krampustag like I do today," Danny tells me. "I was 4 years old at the time." And while all the other 4-year-olds wet their pants at the sight of the Krampus, Danny was completely fascinated. Love at first sight, so to speak... with the Krampus. Immediately after the first Krampus run, Danny set about making his own robe, out of papier-mâché and with a rubber mask. "It didn't look that professional yet," he recalls. "My aunt from Carinthia sewed a coat together for me. It was supposed to be black, but ended up being blue. A funny Krampus, but that was just my first Krampus fur," he laughs. At the age of 6, he ran along for the first time and has remained faithful to the custom to this day. "All the other kids saved up for cell phones and toys, I put every shilling aside so that one day I could buy my first own wooden mask." At age 9, that finally happened. "I had it in bed with me for weeks because I had such a joy with it". A few years later then followed the own fur and for 12 years Danny is now already Obmann deputy of the Pfaffenhofer Tuifl.

The Pfaffenhofer Tuifl are a particularly tradition-conscious Krampus club, who put a lot of passion and work into their masks and disguises. The larvae are always made of wood and equipped with horns, the skins must be real. The special thing: there are new Krampus figures every year. While the chairman carves the larvae, the Krampuses painstakingly make many of the robes themselves. This handiwork pays off - even if I prefer not to meet the Krampus, I admire the elaborate dresses and masks. Here is a small selection of the Pfaffenhofer Tuifl from the years 2010 to 2018 (Attention, not for the faint of heart...):

Danny started the Krampustreiben in Seefeld more than 10 years ago. "I always wanted to have a run in Seefeld that shows the custom as it has always been." The Krampustreiben is thus a run with a lot of tradition and customs, as it used to be. Shows, artificial staging and alcohol at the Krampussen before the run are an absolute no-go. "We only invite groups that we know personally and with whom we are friends." Even those who fear the Krampus should not miss it. "The kids should still be a bit scared of the Krampus from the end of November," Danny gives me at the end. "When the parents say, 'Watch what you're doing, or the Krampus will take you away!', the kids should be a little scared, just like we used to be." Therefore, the Krampustreiben is certainly not for the faint of heart (like mine...) and fearful minds should rather admire the spectacle from the third row. We are happy to revive customs with events like the Krampustreiben every year and to maintain time-honored traditions from the region.