Rules of TRAMPRENNEN

Respect and Tolerance

Rule number one – not only when hitchhiking – is to treat other human beings with respect and tolerance. We do not tolerate any discriminating statements or other actions in reference to skin-color, sexuality, origin or gender against anyone. We say NO to racism, sexism, xeno- and homophobia! Please make sure everyone agrees to this!

Not acting in accordance to the above is the only way to get disqualified from Tramprennen as a whole.

Code of conduct

Since it exists, Tramprennen has had no major accidents, nobody got mugged or hurt. Knock on wood. To keep it that way:

  • remember it is all for fun and only fun, even if it’s a race! Please be aware of that!
  • never hitch a dodgy car or with a driver you don’t trust. Not even if you are hungry, thirsty or stressed!
  • always stay with your hitchmate(s) and never split your team during the race. Hitchhiking in two different cars is not allowed, even if the drivers know each other.

Trust your gut instinct and your experience!

The entire idea of Tramprennen is based on honesty and honesty alone. Fair-play is at the heart of the concept of Tramprennen. Thus please always follow these few fair-play rules of Tramprennen:

  • hitchhiking means rides for free, so never pay for one! If desperate, you may obviously pay to reach your destination, but be honest to the other teams and renounce to get points for this stage.
  • no active search for lifts before the start of the next stage. If you get offered a lift by coincidence before the start, that’s fair game and you may accept it. It boils down to this: No active hitchhiking on a day off!
  • Be honest. No Cheating! It never happened in the past, but we want to remind you, that the whole concept of the race is based on trust.

The Hitchhiking’s etiquette is courtesy towards the drivers and a general fair-play rule, even more during the race.

It happens a lot, that teams are waiting at the same hitchhiking spot and need to share the same petrol station for example. Etiquette grants the initial right to ask drivers or to pick the spot of choice to the team that first arrived. If the place is big enough, split it up into equal and fair parts, so both teams can move on.


 Don’t forget also to grant the same rights to other hitchhikers, even if they don’t do the same in return! In the past, the teams always worked out compromises – it’s up to you to live the fair spirit!

Read more about the etiquette on Hitchwiki

The way Tramprennen works

This years startingpoints are not chosen yet.

A Tramprennen-team consists of 2-3 people and has to be a mixed-gender group.

This means:
A team must not consist of people who all share the same gender-identity.

If you have questions about this or if it is not possible for you to join Tramprennen in a gender-mixed team, please contact us! Together we will find a solution.

As in previous years we will have different routes, but like last year we will only publish the different regions the teams might visit this year. Everything else will be published at the start. We want to let chance play a big roll. After all, this is what hitchhiking is about: having a great time and experiencing a load of crazy coincidences on the road- no matter which road exactly! 

Some things can be assured: all routes will meet another route at some point during the race, all routes go through both, little villages and big cities.

  1. Starting:
    It is recommended that every team starts the stages at the same time from the same spot. It is up to the route group as a whole however, to decide exactly how you want to proceed.
  2. Means of transportation
    You are allowed to use public transport within cities. Regional transport is strictly off limits though, obviously! You are allowed to use any vehicle you want, as long as you are hitchhiking.
  3. Remain a team
    The teams have to hitchhike together everytime, it’s forbidden to split-up, even if the drivers know each other. One Exception: The teams with 3 participants can start with 2, if one person comes later or has to leave the race earlier. The one-female-and-one-male-per-team rule still remains.
  4. Reaching destination
    At the destination of the stage you have to find and reach the specified spot and take a picture with your arrival time on a cardboard.
  1. Points distribution
    After every stage the teams receive points based on their arrival times that day. The first team receives 20 points. The point distribution down to twelfth place is thereupon as follows: 17, 14, 12, 10, 8, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1. The ranking only goes down to the number of teams on the least full route.
  2. Simultaneous arrival
    In the case two teams arrive at the exact same time, both are awarded the same ranking and the next following rank is skipped.
  3. Extra-point
    Teams can receive extra-point for special actions on the road. More information will follow at the starting points.
  4. Fairplaypoints
    You can also give Fairplaypoints to other teams which were pretty nice to you.
  1. Days off
    There is a day off after each stage to relax, wait for slow hitchhikers or explore the landscape and culture (i.e. usually the route group stays in a destination city for two nights).
  2. Buffer days
    Additionally to the days off, there are two buffer days the route is free to use before the final stage to take an extra day off or to organize an extra racing stage (no extra points are awarded in this case). Once again, the route group needs to make a decision on when and how to use the buffer days. Each route has to use the two buffer days and no more, so that all teams meet together on the same day after the final stage.

Anyone above 18 years old is encouraged to take part in Tramprennen, whether one is an experienced hitchhiker or a hitchhiking-virgin ;)