German term
nicht zur Zitterpartie werden soll
Beheizbare Unterwäsche für kalte Ansitznächte
Besonders in der kalten Jahreszeit ist richtige Ausrüstung unverzichtbar, wenn die Jagd nicht zur Zitterpartie werden soll.
Is this: dass niemand vor Kälte zittern soll? Is this being used in a double sense, i.e. to shiver with cold 2. To be afraid of the cold? (vor etw. Zittern). The normal meaning of Zitterpartie, nail-biting event would not seem to apply here.
Nov 17, 2009 16:46: writeaway changed "Field" from "Other" to "Marketing"
Non-PRO (1): writeaway
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Proposed translations
Greenland
Will work for blubber
Native in: English 
Works in: German to English, French to English, Danish to English
stay warm and toasty
Underscore positive aspects, not negative ones -- that's one of the first rules of translating German marketing texts.
In English-language advertising, we would turn this idea around -- that's right, 180 degrees -- and focus on what makes outdoor activities (hunting, in this case) more enjoyable. Instead of saying "wear this or you'll freeze (and feel miserable)" my gut instinct as an experienced translator of marketing texts would be to say, "wear this to stay warm and toasty" while you're out hunting.
Your translation might look like this:
"Especially during the cold time of the year, having the right gear is essential to staying warm (and enjoying yourself) while hunting."
As I've indicated with the parentheses, the "and enjoying yourself" bit is optional. It would be roughly the opposite of what is normally meant by "Zitterpartie", so it's justified by the German original, IMO. You could always replace it with "and toasty", as suggested in the target term line, which would probably sound more natural anyway -- and keep the focus on the warmth of the underwear.
Granted, the German text is really cute in the way that it plays around with the shaking/shivering theme of "zittern" and "Zitterpartie" -- but all that cuteness is lost in translation here -- and it has its limits. By that I mean that the message between the lines is "You probably know from experience how miserable and cold you can get hunting in a cold blind, right? Who in their right mind would do that (without our underwear)?"
It reminds me of an old ad aimed at automotive design engineers:
"Sie wissen sicherlich am besten, daß zu spät entdeckte Fehler richtig Geld kosten."
In other words, "you've made so many mistakes, you must know how costly that can be."
No comment.
Forget the German text. Go for the message behind the text. Remember, we want to sell this amazing underwear to people, not convince any fence-sitters that hunting is actually an exercise in self-torture!
End of rant. Now, if you'll excuse me, it's time for me to turn up the heat! Baby, it's cold outside! ;-)
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conny
: wunderbar
11 hrs
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danke!
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British Diana
: You don't mean it's cold outside, you mean you're warm and toasty inside // Although , who are we to deny those prone to "germanische Todessehnsucht" their perverse fun (Zitterpartie)and anyway, who relocated to the arctic circle in the first place?
21 hrs
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Touché, Diana! ;-)) / Bbbbrilliant! I hadn't considered the "Todessehnsuch" aspect. Maybe I'm barking up the wrong tree (that is, if we had trees up here).
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Lancashireman
: Yarp. Accentuate the positive.
2 days 21 hrs
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... and don't dwell on the negative. Actually, I may have sold myself on this underwear. Why turn up the heat when you can merely flick a switch on your thermal long johns?
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sylvie malich (X)
: excuse me? beheizbare unterwäsche? Like an electric blanket? Either you're packing a generator on your back or the extension cord is loooong! // I know that, Paul. Sheesh, lighten up, will ya?// Wait! rechargeable? See generator comment above!
6 days
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You can leave the extension cord at home the next time you go hunting. These long johns work with rechargeable batteries! See: http://www.jagen.warmx.de // Har har! But wait a minute, wouldn't a loud generator scare off the game??
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shivering session
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Kim Metzger
24 mins
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Thanks, Kim
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Annett Kottek (X)
: Or maybe ‘if the hunt is not to descend/deteriorate into a shivering contest'? ‘Party’ sounds like the writer is thinking of a group of men/(women?) hunting together.
1 hr
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Thanks, Annett. Contest would do fine, too, if with "-partie"a group is meant.
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Anne-Marie Grant (X)
: I like Annett's suggestion too
5 hrs
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Thank you, Anne-Marie
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Germany
Publication-ready translations
Native in: German 
, English
Works in: English to German, Hebrew to German, French to German, and 1 more.
so as not to catch a cold while hunting
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Kim Metzger
: No, I'd say it's a matter of freezing.
23 mins
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Right. Apparently, the pun is not as obvious as I thought it would be.
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Germany
Par Excellence Translations
Native in: English (Variant: British)
Works in: German to English, French to English, Italian to English, and 3 more.
to avoid getting the shivers
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Note added at 16 mins (2009-11-17 15:48:49 GMT)
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or
"to ward off the shivers while hunting"
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Jutta Scherer
: great solution!
4 mins
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Thanks!
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roneill
13 mins
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Thanks!
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jccantrell
: Yeah, you don't want to get the shakes {shivers} while hunting.
20 mins
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Thanks!
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Jutta Wappel
47 mins
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Thanks!
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Rolf Keiser
2 hrs
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Thanks!
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Thayenga
6 days
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Thanks!
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United States
20 years of experience, certified, ATA
Native in: English (Variant: US)
Works in: German to English, Russian to English, English
to keep your teeth from chattering like castanets...
I would go with some simile like this, maybe you can link it to your context...
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Annett Kottek (X)
: I also like this. You don’t want to scare off the game with your chattering teeth!
39 mins
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Another good one I saw in google was: "teeth chattering like a machine gun" - you definitely wouldn't want that for the hunt, but for some reason I thought the client probably wouldn't want that either...
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Helen Shiner
: I like the machine gun option!
1 hr
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:-)
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Discussion