It is bright blue and tropically warm as I type this blog. How different it was a couple of weeks ago during the Cyclingelfstedentocht? What should have been a folk festival for Friesland as of old, turned into pure drudgery for some 10,000 cyclists. The rain was pouring, the wind was blowing hard and it was barely 15 degrees. Of the 15,000 participants, some 3,000 already did not appear at the start. Another 2,000 dropped out en route due to hypothermia symptoms. And with that, it was according to the organisation 'One of the toughest Cyclingelfstedentocht ever'. The hell of '22: the Cyclingelfstedentocht through the eyes of Nynke Cuperus.
It is 4.15am when the alarm goes off at the campsite in Oudemirdum. It rained cats and dogs all night. As a precaution, my boyfriend and I parked our tent in the awning of my parents' caravan. And that's just as well. When I get out of the tent, I see that a mini pond has formed exactly where our tent was earlier. Then I think of the rainy days when I cycled to Groningen as a schoolgirl. I fought the wind for about 12 kilometres and came home soaked and frustrated. At the prospect of my day looking like this, but 235 kilometres long, my spirits do sink a bit.
Let's do it!
And yet we decide to go for it! After all, you don't earn an Elfsteden cross just like that. We get in the car and arrive around 05.30 - way too early - in Bolsward, where the start is. So we stay in the car and watch the other participants. It is a sad sight. They are soaked before they even get on their bikes. I check the weather apps on my phone dozens of times and have some good news: around 7 o'clock it seems to become dry and stay dry for the next few hours. How lucky we are that we only start at 6.52am!
Bolsward is still far...
Reasonably optimistic, we leave for the start. It is dry! Who knows, it might not be so bad today after all. But I shouldn't have said that; because even before the starting gun sounds, it bursts out and hardly stops raining for the rest of the day... After 18 kilometres we arrive in Harlingen. There, the first stamping post awaits us. "18 kilometres and soaked," I app to my cycling friends. "Bolsward - where the finish line is also - is still far..."
Hell of the north
After Harlingen, things are going better than expected. The 'Hell of the North' - as the stretch between Franeker and Bartlehiem is called - is our best friend today. Indeed, the strong wind blows us from town to town at lightning speed. Before we know it, we are in Dokkum and the head is off. Only 158 kilometres to go!
But anyone who has cycled, skated or in any way completed the Eleven Cities Tour before knows that it only really begins after a hundred kilometres. Today is no different. Indeed, from Dokkum to Leeuwarden and on to Bolsward, we face a strong headwind. My friend cycles on a mountain bike and catches a lot of wind. This makes it difficult for him to keep up with a group of cyclists. The pace we had earlier is now gone. Then it starts raining cats and dogs. The fun is now really over...
Long live bad weather!
So are there any benefits to such bad weather? Yes indeed! We noticed that in many cities, we only queued for a few minutes for a stamp. This is very different from 2018. Especially in Holwerd and Leeuwarden, we were waiting for almost an hour then. What a difference! The Cycling City Tour consists of two loops. Besides starting and finishing in Bolsward, you also pass through Bolsward after some 135 kilometres. And when we reach that point, there is unfortunately a long queue for the stamping post. Having had the hefty showers on our heads and a cold wind whipping past us, we are already soaked to the bone and cold. The minutes we spend standing in front of the stamping post afterwards are therefore 'killing'. We are shivering and barely get our wilted stamp card out of the bag. And we realise that if we don't warm up soon, it won't be wise to continue cycling. Fortunately, we get a hot soup after the stamping post. That does us good. We cycle briskly afterwards to warm up a bit. On to part two: the last 97 kilometres.
Hospitable Friesland
And those kilometres are really gruelling. Where the fun was already gone in Leeuwarden, it is now downright awful. But what is striking is the enthusiasm of the Frisians. There are flags and banners in every village and town. And it may be a handful of people - but in every village or town there are Frisians cheering us on. Some people are having drinks with the whole family in the barn, others are drinking beer under a party tent in the front yard or even standing under a 'pluut' by the side of the road. And don't forget all those volunteers repairing those bikes, directing traffic, handing out food and stamping. Unfortunately, it was impossible to take photos of them with so much rain and participants, but the enthusiasm and hospitality of the Frisians is SO much fun about this event.
Dry clothes and a hot snack
Another bright spot on this trip is the thought that after about 190 kilometres, dry clothes and warm food await us at the campsite in Oudemirdum. Chagrined and shivering, we rush into the caravan, where my mother already has dinner on the table. Wraps never tasted so good and dry clothes never were so nice. Ten minutes later, we leave the caravan again as quickly as we entered, but what a nice break this was! When we're on our bikes, I even get a tiny bit warm again. For as long as it lasts, because new showers soon erupt again.
Tranquillity along the IJsselmeer
A tough stretch still awaits us; for we get full headwind along the IJsselmeer. The conditions are so dramatic that our concern is not how fast we go, but how long we cycle. So we stick to a group that is not going too fast, but does catch the wind in front of us. And so we tick off the last towns. On to the finish!
One thing is certain; it will only get better
Cycling is great, as a cycling enthusiast you know that better than anyone. But let me be honest; plodding 235 kilometres in these conditions is not something you do for fun. When we arrive at the finish, we collect our cross as quickly as possible and jump in the car. Off to a hot shower, food and bed!
But after reading this blog, don't be put off. The Cycling City Tour is a fantastic event that is not about cycling as fast as possible, but about enjoyment. It will probably never be as bad as this edition and I am sure that the next edition will be a big party again with people barbecuing everywhere, milling bands and litres of beer. Will I see you at the start then?
