Zesdaagse van Amsterdam

trg said:

How is it organized? What are the different events? As someone who hasn't
attended a track event before, I don't know what to expect. Where is a good
place to watch from http://www.zesdaagse.nl/plattegrond.php ? According to
the site, I should buy my tickets soon.

No need to buy tickets in advance unless you want a seat (also, booking in
advance is a little cheaper). There's plenty of opportunity to enjoy the
racing from the infield or the top of the track, although I think a
grandstand seat might be quite a relaxed point of view ('Tribune A' is
next to the finish line and first to sell out). If you don't have a car or
take a cab, be prepared to take at least 1h from Amsterdam central station
to the track ('Wielerbaan Sloten'😉 by public transport (tram). That
includes a 15' walk from the tram stop to the venue.

The programme is really simple. Every evening starts at 19:20 with a
points race and has a madison ("koppelkoers", the basis of a sixday) at
some time. Racing ends at about 12 or 1 am. There's a show (music,
singing, local artists; order 2 beers and some bratwurst to survive) at
quarter past 9, and/or around midnight. The events:

Puntenkoers = points race
Ploegafvalling = miss and out for teams
Derny = behind the moped
Afvalling = miss and out
Tijdrit = fastest lap
Koppeltijdrit = TTT (with 2)
'GP Jan Derksen' = flying 200m (tournament)
Koppelkoers = madison
Supersprint = some fancy event, order two more beers
Keirin cup, Scratch = id.

(miss and out = last one across the line is out).

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Ewoud Dronkert said:

Supersprint = some fancy event, order two more beers

How many beers have you had before you order these two (watch out or M.
Cousineau will expand the livedrunk campaign to include kaaskoppen).

Ewoud Dronkert wrote:
There's a show (music,

Quoted message said:

singing, local artists; order 2 beers and some bratwurst to survive) at
quarter past 9, and/or around midnight.

Please allow me to indulge my nostalgia for our '02 trip to Amsterdam
by asking "what brand(s) of beer would you suggest?"

Van Gogh, Rijks museum during the day? --TP

Quoted message said:

Please allow me to indulge my nostalgia for our '02 trip to Amsterdam
by asking "what brand(s) of beer would you suggest?"

I'm afraid the choice will be rather limited, like at all events. Probably
Amstel pilsner in (large) plastic cups.

Quoted message said:

Van Gogh, Rijks museum during the day? --TP

Well, being a Parisian, trg is rather spoiled by the Louvre and such in
Gay Paris, I guess. Ask Kveck what a tourist trap he thinks Amsterdam is.

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"Ewoud Dronkert" <[email hidden]> a écrit dans le message de
news: [email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

Please allow me to indulge my nostalgia for our '02 trip to Amsterdam
by asking "what brand(s) of beer would you suggest?"

I'm afraid the choice will be rather limited, like at all events. Probably
Amstel pilsner in (large) plastic cups.

Quoted message said:

Van Gogh, Rijks museum during the day? --TP

Well, being a Parisian, trg is rather spoiled by the Louvre and such in
Gay Paris, I guess. Ask Kveck what a tourist trap he thinks Amsterdam is.

--

I've probably seen most of the touristy things in Amsterdam already (it is
after all only 69 euros r/t on the Thalys). I really haven't spent much time
in the city center since my first visit or two. I've usually just hung out
with friends who (used to) live there. I know it sounds funny, coming from
Paris, but I really enjoy the food there (And before you say it, it's not
'cause I'm caned all the time)

trg said:

I've probably seen most of the touristy things in Amsterdam already (it is
after all only 69 euros r/t on the Thalys).

Allow me to bait howls of "OT, take it to email willya" by relating: We
made it to the Louvre from Hotel Nicolo, and there was *no line*
waiting to get in. Stupid ("that would be me"😉 wanted to go to Musee
d'Orsay, so we walked over, huge line (child in stroller limits time
available to wait in line). So (you know what's next), back over to the
Louvre, now complete with huge line.

Next time, no kids. We did other things. Amsterdam was easy by
comparison.

I always "enjoy" the stereotyping ("rude", other) I see regarding
Paris/"the French" because I saw very, very little of it; far less than
one might encounter in say, Chicago. --TP

In article <[email hidden]>,

Ewoud Dronkert said:

On 28 Jul 2005 08:09:08 -0700, [email hidden] wrote:

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

Van Gogh, Rijks museum during the day? --TP

Well, being a Parisian, trg is rather spoiled by the Louvre and such in
Gay Paris, I guess. Ask Kveck what a tourist trap he thinks Amsterdam is.

You know, for the fairly short time I was there, I thought Utrecht was a
lot more fun than Amsterdam. The next time I go to Amsterdam, I will try to
get a lot further around the city. I sort of limited myself by staying
close to the city center, and there were tourists and tourist related stuff
all over. Prices seemed to be aimed at that, too. I wonder if that might
also be a function of the time of year I was there (early July). The
Louvre is a great museum, but I liked the Rijksmuseum more. At least I
liked the stuff they had there. They weren't called the Dutch Masters for
nothing...

--
tanx,
Howard

Butter is love.

remove YOUR SHOES to reply, ok?

Howard Kveck said:

They weren't called the Dutch Masters for nothing...

Is that a golf, or tennis tournament?

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In article <[email hidden]>,

Ewoud Dronkert said:

Howard Kveck said:

They weren't called the Dutch Masters for nothing...

Is that a golf, or tennis tournament?

Oui.

--
tanx,
Howard

Butter is love.

remove YOUR SHOES to reply, ok?

I see that the events go until 2 am most nights, but the trams and buses
stop around midnight (other than the night bus, but that's not too
practical).

We'll probably be staying in de Pipj, so it's probably a bit far to walk (7
or 8 km I guess). Do you have any suggestions about how to get back
afterwards? Do they usually have special bus service after the events? I was
thinking of renting some bikes. Does that seem like a good idea as a means
of transportation? Should I have worries about leaving the bikes outside?

Thanks,

-Tom

trg said:

I see that the events go until 2 am most nights, but the trams and buses
stop around midnight (other than the night bus, but that's not too
practical).

We'll probably be staying in de Pijp, so it's probably a bit far to walk (7
or 8 km I guess). Do you have any suggestions about how to get back
afterwards? Do they usually have special bus service after the events? I was
thinking of renting some bikes. Does that seem like a good idea as a means
of transportation? Should I have worries about leaving the bikes outside?

Bikes are fine, especially rentals will have a decent lock and they'll be
safe inbetween the hundred(s) other bikes outside. Bring a recent map tho,
those new development areas (like where the velodrome is near) can be a
bit tricky to navigate. Same goes for the walk from nearest bus stop to
venue; a [censored] if you don't know the general direction.

Most convenient and safest option (also in view of the traditional
refreshments) would be taxi cab. A ride into town after 12 would be, what,
7.50 euro? Or am I being naive? I hardly ever take a taxi, and I don't
live in Amsterdam.

Grandstand tickets for the final two nights are fairly quick to sell out.
But "walkaround" tickets are always available and fine too, IMO. And
cheaper.

--
E. Dronkert

"Ewoud Dronkert" <[email hidden]> a écrit dans le message de
news: [email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

trg said:

I see that the events go until 2 am most nights, but the trams and buses
stop around midnight (other than the night bus, but that's not too
practical).

We'll probably be staying in de Pijp, so it's probably a bit far to walk
(7
or 8 km I guess). Do you have any suggestions about how to get back
afterwards? Do they usually have special bus service after the events? I
was
thinking of renting some bikes. Does that seem like a good idea as a
means
of transportation? Should I have worries about leaving the bikes outside?

Bikes are fine, especially rentals will have a decent lock and they'll be
safe inbetween the hundred(s) other bikes outside. Bring a recent map tho,
those new development areas (like where the velodrome is near) can be a
bit tricky to navigate. Same goes for the walk from nearest bus stop to
venue; a [censored] if you don't know the general direction.

Most convenient and safest option (also in view of the traditional
refreshments) would be taxi cab. A ride into town after 12 would be, what,
7.50 euro? Or am I being naive? I hardly ever take a taxi, and I don't
live in Amsterdam.

Grandstand tickets for the final two nights are fairly quick to sell out.
But "walkaround" tickets are always available and fine too, IMO. And
cheaper.

--

Thanks for the response.

I would think that when the event ends, there will be a huge line for cabs.
Plus, I had a bad experience in a cab in Amsterdam the one time I took one.

I had considered the problem of biking in a city after being traditionally
refreshed, but we're all veterans in that area (and have the scars to prove
it🙂

trg said:

Plus, I had a bad experience in a cab in Amsterdam the one time I took one.

You mean Kunich can add being a cab driver in Amsterdam to his list of
jobs ?

"Donald Munro" <[email hidden]> a écrit dans le message de news:
[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

trg said:

Plus, I had a bad experience in a cab in Amsterdam the one time I took
one.

You mean Kunich can add being a cab driver in Amsterdam to his list of
jobs ?

Well, the cabbie didn't do much. It was more the 3 guys who decided that
pulling out the passenger who had just gotten in (yours truly) and taking
the cab would be faster than waiting in the long line with everyone else.

BTW, apparently, it's not that easy to pull someone out of a cab. Especially
if you try to grab him by the legs, which are in the process of kicking very
hard in a motion not unlike riding a bike 😉

trg said:

Well, the cabbie didn't do much. It was more [...]

The velodrome is not in the centre of town and although the crowd may be
slightly intoxicated with the fantastic atmosphere and schlager singing
(among other things), they're still a cycling crowd.

--
E. Dronkert

trg said:

Quoted message said:

Well, the cabbie didn't do much. It was more [...]

Ewoud Dronkert said:

The velodrome is not in the centre of town and although the crowd may be
slightly intoxicated with the fantastic atmosphere and schlager singing
(among other things), they're still a cycling crowd.

Unless Carney and Nothstein both want the same taxi.

"Ewoud Dronkert" <[email hidden]> a écrit dans le message de
news: [email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

trg said:

I see that the events go until 2 am most nights, but the trams and buses
stop around midnight (other than the night bus, but that's not too
practical).

Bikes are fine, especially rentals will have a decent lock and they'll be
safe inbetween the hundred(s) other bikes outside. Bring a recent map tho,
those new development areas (like where the velodrome is near) can be a
bit tricky to navigate. Same goes for the walk from nearest bus stop to
venue; a [censored] if you don't know the general direction.

There were almost no bikes at the event (except on the track 🙂. Maybe 5 or
6 in total, and we had 3 of those! It was a good 30 minute ride (in the rain
at times) to the velodrome from downtown, and much of the crowd looked more
likely to sit on a derny saddle than a bike saddle. Peter Beense performed
one night, and I don't think he came on a bike, either !

trg said:

There were almost no bikes at the event (except on the track 🙂. Maybe
5 or 6 in total, and we had 3 of those!

Ah too bad. I thought I saw a lot of parked bikes last time.

Quoted message said:

It was a good 30 minute ride (in the rain

There you go 🙂

What'd you think of the event? Entertaining? Long? Too much distractions?
I thought it was great to be able to get right on top of the track in the
bends and look down on the action. Frighteningly steep! (hey I'd never
been to the track before). A shame one couldn't get quite as close as that
on the infield, because of all the hospitality booths. I guess I need
better connections, or throw more money at it.

--
E. Dronkert

I thought it was great. Also my first live track event. The skill of the
riders was amazing, swooping down from high on the wall 3 or 4 at a time, at
a substantial speed differential, to perfect handslings time after time.
I'd love to go a few laps to see what it's like riding on the track. I'd
skip the 6 minute dueling trackstands I saw during one "race".

I was in the stands, I wouldn't want to watch it from the floor, since you
don't get a good view even from the booths. And in fact most of the folks in
the hospitality booths weren't paying much attention to the racing.

The food there was pretty [censored] (and too expensive). We brought our own the
second night we went.

Other than the gas fumes (need better ventilation), my friend's favorite
event was the Derny. Do you know how which derny driver gets teamed up with
which rider? There was one driver who was about twice the side of all the
others and other than the time he was driver for Max Van Heeswick, he (and
his rider) won every race they were in. His strategy was to stay at or near
the last position, conserving energy until a few laps before the end and
then give it all, pass the rest of the field and win going away.

"Ewoud Dronkert" <[email hidden]> a écrit dans le message de
news: [email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

trg said:

There were almost no bikes at the event (except on the track 🙂. Maybe
5 or 6 in total, and we had 3 of those!

Ah too bad. I thought I saw a lot of parked bikes last time.

Quoted message said:

It was a good 30 minute ride (in the rain

There you go 🙂

What'd you think of the event? Entertaining? Long? Too much distractions?
I thought it was great to be able to get right on top of the track in the
bends and look down on the action. Frighteningly steep! (hey I'd never
been to the track before). A shame one couldn't get quite as close as that
on the infield, because of all the hospitality booths. I guess I need
better connections, or throw more money at it.

--
E. Dronkert